My Experience Regarding the Influence of Diet

[Bear44]

So I'm reading about and experimenting with different diets to see how they affect my breath and overall health.

Low Carbohydrate, Moderate/High Protein, High Fat Diet:

After reading how some people experience negative symptoms after ingesting carbohydrate rich meals, and simultaneously diagnosing myself as having candida, I planned to try a low/zero carb diet for 5-7 days to kick start my longer term low carb diet that I had planned. I will be doing the steak and eggs diet posted below to kick things off. This was done with the hope that reducing my carbohydrate intake would positively affect my symptoms.

After reading these articles (posted below) which talk about the benefits of low carbohydrate diets, little to no fiber intake, and high fat, I decided I would try this style of diet for 5-7 days. Low fiber meaning little to no fruit/vegetables was a new concept for me, which is why I decided to only do it for a short period in order to determine how my body reacted. I figured 5-7 days wouldn't do any harm.

Results:

This diet did not last long for me at all. After eating an 8.5 oz steak and 4 eggs for lunch, followed by flossing, brushing, tongue scraping, and mouthwash, my breath began to smell worse than it usually does. I immediately thought this was due to the high amount of protein consumption (this meal was about 75g of protein alone) and knew if I continued to eat this way it would only make my issues worse. After researching more, I believe the high protein is what caused this poor reaction. I'll post articles below regarding why I thought this diet would be a good idea, and also why believe it was the protein that caused my bad breath in this instance.

Articles About Low Carb, High Protein, Low Fiber Diets:

Article about the diets of Eskimos which is basically fish, whale, seal, and blubber.
http://www.biblelife.org/stefansson1.htm

Article about the benefits of consuming little to no fiber (fruit/vegetables), plus the benefits of a high intake of meat and fat.
http://www.biblelife.org/bowel.htm

Article about the benefits of eating only steak and eggs:
https://boldanddetermined.com/the-old-s ... tosterone/

Articles About High Protein Consumption:

This article talks about common mistakes with a high fat diet
http://www.poliquingroup.com/ArticlesMu ... -Fat_.aspx

Some Quotes:

"Low fiber, higher animal protein diets have been found to increase inflammatory gut bacteria, which is one reason why eating meat is often linked with greater disease risk."

"One example of the dangerous effect of having inflammatory gut bacteria is that these bacteria release a compound called TMAO after you eat animal protein, which increases plaque build up in the arteries, elevating inflammation."

This article discusses how the inabliity to convert TMA to TMAO results in bad breath.
http://www.smartnutrition.co.uk/health- ... -syndrome/

Seeing as I was consuming foods (steak and eggs) that form TMAU, this could possibly be a cause of my bad breath. Read the quotes below for more info.

Quotes:

"Secondary TMAU is not genetic and the main cause is due to an overgrowth of bacteria in the gut that produce TMA."

"In small quantities a build up of TMA can cause halitosis (bad breath) a fishy or garbage like odour but a greater build up of TMA can cause a smell of rotting fish as well as being sulphurous."

"Secondary TMAU is formed in the gut by the action of bacteria on certain foods that primarily contain choline and carnitine; for example eggs, certain legumes, fish and organ-meats."

This article mentions how increased protein consumption increases odor causing bacteria in the mouth.
http://thepaleodiet.com/bad-breath-body ... urn-stink/

Quote: "...increased protein consumption can increase the likelihood of increased bacterial growth in the mouth. These bacteria produce volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs), the malodorous offenders that lead to bad breath.1,2 Furthermore, when it comes to body odor, studies have shown that the odor of non-meat eaters is considered “more attractive” than meat eaters!"

Moving On:
Based on the research and the results of this diet trial, I'm going to attempt a low carbohydrate, low protein, high fat diet and see if that causes any flare ups. Also going to reduce my protein intake from animal sources as that seems to possibly cause some problems, especially from eggs, red meat, and fish as they contribute to TMAO as noted in the TMAO article linked above. Also, all my diet trials will exclude dairy, gluten, grains, added sugars, sweeteners, and will consist of organic produce, grassfed and wild meats, seafood...etc. unless otherwise noted.

Side note:
I'm really craving watermelon and might have to try this updated diet tomorrow after I get my fix lol! I also have a very intuitive feeling that fasting could be very beneficial for these issues we are experiencing. More on that later. Anyways, that's all for today. I'll update this thread as I go. Feel free to contribute.

[Atrial]

High fat diet is too hard to most people I did it for 2 weeks lost weight.
I think you are right about tma but most people here wont believe you.

[halitosisux]

I think you are right about tma but most people here wont believe you.

Atrial, perhaps if you got tested people might believe instead of feeling irritated

[halitosisux]

Bear, why not spend 2 weeks on a low choline diet. Then have some choline supplements ready and switch to a high choline diet for 2 weeks and see the effects.

What you've described may well have an effect on your breath, especially on the bacterial activity in your mouth. But it's not going to tell you a lot about the cause of your BB and why it's happening. Diets are really hard to stick to, also. Especially if some BB remains, despite the efforts. If you suspect TMAU related cause, then you need to focus purely on that and rule it out before mixing around with other confusing theories.

[Bear44]

Ate high carb vegan for a week. The only times I saw slight improvement was on the days I would eat watermelon. I'm guessing this is due to the high water content and fiber from the fruit that flushes the oral cavity during each bite. Other than that, didn't notice too much of a difference. Plus I got sick of eating tons of fruit and sweet things.

Currently experimenting with making my own coconut water kefir and eating a more relaxed diet and lowering my stress levels. Maybe add some meditation and daily low intensity exercise.

I also did a liver flush as noted in Andreas Moritz's book, "The Amazing Liver and Gallbladder Flush". A few dozen 'stones' came out, but I really don't know about the legitimacy of the flush. There's a lot of controversy that surrounds it. I might try it again if I have the time.