Healthy & Slim 23yr Old Female Looking For Longevity

[AnnaB3]

Hi everyone,

I recently came across Dr. Peat's work and have been avidly reading his articles and listening to the select few interviews I can find with him. This forum has been a great resource, but can quickly become overwhelming and stressful if you go in with the intention of following this approach to the T.

I'm hoping my personal archetype can serve as a breath of clarity for the other young women who will likely find this work and feel like they need to become highly restrictive and only consume OJ, raw dairy, select fruits, few eggs, liver, shellfish, coffee, and some coconut oil... please tell me this is not true while being young and healthy!?

Personally, I'm hoping to validate that **if** you tolerate veggies and fermented/sprouted grains, beans, and legumes you can have some flexibility and deviate on occasion. For instance, my approach after reading all of this, within the context of my objectives, is as such:

Objectives:
- great metabolism
- graceful aging (good skin, lack of disease, good energy and cognitive function)
- optimal fertility
- improve bone density
- happy life that doesn't revolve around restriction and social isolation

Approach:
- minimize PUFAS by avoiding all nuts, seeds, vegetable and seed oils
- only consuming fermented and/or sprouted grains (sourdough, Ezekiel bread)
- consuming carbs as the majority of my diet in the form of fruit (yes bananas too)
- including raw, grass-fed dairy in each of my meals via a few ounces of raw cheese, cottage cheese, and goat's milk
- drink fortified OJ every day to give my bones extra calcium and balance the phosphate
- eating potatoes and sweet potatoes as I desire (microwaved/cooked well)
- prioritizing shellfish, gelatin, and dairy as my protein sources, followed by lean meats like sliced turkey
- having a raw carrot salad each day
- seeking calcium over phosphate rich foods

(not sure I need to supplement with Vit E or aspirin so keeping my life simple and continuing to take a B6 complex, Vit D3, and Cal,Mg,Zn for bone health and fertility reasons)

Because I'm young, healthy, active and eating within my caloric maintenance needs...
- sourdough and ezekiel bread as desired (1-2slices/day)
- eating all the veggies I want (have no issues here), but cooking dark leafy and cruciferous veg very well
- having avocado on lower PUFA days (opting out of oatmeal, eggs, or beans)
- eating soaked/sprouted beans/legumes on occasion
- eating whatever organic fruits I want (berries and figs) since no digestive issues arise
- eating sardines sporadically for some vitamin D and calcium

Personal context:
I'm 23, slim, and seem to have a great metabolism despite the past few years of restrictive eating and over-exercising (read lots of cardio). I had amenorrhea (lack of period) because of this for the past 4-5 years but experienced symptoms of period recovery about 4months ago and then started bio-identical hormones for the past 3months to give my bones needed hormones since I was diagnosed with osteopenia in my spine and hips at that time.
I followed a low carb paleo diet with IF for less than a year but have added a lot more fruit and carbs into my diet the past few months. I was never a big PUFA person, but definitely prioritized fatty fish, avocados, and other omega-3 sources via nuts and seeds in small quantities so not entirely in the clear there.
My temp in the morning and throughout the day is usually 98.1 and idk my pulse because it's hard to find.

So... am I on track for longevity and avoidance of most diseases and fertility issues?
Hope we can create some archetypes of people coming to this forum and give them rough outlines of where they need to be strict vs live a little. Fear-mongering is a slippery slope and reading posts on here/ counting every gram of PUFA you eat can be a stressor too...

Thank you in advance for your thoughts in response!

 

[lampofred]

I don't think vegetables, bread, and occasional beans are a problem but commercial starches (in the US) are fortified with iron, which directly opposes calcium, so that's something to watch out for.

Broadly I think the most important things would be to track temps and pulse and make sure calcium is higher than phosphate. Calcium is very important in current times because many things in the environment (radiation, blue light screens, etc.) cause calcium to be depleted via the urine, leading to prematurely thinning bones and many other issues.

I think sugar, salt, animal protein and vitamin A (eggs, liver) are essential for fertility but I think it's good to be careful before suddenly increasing fruits in the diet because increased water is very bad for bones (it raises FFA and increases lactic acid, lowering CO2 and antagonizing the effect of calcium). The foods Peat likes are often high in water compared to more typical foods, and over-hydration can cause many problems, especially if temps and pulse are subnormal.

Some smaller things are that commercial bananas can be high in serotonin and lead to systemic irritation if you eat them regularly, the form of calcium used to fortify orange juice is often a very bad one (eating eggshells or dark greens could be a better way to supplement calcium) , and prolonged use of supplements of B-vits and cal/mag/zinc can lead to oxidization of vitamins in the intestine and particulate build-up. I think Dr. Peat thinks regular milk/meat/eggs/liver/oysters provide enough of all of those nutrients.

