The time has come to reintroduce foods back into Harry's diet. The initial plan was to introduce one new food every other day, having a rest day between. But, we're also looking to see what's to be seen by next Saturday, when Harry goes to his high school's Junior Prom and eats all the foods we eliminated and then some. So, we were on a hurry-up schedule this weekend.
Saturday was egg day because Harry was in the mood for fried eggs. He had a track meet and ate his usual elimination diet breakfast beforehand because I didn't want to risk ruining his races with any untoward reactions. Upon his return, I set down two fried eggs in front of him, which he inhaled. Then he asked for more. So I made another. Sat back, watched and waited...and nothing. He felt fine and he looked fine for the rest of the day.
Sunday should have been a day for his system to rest after being challenged by eggs, but I could tell he didn't want to be back on the elimination diet so soon. It also seemed like a good day for a challenge because he'd be around for me to see the results firsthand. After waking early to go to our food coop to work our member hours and then helping to haul stone for three hours for a landscaping project we're doing, I decided he deserved to eat what he most loves: sugar! And since I hadn't had him avoid sugar for sugar's sake (although that would be an interesting experiment, too), I added back all the foods he was avoiding due to a suspected candida overgrowth including yeast and foods with vinegar. Again, he ate no challenge foods at breakfast, but for lunch he had a turkey breast sandwich on gluten-free bread with so much mustard on it that I really I should say he had a mustard sandwich with turkey as a condiment. He loved the sandwich and happily followed it with the sweets his sister had brought back from Italy for him. I realized afterward that we made a mistake as the sweets contained wheat and probably some dairy as well. It's very difficult to manage all of this perfectly! A few hours later, Harry looked at me and said, "I don't feel so well - I have a headache." Hmm.
We'd been avoiding Chinese food to support Harry (or at least to not drive him totally crazy). So, Sunday night was our window of opportunity. Harry ordered an avocado roll, eggplant in garlic sauce (without the soy sauce since that contains wheat), and white rice (another food not on the candida diet). He followed it with a lollipop.
An hour or so after dinner, Harry told me he "felt dead." Not only did he feel badly, he looked a mess: he was twitching and doing all sorts of repetitive motions: he was tired but couldn't be still. He was repeating himself when talking (he can do this anyway but it was much, much worse).
This morning, the first thing Harry said to me was, "I can't eat sugar." He told me he'd slept terribly because he felt sick all night. His chest hurt and he felt poorly all over. He didn't mind one bit when I handed him his elimination diet smoothie and gluten-free breakfast cereal this morning.
So, we have a clue. Is it candida, a sugar allergy, wheat, or gluten-intolerance? It's hard to know exactly since he did have some wheat yesterday and I didn't isolate sugar from the other candida-forming foods. But, I think I'm safe to say we've made the first step to figuring out what's bothering his system. I'm still guessing a candida overgrowth, which would account for the sugar sensitivity. And I'm predicting either a wheat or gluten sensitivity as well.
The other observation that Harry made this weekend is that food has been tasting better to him since being on the elimination diet for a while. First he noticed how sweet apples are. Then he noticed that food tasted better to him in general. I've heard this observation made by others: we seem to be deadening our taste buds by eating so much processed sugar and processed foods in general. My sugar-addicted son said that it might be worth staying on this diet long-term just because he's enjoying this side-effect. I never thought I'd live to see the day!
Tomorrow, we'll challenge either dairy or wheat.
BTW, I haven't forgotten about the promised chick pea patty recipes, but if you're still with me, I suspect you're ready to move on to something else by now and so will post that another day.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 13
Harry stayed with the diet longer and better than I'd initially planned or expected. For a picky eater and a kid not given to easy changes, he's been remarkably strong and determined to see this through. He's made me very proud.
However, he informed me the other day that one week from today is his high school's Junior Prom (of which I'm acutely aware, having a Junior daughter). Harry's escorting a friend and what I wasn't focusing on (although he certainly was) was the food. He told me in no uncertain terms that he'd ordered the eggplant parmesan, and would be eating it. He also told me that should there be a chocolate fountain (and he's hoping there is) that he'd be partaking. Who can blame him.
To find if any of the foods I've eliminated are causing his symptoms, it's time to start adding them back now. So, tonight's the night he gets to eat....something from the long list of banned food. Which one that'll be, I still haven't decided. But, with eggs, dairy, and wheat in eggplant parmesan, I'll be starting with those.
First, however, some observations. Harry's throat clearing is definitely better. Not gone, but better. He definitely is not as sick as he usually is this time of year when he usually sports a runny nose, watery eyes, and a sore throat because of spring allergies. He reports that his energy is better, which is good because he's back to distance running after taking most of the past year off due to injury. He still gets what I call "brain fog", but not as often as before. Interestingly, his taste buds have already changed. This really doesn't take long at all, but most of us don't believe this until we experience it for ourselves. Harry's always had a sweet tooth; now that he's not eating processed sugars, he delights in the taste of an apple (before this diet, he tolerated apples but didn't enjoy them). My daughter made cookies for him the other day: unsweetened cocoa, gluten-free flour, a tiny bit of stevia - an herb which does not raise blood glucose and can be used as a sugar replacement - which barely sweetened the cookies because too much stevia leaves a chemical taste. Kit knew that before the diet, Harry would barely be able to choke the cookies down but after a week without sugar, he raved about them!
