Possible reason for low carb or fasting to make us worse

I think it's just YMMV. Try it and if you get worse, stop it. Fasting boosts cellular repair and regeneration though, so in that sense technically it can allow Bart to replicate but it also allows your own healthy cells to replicate which is a good thing. And ketosis removes a lot of damaging carbs that cause inflammation. You have to take the good with the bad and experiment. As we know not everyone responds to the same thing in the same way with this illness.

I am very interested in the benefits of fasting myself but my body seems to be perpetually in some sort of starvation mode even though I don't actually deprive it of food. So fasting would probably make me worse unfortunately. Hopefully I will get to try it in the future.

I felt pretty bad during my last 3 day fast, but quite good after 2 days. I don’t think it's about Bartonella replicating itself but more about processes in the body that are starting.
I would rather start with a shorter fast first and build up, instead of pushing through a longer fast.

I go for a dinner-to-dinner fast every week and then a 2-3 days fast every month where my longest was 3.5 days.
But I'm thinking about going for alternating between 1 day and 2 days fast every week instead and skipping the 3-day fasts for a while. I get so cold during the 3-day fast so my sleep suffers.

I'm really into the concept of pushing outside of comfort zones with hunger, cold, heath, etc.
Just in the beginning of this book, but so far I like it a lot.
https://www.amazon.com/comfort-crisis-embrace-discomfort-reclaim/dp/0593138767

If you are used to eating “normally”, just skipping breakfast once a week and going for 16 hours of fasting should be good. That’s how I started.

Post Edited (Deep_sleep) : 4/14/2022 12:44:57 AM (GMT-6)

I don't think you get autophagy with juice fasting. I avoid anything except water, coffee, melatonin, and electrolytes.
“For the record, while a juice cleanse or detox will severely cut your calorie intake, it will actually inhibit you from boosting your cells’ autophagic activity.
This is because you’re still consuming calories and nutrients if you’re drinking juice.”

https://www.dietvsdisease.org/autophagy-body-cleanse/

That article seems a bit biased.” Cleanses bad”
Customized cleanses are what I’m thinking…
I am thinking the possibility of juicing ( mostly low sugar plants) is similar to allowing a bit of certain foods and still putting body into ketosis. If I IF and only drink sheavy green juices /teas / water during” eating window” … no actual solid food for a week or two or four. I think that may lead to autophagy.

bartonella is my main infection - or the one driving most symptoms - and a low carb has really helped me

i have experienced even more of a change with this than 9 months of tripple antibiotics - and it was quicker to bring benefits also - around 2-3 weeks

my partner had and even better response and she started going on short 2 mile runs after around 1 week of a fully ketogenic diet and was able to go back to work part time after around 6-9months. it was amazing - after seeing that i was sold on trying it.

so, for me its the most helpful thing i have tried so far - for her it was a complete game changer

it takes a few weeks to figure out what exactly you are going to eat - how much water you need to drink - how much salt to take etc - after that its pretty easy

in terms of costs and effort vs results its been the best thing so far in 7 years of experimenting with and spending thousands on treatments.

there are some people for whom it just doesn't seem to suit - but it could be that for them something else is wrong - or something is holding them back, like maybe inappropriate food choices - but this seems pretty rare - the vast majority in the chronic illness / chronic inflammation category seem to benefit.

i have spent a great deal of time reading the in depth scientific papers on bartonella infection, its pathology, reproduction inside red blood cells, infection of and transitioning through other cell types and its molecular effects on the body and i do not buy the autophagy increases bartonella replication malarkey. if anything killing off old infected cells will allow the bodies defences to get at and have a chance to kill the freed bartonella organisms when they are no longer protected inside cells.

as above - so much on the internet is conjecture sparsely sprinkled with facts