 

[Maljam]

If you are already slim and healthy, I would be very hesitant to make any drastic changes to be honest and would add in changes slowly. Maybe just drinking more milk, or adding in something like egg yolks would be of benefit to you, or slowly increasing calories, if you come from a background of restriction.

 

[Energizer]

You could try upping your carbs to see if it helps boost your temps / pulse. Having more ripe fruits, OJ, honey, etc. Overall though I can't find anything other than that to improve upon your diet. There is no need to stress about what to eat, I agree. The main rule of thumbs I follow is to avoid PUFA and any foods that irritate my system. Other than that, just about everything else is fair game (for me, anyway). It's also important to try to get enough protein:

Ray Peat Email Exchanges - Ray Peat Forum Wiki

On track for longevity? I would imagine so. You're eating better than most of the population. You still might need to adjust some things in your diet until you get to at least 98.6F throughout the day. Pulse should be around 80s-90s ideally, maybe a little lower for some people, but in general a higher pulse in conjunction with the temperature is more indicative of good thyroid function.

Wow, what a great resource that email exchange is - thank you!!
I will tinker with some more carbs as I am currently in the habit of eating dinner, going for a 5mi hike and then off to sleep with no glucose following because I like to give my body 12hours of digestive rest and don't want to eat at 9pm... my reasoning previous to reading this work was that I wanted to burn fat and didn't want to gain fat by eating at night and disrupting my sleep with digestion- could this actually be harming my metabolism and ability to achieve a muscular, lean physique?

Again, really appreciate the encouragement and sincere advice!!

No problem. It's hard for the liver to store fuel for so long. Some people find that a small snack before bedtime helps them sleep well. I think it's best to follow your appetite and if you feel faint and craving sugar to have something sweet, especially at night when your physiological defenses are down and stress hormones rise in darkness.

I agree with the idea of not over-eating. Also I stopped drinking OJ myself because the corporate OJ I bought was always terrible and made me feel bad, left some kind of gummy material on the glass. They say it was unfiltered that I was buying but some kind of processing where it sits seems to allow pulp and other residue to collect and irritate the intestine. There are good OJs at the grocery, but they are becoming increasingly hard to find it seems. Personally I think fasting can be counter-productive, your stress hormones rise when fasting and your body tends to rely an adaptive primitive system during fasting which can impair energy metabolism.

I think it's best to listen to your body and eat when hungry, thirsty, etc. It could be thwarting that goal of a more muscular physique, sure. Because when you're fasting everything tends to slow down and the stress hormones like cortisol if left unchecked (which tend to rise during starvation and fasting) could eat muscle tissue, not just fat. When an organism is extremely stressed or in starvation mode it tends to eat up its own tissues and bones. When the body is in that state it does not want to build as much muscle. The opposite of the anabolic state you seem to be looking for.

If you're eating according to appetite, and not over-eating, getting enough protein, your body is going to build itself up and you will build muscle even at rest, which will help your goal of losing fat.

The number one thing I have noticed among health conscious young women is they tend to under-eat and under-eat protein (naturally, given the extreme societal pressure to maintain a rail thin physique and instagram-model airbrushed body as opposed to a real female figure with a healthy amount of bodyfat and muscle for optimal health and wellness, depending on each woman's needs). Protein (and sufficient calories) is half the reason a lot of men have more muscular physiques, besides innate advantages in muscle building and the "gym bro" subculture.

 

[AnnaB3]

I don't think vegetables, bread, and occasional beans are a problem but commercial starches (in the US) are fortified with iron, which directly opposes calcium, so that's something to watch out for.

Broadly I think the most important things would be to track temps and pulse and make sure calcium is higher than phosphate. Calcium is very important in current times because many things in the environment (radiation, blue light screens, etc.) cause calcium to be depleted via the urine, leading to prematurely thinning bones and many other issues.

I think sugar, salt, animal protein and vitamin A (eggs, liver) are essential for fertility but I think it's good to be careful before suddenly increasing fruits in the diet because increased water is very bad for bones (it raises FFA and increases lactic acid, lowering CO2 and antagonizing the effect of calcium). The foods Peat likes are often high in water compared to more typical foods, and over-hydration can cause many problems, especially if temps and pulse are subnormal.

Some smaller things are that commercial bananas can be high in serotonin and lead to systemic irritation if you eat them regularly, the form of calcium used to fortify orange juice is often a very bad one (eating eggshells or dark greens could be a better way to supplement calcium), and prolonged use of supplements of B-vits and cal/mag/zinc can lead to oxidization of vitamins in the intestine and particulate build-up. I think Dr. Peat thinks regular milk/meat/eggs/liver/oysters provide enough of all of those nutrients.

Thank you! I really appreciate the perspective.

I will mind my iron intake while considering the times I'm not eating each much meat or other iron-rich foods during my cycle. I think increasing calcium is my number one priority, alongside reduced PUFA intake, so all of that is very good to know.

I do love bananas but I'll make sure they are nice and ripe and try to learn to love other fruits more / only eat half at a time haha.