The past few days I've been making him a quinoa pilaf to take to school for lunch. I've been making it in the morning and it's lead me to think about how we convince ourselves that cooking healthy food from scratch is just too hard and time-consuming to do. However, I make this dish while I'm drinking my morning coffee (and really, I'm kind of a slug in the morning, so if I can summon the energy for this, anyone can). It goes like this: first I pour the coffee my husband's been kind enough to make for me. I take a sip and then boil 2 cups of water and add 1 cup of rinsed quinoa to it, stir, lower heat and cover. I set the timer for 15 minutes. Then I sip some more coffee, dice an onion and add it to the pot. Sip again, wash and chop a few leaves of kale and add to the pot. Sip coffee and stir quinoa. At some point that I'm up for a walk, I stroll across the kitchen, grab some walnuts and sunflower seeds, add five more steps and these ingredients to the pot (see? now I'm drinking coffee, cooking quinoa, and working out - who says I can't multitask?) By this point, the timer is probably dinging, so I slug some more coffee, add a tablespoon or so of olive oil to the pilaf, stir and it's done. I could be reading the newspaper, but why? That's a habit that's worth reconsidering. Preparing a healthy meal is more nourishing to the body and soul than reading about the day's tragedies - they'll go on without me. BTW, this pilaf makes enough food for a sizable lunch for an active teen, my lunch, and an after school/work snack for whoever else is interested. I made it three days in a row and Harry loved it each time!
I'll start blogging tomorrow about the results of adding foods back to Harry's diet. I'll also soon post a recipe for chick-pea patties, both the usual way I make it and the gluten-free, egg-free version that I made last week.
However, he informed me the other day that one week from today is his high school's Junior Prom (of which I'm acutely aware, having a Junior daughter). Harry's escorting a friend and what I wasn't focusing on (although he certainly was) was the food. He told me in no uncertain terms that he'd ordered the eggplant parmesan, and would be eating it. He also told me that should there be a chocolate fountain (and he's hoping there is) that he'd be partaking. Who can blame him.
To find if any of the foods I've eliminated are causing his symptoms, it's time to start adding them back now. So, tonight's the night he gets to eat....something from the long list of banned food. Which one that'll be, I still haven't decided. But, with eggs, dairy, and wheat in eggplant parmesan, I'll be starting with those.
First, however, some observations. Harry's throat clearing is definitely better. Not gone, but better. He definitely is not as sick as he usually is this time of year when he usually sports a runny nose, watery eyes, and a sore throat because of spring allergies. He reports that his energy is better, which is good because he's back to distance running after taking most of the past year off due to injury. He still gets what I call "brain fog", but not as often as before. Interestingly, his taste buds have already changed. This really doesn't take long at all, but most of us don't believe this until we experience it for ourselves. Harry's always had a sweet tooth; now that he's not eating processed sugars, he delights in the taste of an apple (before this diet, he tolerated apples but didn't enjoy them). My daughter made cookies for him the other day: unsweetened cocoa, gluten-free flour, a tiny bit of stevia - an herb which does not raise blood glucose and can be used as a sugar replacement - which barely sweetened the cookies because too much stevia leaves a chemical taste. Kit knew that before the diet, Harry would barely be able to choke the cookies down but after a week without sugar, he raved about them!
The past few days I've been making him a quinoa pilaf to take to school for lunch. I've been making it in the morning and it's lead me to think about how we convince ourselves that cooking healthy food from scratch is just too hard and time-consuming to do. However, I make this dish while I'm drinking my morning coffee (and really, I'm kind of a slug in the morning, so if I can summon the energy for this, anyone can). It goes like this: first I pour the coffee my husband's been kind enough to make for me. I take a sip and then boil 2 cups of water and add 1 cup of rinsed quinoa to it, stir, lower heat and cover. I set the timer for 15 minutes. Then I sip some more coffee, dice an onion and add it to the pot. Sip again, wash and chop a few leaves of kale and add to the pot. Sip coffee and stir quinoa. At some point that I'm up for a walk, I stroll across the kitchen, grab some walnuts and sunflower seeds, add five more steps and these ingredients to the pot (see? now I'm drinking coffee, cooking quinoa, and working out - who says I can't multitask?) By this point, the timer is probably dinging, so I slug some more coffee, add a tablespoon or so of olive oil to the pilaf, stir and it's done. I could be reading the newspaper, but why? That's a habit that's worth reconsidering. Preparing a healthy meal is more nourishing to the body and soul than reading about the day's tragedies - they'll go on without me. BTW, this pilaf makes enough food for a sizable lunch for an active teen, my lunch, and an after school/work snack for whoever else is interested. I made it three days in a row and Harry loved it each time!
