My brother got me the book "Diet 101: The Truth About Low Carb Diets" by Jenny Ruhl, for Christmas. I'm about halfway through it and have found it very helpful for understanding the science behind low carb diets and how they affect the human body.
One piece of advice I have especially taken to heart, which has re-energized me to "Go Paleo!", is that it is not only important what diet you eat - it is also extremely important that you can STICK WITH IT for the long haul! And it explains that studies show it is very hard for people to stick with an ULTRA low carb diet (i.e. 30-40 carbs per day total), like Dr. Bernstein recommends for diabetics.
However, studies show that people seem to be able to stick with a diet of 110 total carbs per day (which comes out to 36.6 carbs per meal if you eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner).
More insulin = less hair
For the past couple months (aka, the holidays....), I got a bit lax about my diet and was eating around 50-70 carbs per meal. I also tried eating vegan and then vegetarian for a couple weeks. This all meant that I was taking more insulin. Which also meant I gained weight. And I started losing lots of hair. So I began reading about hair loss and found that it is very tied to insulin and testosterone and growth hormones. As I revamped my diet and ate less carbs (about 30 per meal), my hair has been staying on my head and my blood sugars have been much better. My feet and hands are also feeling much better.
So, like everyone and their brother, I have made my New Years resolution to improve my diet. This year I'm going to give the 110 carbs per day on a mostly Paleo diet a try and see how it goes.
