Bizarre Dietary Changes That May Have Helped Me

[ramakentesh]

Well I thought Id post on some bizarre random dietary things I have done over the years to see if they help POTS at all.

There are a couple that seem to have helped but I cannot begin to fathom why:

1. Making a soup of a large amount of silverbeet

2. making a soup of onions eaten for three days (effectively cured my POTS twice for a day)

3. stopping all meat for a month

4. And the one Im exploring now is the low starch diet.

When im going through a rough patch and nothing seems to help I usually try one of these above and sometimes I get some benefit. It may just be coincidental and all that but hey its worth a shot I guess.

Dietary changes that did not help me:

1. eating tumeric

2. eating foods that contain even minute amounts of ACE inhibiting constituents

3. 3 months gluten free

[jkoconne]

Its interesting you mention a low starch diet. I've read that before but it so hard for me to cut out certain foods...my diet is already so restricted!

But startching today my doc said I need to be on a low carb diet which will also cut a lot of the starch out of my diet.

Hope it helps me as much as it did you! Thanks for the info

[GypsySoulNicole]

Rama, I am so excited you posted this! On the New Dr. New Ideas thread, Issie had asked me why I was eating high fat when we both are fighting protozoas. I thought I would start a diet thread and then I found this! I know I've shared before I am now seeing an Amish doctor after getting dropped by insurance. I've been adopting a natural lifestyle and I think it's a huge part in what relief I have achieved. One of the greatest threads from awhile back was the pots connection with gut /brain connection. You can't deny foods importance on gut health. I have focused mostly on diet because it is something I can finally control in this illness without tests, scripts etc.

"The food we eat is not just about pleasure, caloric intake, energy and nutrition. Food is fundamentally a signal to our bodies about our environment, and this causes shifts in our biochemistry and that of our offspring."( taken from blog comment I loved)

There is new research on diets role on gene expression. How exciting they are researching what my mom always said to me, "You are what you eat!" The book by Dr. Shanahan called, Deep Nutrition - Why Your Genes Need Traditional Foods explains how many modern foods are not only making us fat but are creating disease within our cells. She explains the connection of diet and gene health.

One study I read was done by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, but, this link is a much better read, http://www.jackkruse.com/brain-gut-5-paradigm-drifts-paradigm-shifts-epi-paleo/

I know diet is a touchy subject. I used to get ticked at people mentioning diet to me when I felt like I was circling the drain, until I was ready to hear it. Which for me took getting dropped by insurance and forced to take a look at natural options. Now, it is becoming my hobby. Researching the importance of the food our great grandmas made, like bone broth, liver and raw milk etc. We are just a few months into our families lifestyle change and we see a Huge difference.

[ramakentesh]

This may be of interest:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17555985

[GypsySoulNicole]

Awesome, I just so happened to be snacking on a salad with broccoli sprouts while I read that study!

[spinner]

Thanks for posting. Diet is incredibly important in every kind of chronic illness. We live in the era of procesed foods.

We also have chemicals flooding our bodies, some causing cancer, some wiping out our flora bacteria, some doing

brain damage.

Ive been studying celiac (gluten) disease and once again it causes very similar problems across the platform of

POTS-like symptoms such as adrenal problems, FM, heat intolerance, weakness, digestive issues, weight

issues, and immune issues. Probably add to that internal nervous system problems.

Once we understand that our gut is 80 percent of our immune system we dont question diet anymore.

[GypsySoulNicole]

Thanks for posting. Diet is incredibly important in every kind of chronic illness. We live in the era of procesed foods.

We also have chemicals flooding our bodies, some causing cancer, some wiping out our flora bacteria, some doing

brain damage.

Ive been studying celiac (gluten) disease and once again it causes very similar problems across the platform of

POTS-like symptoms such as adrenal problems, FM, heat intolerance, weakness, digestive issues, weight

issues, and immune issues. Probably add to that internal nervous system problems.

Once we understand that our gut is 80 percent of our immune system we dont question diet anymore.

Amen! Has there been a poll on how many had issues with gut bacteria before Pots onset? Not like "tummy ache " but things like Cdiff, Ecoli etc.

[ramakentesh]

How about Klebseiba?

[Angela]

so essentially we r vampires eat tons of garic. and onions.

[GypsySoulNicole]

How about Klebseiba?

