Thank you for answering my question about undereating on keto in a recent episode. I wanted to follow up with you. Even though my question was quite vague in my personal details you still knocked it out of the park. Doc was right my protein was too low, my adrenals were stressed, and I had food allergies.

I’ve fixed up my diet and increased my protein and started taking supplements for adrenal support and wow what a difference. I know it will take some time as my body is still healing but I already feel so much better. I think I now know where it all went wrong. I started using an online keto calculator and it led me to make choices that weren’t right for me. I now test blood ketones as well as breath ketones with a Ketonix.

There is so much conflicting information about the keto diet out there I think people need to find a reliable source and stick to that. Steve Phinney as well as Jimmy Moore and Dr. Adam Nally are my heroes in this from now on.  I was on a keto group online and one woman asked if eating 800 calories a day was okay or not. People were congratulating her and told her to keep it up. Say what?

Thanks again for all your help and please know how important and wonderful you both are to us Ketonians! Keep up the great work!

I know you’ve talked before about pregnancy and that babies are born in a ketogenic state. I’ve got a question with a slightly different slant for you on this subject.

I had my first baby six years ago before I started eating low-carb. I had gestational diabetes during that pregnancy and I naturally started lowering my carbs to control my blood sugar. I was scolded at the time by my doctor and was told I can’t eat low-carb during pregnancy. I was sent to a nutrition class and told to eat my “healthy whole grains” in moderation.

Fast forward, I have been low-carb for the past 3 years and have been more ketogenic for about 2 years. My blood sugars have been improving over the past year and I am now below that pre-diabetic level. Now I am now 10 weeks pregnant with baby number two.

I know of plenty of anecdotal stories about heathy babies born to ketogenic moms and I would like to stay low-carb because I feel like whatever keeps me the healthiest will keep the baby the healthiest. And I know I am extremely carb sensitive and I’m afraid that if I start adding in carbs to around 50g, it will raise my blood sugars and probably push me into a gestational diabetes again.

So my question really centers around the health of my baby. I understand that babies born to women with gestational diabetes are more at risk for developing diabetes. Chris Kresser has mentioned that babies whose moms eat a ketogenic diet turn on the epigenetics to begin storing excess calories.

Obviously I want my baby to be as healthy as possible and don’t want to pass along all the struggles with weight and diabetes that I have had to deal with. So where does the happy medium lie?

Thank you for helping out this fellow Ketonian!

I’ve been on and off the keto train for a few years now. My problem is I have a hard time staying in ketosis for longer than a couple of weeks. I still have a few carbage loves that I can’t seem to shake. I get back into ketosis about 36-48 hours after falling out, but then only stay in it for a short time. Do I still get the positive effects of being in ketosis even if it is for a short time? Or have I never really switched over to becoming a fat burner? I love Keto Talk and listen to it every week. Thanks for all the info you provide!

I am a 250-pound female, overweight my whole life, 57 years old, and have finally had enough of it. I decided to go on a ketogenic diet one week ago and have already lost over 10 pounds. I feel good, have more energy, and experience mental clarity. I have read many books and feel like I know what I am doing, although I am still not in ketosis yet.

I have been taking the Pruvit product, KETO//OS, and the urine ketone sticks turn purple a couple of hours after drinking it—but it doesn’t last long. I am taking two servings a day, but I don’t understand the purpose of this product. I thought perhaps it would help me get into ketosis and stay there along with following a ketogenic diet, but that’s not happening. I am not eating more than 20g carbs a day.

Any advice or direction you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Several months back, I started the keto diet and my husband followed suit. He felt great for the first month and lost about 16 pounds. However, around week six, a big problem emerged for him. About 1-2 hours after eating, he would develop a severe upper abdominal pain that would last for at least two hours. The pain was in the center of his body around the diaphragm area. Sometimes the pain was so debilitating that he could barely move.

We took him to the doctor for a full workup. They ran a gallbladder sonogram and function test, a liver enzyme test, and a GI scope—all came back normal. Ultimately he had to stop keto. As soon as he did,  the pain left.  When he has subsequently had low-carb meals, the pain returned with a vengeance. Any ideas why eating keto seems to bring this on and how he could prevent it? He would love to resume eating this way again if he could figure out this problem.  Thanks so much!

First off let me say you guys and your show rock. You guys are really helping people and changing lives so thank you for that. I’ve been following keto for 7 months now eating 20g or less carbs a day and haven’t cheated once. I haven’t felt the need to because I’m loving it, it’s the best thing I’ve done for my health, and up until now I’ve lost about 75 pounds which is fantastic.

I’m going to Thailand in October for a couple of weeks and I know this is swearing on your podcast—but I want to cheat! It’s not because of social pressures or anything. It’s just something I want to do for two weeks on my holidays trying all the new things and having a few beers with my friends.

As soon as the holiday is over I’ll be back on keto before the plane touches down because it’s amazing. What should I do to prepare for eating some carbs for those 2 weeks? I’ve heard you guys talk about swelling and kidney stones and I’m worried I might have an upset stomach for a few days when I return. I want to enjoy my holiday and everything, so what’s the best way to go about cheating to minimize the side effects?

Thanks,