>In a message dated 9/17/00 3:39:02 PM, Denise LePage <[log in to unmask]
>writes:
>
><< I do not think that carb restriction produces any
>physical withdrawal symptoms.  Carbohydrates are not drugs.  Caffeine is.
>Anyone who has been addicted to caffeine knows the headaches that withdrawal
>brings.  Most people who have eaten carbohydrates all their lives have no
>withdrawal symptoms when starting low-carb diets, other than those caused by
>mineral loss due to the diuretic nature of low carb, and perhaps
>psychological cravings. >>

Maddy Mason replies:

>The physical symptoms from carbohydrate withdrawal are very real indeed, and
>they can be caused by far more than just mineral loss. Those suffering from
>hypoglycemia, or insulin resistance, can suffer from miserable headaches,
>fatigue, muscle weakness, extreme irritability, mental confusion, and a host
>of other symptoms not too dissimilar to those a diabetic might suffer from if
>his blood sugar dropped too low.

I can bring on such an attack every time by eating two medium apples
on an
empty stomach, or having coffee and two or three slices of toast for
breakfast.  In the case of apples, it takes two hours.  For the toast,
three. I get chills, my hands shake, I get very irritable and
confused, and
desperate for SUGAR.

I used to envy junkies. They're thin, and nobody tells them it's in
their
head. :>

Mike