Emma-Victoria Houlton British woman, victim of a low-carb diet. Country: Great Britain

Emma-Victoria Houlton: Victim of a Low-Carb Diet

Emma-Victoria Houlton, a British woman, fell victim to the allure of a low-carb diet. Carbohydrates, along with fats, have been considered one of the main causes of obesity and various related health problems. For Emma, who always enjoyed delicious food and never denied herself juicy steaks or a good portion of Italian cuisine, the solution seemed logical. Five years ago, at the age of 29, Emma decided to radically change her eating habits and cut out pasta, bread, pizza, potatoes, and Yorkshire pudding from her diet. The question arises, what prompted Houlton to take such a drastic step? Like many others, Emma-Victoria believed in the high effectiveness and incredible health benefits of diets with high protein and low carbohydrate content, such as the Atkins diet or the paleo diet. Unfortunately, for Houlton, the effect turned out to be somewhat unexpected – she seriously damaged her health with her own actions, and worse still, it may not be possible to reverse the damage. Despite her relatively small size, Emma had difficulties maintaining her desired weight. She first learned about the Atkins diet at the age of 22 and was promised many things in a documentary film. Intrigued, Emma decided to test the promises for herself and eliminated most carbohydrates from her diet. Over time, Emma began to experience the first negative symptoms associated with a low-carb diet – dry mouth, constant fatigue, irritability, and bad breath. However, Houlton ignored her body's warnings, as ultimately, it became easier for her to maintain her desired waistline. She stuck to the diet for a total of three years, only consuming steaks and salads in restaurants and small portions of potentially harmful food when dining with friends. Eventually, Houlton decided to abandon the diet and return to her previous eating habits, but that's when the major problems began. Emma's body reacted quite painfully to the reintroduction of long-forgotten foods – she suffered from bloating and digestive issues. In the end, Houlton sought medical help, and her doctor, upon hearing her story about recently quitting the diet, explained the reason for her problems. It turned out that over a long period of time, Emma's body simply forgot how to digest such food and stopped producing the necessary enzymes to break down carbohydrates. Reverting back to her previous diet proved to be difficult – carbohydrates had to be reintroduced gradually, and symptoms had to be managed with special medications. Houlton struggled with serious digestive problems for several weeks. While things are slowly improving for her now, irreparable damage has already been done – she developed irritable bowel syndrome. Doctors, including Sarah Brewer, author of the book "Nutrition: A Beginner's Guide," confirm that eliminating carbohydrates from the diet excessively can seriously harm one's health. The bacteria in our intestines quickly react to changes in our diet, while the rest of the digestive tract catches on later, often causing unpleasant experiences for the individual. Brewer highlights the importance of selectively removing certain harmful carbohydrates from one's diet and warns against complete elimination, which can have catastrophic consequences.