I don't know what to eat.

[testee]

I said that the argument that low carb diets work because they reduce insulin responses is shit.

Your comment suggested that this is because protein also affects insulin. The insulin reduction that is seen on low carb diets (the typical ones, where carbs are lowered and protein is not upped to erase that reduction) is not insignificant.

[Nockian]

I went fully keto 5 plus cups of cruciferous veg per day, 1g of good protein per lb of weight and the rest of the calories from good fats. I intermittent fast (16 hours) and start the day with a pint of water with the juice of a full lemon and a tablespoon of organic ACV.

I lost about a stone of weight, went from a 34 waist to a 30 and came off blood pressure tablets and migraine tablets. I look too thin, but realised this was actually the state of my musculature which had been hidden by fat. Suddenly realised that at 57 I had better begin building some muscle and strength and that running/walking/cycling might keep the cardio system functioning, but does little good everywhere else.

Anyhow, the diet, or a combination of things I eat on the diet has my blood pressure down to normal and I no longer have to take daily migraine tablets. So, definitely a result.

However, I'm of the opinion that it's not so much what I ate that was the issue. I believe that it has more to do with the balance of gut flora, stomach acid strength and liver/pancreas function. In the same way that lifting a barbell won't make us stronger unless we get sufficient quality rest, have a reasonably nutritious diet and reduce stress. When one thing goes out of whack, then the other things take a hit and the body gets stressed and the digestion system malfunctions creating even more issues. One big vicious circle.

The other thing I realised was that I would take anti biotics because I was getting chest infections yearly-these destroy the gut bacteria completely and then if the diet is poor (high sugar, processed foods, zero nutrient carbs) the gut gets colonised with bacteria which can cause leaky gut and allow poisons to enter the blood stream. Even things like Tylenol can cause imbalances-and most people don't hesitate to pop a couple of those if they get a head ache.

If the gut is healthy, has a good balance of bacteria, the stomach acid is sifficient and the liver is functioning well, then we can eat more or less anything we want-keeping in mind the problem with anti-biotics/Tylenol and excess sugar/alcohol/processed foods/empty carbs. If the gut is unhealthy, the body/mind is highly stressed, there is not enough rest then the diet becomes another critical stressor in the chain of issues.

Clean up the diet, cut out excess alcohol, stop the anti-biotics/Tylenol, eat some unpasteurised sauerkraut every day, take a glass of water with a full freshly squeezed lemon/Apple cider vinegar, get plenty of high quality sleep, reduce stress as much as possible, don't exercise to the extent that it creates additional stress on the body if the body is already stressed.

I'm an amateur at this, but finding no help from my local GP I had to research then trial things in order to find out what worked.