writingwyo's Journal, 28 April 2023

You probably did confuse them but I do think sometimes our body will crave what we need! I consider being in maintenance even though my FS still shows I have two pounds to go. I like to stay in a range of 129-132.  

Our waitress was really funny, and told me, "I don't judge." The guy bringing the food out was a little nervous, though. 🤣 I'm like you -- I think we often crave things for a reason. I try to eat pretty intuitively, while also bringing some knowledge of nutrition to the decision making. Maintenance is still a bit of a weird headspace for me. I expect to fluctuate a couple of pounds, but I still wonder when I'm floating to the top of my range whether it's something to worry about, or just part of the deal  

Our Godmother is a vegetarian who likes chicken broth. LOL. We all have/had our reasons for being vegetarians. She doesn't care for the taste of meat and she never did. A born vegetarian. I found the idea of eating meat gross - bloody, the veins, cartilage, bones. Yuck. But I ended up in the hospital due to vitamin deficiencies so my German doctor introduced me back to meat. I am still am not in love with meat but I can eat some of it. Not in love with most food actually other than a short list.  

Too funny, Morticia 😂 Yeah, I was grossed out by meat, too as a kid, and it was the only thing my mom forced me to eat. Since I don't eat a lot of it, I try to be very cognizant of getting the nutrients that aren't as abundant in plant foods  

A little bit of “meat” of any kind goes a long way with me. So, I just eat 2-3 ounces, I get my B12 plus’s some other nutrients that meat offers, like iron. Heme iron and Plant iron are not equivalent. 

Sounds good to me writingwyo  

😂 Too funny! I chuckled out loud with this story! 

Thanks, buenitabishop 😊 StormsGirl -- glad I brought a chuckle to your day! 😂 Kenna -- I've heard that, but I haven't researched the difference between heme and non-heme iron much. We're able to get blood panels twice yearly through our insurance at a low cost health fair we have here. We haven't had any issues with low iron, even though we're not big meat eaters. If anything, my husband has had concerningly high iron at times. If iron. I've seen some info out there that the body can get rid of excess non-heme iron better than it can heme iron, but I can't vouch for that. I might have an interest in nutrition, but I make no claim to be an expert on the topic  

Beans, leafy greens (remember Popeye and his spinach?), and seeds (chia, hemp, pumpkin) all have plenty of iron. Unless you're pre-menopausal or donate blood regularly, I wouldn't worry about iron. No one will suffer from low B12 if they just consume 1T of nutritional yeast a couple of times a week. Saves us from consuming carcinogens, sodium and saturated fat from bacon/sausage/red meat.  

As for heme (meat derived) vs. non-heme (from plants), the body will take either. Heme is more easily absorbed. Non-heme iron can't be combined with calcium, but pairs easily with vitamin C. So eat strawberries with your spinach salad, or squeeze lime juice on your black bean & corn salad. It is misleading to suggest that the body needs both types of iron; it just needs ENOUGH (8 mg). Source: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/iron/#:~:text=Iron%20from%20food%20comes%20in,%2C%20legumes%2C%20and%20leafy%20greens. 

Thanks for the info, JB! I hadn't really looked into it all that deeply. I just knew the iron levels on my bloodwork were fine and wasn't too worried about not eating much meat. As I mentioned, my husband has the opposite concern, so if anything, he's better off cooling it on red meat 

You're welcome, Wyo. Just drives me batty when people who know nothing about nutrition try to advise others. I went vegetarian at 16, saw a registered dietician at 18, and stay on top of news and published studies to make sure I'm properly nourished. (Annual physical was Friday ⚕️😊) 

Hope the physical went well. :) 

PM me with your latest numbers, please! I'm chasing yours since I suspect you have the best lipids on FS. I did post a journal with all of it. 

Will do, JB. Or may just post it here. They're no big secret. I doubt mine are the best on FS, but I was happy with them. My husband, who's not on here, beats the heck out of mine! 

JB check mine... I'm new to all of this. I want in on the competition 😉🤣 

OK, found my results. Total cholesterol 146 (down 6 from October), HDL 57 (up 7), LDL 74 (down 10), triglycerides 76 (down 24, but think last draw was aberrant; up slightly from earlier tests). Fasting glucose 76 and A1C 5.3, so take THAT ketovangelists who preach that glucose will spiral out of control if you dare eat carbs 😂 (Caveat: if it works for you, you do you.) And back in October, I tested my B12, and it was on the high end of normal while eating mostly vegetarian so I'm not worried about nutritional deficiencies because I'm not downing steaks 🤪 

But more than anything, I'm happy that my kidney function numbers improved. Those have been questionable in the past. Dunno why. Less salt? More plant protein? Something else? 🤔 

Well I am totally impressed with your numbers!!! Politely jealous!. I am waging a continuing battle here and will share mine. My numbers are not outrageous, but not what I want to see. Congratulations to you- and your story gave me a laugh. 

LISfifty - the mostly plant-based, avoiding sat fat really took my LDL down, but I also have genetics to thank. In my youth, my cholesterol was ridiculously low. Heart disease, obesity, and colon cancer run in my family, so I'm doing my best to stave them off, and I think the WOE I'm following is the best way to do it that I feel like I can sustain.