HouseCall: After Dinner Snacking, Stressed, Achalasia, Eyelashes Falling Out, Antibiotic Regimen, Shaky Muscles, Rebuild Body
Welcome back to our weekend Cabral HouseCall shows!
This is where we answer our community’s wellness, weight loss, and anti-aging questions to help people get back on track!
Check out today’s questions:
Eliana: Hi, I am addicted to your podcasts! They have taught me so much. My question today is about the timing of carbs. It makes sense to me that with my goal of getting lean, it would be best to eat my carbs earlier in the day and none at night (after 3?). I heard your episode about meal-type/timing and do eat liquid breakfasts, and have begun to have my carbs at lunch. I have begun cutting carbs out of my dinner and mostly have greens and fish, sometimes lentil soup. I eat a very healthy diet based on Mediterranean practice. I do sometimes have a snack after dinner which is usually a rice cake with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter or something with dark chocolate. Do you agree with cutting out these carbs at night, and do you have any other ideas for me to get lean, as I already eat well and exercise frequently (lift 3-4x’s per week and throw in cardio around that). Thanks!!
Julie: Hi Dr. Cabral, some years back I was diagnosed with PCOS (but no insulin resistance) after coming off the pill that was prescribed to me due to my bad acne when I was 15 years old. My doctor put me on the pill again until I had enough of taking synthetic hormones. I stopped taking the pill about three years ago altogether. I have always been very slim but about two years ago started to put on fat on my legs (+cellulite) and arms and just some around my belly. Also my skin has never been really clear. I suffer from acne mainly on my cheeks and upper back and shoulders. I am also prone to rosacea. I also noticed that hair growth increased on my legs and to some extend in my face. I have been taking vitex which brought me a regular period but I stopped taking it (June 2017) after my Naturopath told me that I should not take it long-term. I still get my period but my cycle is ranging from 35 to 61 days. I was trying to heal my gut with primal dieting, but felt awful due to histamine reactions. In August last year, I tried to heal my gut once again with the “gut thrive in 5 programs” which I did great on. I did not lose any weight though, but my sugar cravings are gone, I seem to have a higher threshold for histamine-containing products and I have regular bowel movements. Unfortunately, I still worked out even though my muscles were fatigued most of the time. I had the same issue when I was cutting out carbs on the primal diet. I now know that I was stressing out my body, and increased my carb intake dramatically. My carbs are mainly coming from sweet potato, pumpkin, some fruit (no citrus fruit), legumes, oats, and occasionally from quinoa or wild rice. I also cut back on my workouts and focused on destressing, doing walks, Yin yoga (and some vinyasa classes if my body could handle them as my muscle fatigue was extreme at some points). I feel way better with an increased carb intake and have a lot more energy. My muscle fatigue is now completely gone and I started to incorporate about 2, 20 to 30 minutes runs into my week. I also do some more vinyasa classes now and I feel fine. Still do Yin Yoga, am on a 55 days meditation streak and started to take Rhodiola in the morning, which seems to help with energy and recovery and I think I am on a good way to get my period regular this time. I also started to look more into Ayurveda in order to tame my skin, as it still is inflamed most of the time and to better look after myself according to my body type. About two years ago I saw an Ayurvedic doctor in Germany, but she wasn’t sure if I was a Pitta-Kapha or Tridosha. If I do online test, I always get Tridosha. However, I am focusing on a Pitta pacifying diet (but eat no dairy at all and just occasionally some eggs and salmon) at the moment and have the feeling that it helps with the inflammation on my skin. What still really bothers me is the fat around my legs and that I seem to not lose any weight regardless of what I am doing as well as the hair on my face. I am eating well (all very nutritious and organic food) as well as not too little or too much food. I am worried that I damaged my metabolism because thanks to your interview at the Melissa Ambrosini show I know now that cutting out carbs lowers your T3. Am I on the right track and just need to give my body more time to heal? Or could there be any other possible explanation? Some more information: An extensive hormonal test was done at the endocrinologist in Germany in 2015 (6 months after I stopped taking pill) and in 2016 (1,5 years after taking the pill). All has been fine according to my doctor. I had also an ACTH test performed since 17-OHP was slightly elevated with 1,38, but it came back normal. From 2015 to 2016 my T3 level dropped from 3.2 to 2.3, which I am not sure if is concerning. I could not find a normal range for the DHEA-S level. Mine seems pretty high with 311 (in 2015) and 362 (in 2016), but I am not entirely sure. I am 28 years old (as I know it matters when it comes to DHEA). I could not have a test done in 2017 so I don’t know where my hormones are at at the moment.
Jocelyn: Hello, I recently heard you on a podcast and what you practice. I am 25 years old and suffering from the after effects of diagnosed achalasia. I have frequent heartburn and stomach inflammation. I have suffered from many cases after a heller myotomy with hyponatremia. I am hoping to come here for help because my doctors don’t have any root cause answers. how can I set up a consultation with you?
Jen: Hi Dr. Cabral, I have three questions today: 1) As I’ve gotten into my 40’s, I noticed my eyelashes and eyebrows have gotten lighter and I have a hard time growing my eyebrow hair out. I’ve also always noticed that my hair grows incredibly slow. Do you know why this is and what I can do to grow out my hair faster as well as my eyelashes/brows? 2) If I have to do a round of antibiotics, is there a protocol for ensuring that I don’t get candida, UTI, or a yeast infection, as a result? Is there a natural anti-biotic that I can take in place of Antibiotics for a sinus infection, such as Silver? 3) Can you recommend a protocol or supplements to improve my memory, as I’ve noticed lately that I have a hard time remember (short term). Sometimes I think it’s due to stress or overwhelm, but I’d like to know what you recommend to improve this. PS, Please, please, please tell me when your new book is coming out? Thanks for all you do- Jen
Josh: Dr. Cabral. I️ was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain spotted fever in 2015. I️ took doxycycline and was later cleared of any other co-infections. But since then health has not gone back to where it was. I️ suffer from fatigue weak and shacky muscles almost tremors and poor blood work. Any suggestions. Thanks for the work you do
Jodie: Hello, I am 28 years old I wasn’t having menstrual cycles for 4-5 years since 2013. So many possible causes: rapid weight loss I dropped 2 stone in my final year at university and maintained that for a year and then I started exercising heavily and became orthorexic- choosing to only eat foods that were considered healthy/ superfoods. My gut health has been so bad since this miserable period in my life. In 2016 I tried to eat more and gain weight to see if my cycle would return but had no luck, so my doctors told me I may suffer from infertility in the long run so I should consider trying for a baby if this is something I wanted. I was terrified of being infertile so I followed their advice and opted to try fertility treatment to fall pregnant. In August I fell pregnant. My pregnancy has been ok, I’ve had some skin issues (rashes and spots on my face and legs), water retention, brain fog, and extremely uncomfortable stomach issues ( gas, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea). I know I cannot do much in terms of rebalancing and detoxing during pregnancy but in 2 months’ time when my baby is here, I’d love to fix my health once and for all. I know this is a silly question, but where should I start and what can I do now to help reduce the symptoms? Kind regards, Jodie, UK
Thank you for tuning into today’s Cabral HouseCall and be sure to check back tomorrow where we answer more of our community’s questions!