Dear Gramps,
Do you get a headache on the Cambridge Diet, as you can sometimes get if you go for a while without eating?
Shane, From San Francisco, California

Dear Shane,
First let’s post the dieting results to date—
Date        Weight, lbs. Weight change/day, lbs
8/2/07    161.5        –
8/3/07    159.5        2
8/4/07    —            –
8/5/07    157            2.5
8/6/07    156            1
8/7/07    156            0
Let’s discuss both the headache and the plateau. A headache may or may not occur when beginning the Cambridge diet. As the glucose level drops, there comes a point where a headache is initiated. As the glucose level drops there is also a point at which the body releases the fat tissue into the energy systems. In some people the headache level is above the fate release level and in others it is below. Mine is above. So I get a dull, mild headache for about half a day to a day before the ketones kick in. Other people starting on the diet may never get a headache at all.
Concerning the plateau, if you will notice on the chart above, we lost 2 lbs the first day on the diet. I didn’t weigh myself the second day. So the weight loss for the next two days averaged 1 1/4 lbs/day. On the following day I lost 1 lb, and there was no change in weight from yesterday to today. I have maintained myself strictly on the diet without any deviation. So why the plateau? Actually, the body loses weight in steps. In a previous experience, were I had much more weight to lose, I have gone as much as four days with no change in weight. However, lipid tissue during that time was constantly being consumed, but was being compensated for by water retention. A best fit curve plotted through the points on a time vs weight graph, however, would follow an exponential curve. Great diet!
Gramps