I'll start blogging tomorrow about the results of adding foods back to Harry's diet. I'll also soon post a recipe for chick-pea patties, both the usual way I make it and the gluten-free, egg-free version that I made last week.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 5
We made it! Five days was the goal and five days it's been. We're going to keep going; I'm not sure for how long yet. It depends on Harry's willingness to eat such a restricted diet my ability to keep the kitchen stocked with these foods and keep cooking special meals for Harry. It would be excellent if we could make it through two or three weeks.
I remembered that I should have been peeling Harry's carrots. I don't usually because there are many nutrients on the skin, but there is also mold. Because I'm trying to take as much mold out of Harry's diet as is humanly possible, the carrots should (and will) be peeled. I forgot that Harry had a track meet after school today and didn't pack any extra food to get him through the day. He made it fine and didn't eat the whole refrigerator when he got home - although he got pretty close! Good kid that he is, he didn't eat the Guiltless Gourmet Tortilla Chips I packed yesterday for him to eat at his track dinner (he wasn't sure if he was allowed them or if I'd sent them for the team), and good kids that his teammates are, there were some left. He enjoyed them as a treat during dinner.
I wish I had more to report about how Harry's feeling on the diet, but he's out so early each morning and home so late each evening, that I barely get to speak to him, let alone observe him much. His energy seems good, even with already having had two track meets this week, another evening out, and the late nights to get schoolwork done (1:00 a.m. last night). He reports feeling well. I'm still hearing some throat clearing and seeing some evidence of "brain fog", but I think these symptoms are happening less often. His mood and appetite are excellent!
Food for the day:
Breakfast: the usual smoothie except now I'm using hemp oil instead of flax oil. Hemp oil is an excellent source of Omega 3's and my kids always have a wicked smile when I use it. Carrot cupcake (see yesterday's blog).
Lunch: apple, carrots, almond butter on quinoa bread (no one will ever accuse me of being a gourmet chef, when I find something that works, I tend to stick with it)
Dinner: sauteed chicken breasts (yes, again - and again 1 1/3 lbs!), brown rice pasta with sesame oil, quinoa with onion, parseley and (oops!) tomato paste (I should have left that out), roasted cauliflower and broccoli, Guiltless Gourmet Tortilla Chips.
I remembered that I should have been peeling Harry's carrots. I don't usually because there are many nutrients on the skin, but there is also mold. Because I'm trying to take as much mold out of Harry's diet as is humanly possible, the carrots should (and will) be peeled. I forgot that Harry had a track meet after school today and didn't pack any extra food to get him through the day. He made it fine and didn't eat the whole refrigerator when he got home - although he got pretty close! Good kid that he is, he didn't eat the Guiltless Gourmet Tortilla Chips I packed yesterday for him to eat at his track dinner (he wasn't sure if he was allowed them or if I'd sent them for the team), and good kids that his teammates are, there were some left. He enjoyed them as a treat during dinner.
I wish I had more to report about how Harry's feeling on the diet, but he's out so early each morning and home so late each evening, that I barely get to speak to him, let alone observe him much. His energy seems good, even with already having had two track meets this week, another evening out, and the late nights to get schoolwork done (1:00 a.m. last night). He reports feeling well. I'm still hearing some throat clearing and seeing some evidence of "brain fog", but I think these symptoms are happening less often. His mood and appetite are excellent!
Food for the day:
Breakfast: the usual smoothie except now I'm using hemp oil instead of flax oil. Hemp oil is an excellent source of Omega 3's and my kids always have a wicked smile when I use it. Carrot cupcake (see yesterday's blog).
Lunch: apple, carrots, almond butter on quinoa bread (no one will ever accuse me of being a gourmet chef, when I find something that works, I tend to stick with it)
Dinner: sauteed chicken breasts (yes, again - and again 1 1/3 lbs!), brown rice pasta with sesame oil, quinoa with onion, parseley and (oops!) tomato paste (I should have left that out), roasted cauliflower and broccoli, Guiltless Gourmet Tortilla Chips.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 4
This might have been the toughest day so far. It makes sense that the farther along we are, the tougher it will be for Harry in many ways. As I mentioned yesterday, Harry had a dinner with his track team. It's never fun to be the person eating differently from everyone else; it certainly can't be easy when you're 17. At least one of the guys at his lunch table has made disparaging remarks about the looks of the bread Harry's sandwiches are on. And, worst of all, last night, at the end of a long day (school, track practice, and track dinner followed by the school annual boys' beauty pageant) someone in our house decided it was a good time to eat the Toblerone chocolate my daughter brought home from Italy. As that was being enjoyed by everyone but Harry, he looked at me, told me he felt no different than ever and asked when he'd start getting his usual foods back, and in what order. Poor guy - I know him and I know he'd never say it aloud, but foods, especially special, sugary foods (i.e., something brought from Europe - even if the same thing can be purchased here) are a pleasure for him.