I'm going to try out the egg-shell calcium instead of the cal-mg-zinc supplement, with the understanding that the nutrient-dense foods I'm eating will serve me well. Magnesium is something I feel like most women can benefit from though because our food is relatively deplete of it. I think I'll stop taking the B6 after I run out of my current bottle as well. The point about reliance on supplements and fortified foods has been something I've questioned and I am most in favor of purchasing regular, pulp-free OJ and continuing to eat my eggs, liver, milk, and oysters :))

Thank you again!!

 

[AnnaB3]

If you are already slim and healthy, I would be very hesitant to make any drastic changes to be honest and would add in changes slowly. Maybe just drinking more milk, or adding in something like egg yolks would be of benefit to you, or slowly increasing calories, if you come from a background of restriction.

I will continue to add in more dairy and keep my egg yolks as a good habit. Appreciate your advice, thank you!

 

[AnnaB3]

You could try upping your carbs to see if it helps boost your temps / pulse. Having more ripe fruits, OJ, honey, etc. Overall though I can't find anything other than that to improve upon your diet. There is no need to stress about what to eat, I agree. The main rule of thumbs I follow is to avoid PUFA and any foods that irritate my system. Other than that, just about everything else is fair game (for me, anyway). It's also important to try to get enough protein:

Ray Peat Email Exchanges - Ray Peat Forum Wiki

On track for longevity? I would imagine so. You're eating better than most of the population. You still might need to adjust some things in your diet until you get to at least 98.6F throughout the day. Pulse should be around 80s-90s ideally, maybe a little lower for some people, but in general a higher pulse in conjunction with the temperature is more indicative of good thyroid function.

Wow, what a great resource that email exchange is - thank you!!
I will tinker with some more carbs as I am currently in the habit of eating dinner, going for a 5mi hike and then off to sleep with no glucose following because I like to give my body 12hours of digestive rest and don't want to eat at 9pm... my reasoning previous to reading this work was that I wanted to burn fat and didn't want to gain fat by eating at night and disrupting my sleep with digestion- could this actually be harming my metabolism and ability to achieve a muscular, lean physique?

Again, really appreciate the encouragement and sincere advice!!

 

[Jessie]

Sounds pretty good imo. Kind of resembles the Weston Price Foundation dietary guidelines, minus the PUFA (they tend to be pro PUFA, more concerned about balancing the O6/O3 ratio, rather then just reducing total PUFA content in the diet). If you want to improve bone density and anti aging then I would recommend focusing on the dairy as a primary source of calories.

The calcium/phosphate balance is one of the most important aspects to this. I'd recommend getting a vitamin D supplement, good starting point is around 10,000iu daily. But get some labs done, so you can know what your serum D is. Many people need more then 10, some may need less. D deficiency is widespread.

Liver, oysters, eggs, ruminant meat, leafy greens, potatoes, milk, and fruits/juice tend to be the most nutrient dense foods calorie per calorie. I would recommend gravitating around them as your base, proceed with caution with the whole grains and legumes. Sprouting makes them better, but I would pay close attention to how I feel after eating them. Any digestive distress and I would recommend 86ing them. It can be tough I know, oatmeal was once one of my favorite foods, I ate it for years before applying some of Peat's ideas. Fortunately I gave it long before running into his work.

The less supplements the better ordinarily. Thing is, I think people should be really in tune with their bodies before haphazardly taking certain things. The only two I would recommend starting off is vitamin D and vitamin K2. I've got some antibiotics (doxy) and various anti-serotonin chemicals on hand, stuff like cypro, benadryl, and famotidine, but I rarely use them. I just like having them on hand in case. Aspirin may be useful to have on hand, should be stored in freezer to maintain integrity.

Good luck, feel free to update us!

 

[PhilParma]

If you're already healthy then here are my recommendations:
1. Strictly avoid vegetable oils
2. Don't go low carb
3. Eat only easily digestible foods
4. Get sunlight
5. Don't visit this forum
Bonus: Liver and oysters.

 

[AnnaB3]

If you're already healthy then here are my recommendations:
1. Strictly avoid vegetable oils
2. Don't go low carb
3. Eat only easily digestible foods
4. Get sunlight
5. Don't visit this forum
Bonus: Liver and oysters.

Hahahaha thank you! I think I can manage that, but #5 might be taken in moderation... I'm trying to help a few family members with their health now that I seem to have sorted out my own. I really appreciate the wisdom and advice that many of the folks on here offer with sincerity and integrity.

Thanks again :)

 

[ursidae]

Don’t fix what ain’t broken

 

[dabdabdab]

increase stearic acid in your diet.
avocados are full of mufas, better than pufa, but still not very good.
dong quai is said to act like a rejuvenating, progesterone producing herb.
in TCM progesterone is believed to maintain a woman's health, fertility and youthfulness. and decreasing menstrual duration is also very important (decreasing estrogen)