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Grass Sickness Causes Dysautonomia


L4UR3N

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Normally I don't post this kind of thing, but as a horse enthusiast I was kind of blown away by this. The fact that this equine dysautonomia is felt to come from "grass sickness" is particularly interesting. If food can cause dysautonomia in horses, why not in humans too?

Interestingly Gluten is part of a grass family called Poaceae. This grass family also includes corn, oats, rice, sorghum, kamut, millet, teff, sugarcane and a whole list of other things found in the last link below. How many of us who are gluten free are truley avoiding everything in this family? I know I am not, but I think I am going to start.

A source of potential "grass sickness' in humans??

http://en.wikipedia..../Grass_sickness

http://en.wikipedia....Food_production

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It appears there is still uncertainty about the cause but a toxin is suspected as lemons states...

http://petcaretips.net/grass_sickness_horse.html

CAUSAL AGENT

The cause of grass sickness is unknown despite almost 90 years of

investigation. Many potential causes have been examined over the

years including poisonous plants, chemicals, bacteria, viruses,

insects and metabolic upsets but none has survived scrutiny. A

common suggestion by horse owners is that mineral or vitamin

deficiencies may be the cause but studies have not shown any link

with the disease. It does not appear to be contagious and the

type of damage to the nervous system suggests that a toxic

substance rather than an infectious agent is likely to be

involved. Circumstantial evidence is accumulating, including the

weather conditions associated with the disease, to suggest that a

fungal toxin is a likely candidate.

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Yep it states that a toxin gets into the grass and then is eaten......which could also happen with humans with all the grass that we eat. Maybe some people are just more susceptible to the effects than others (or perhaps our own gut bacteria are not able to fight it off).

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Here is some information on the toxin/ fungal agent that they seem to always find in the soil where these animals are eating --very interesting :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusarium

It scares me a little bit because I have eaten Quorn :unsure: . I was a vegetarian for many years and they make a yummy product that is a sub for chicken.

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I have read quite a few articles on grass sickness and the while there is no proven cause, most researh points toward this really being a form of botulism. If that is the case, things like husbandry practices and weather conditions are more likely to contribute to this illness than the type of pasture the horse is grazing on. For example, overcrowding or a particularly damp season would allow the boltulism micro-organisms to proliferate and be more likely to infect a horse. I am not sure I can make the jump to connecting this equine illness with limiting our intake of certain grains.

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I took a Carroll Food Intolerance test a year ago, which said I am gluten and sugar(cane) intolerant...also potato. I have been off all three for a year and still have POTS symptoms. My naturopath said I am the only patient she has had who didn't get better when they when off their intolerant foods. But I haven't tried going off the other grains you mentioned.

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LOL Rama you crack me up :)

I've done my best to cut out all grains, but have not been completely successful. It's very difficult because you basically have to make all of your own food from scratch, which is very time consuming (a bit too much for my schedule). I would say I'm 99% grain free and sugar free, and I have noticed a difference...although not as big of a difference as I had hoped. I have been doing it for less than 2 months, so maybe it will continue to improve with time? I know for a gluten free diet they always say you have to give it at least 3 months until you notice a difference in the way you feel. Unfortunately there are some people who have a gluten intolerance, but do not improve when going gluten free (myself included) --that's why I started looking at other things that I might be intolerant to (like corn, rice and sugar). Almond flour and Coconut flour are great substitutes for baking :).

That being said, research has shown that the type of neuropathy that comes from a gluten intolerance does NOT respond to a gluten free diet. I'm sure there are other illnesses that are the same way. However, if gluten IS a problem, the illness will continue to progress as long as it is being ingested.

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We should also remember that even Beriberi (which has symptoms very similar to dysautonomia) comes from rice. The connection between food and nervous system effects is strong.

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