The big success of the day was that I baked Gluten-Free/Sugar-Free Carrot Cupcakes. I used stevia powder for the sweetener as this is considered a safe sweetener for people with candida issues. Everyone (but me) loved them. I found they tasted a bit "chemical-y" - stevia is very strong (1 t = 1 C sugar), so if you overuse it, even a bit, you'll really notice it. I would use less next time.
I also realize I've made some mistakes. When I was cooking his dinner yesterday, brown rice pasta with a sauce made from organic, grass-fed beef, onions, tomato, and kale, I threw in a handful of wilted greens from our previous night's supper. As soon as they left my hand, en route to the pot, I realized I shouldn't have thrown them in: wilted veggies are start to mold and foods with mold should not be eaten by those on a candida diet - it gives the candida something to feast on. Likewise, Harry had been asking for sandwich meat for weeks. I won't buy this normally - I only buy animal products from humanely raised (and hopefully slaughtered) animals. I found some at the Berkshire Coop the day before, and although I was hesitant that pre-packaged meat might, again, be older/moldier than acceptable for the diet, I went ahead and bought it, and gave it to Harry for lunch yesterday. I remembered this morning that vegetables should be peeled, again because the skins have a higher mold content. I hadn't been peeling Harry's carrots. So, I need to do more research and be more careful with what Harry's eating.
We forge ahead though. I think it's both too soon to say which way this is going, and I still have reason to believe that at least some of the foods Harry's been eating have been affecting his health. I no longer think we can do this experiment properly in just five days: some say that's long enough to test for candida overgrowth, no one says it's long enough to test for food allergies. I can't yet say how long we'll go for: I can't do this without Harry's agreement and cooperation - I still have that, but I don't know if I'll have it for long.
Here's what Harry ate today:
Breakfast: The smoothie (see Day 2 for ingredients), hot quinoa flakes cereal - this highly nutritious cereal is even quicker to make than Pop-Tarts. Boil twice the amount of water (salted) as quinoa flakes (I used 1 C water and 1/2 C quinoa). Once the water is boiling, add the quinoa flakes and stir. It's ready in a minute.
Lunch: Organic turkey breast on gluten-free buckwheat bread, apple, carrot sticks, seltzer, walnuts.
Dinner: Brown rice pasta with meat sauce (see above). Carrot cupcakes made with Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free Baking Mix, carrots (duh), coconut oil, baking soda, salt, vanilla, stevia powder.
I need a good idea for dinner tonight. Harry needs something different and great to keep him going on this. Time to put on my thinking cap, but if anyone reads this and has any ideas, you know how to reach me! (Just leave a comment.)
The big success of the day was that I baked Gluten-Free/Sugar-Free Carrot Cupcakes. I used stevia powder for the sweetener as this is considered a safe sweetener for people with candida issues. Everyone (but me) loved them. I found they tasted a bit "chemical-y" - stevia is very strong (1 t = 1 C sugar), so if you overuse it, even a bit, you'll really notice it. I would use less next time.
I also realize I've made some mistakes. When I was cooking his dinner yesterday, brown rice pasta with a sauce made from organic, grass-fed beef, onions, tomato, and kale, I threw in a handful of wilted greens from our previous night's supper. As soon as they left my hand, en route to the pot, I realized I shouldn't have thrown them in: wilted veggies are start to mold and foods with mold should not be eaten by those on a candida diet - it gives the candida something to feast on. Likewise, Harry had been asking for sandwich meat for weeks. I won't buy this normally - I only buy animal products from humanely raised (and hopefully slaughtered) animals. I found some at the Berkshire Coop the day before, and although I was hesitant that pre-packaged meat might, again, be older/moldier than acceptable for the diet, I went ahead and bought it, and gave it to Harry for lunch yesterday. I remembered this morning that vegetables should be peeled, again because the skins have a higher mold content. I hadn't been peeling Harry's carrots. So, I need to do more research and be more careful with what Harry's eating.
We forge ahead though. I think it's both too soon to say which way this is going, and I still have reason to believe that at least some of the foods Harry's been eating have been affecting his health. I no longer think we can do this experiment properly in just five days: some say that's long enough to test for candida overgrowth, no one says it's long enough to test for food allergies. I can't yet say how long we'll go for: I can't do this without Harry's agreement and cooperation - I still have that, but I don't know if I'll have it for long.
Here's what Harry ate today:
Breakfast: The smoothie (see Day 2 for ingredients), hot quinoa flakes cereal - this highly nutritious cereal is even quicker to make than Pop-Tarts. Boil twice the amount of water (salted) as quinoa flakes (I used 1 C water and 1/2 C quinoa). Once the water is boiling, add the quinoa flakes and stir. It's ready in a minute.
Lunch: Organic turkey breast on gluten-free buckwheat bread, apple, carrot sticks, seltzer, walnuts.
Dinner: Brown rice pasta with meat sauce (see above). Carrot cupcakes made with Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free Baking Mix, carrots (duh), coconut oil, baking soda, salt, vanilla, stevia powder.
I need a good idea for dinner tonight. Harry needs something different and great to keep him going on this. Time to put on my thinking cap, but if anyone reads this and has any ideas, you know how to reach me! (Just leave a comment.)
