We will keep updating our FAQs with every question we receive. If you have a question that isn’t here, please contact us and we will get back to you! 

What are net carbs?

That is a very good question. Net carbs is a calculation created for people to easily assess how much carb content their body could handle on a day to day basis. It is used extensively in the Atkins eating plan, so that people can figure out over time what limit of net carbs they should eat every day to maintain a healthy weight.

If you have a look at a food package, you will see all of that confusing, but important information on the back of it. You should see a value for “Total Carbohydrates” and underneath that you may see “Sugars” and or “Sugar Alcohols” (sometimes called “Polyols”). Directly underneath those you will see a value for “Dietary Fibre”.

Net carbs are calculated by taking the Total carbohydrate content and subtracting the sugar alcohols plus the dietary fibre values from it. The reason for doing this is because sugar alcohols and dietary fibre are only partially converted to sugar in the blood and mostly not at all. Therefore when you subtract these from the total carbs you are left with the net carbs that will negatively affect your sugar levels and therefore your weight loss or gain.
You will see on this website that where possible the net carbs per serving has been given and in each product the serving size used to calculate the net carbs is shown under additional information.

What is Banting?

Banting is or rather was, a man… William Banting was an obese British undertaker when in 1862 he decided to follow an eating plan presecribed by his doctor, Dr William Harvey, which was high in fat and very low in carbohydrates. He had great success with this way of eating that he published a booklet on his new-found answer to health and weight-loss.

He personally followed a lifestyle of 4 meals a day consisting of meat, vegetables, fruit and dry wine. Some say he was the first person to make this low-carbohydrate living popular. Nowadays, Banting is used to describe a low carb high fat lifestyle and has been brought back to living memory by SA’s very own Prof. Tim Noakes, and Dr. Gary Tuabes. You can get more about banting in The Real Meal Revolution Book along with some simple and delicious recipes.

What is Atkins?

Atkins is actually a man. Dr Robert Coleman Atkins was a cardiologist who himself struggled with weight. He decided to restrict sugar and carbohydrates from his diet and managed to get back to a healthy form and maintain it. He used this recipe for many of his patients who also had similar successes. This was over 60 years ago, so you can imagine the controversy he stirred in the media.

In 1972 he published his first book Dr Atkins’ Diet Revolution which was a massive bestseller, and proceeded to publish numerous books, cook books and meal plans. In 2003, he died from complications with a head injury from a fall (at the age of 71). But, his name and teachings live on. The atkins lifestyle is followed by many and the basic principle is to restrict your carb and sugar content in your food and eat more protein and fibre rich foods

The plan is based around 4 phases, with lists of what you can and cannot eat for each phase:

1. Induction phase – where you can eat up to 20 net carbs per day for approximately 2 weeks.
2. Balancing phase – you add more nuts, veggies and fruit back into your eating plan.
3. Fine tuning phase – you add more carbs until you begin to see the weight-loss slowing down.
4. Maintenance phase – this is where you maintain a level of net carbs that your body can handle without gaining weight. Everybody has a different threshold.

What is Paleo?

Sometimes known as the “caveman” diet, paleo has less to do with living in a cave and having to catch our food with a spear, and more to do with going back to our roots and eating the kind of meals that our ancestors would have thrived on. This lifestyle focusses on staying away from foods that require lots of processing such as bread and sugar and to rather eat real food like meat, fruit, nuts, seeds and vegetables. Some of the foods not allowed while eating the Paleo way are dairy, grains, legumes and everything processed.

What is LCHF?

So the idea behind a Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) lifestyle is to increase the amount of fat you eat (fish, meat, butter, eggs – ok so where’s the catch?) and to eat fewer carbohydrates (especially sugars and starchy foods). Essentially the fatty foods are the ones that keep us satiated (less hungry). For instance if you were to have a tablespoon of butter or coconut oil right now, you’d probably be able to wait longer than if you had a full-carb full-sugar biscuit, because we all know that when we have a full-carb full-sugar biscuit, our body tells us we should have another one!

Don’t worry, it doesn’t just happen to you. It’s because when we eat refined carbs and sugars, they are digested quickly and make our blood sugar levels rise. Our body then releases a large amount of insulin which lowers the blood sugar levels, and makes us feel lethargic and needing energy again. And that’s when we go for another biscuit and the cycle begins. Losing body fat and improving blood-sugar control are just two of the positive things that are linked to LCHF.

What happens if I don’t want what I’ve bought any more?

Luckily returning something on this website is easier than giving your spouse back if you don’t like them any more. Plus, more often than not, you’ll probably get a refund (the products, not the spouse). Unfortunately we only accept returns of purchases made on this website… I’m just stating the obvious because I can see some people packing their once-upon-a-time-loved one, wound up tight with tape, and shipping them to Low Carb Love.

Ok, so what if you’ve purchased something here and don’t want it anymore? We give you 7 days to decide if you don’t want it anymore as long as it is still in it’s original packaging. You can then send it back to us at P.O. Box 1971, Umhlanga, 4320. Postage will be for your account. Once we’ve received the item, we will then start processing the refund. This can take up to 7 working days, but we will try be quick about it. Unfortunately delivery fees are non-refundable.

What happens if I’ve used the product but didn’t like it?

You’ve bought something that said it was delicious but it’s not what you were expecting? If you’ve used the product or opened it from its original packaging, you will need to send it back to us at P.O. Box 1971, Umhlanga, 4320. We will assess your return and will forward all of the details on to the supplier. It will be up to the supplier to issue a refund. This may take some time, but we will keep you updated throughout the process.

Where do you deliver to?

We deliver to main metropolitan areas of South Africa including: Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Bloemfontein, Port Elizabeth and East London.
We also deliver to outlying areas which include: KZN Coast (from Richards Bay to Port Edward), George, Plettenberg Bay, Mossel Bay, Kimberly, Klerksdorp, Welkom, Witbank, Polokwane, Nelspruit, Vaal, Rustenburg and any other small town that has a post office or is able to be reached by our courier network.
We may not be able to deliver to towns or villages in rural hard-to-get-to places in South Africa. However, if this is the case we will contact you and either offer a full refund or find an alternate address to deliver to.

What if Low Carb Love sent the wrong products?

Whoops! Our bad! If we’ve sent the wrong goodies to you, please let us know at [email protected] within 2 working days. Then just pop the items back to us in their original unopened packaging to P.O. Box 1971, Umhlanga, 4320. Once we’ve received the items and are happy to approve your refund we will do so within 7 working days. You can email us a copy of your invoice for postage and we will include this in your refund.

What delivery options are available?

Area	Order Value	Delivery Fee	Delivery Type	Delivery Time
Metropolitan and some outlying areas	Over R350	FREE	Courier	1 – 5 working days
Metropolitan and some outlying areas	Under R350	R100	Courier	1 – 5 working days