Win Zevia - Nature's Answer To Diet Soda

The wonderful people at Zevia have graciously agreed to give 5 readers of my examiner column, and this blog, a free mixed case of Zevia sodas! Also, 20 of you lucky peeps will receive a BOGO (buy 1 get 1 free).

So be sure to check out my review of this stevia sweetened soda on today's examiner column. Then enter the giveaway by sending me your full name and address to healthylowcarbliving@gmail.com. (All your info is kept confidential and will not be shared or sold. It will only be used to send you your prize.) This giveaway will run until Thursday September 11, 2008. The winners will be drawn randomly on Friday September 12, 2008. So get your entries in asap!

Links you may be interested in...

I wanted to share a few of links with you.

Dr. Mike Eades has an outstanding explanation of the metabolism and ketones, which I know you will enjoy. If you've never quite understood why low-carb works so well, or what ketosis really is, this is a post you won't want to miss. He explains it in layman's terms to be sure you really get it.

For those of you who are diabetic, I'm sure you've heard the news about Avandia and it's dangerous side effects. If not, you'll want to check out these posts:

Connie Bennett of Sugar Shock: Is Avandia Going the Way of Vioxx? Popular Diabetes Drug May Raise Risk of Fatal Heart Attacks

Jimmy Moore of Livin' La Vida Low Carb: GSK, FDA Knew Avandia Raised Heart Disease Risk In 2005, But Did Nothing About It

The Honest Confessions Of A Carb Addict

(Hey everyone! I'm now a regular columnist for www.lowcarbnewsline.com! This is my first article. Please let me know what you think!)

Hi. My name is Amy Dungan and I'm addicted to carbohydrates. I can't really say when or where the problem began. I'm sure I could trace it all the way back to my childhood somewhere. I may never be sure. What I do know is that simple carbohydrates are a huge problem for me. One taste of chocolate cake - just smelling french fries - will start my mouth watering and send my willpower into a tizzy. It's not that I want to eat junk food or be unhealthy, it just seems like I have no control over myself when the cravings hit.


I first realized I had a serious problem back in 2001. I was desperate to lose weight. I had health problems that frightened me and only got worse with each pound I gained. I had a 5 year old, a toddler, and a husband to live for. I couldn't allow myself to go to an early grave. I envisioned someone one finding me unconscious, face down in the ice cream. What I was doing to myself wasn't fair to any of us. How do I take care of my family when I can't even take care of myself?


While doing Internet research on some of the health issues I was having, I came across a website that told about the trials of being hypoglycemic. It sounded very much like some of the suffering I had been enduring. But the author didn't stop there. She continued to tell how she overcame these maladies by going on a no-sugar, low-glycemic diet. At the time it sounded like an impossible task for me. How could I give up sugar? How could I live a normal life that way? It just didn't seem realistic. What I failed to see was that I wasn't currently living a normal life, at least not a happy one. My life consisted of fatigue, pain, IBS, mood swings, severe depression and a general lack of the will to live. I was blind to the answer that was in front of me. I was also scared to give it a try. What if I just failed again? I filed the information in the back of my mind and continued my search for the magic bullet.


A few months later I came across a copy of Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution. I sat down to read and spent the first few pages laughing. I was a disciple of the low-fat mantra. There was no way this low-carb stuff could be healthy or even help you lose weight. After reading further I started suspecting that someone had been watching my every move. It was as if he'd written that book just for me. I was the poster child for carb addictions. My mind flashed back to all the foods I preferred. The many times I was embarrassed because I couldn't seem to stop eating, even though I was full. The shame I felt as I hid in the bathroom while eating a candy bar, fearing that someone would notice and lecture me. The fatigue after a large meal filled with simple carbohydrates and starches. Tears filled my eyes as I realized I truly had a problem. I also experienced a huge sense of relief. I finally had an answer. All of my adult life I blamed myself for my lack of control. I berated myself for eating when I knew I shouldn't. I would become depressed over my weight, and eat high-carb foods to make myself feel better. I was in a vicious cycle.


I realized low-carb was my only hope. I spent many hours researching and asking questions. I think I lurked on every low-carb forum in existence. When I started Atkins in Nov. of 2001 I was loaded down with an arsenal of information and recipes. It didn't take long for me to realize I was on my way to a better life. In 2003 I reached goal and maintained for several months. But I failed to realize a very important truth--just as a recovering alcoholic can never go back to drinking, neither can a recovering carb addict go back to carbohydrates.


My backsliding started small. I'd have some pizza crust here, a small plate of pasta there. What I didn't notice was how often I'd started craving the very foods I had so religiously avoided for 3 years. It snowballed rapidly. The addiction once again had me in its grips.


I won't bore you with the details, but in January 2007 I started back at square one. Thankfully, I'm quickly losing weight and regaining the ground I've lost in the last couple of years. But I've learned a valuable lesson: once an addict, always an addict. As Dr. Atkins said, one bite really can be the kiss of death. Trust me on this one. It's a lesson you don't want to learn the hard way.

Low Glycemic Food Popularity on the Rise!

This is great news for those who have diabetes or are hypoglycemic, but it's also great news for low-carbers too! According to this article, the demand for low glycemic foods is on the rise. Thankfully the product manufacturers are starting to listen.

"Low-glycemic foods and beverages have made it out of their corners in health food stores to become widely accepted, where they are often double marketed with like-foods, as well as in the diabetic supplies aisle," said Don Montuori, Packaged Facts publisher.

This exposure, he said, "helped create a remarkable growth market, much akin to what low carb was."

So much so that sales are projected to reach $1.8 billion in 2011, according to the report.

"We are seeing more product manufacturers bringing them to us," Wulfeck said of Kroger buyer meetings with vendors.

The article also had this to say...

Because of the popularity of the South Beach and Sonoma diets, Neufarth said consumers are seeking low-carb foods and those without refined sugar.

"That's good, but we need to keep the message simple: if you eat food in its whole form, your body knows how to process it," Neufarth said. "That's how our bodies have been designed."

I appreciate Kathy Neufarth saying that consumers seeking low-carb foods is a good thing, but I hope she isn't implying that low-carb is too complex for the average person to deal with. Low-carb is eating food in it's whole form. No processed junk. No refined sugars. Some plans do restrict higher glycemic fruits and grains at the beginning to maximize loss, but that's only a temporary exclusion.

I, for one, am glad to see that more people are starting to see the need of watching their intake of sugar. I ate a frightening amount before low-carb. Every low-fat item I put in my mouth had some form of sugar in it. I thought I was eating so healthy, despite the fact that I felt like death warmed over and was gaining weight. I'm so thankful my eyes were opened to low-carb and many health benefits therein. I hope the the low-fat product manufacturers will be listening as well and reduce the amount of sugar and HFCS they are adding to their products. There are many people who still believe in low-fat and do well on it for the most part. I'd hate to see those same people develop health conditions like diabetes because they were simply trying to eat right.