posted
i have been off gluten for over 3 years, even pre lyme (which has been about a year, but maybe longer?). and i don't really like sugar anyhow- i am more of a savory-salty-spicy kind of fellow. i eat lots of things that are both anti-inflammatory and of course eat 99% organic.
i have been eating primarily vegetarian for several weeks. i was a vegetarian that ate eggs and dairy plus occasional fish for many years before (going on and off cheese here and there). then after losing a ton of weight after a doc misdiagnosed me for an injury (long story), i went back to eating meat. it did help.
anyhow, i eat chicken or fish 2-3 times a week, usually 2. i still eat eggs. no dairy. no gluten. some medicinal foods. lots of protein, but hard to do when eating veggie, so i try to remember to drink brown rice protein shakes.
i think, however, that i might start eating more raw foods. i used to be a raw foods personal chef for a while, and i enjoyed it then. but it is a process. i am wondering about how it would play a role in our healing.
people speak of healing diets, such as ayurveda, chinese medicinal herbs and mushrooms, and the like.
i just want to hear what you do diet wise to actually aid in healing. there are great foods for candida, for example, and believe it or not- it is certain fungi!
i am positive that diet will greatly influence all aspects of healing, but i want to know how much it can do to push out the bugs and metals.
any thoughts?
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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posted
since the long bionic 880 thread got off topic and headed in the direction of talking about foods for healing, which i think was my fault, i figured i'd bring this one back up because i was enjoying reading about peoples' thoughts on foods.
i personally think that eating kimchee is very good for the immune system. i make my own and for a while was eating it for breakfast every day. i need to get back on that! it is very easy to make. i use fresh chilies instead of dried powder, and use all kinds of veggies from the garden (hey- in culinary arts, rules are for breaking as far as i am concerned).
one thing that we have been told to avoid with bugs are mushrooms. but shiitakes and maitakes are very good for killing candida as well as amping up the immune system.
and magnesium? well most of us are low in it. i was told yesterday by my llmd that my levels have been dropping quickly despite me taking a bunch daily. good foods for magnesium intake: seaweeds, soybeans, mung beans, other beans, nuts, and whole grains. another good source is blue-green algae and chlorohyll. the amount of mg in it is about the same as in the nuts but it is assimilated into the body much more efficiently with the algaes, if you eat them regularly. you all probably know this, but if you don't have enough mag in you, then calcium cannot be absorbed. calcium is found in dairy, good greens, broccoli, soy, and others. both calcium and magesium are so important to our musculoskeletal and nerve functioning that when they are lacking or out of balance, we can suffer cramps, tension, etc.
so i vote for eating good things as a way for aiding our bodies to kill off these bugs.
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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Angelica
Unregistered
posted
Mung beans are said to help pull out toxins. Ginger I find is helpful too for many reasons - it helps with inflammation with digestion yeast and colds just to name some of its benefits.
I am glad you mentioned mushrooms. People often forget that some our very beneficial. Dr. B. mentions some to take in his guidelines. I found immune help from taking Host Defense (medicinal mushrooms) by New Chapter. Now my body has become use to them and I need to find a new mushroom formula to take for a bit to mix things up. I found Host Defense very helpful at the beginning.
I do sometimes cook with medicinal mushrooms.
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posted
in the beginning, after my 2 weeks of abx, the doc said i didn't have lyme and to stop the abx. well, i was concerned he was wrong, and started taking shiitake, host defense, maiitake, garlic, osha, teasel, and olive leaf on my own. i think it helped to thwart off some severity for a while?
now, i take host defense daily in my supplement mix. i eat tons of food with ginger in it, and sometimes tumeric as well. mung beans with chilies, onion, garlic, lemongrass, and ginger is a staple in my home.
ever try lion's mane mushrooms??
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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Angelica
Unregistered
posted
I have never heard of LM mushrooms. What properties do they have?
I like to brew fresh ginger root with lemon grass and lemon balm for tea. Lemon balm is easy to grow and has some healing properties. It is anti-viral and said to help with herpes.
For anyone new to Host Defense one famous East Coast LLMD sells it in his office. You can buy it at health food stores as well. They make capsules and a tincture and the best prices for it are found online.
Powdered ginger can easily be added to yogurt blender drinks. I add cardamon and alcohol free vanilla as well. Brussels said that she believes cardamon helps with babesia treatment. I like the taste of cardamon.
For people juicing fresh ginger mixes well with many juices.
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
I am not sure that there is a diet that can actually aid in healing this illness, as it would have to include foods/herbs that are anti-microbial. And then it would seem one would have to take them on a schedule, several times a day perhaps.