Is klebsebia something you had issues with? I was hospitalized with acute cdiff after an emergency csection in 06. I remember someone else with cdiff trouble as well on here. I am thinking I am like lemony snickets and suffered a series of unfortunate events, leading to my health situation. A combination of genetics, diet and trauma made my gut the ultimate playground for all things bad!

Back to your original post, Bizarre foods with Rama... I'll add somethings I've experimented with thus far.

Eating cucumbers, onions, dill and apple cider vinegar with Himalayan salt (good source of iodine) on it has been my new nightly thing for about a month and a half. I crave it and it seems to be helping with sleep (not tonight though!).

Organic Grassfed Butter and or Ghee - doesn't make me feel different but dang its good.

Bone Broth - big energy booster, brain fog clearing effects. I have a perpetual crockpot going with organic grassfed chicken bones. The natural gelatin helps everything! Remember how chicken noodle soup used to be the cure for a cold? Well, the artificial chicken flavored broth soup isn't curing anything. The good stuffs in those bones once they've became almost mush from cooking so long.

[Angela]

fah,,, I love and believe in potatoes which are full of starch. There's a book, potatoes vs prozac. how did the irish survive during the potato famine? they are loaded with protein/aemino acids and all the electrolites. i only cut out oils and cooking with oil. dont think i could handle beet soup i hate beets. guess things work differently for different people tho. Potatoes also contain a variety of phytonutrients that have antioxidant activity. also, see below:

Here are some health benefits of Potatoes:

1. Weight gain
   Potatoes are rich in carbohydrates and less protein. This makes it an ideal diet for those who are thin and want to increase body weight. The vitamins contained in potatoes like vitamin-C and B-complex are also essential for proper absorption of this carbohydrate. That’s why it become an inevitable part of the diet for Sumo Wrestlers.
2. Digestion
   Since potatoes rich in carbohydrates, so it is easy to digest and facilitate digestion. This makes them a good diet for patients, babies and those who difficult to digest but require energy.
3. Skin care
   Vitamin-C, B-complex and minerals like potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc are good source for the skin care. Pulp obtained in crushed raw potatoes, mixed with honey, can also be applied as a poultice in clearing the wrinkles and other skin blemishes due to aging.
4. Brain function
   Proper brain function largely depend on oxygen supply, glucose level, magnesium, some members of the vitamin B complex and some hormones, such as amino acids and fatty acids like omega-3 fatty acids. Potatoes meet almost all the needs mentioned above. In addition, it contains certain other substances like zinc and phosphorus which are good for brain too.
5. Inflammation
   Nutrient contained in potatoes like vitamin C, vitamin B and potasium are good source to relieve inflammation, both internal and external such as inflammation of intestines and the digestive system. Since it’s soft and easy digestible then make them a good diet for those who have mouth ulcers.
6. Rheumatism
   Some nutrient like vitamins, calcium and magnesium in potatoes can help reduce rheumatism.

Apart from some health benefits mentioned above, potatoes are also good for heart, energy recovery when diarrhea and other illnesses. Are you still afraid to eat potatoes? As long as you do not consume excess, a portion of French fries are also have health benefits.

I have read that milk/dairy etc. is bad for autoimmune. so every doctor must have a different concept on what is healthy for a specific individual for whatever reason.

[issie]

I recently read about a guy who only ate potatoes for 60 days and decreased his blood sugar and lipids levels, lost weight and everything about him improved. I like potatoes - but, don't think I could eat 20 of them a day like this guy did. I wonder if he continued to eat potatoes after this experiment.

Interesting how good sulfur type foods are and the benefits that they bring to health. Unfortunately, some of them make me feel awful. I still eat them, but just don't over-indulge in them. Limited amounts I seem to do okay with.

Angela ---I'm with you. I HATE BEETS!!!!! Long story, short ---found out I'm allergic to them, later in life. I gag and nearly throw them up.

I also had something life C Diff - it, literally, nearly killed me. Had to do oral chemo 2 rounds before got it stopped. Was a very sick girl and it was very painful and scary.

Issie

[Angela]

wow, didn't know about c diff but from what i understand white pasta, skinless potatoes are supposed to help and it is a gut bacterium so you need to stay on antibiotics? r u on antibiotics for that? yet i read conflicting info such as it is a Gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming rods (bacillus). also treatment is by stopping any antibiotics and commencing specific anticlostridial antibiotics, and with the protozoa how do you tackle that? don't know anything about this info regarding c diff but am interested, do you have an explanation you would be willing to share? and why chemo - what age were you at when you realized this if you don't mind me asking?