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 3
So far, so good. I was a bit worried today: Harry had a track meet after school. I had packed even more food than usual for him to take for the day because of this, but he came home for lunch and returned to school without the extras, telling me he wouldn't need it. As I knew he wouldn't return for another 7 or 8 hours, I was concerned that he'd get hungry and the lure of concession food, or food offered by teammates would be too much. There are benefits to being broke, however - as it turned out, Harry had no money, so even if tempted to buy food at the meet, he couldn't. Good kid that he is, he turned down the candy he was offered.
Harry says he's feeling good. He was back to sounding like Felix Unger from "The Odd Couple" at lunch - doing his throat clearing thing. He's pretty sure there's something at school that's affecting him (chalk, dust, chemicals?). His throat was clear when he got home after the meet but his nose was runny. His energy level was good even though he'd been on-the-go for over 12 hours, including participating in two distance races.
The day's food was:
Breakfast: same as yesterday, smoothie and hot cereal (check yesterday's post for details)
Harry says he's feeling good. He was back to sounding like Felix Unger from "The Odd Couple" at lunch - doing his throat clearing thing. He's pretty sure there's something at school that's affecting him (chalk, dust, chemicals?). His throat was clear when he got home after the meet but his nose was runny. His energy level was good even though he'd been on-the-go for over 12 hours, including participating in two distance races.
The day's food was:
Breakfast: same as yesterday, smoothie and hot cereal (check yesterday's post for details)
Lunch: chicken breast sandwich on Glutino Flax Seed bread (I realized afterward that this bread has yeast, egg white, and evaporated cane juice - all ingredients I meant to keep out of Harry's diet so he won't be eating it again this week), almond butter sandwich on Little Stream Bakery buckwheat loaf bread, carrots, pumpkin seeds, seltzer
Dinner: Soup (tomato, chick pea, coconut soup), walnuts, apple, seltzer
Harry has realized that should this diet clear up his symptoms (congestion, spacey-ness, fatique) he's not really on a test-diet at all but a diet he'll have to continue to stay well. Of course, I'm hoping that he's not sensitive to all these foods but we have no way of knowing until we take all the foods out for a while and see if he's better. After the elimination phase, we'll add the foods back, one at a time and see if his symptoms return.
Today's challenge: Track dinner. My plan is to cook his meal, drive to school and leave it in his car so he can bring it with him to the dinner. Fortunately, there's an event at school tonight which the guys are planning on attending which means they'll run and then eat and run. I'm glad they won't be lingering over dinner as I'm sure that would make it harder for Harry to resist all his favorite foods.
Harry has realized that should this diet clear up his symptoms (congestion, spacey-ness, fatique) he's not really on a test-diet at all but a diet he'll have to continue to stay well. Of course, I'm hoping that he's not sensitive to all these foods but we have no way of knowing until we take all the foods out for a while and see if he's better. After the elimination phase, we'll add the foods back, one at a time and see if his symptoms return.
Today's challenge: Track dinner. My plan is to cook his meal, drive to school and leave it in his car so he can bring it with him to the dinner. Fortunately, there's an event at school tonight which the guys are planning on attending which means they'll run and then eat and run. I'm glad they won't be lingering over dinner as I'm sure that would make it harder for Harry to resist all his favorite foods.
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 2
I admit it, I felt disappointed as soon as Harry walked in the door. He was clearing his throat as much as ever. He attributed it to not drinking enough water in the course of the day. Perhaps, but it continued even after he'd had something to drink.
I shouldn't have felt badly, this after all, is only the second day of the elimination diet - it can certainly take longer than this for any food-related symptoms to clear. But, after thinking we were seeing results already yesterday, it was a let-down.
However, this is a complicated process because there are just so many factors involved. Allergic people tend to have multiple allergies and their allergies can shift. Harry's always had springtime allergies: grass and who-knows-what-else. He mowed the lawn yesterday and this could be a delayed reaction to that. Or, he could have run past something that was pollinating today that set him off. Or, maybe it was the chalk dust in his classrooms. The list goes on and on.
I shouldn't have felt badly, this after all, is only the second day of the elimination diet - it can certainly take longer than this for any food-related symptoms to clear. But, after thinking we were seeing results already yesterday, it was a let-down.
However, this is a complicated process because there are just so many factors involved. Allergic people tend to have multiple allergies and their allergies can shift. Harry's always had springtime allergies: grass and who-knows-what-else. He mowed the lawn yesterday and this could be a delayed reaction to that. Or, he could have run past something that was pollinating today that set him off. Or, maybe it was the chalk dust in his classrooms. The list goes on and on.