I think the best we can do is find what foods are the most supportive to us while fighting the illness. I am considered vata in ayurvedic terms, and need foods that are more grounding.
For me, it is a diet similar to yours... little or no gluten or other carbs (potatos excepted), no dairy, sugars, caffeine, etc. I try to stay with organic and fresh as much as possible as mentioned on the other thread, and include some protein... chicken or fish, eggs, a little fresh goat cheese here and there, almond butter and sunflower seeds, whey. And then, of course, many vegetables (craving tomatos lately). For fruit... apples and blueberries.
My favorite dinner lately is tomato, basil (fresh) and goat cheese omelettes, with sea salt.
If we eat animal protein we often allow it to marinate for at least 20 minutes in wine to kill some or any bacteria. Lemon or lime may be substituted for a similar effect. This was a suggestion made by the author of 'Healing with Whole Foods.'
On the few occassions that we eat dairy, we drink very small amounts of red wine with it. But not everyone here is well enough to drink even small amounts of wine, or may be prohibitive with abx.
I agree with some of the others on the previous thread that buying local may be preferable to buying organic. We are lucky to be able to get range-free eggs here, and have a local company that makes goat cheese. There is a Farmers Market that offers only organic, local produce. Eating seasonally also seems helpful.
Claire
Posts: 1111 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2006
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
This recipe was posted here a couple of years ago:
--------------------------------------------- Delicious Recipe to Remove Heavy Metals
The main ingredient of the following recipe - cilantro (a.k.a. Coriander) - is probably the most powerful natural chelating agent around. The following recipe combines Cilantro with other ingredients that have a synergistic effect. They cleanse the tissues by increasing the urinary excretion of mercury, lead and aluminum. Two teaspoons of this pesto daily for three weeks is purportedly enough to substantially clear these toxic metals from the body. It is recommended to repeat this cleanse as a preventative measure at least once a year for three weeks. This great recipe is not only easy to make but delicious on toast, baked potatoes and pasta. You just might want to make it a regular part of your diet!
How to make Coriander Chelation Pesto: You take 4 cloves garlic, 1/3 cup Brazil nuts (selenium), 1/3 cup sunflower seeds (cysteine) and 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds (zinc, magnesium). Add 2 cups packed fresh coriander (cilantro, Chinese parsley) (vitamin A), 2/3 cup flaxseed oil, 4 tablespoons lemon juice (vitamin C), 2 tsp dulse powder and Bragg's liquid [or Miso]. Process the coriander and flaxseed oil in a blender until the coriander is chopped. Add the garlic, nuts and seeds, dulse and lemon juice and mix until the mixture is finely blended into a paste. Add a squirt of Bragg's to taste and blend again. Store in dark glass jars if possible. It freezes well, so purchase coriander in season and fill enough jars to last throughout the year. ------------------------------------------------ I never did try it as it still seemed a bit labor intensive to me.
Claire
Posts: 1111 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2006
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posted
that actually sounds really good. i wonder if you can substitute olive or safflower oil for the flax oil?
you can make a bunch of the pesto, and fill up an ice cube tray, freeze it, then break the cubes out into a ziplock bag or tupperware and freeze the bunch, use as needed.
i do that with the holy basil/garlic/ginger/chilies "pesto" i make each year.
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
That is a nice idea with the ice cube trays...
Come to think of it... there is a lot in the archives on the use of garlic, as well as quite a bit of discussion about turmeric, and somewhat on curries. Here is one recent discussion:
I think you are right, John. There may be more that we can do with our diets (other than just a supportive role) than I initially thought when first reading your thread.
Claire
Posts: 1111 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2006
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posted
i think that people don't realize that you can experiment all you want with food. for example, you can make a salad dressing with blueberries, coconut oil, noni juice and ginger...pour it over salad or rice pasta with a protein like baked tofu. fresh spinach- loaded with good vitamins- chop it up, add a can of chickpeas, a couple cloves of minced garlic, some sea salt, and some lemon juice and olive oil. even add some tumeric if you like. good for you and adds strength to your system. i eat eggs for protein. but i tend to make an omlette with thai red curry paste and garlic. i think that hot chilies can really benefit us. they are anti-inflammatory and and do wonders in the bloodstream. go figure that they are native to lots of warm/hot climates were many bug-borne illnesses have been present forever.
i think that nature does her best to provide us with medicines. not that we can be cured by eating certain foods, but if we focus on eating foods that can aid in killing bugs, nourishing bodily systems, and restoring homeostasis then we are only helping ourselves immensely and at the same time are learning some neat culinary tricks.
