Diet Autoimmune patients need to know that
what they are eating has a HUGE, let me say it again, HUGE, effect on their condition. Don’t believe the people who say that nutrition doesn’t matter. It’s only logical that the human body requires the ability to assimilate all of the available nutrients in order to function. This is especially true for patients who have health conditions, including autoimmune disease. When I advise a patient to alter their diet in order to treat autoimmune issues, a frequent response that I hear is, “I’ve been eating this way my entire life, so how could food be an issue now?” Think about this statement. If food plays even a small part of the equa- tion, and the patient has been eating the same way their entire life, then doesn’t it make sense that diet is at least part of what is causing the damage that has led to a bigger health prob- lem?
The human body, when given the proper
tools (such as nutrients), has the amazing abil- ity to heal itself. It is also amazing how much abuse it will take before breaking down and creating a condition that is going to be more difficult to repair down the road. With any chronic condition, the patient
will improve by eating what helps them and eliminating foods that do not help, or cause further issues. For autoimmune patients, the first two foods to be eliminated are inevitably dairy and wheat. Just about every processed food has wheat in it. To avoid reading a ton of labels, the easiest way to handle wheat avoid- ance is to focus on eating plant based foods. No labels, no guessing, just eat whole foods. As far as dairy, do not worry that eliminat- ing it will cause a calcium deficiency. Many cultures around the world don’t consume the same large servings of dairy that Americans consume. Also, many whole foods contain calcium. If you’re still concerned, then you can always take a calcium supplement. Other foods that should be excluded are sugar (of course) and red meat. There is also a group of vegetables called the night shades which are considered highly inflammatory and should be avoided. These include the pep- pers, tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant. Arthritis patients seem to have the most problems with the night shade varieties.
Food Sensitivity Test
Food sensitivity tests are available to help patients determine what other foods might be creating issues. These are not food allergy tests to determine anaphylactic reactions, but rather food sensitivity tests that show what are called, “delayed reactions.” Delayed reactions
NaturalNutmeg.com 13
On...Nutrition & Deficiencies...
“Could depression, osteoporosis, or heart disease be the result of a vitamin deficiency? Tiny nutrients have powerful effects and nutrition can heal.
HolcareNutrition Vicki Kobliner, MS RD |
vicki@holcarenutrition.com 3 Hollyhock Rd. • Wilton, CT • 06897 • 203-834-9949 •
holcarenutrition.com
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