I didn't write much about gluten sensitivity yesterday. For an excellent article on it, see Dr. Mark Hyman's blog at http://www.ultrawellness.com/blog/gluten. Dr. Hyman points out that gluten sensitivity is an autoimmune disease that creates inflammation throughout the body and can effect any organ system. It is estimated that 99% of people with gluten sensitivity don't know they're sensitive to it. We're probably as sensitive to gluten as we are because it's not a food we're genetically adapted to eating, we just didn't eat grasses as our species developed. Wheat was introduced into Europe only in the Middle Ages and 30% of people who hale from Europe have the gene for celiac disease. Because of our love of light, airy bread, the wheat used in the U.S. has a higher gluten content than that used in Europe. And gluten is everywhere - including in soup mixes, salad dressings, sauces, lipstick, some vitamins and medications, stamps, the glue on envelopes, and Play-Doh! Celiac disease can be found through medical testing, but other gluten sensitivities need to be found through eliminating it from the diet and seeing if you feel better with it gone. Some of the symptoms and diseases linked to gluten intolerance are: osteoporosis, IBS, anemia, fatique, rheumatoid arthritis, MS, anxiety, depression, the list goes on and on. Scariest of all, a study in the Journal of the AMA found that people with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (whether or not diagnosed) had a higher risk of death from heart disease and cancer than the rest of the population. Yikes!
On that less-than-cheery note, here's what Harry ate on Day 2:
Breakfast: A smoothie made with Amazing Grass Green SuperFood, 1T fish oil,1/2 t flax oit, 1/2 T chia seeds, and a banana. He also had a bowl of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free hot cereal. Water and his supplements (see Day 1 for list).
Lunch: 2 almond butter sandwiches on quinoa bread, carrot sticks, an apple, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and a seltzer.
Dinner: Baked haddock, most of a hamburger, brown rice, sauteed cabbage.
Post-dinner snack: sauteed chicken breasts.
The biggest shock of this so far is how much protein Harry's eating. He ate 1 1/3 pounds of chicken breasts on Day 1 for lunch! Last night, after dinner he ate almost a pound more. I don't think this necessarily has anything to do with the elimination diet. He is a 17 year old distance runner after all - tearing those legs muscles and using all that energy each day is going to require quite a bit of nutrients for the repair!
Harry's still being a good soldier about this. His sister brought him back sweets from Italy. He wanted to at least see them, but knew it would be a while before he could eat them and he was fine with that. However, this morning he asked if he could forego the diet, just for tomorrow night, as there's a pre-meet pasta dinner at one of his teammates homes. He loves these - it's partly social, of course, but also, at these dinners, it's regular white pasta (which I don't cook often) with pasta sauce that probably has sugar in it (most do) and again, I don't cook with sauces with sugar in them. So, these dinners have his two favorite foods: white wheat and sugar. He's a good sport though, I explained that one meal off means starting the diet from Day 1 again so he agree to bring his own food. I'll be mixing up a batch of gluten-free pasta with some kind of plain sauce (check back tomorrow for details). Hopefully, the social aspect will be enough....
On that less-than-cheery note, here's what Harry ate on Day 2:
Breakfast: A smoothie made with Amazing Grass Green SuperFood, 1T fish oil,1/2 t flax oit, 1/2 T chia seeds, and a banana. He also had a bowl of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free hot cereal. Water and his supplements (see Day 1 for list).
Lunch: 2 almond butter sandwiches on quinoa bread, carrot sticks, an apple, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and a seltzer.
Dinner: Baked haddock, most of a hamburger, brown rice, sauteed cabbage.
Post-dinner snack: sauteed chicken breasts.
The biggest shock of this so far is how much protein Harry's eating. He ate 1 1/3 pounds of chicken breasts on Day 1 for lunch! Last night, after dinner he ate almost a pound more. I don't think this necessarily has anything to do with the elimination diet. He is a 17 year old distance runner after all - tearing those legs muscles and using all that energy each day is going to require quite a bit of nutrients for the repair!
Harry's still being a good soldier about this. His sister brought him back sweets from Italy. He wanted to at least see them, but knew it would be a while before he could eat them and he was fine with that. However, this morning he asked if he could forego the diet, just for tomorrow night, as there's a pre-meet pasta dinner at one of his teammates homes. He loves these - it's partly social, of course, but also, at these dinners, it's regular white pasta (which I don't cook often) with pasta sauce that probably has sugar in it (most do) and again, I don't cook with sauces with sugar in them. So, these dinners have his two favorite foods: white wheat and sugar. He's a good sport though, I explained that one meal off means starting the diet from Day 1 again so he agree to bring his own food. I'll be mixing up a batch of gluten-free pasta with some kind of plain sauce (check back tomorrow for details). Hopefully, the social aspect will be enough....
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Harry's Elimination Diet - Day 1
My son Harry was a hurting little dude as a young child. He was so sickly, that when he was three, I wrote a long, teary letter to an osteopath a friend recommended but who wasn't taking on new patients because she was so busy. My letter must have touched her because she accepted Harry as a patient. I remember writing that conventional medicine hadn't helped Harry and I was afraid he'd die if we didn't find something to make him better. I had been afraid of this at the time because he'd gotten so listless that he'd often just sit on the floor and stare ahead vacantly.