[GypsySoulNicole]

I don't think it's a coincidence on multiple people having gut issues like that before our crash. Angela, I picked up c diff in the hospital (which is common) after having a large amount of antibiotics during an emergency c section. Like Issie, I was bad, I had kidney failure and the worst gut pain ever. Wouldn't wish it on anyone.

Ang - C diff takes over when the good gut flora is wiped out.

[ramakentesh]

Potatoes are one of my ways from swapping from a POTs phase to an Ankylosing SPondylitis phase (yes pain is better than dizziness!). They definately trigger inflammation in me but if thst stops POTS misbehaving im fine.

[ramakentesh]

The onion soup thing was interesting. I felt no POTS symptoms for ages after byt my lips went all burny.

[issie]

.

[RichGotsPots]

Food is a major trigger for my breathing problems, either because of pooling, a hyatal hernia, dryness or something unknown. But what I realized is that when I only drink fresh vegetable juice I'm fine and then when I eat the wrong foods and then i'm active I have breathing problems. I know all flour made foods cause this, breads, pastas and everything else. I dont think its gluten because i went glueten free and still had the problems. What suprised be is when I made fresh potato leak soup and got major breathing issues. I love soups, I love making them and potato leak is one of my favorites to make.

Now i'm on a 97% all raw vegetable diet with vegetable juices almost 2 months. Its been helping me more than any medicine has in over a year. But what noticed is that if I eat raw starchy veggies they can cause slight issues for me. So I really limit those especially at night when my breathing is more vulnerable..

[ramakentesh]

Food is a major trigger for my breathing problems, either because of pooling, a hyatal hernia, dryness or something unknown. But what I realized is that when I only drink fresh vegetable juice I'm fine and then when I eat the wrong foods and then i'm active I have breathing problems. I know all flour made foods cause this, breads, pastas and everything else. I dont think its gluten because i went glueten free and still had the problems. What suprised be is when I made fresh potato leak soup and got major breathing issues. I love soups, I love making them and potato leak is one of my favorites to make. Now i'm on a 97% all raw vegetable diet with vegetable juices almost 2 months. Its been helping me more than any medicine has in over a year. But what noticed is that if I eat raw starchy veggies they can cause slight issues for me. So I really limit those especially at night when my breathing is more vulnerable..

An interesting observation regarding potatoes - they often really flare up my ankylosing spond and it and my pots seem to feed off each other. That was why I was trialling the starch free diet as its reputed to help AS so maybe my POTS? The onion soup was the most dramatic result.

[POTLUCK]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2010276/Beetroot-juice-athletes-game-boosting-stamina.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1027050/pdf/gut00035-0067.pdf

http://sweatscience.com/beet-juice-its-the-nitrates-stupid/

http://hyper.ahajournals.org/content/56/2/274.abstract

The silverbeet would be due to high nitrate content?

[ramakentesh]

Maybe. I have no idea. it did help though and i think its good for ya too

[AllAboutPeace]

I'm studying nutrition and have recently been introduced to a website that tells you the Inflammation Factor (IF) of whatever food you enter in.

The IF (Inflammation Factor) Rating™ estimates the inflammatory or anti-inflammatory potential of individual foods or combinations of foods by calculating the net effect of different nutritional factors, such as fatty acids, antioxidants, and glycemic impact.

How to interpret the values: Foods with positive IF Ratings are considered anti-inflammatory, and those with negative IF Ratings are considered inflammatory. The higher the number, the stronger the effect. The goal is to balance negative foods with positive foods so that the combined rating for all foods eaten in a single day is positive.

I've noticed a strong correlation between my reaction to foods and their position on the inflammation scale. Onions are one of the foods I do well with, too and their rating is strongly anti-inflammatory. Potatoes are listed as mildly inflammatory. Potatoes, I still eat sporadically, but many of the foods that I've phased out over time, show up high on the inflammatory scale. For example, I love bakery rolls, but if I eat one, I feel like I've gained 5 lbs in swelling.

If anyone wants to check out certain foods the website is http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2880/2

[ramakentesh]

thats a great link

[Relax86]

Recently noticing some foods that flare my POTs symptoms. Salad dressings, soy sauce, BBQ sauce, some but not all chinese food. I'm pretty sure that the culprit is nitrates. Anyone else have any thoughts??

[ramakentesh]

Tumeric and coconut milk can for me but no idea why.