De Meirleir and sugar

Does sugar play a prominent role in proliferation of the harmful gut bacteria that De Meirleir focuses on? I've watched the informal video of his one talk, but didn't hear sugar mentioned.

As far as I understand he believes genetically inherited defects in the metabolism are to blame, which is why he mentions lactose, fructose and sweeteners. I have never heard of an inability to correctly break down sucrose, so maybe this is why he doesn't seem to mention it?
But I have also read that sugar "contains" fructose, so if that is true then I suppose many people can't digest it properly...

Yes, table sugar is equal parts glucose and fructose. It is generally well absorbed by those with fructose malabsorption in very small amounts. We're all different but generally sugar is best kept to small amounts in our diet.

Personally I eliminated all additional sugar for many years then found that fructose was a problem for me so had a change of diet which helped quite a bit.

Sheedy, De Meirleir et al released a paper regarding d lactate some time back and one of the recommendations was a lower carb diet which of course includes sugar.
I've also read that candida thrives on sugar...though I don't know any more on that.

Yes, indeed, a person can really blow up with internal gas generated by the yeast feeding on the sugar.

So I was wondering if the bad bacteria also would generate a lot of gas after a person eats a lot of sugar.

Most likely depends on the individual's gut makeup...some will, some wont is my guess... But on a breath test after a fructose challenge, people with fructose malabsorption will produce more hydrogen and some more methane than "normal".

I follow diet of KDM (had consultation with his dietologist). Sugar (all kinds) is definitely forbidden in the diet (I scored high in lactose and fructose intolerance test). When I follow this diet I don't have so much bloathing as I used to have and also stomach pain is almost gone. However all other ME/CFS symptoms remain.

The problem with fructose isn't just the gas - if you get gas from fructose, at least it's not doing you any harm after absorption.
Fructose is "empty" calorie. We do not get energy from it, we cannot use it.

For the body to metabolise a molecule of fructose, it uses up a molecule of ATP. (your precious energy)

It gets converted into the very worst kind of low-density, low density cholesterol, and it gets depsited around your middle - the very worst place to have it.

This video - "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" explains it, it's good science.

yep yep yep bacteria love to ferment it

It's far better to have fructose ferment than have the stuff actually get inside you!

Where does stevia lie in this debate?

As far as I know, stevia is fine as an occasional sweetener...according to wikipedia it's mostly glucose. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia#Mechanism_of_action

With diets, it's probably more individual. Some sugars are fine for some people in small amounts. I find it easier to just avoid table sugar and high fructose foods the great majority of the time. D Ribose is an example of a sugar that some people find helpful.

Thanks Tony, I just wondered as I have a sugar free diet but am thinking of trying to bakesome biscuits using stevia, my results were okay on the fructose and glucose intolerance.

Peggy-Sue, thank you for that excellent link. Just finished watching it and sending it to a whole buncha people--
he explains it so clearly and forcefully.

Stevia can be almost as bad as sugar for those who are low carbs diets.

Another option is Xylitol which is a natural sweetener (which is made from birch or corn).

I havent tried it yet but I recently came across pure vegatable glycerine and it says on the bottle that that can be used as a sweetener.

Thanks tanniaust1 - I'll check it out, one gets a bit sick of a diet with nothing a littlw sweet in it.

Leela, I'm so pleased you watched the link and have passed it on!
It was my brother who sent it to me, he's a PhD in Pharmacology and Toxicology.

This information needs to get "out there".
I have already noticed a campaign has been launched by sugar and cane syrup manufacturers to try to put the dampers on this getting out and to "reassure" the populace that it is all perfectly safe.

And I think it's really important info. for people with ME - fructose steals our energy.

"With its steviol glycoside extracts having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar, stevia has garnered attention with the rise in demand for low-carbohydrate, low-sugar food alternatives. Because stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to people on carbohydrate-controlled diets."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia#Mechanism_of_action

Just be careful with xylitol around pets. It is toxic to dogs( and most likely other critters )
01 Xylitol Poisoning - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company!

I suggest that people look up online the actual carb content of stevia for themselves and you will find it has more carbs then you thought it did. (I personally dont trust wikipedia).

Stevia has become popular in low carb diets as most are just trusting its low carb and not actually looking up how many carbs are in it. (whether you need to avoid it or not.. would depend on just how severe a persons issues with carbs are.. for myself.. I cant have a normal diabetic diet as its far too high in carbs for me).

I used stevia to replace another sugar substitute once, i definately wouldnt call stevia sweat, more of a cat poo substitute