Among other things, Harry had food allergies: wheat, eggs, dairy, and I don't remember what else any more. We tried a alternative-medicine allergy regime where once every couple of months or so (fortunately, I've forgotten many of the details), this regimen required him to go on a diet of anything I could make of tapioca powder and water (which was not much) and yams for a few days. Harry's an excellent person and I knew this then, because little as he was and with as little language as he had then, he took it in stride, ate this boring, mostly tasteless food, and probably went hungry, all without complaint.
Harry got healthy, grew, and grew and turned into a healthy, strapping, 6'2" distance running teen. And then I noticed he started slipping again. He'd take longer than expected to heal, was usually congested, and often tired. The thing that made me worry the most though was he became spacey. Last year I asked his doctor to run a battery of tests, but nothing came up positive.
I've been talking to him about his diet for years. It stinks (the diet, probably my talking about it to him, too). He loves sugar, carbs, and....more sugar and more carbs. But, he's a teenager and there's really not much you can do about a teen's diet except nag. Which I did. More than I should have, but I'm really, really good at nagging and I was more than a little frustrated.
Finally, a couple of days ago, Harry agreed to go on an elimination diet and see if he has food-related problems. I suspect he has a few. I think he has a candida overgrowth (the sugar and carb. cravings are signs of this, and he has a history of many courses of antibiotics which can lead to this.) I think he may be gluten-intolerant and I think that through many years of eating the foods he was allergic to, he's again become sensitive to them.
So, we're eliminating from his diet foods with sugar, foods that get mold easily (such as peanuts, strawberries, jarred tomato sauce, cheese), and foods that cause intestinal yeast to grow (yeast, anything fermented or with vinegar, mushrooms) to test for a candida overgrowth. Wheat, rye, and other gluten containing grains are gone to test for gluten intolerance. Eggs and dairy products are gone because of his past allergies.
We're aiming for a minimum of five days on the diet - if we can handle it (Harry has to eat it, I committed to the shopping and cooking), we'll keep it going longer.
I'd warned Harry he could feel worse before he feels better - yeast die-off, especially, can lead to head-aches and feelings of exhaustion. People who live on sugar and carbs crave it when it's initially taken out of their diets.
Harry mowed the lawn this morning. "Oh, no," I thought when I saw him doing this. Grass also sets him off, so I figured we wouldn't be able to tell if the diet was helping because he'd have an allergic reaction to the grass. But I noticed at lunch that Harry wasn't clearing his throat as often as he usually does. Also at lunch, Harry said he felt good, not as tired as usual, which was notable because this is the end of spring break and he's been staying up late all week.
Late in the afternoon, I noticed two things. First, the quiet. Harry was doing school work, sitting at the computer. He wasn't clearing his throat at all. None. Nada. And we were only 24 hours into this experiment (because, really, even though I called this Day 1 for the post, we started yesterday afternoon). The other thing I noticed was that he'd been sitting and working, for a long, long time. No music was on, he wasn't going from thing to thing. He was just working.
If you're curious, here's what Harry ate today:
Breakfast: Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free hot cereal with 1 T fish oil, 1/2 t flax oil, 1 T ground flax seeds, a really big handful of almonds and a bunch of sunflower seeds, a banana, and water.
Lunch: Chicken breasts (organic) sauteed in olive oil, sauteed kale, raw carrots, tea.
Dinner: Quinoa pasta with fresh pesto (basil, walnuts, and olive oil), green beans, cauliflower, and a hamburger (grass-fed organic beef), tea.
He's taking the following supplements: Oil of Oregano, Solaray Yeast Cleanse, Solaray Multidophilus, and a multi-vitamin.
It'll be a challenge tomorrow to pack enough yeast-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, etc.-free to get Harry through school and track practice, but we'll manage. It's time to do whatever it takes to get Harry back on track...healthwise.
Among other things, Harry had food allergies: wheat, eggs, dairy, and I don't remember what else any more. We tried a alternative-medicine allergy regime where once every couple of months or so (fortunately, I've forgotten many of the details), this regimen required him to go on a diet of anything I could make of tapioca powder and water (which was not much) and yams for a few days. Harry's an excellent person and I knew this then, because little as he was and with as little language as he had then, he took it in stride, ate this boring, mostly tasteless food, and probably went hungry, all without complaint.
Harry got healthy, grew, and grew and turned into a healthy, strapping, 6'2" distance running teen. And then I noticed he started slipping again. He'd take longer than expected to heal, was usually congested, and often tired. The thing that made me worry the most though was he became spacey. Last year I asked his doctor to run a battery of tests, but nothing came up positive.
I've been talking to him about his diet for years. It stinks (the diet, probably my talking about it to him, too). He loves sugar, carbs, and....more sugar and more carbs. But, he's a teenager and there's really not much you can do about a teen's diet except nag. Which I did. More than I should have, but I'm really, really good at nagging and I was more than a little frustrated.
Finally, a couple of days ago, Harry agreed to go on an elimination diet and see if he has food-related problems. I suspect he has a few. I think he has a candida overgrowth (the sugar and carb. cravings are signs of this, and he has a history of many courses of antibiotics which can lead to this.) I think he may be gluten-intolerant and I think that through many years of eating the foods he was allergic to, he's again become sensitive to them.
