I live in Denmark so some of your recipes require some figuring as you use brand names not available here and cans and packages come in different sizes. Like – how many grams is 2 packages frozen spinach?

And when you list cans, it would be helpful for foreign readers if you also listed grams and ounces, sans liquid.

We don’t have packets of Twin or Equal – but we have sukrin(erythritol).
Can I use that instead? Or perhaps some form of Stevia?

And btw – why is it 5 packets of Twin and 5 packets of Equal – and not 10 packets of Twin – OR 10 packets of Equal?

We don’t have Monterey Jack cheese either.
You might want to add: can use Red Cheddar Cheese instead. Or note the fat percentage so people can try other substitutes

T is the same as tbsp?
It might be easier if you stuck with one type of measures – some recipes use cups and others use liters.
Of course using both would be even better.
Google can help a lot – but why not make it easy on your readers

I googled short ribs and found some pictures to show to my butcher who said “Oh – that’s okse tvaerreb” and after a bit of sawing I got my beef short ribs – and they tasted wonderful.

I was diagnosed with diabetes 2 in 2006 and I believe it’s due to working shifts as nobody in my family has diabetes – except my brother who has also worked shifts for more than 25 years. His job was definitely not sedentary and he biked to work, so the only common thing is shifts and bad quality of sleep.

I have just started on a low carb high fat diet, inspired by the Swedish LCHF people.

Keep up the good work, and thanks for the inspiration … and recipes.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

All good suggestions. When I find some spare time, I will update the recipes section. I am glad to hear you are trying some of them and finding them worthy. I do love the short-ribs, myself. I make large batches and then freeze dinner-sized portions. We take it with us to the mountains in the winter when we go skiing. It makes for a quick and hearty dinner, apres ski.

The reason for using two artificial sweeteners is that they potentiate each other (I am told) so that you can use less overall. Yes, you can use other types of zero calorie sweetener. I suggest you experiment to find what works best for you. One caution, unless you are using Splenda, always put the sweetener in after the cooking is done. Most sweeteners do not do well at high temperatures.

My wife looks at a recipe as something that must be closely followed while I use them more as a guideline. The recipes I have developed can be altered to suit your circumstances and the types of foods you have available. I would certainly encourage experimentation. It is part of the fun of doing low-carb!

When you mention the Swedish LCHF people, I think you may be referring to my friend and colleague, Dr Andreas Eenfeldt, and his excellent blog: http://www.dietdoctor.com. I gather there is a groundswell of interest in low-carb in Sweden these days. I can only hope that it spreads to North America. Many people here could benefit.

I think your recipe page needs fixing – some of the recipes have weird symbols that make me unsure of the amounts.

I haven’t read all your postings – is there a post where you mention the suggested ratio for fat, protein and carbs?

I also think a forum would be a good idea.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

I see what you mean. I don’t know what happened there. Perhaps some incompatibilities within WordPress. I shall endeavour to fix that and perhaps add some new recipes.

I think the ideal ratio would be something in the order of 10% carbs or less, 20% protein and the remainder, fat. This will vary depending on one’s tolerance of carbs. I think I am usually less than 10% in my own diet.

A forum would be good but may involve more work than I can manage. You will note that I tend to neglect this blog in its present very modest format. I will think about it, though.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

When My Big Fat Diet was first broadcast it generated a lot of positive feedback. The producers approached CBC with the idea of doing it again but in a serialized way and with two communities competing with each other. A lot of work went into the proposal and there was some back and forth between the CBC and the producers. Ultimately, the CBC decided to do “Village on a Diet” instead which was based on a similar television program that had been done in Switzerland. Ironically, I think they learned about it from the producers of MBFD who researched the world of diet shows in developing their proposal. As far as I know, the “Village on a Diet” approach is the standard low-cal, low-fat, boot-camp type of regimen that has been used in other television programs like “Biggest Loser”. I am, of course, a little disappointed that we didn’t get a chance to do a series using a low-carb diet. I suspect that the CBC shied away from doing something that might be considered non-mainstream or controversial. If they were getting guidance from the usual “authoritative sources” I could understand why they would tend to stick to a status quo approach to diet and exercise.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

1) we haven’t published, yet.
2) the dissemination has been slow, mostly because local providers do not get any training in the use of ketogenic diets.
3) the program you refer to is the large Health Canada effort to address diabetes in the Aboriginal population. The funding for the Alert Bay study came from an earlier iteration of this program.

Thought you might be interested in this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/magazine/21Epilepsy-t.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

All the best…

Dr Jay’s Reply:

Thanks for the heads-up. It is an interesting article. I have met Dr Eric Kossoff who runs a similar program for epileptic kids at Johns Hopkins. This is where they observed that kids waiting to be hospitalized to be put on the “ketogenic diet” were getting similar results on Atkins. Dr Kossoff developed what he called “modified Atkins” (essentially induction) and has used it quite successfully on an out-patient basis.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

Although aboriginal people around the world seem to be more predisposed to metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes than others, in my observation, anyone who has developed insulin resistance (IR) should be on a carbohydrate restricted diet regardless of racial or ethnic background. There may be variations among groups in terms of their susceptibility to developing IR but once that has happened, the choices are: 1) take multiple drugs including insulin or, 2) restrict carbs. I would encourage you to pass that advice along to your relatives and to heed it yourself. Get a copy of the new Atkins book to guide you and make sure anyone taking medication for blood pressure or blood sugar gets off those meds quickly once they start the diet. Anyone on multiple medications should seek the support of their doctor if they try this diet. For type 2 diabetics, my advice is to stick to the “induction” part of the Aktins diet and not to ramp up the carbs as the book recommends. Good luck!

I live in Finland and I was wondering if there is any way I could see ‘My Big Fat Diet’? I e-mailed Mystique Films weeks ago and asked if the DVD is available in region 2, but got no answer. Is it only available in region 1?

Dr Jay’s Reply:

I am sorry you are having problems accessing the DVD. I will check with the producer to see what is the availability in your region.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

I am glad to hear things are going well. I recommend you get the latest Atkins book to use as a guide. As to a physician recommendation, I am afraid I don’t know of anyone in your area, or in the province for that matter. If I do learn of physicians who are supportive and knowledgeable, I will open up a section here to list them and their contact info. Any readers who have recommendations of physicians, please send in a note and I will collect and share that information.

Sorry I can’t be of more assistance with your request.

Dr Jay’s Reply:

Low-carbohydrate diets work for the vast majority of people. They also generally deliver better metabolic benefits than other types of diets. The new Atkins diet book by Westman, Phinney and Volek is something you might consider. It gives a good explanation of how to do this diet properly and is an improvement over earlier books as it incorporates things we have learned from recent research.

Good luck!