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
An ingredient just mentioned in the coriander pesto was dulse, a sea vegetable, so to speak, but basically sea weed. It's a good thing, with a fair amount of iodine, necessary for proper thyroid function, and probably for antimicrobial functions, and also rumored to be depleted in foods raised by industrialized farming practices. It also has other micronutrients.
That said, the combination of those ingredients is are good for us, but the benefits may not be just in removal of heavy metals, but also in repletion of vital nutrients...
Posts: 442 | From Biddeford, ME | Registered: Nov 2007
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posted
yes, dulse is a good thing. i sprinkle it on salads and in every soup i make, which is basically daily since it's now too cold out (my opinion)! i think that article on curry was a bit lacking in some information, so people may be confused--- curry simply means a blend of spices. there are so many curries out there, that just eating "curry" is pretty vague. thai curries are totally different than most curries in india, although some thai curries do contain tumeric and even some cloves. jamaican curries use variants of your typical curry powder found in many stores. and so on.
main ingredients that can aid in health are the tumeric, chilies, ginger, cloves, fennel, and fenugreek (as far as spices used in india). i tend to make my own curry blends as i go along with each meal. tumeric is probably one of the best for inflammation as is fenugreek. cardamom, often used in some curries, is great for the stomach, and supposedly can help with blood parasites like babesia. ginger, is great for the stomach and is a warming spice. chilies have been shown to aid in pain and inflammation reduction, plus may thwart microbes as well.
so, if you want to eat for health- you can have fun with it. too- go buy the individual spices and add as you go along with your cooking. there is no wrong way, because, like art, if you like it- it's good cooking! watch out for too much tumeric- overdone it can ruin the taste of a meal, and can also irritate the stomach.
-------------------- do your best to educate the rest because 9 out of 10 doctors don't know jack about tick borne illnesses Posts: 437 | From shawangunk mountains, ny | Registered: May 2008
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richedie
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14689
posted
For me the big things are whole foods and as organic as possible. I limit my meat intake greatly because meat putrefies quickly in the intestines and slow digestion. You want good digestion, with good nutrient absorption. There is a reason why when people have trouble with eliminating toxins or have digestion issues/nutrient absorption issues, doctors tend to put them on a semi vegetarian diet. In many studies on human nutrition, it has been found disease festers in people who eat lots of meat and animal protein, and not as much in vegetarians or near-vegetarians. Vegetarians are also typically found to have much higher levels or good bacteria in their system. The broken down remnants of whole carbs or starches such as whole oats, oat grouts, red skin potatoes, whole buckwheat, etc provide prebiotics feeding the good bacteria. There is a lot of false information going around pertaining to carbs.
When I was a personal trainer and in school to become a nutritionist, I had most, if not all of my clients switch to a high carb diet, but I insisted on no refined carbs and preferred they eat intact carbs. They could eat as much of this as they wanted and all of them did very well, losing weight and getting in great shape. I know in my 22 years of training, my best condition and lowest levels of bodyfat were always on high carb diets. A few bogus studied on carbs and diet were adopted by the mainstream and people have been misled for years now.
And...don't ever, ever think you will lack protein by not eating meat. Nothing could be further from the truth. Grains, starches, veggies, legumes, nuts, etc...are loaded with more than you need. I always like to point out human breast milk vs cow's milk. Look at the difference in the amount of protein. I believe it is about 5% in human milk and about 20% or more in cow's milk. Look at the huge amount of growth taking place in those early years of life and yet nature only supplies about 5%. The west has more osteoporosis despite the fact that we consume more milk than anyone. Hmmm I went years as a strict vegetarian and vegan and made great gains in weight lifting, bodybuilding and powerlifting and no - I have never taken drugs/steroids!
Sorry for getting off topic.
Anyway, I do try to eat nothing but whole foods, lots of grains, starches, veggies, some fruit, a few meals which include organic chicken or turkey each week, some eggs, occasional dairy, soy, nuts. I am thinking of trying to do without gluten and soy for a while to see if pain eases a bit. I am always trying to find a food connection but I have a high metabolism so 4-5'000 calories a day I normal for me.
Raw, organic apple cider vinegar, ginger, garlic, turmeric, are all good to add to your regimen while fighting this dreadful disease. UGH!
-Rich
-------------------- Mepron/Zith/Ceftin Doxy/Biaxin/Flagyl pulse. Artemisinin with Doxy/Biaxin. Period of Levaquin and Ceftin. Then Levaquin, Bactrim and Biaxin. Bactrim/Augmentin/Rifampin. Mepron/Biaxin/Artemisinin/Cat's Claw Rifampin/Bactrim/Alinia Plaquenil/Biaxin Posts: 1949 | From Pennsylvania | Registered: Feb 2008
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