So, we're eliminating from his diet foods with sugar, foods that get mold easily (such as peanuts, strawberries, jarred tomato sauce, cheese), and foods that cause intestinal yeast to grow (yeast, anything fermented or with vinegar, mushrooms) to test for a candida overgrowth. Wheat, rye, and other gluten containing grains are gone to test for gluten intolerance. Eggs and dairy products are gone because of his past allergies.
We're aiming for a minimum of five days on the diet - if we can handle it (Harry has to eat it, I committed to the shopping and cooking), we'll keep it going longer.
I'd warned Harry he could feel worse before he feels better - yeast die-off, especially, can lead to head-aches and feelings of exhaustion. People who live on sugar and carbs crave it when it's initially taken out of their diets.
Harry mowed the lawn this morning. "Oh, no," I thought when I saw him doing this. Grass also sets him off, so I figured we wouldn't be able to tell if the diet was helping because he'd have an allergic reaction to the grass. But I noticed at lunch that Harry wasn't clearing his throat as often as he usually does. Also at lunch, Harry said he felt good, not as tired as usual, which was notable because this is the end of spring break and he's been staying up late all week.
Late in the afternoon, I noticed two things. First, the quiet. Harry was doing school work, sitting at the computer. He wasn't clearing his throat at all. None. Nada. And we were only 24 hours into this experiment (because, really, even though I called this Day 1 for the post, we started yesterday afternoon). The other thing I noticed was that he'd been sitting and working, for a long, long time. No music was on, he wasn't going from thing to thing. He was just working.
If you're curious, here's what Harry ate today:
Breakfast: Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free hot cereal with 1 T fish oil, 1/2 t flax oil, 1 T ground flax seeds, a really big handful of almonds and a bunch of sunflower seeds, a banana, and water.
Lunch: Chicken breasts (organic) sauteed in olive oil, sauteed kale, raw carrots, tea.
Dinner: Quinoa pasta with fresh pesto (basil, walnuts, and olive oil), green beans, cauliflower, and a hamburger (grass-fed organic beef), tea.
He's taking the following supplements: Oil of Oregano, Solaray Yeast Cleanse, Solaray Multidophilus, and a multi-vitamin.
It'll be a challenge tomorrow to pack enough yeast-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, etc.-free to get Harry through school and track practice, but we'll manage. It's time to do whatever it takes to get Harry back on track...healthwise.
Our Favorite Quinoa Recipe
I'm getting lazy. People keep asking me for quinoa recipes. I figure I'll post our favorite here, direct everyone to this site, and kill two birds with one stone: have a reason to send people to my blog, and I don't have to keep typing up the recipe!
You can do this recipe in 30 minutes from start to finish and there are only two ingredients to chop! I like Bionatura Organic Tomato Paste because, not only is it organic, but it comes in a jar (rather than a can). So, even though I pay more because it's organic, the convenience can't be beat and I store it in the fridge after opening it and since it stays better in the jar, I'm actually saving money because I'm not throwing any out. Remember, you can make your own vegetable broth and I have the recipe for that on the blog as well. As my computer's having one of it's many freakouts this morning, I'm not going to post the link - but if you click on recipes, you should be able to find it quickly.
Easy Quinoa and Chickpea Pilaf
2 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1/2 t. ground cumin
1 T crushed coriander seed
1 T tomato paste
2 cloves minced garlic
1 C quinoa (rinsed)
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed or 2 cups cooked chickpeas
2 C vegetable broth
salt and pepper
Saute the onions in olive oil until soft. Add tomato paste, cumin, and coriander and saute for another minute. Add garlic and quinoa and saute for two minutes. Add the chickpeas and broth, and bring to a boil. Once it's boiling, lower the heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed all the liquid. Salt and pepper to taste, fluff and serve.
You can do this recipe in 30 minutes from start to finish and there are only two ingredients to chop! I like Bionatura Organic Tomato Paste because, not only is it organic, but it comes in a jar (rather than a can). So, even though I pay more because it's organic, the convenience can't be beat and I store it in the fridge after opening it and since it stays better in the jar, I'm actually saving money because I'm not throwing any out. Remember, you can make your own vegetable broth and I have the recipe for that on the blog as well. As my computer's having one of it's many freakouts this morning, I'm not going to post the link - but if you click on recipes, you should be able to find it quickly.
Easy Quinoa and Chickpea Pilaf
2 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1/2 t. ground cumin
1 T crushed coriander seed
1 T tomato paste
2 cloves minced garlic
1 C quinoa (rinsed)
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed or 2 cups cooked chickpeas
2 C vegetable broth
salt and pepper
Saute the onions in olive oil until soft. Add tomato paste, cumin, and coriander and saute for another minute. Add garlic and quinoa and saute for two minutes. Add the chickpeas and broth, and bring to a boil. Once it's boiling, lower the heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed all the liquid. Salt and pepper to taste, fluff and serve.
Monday, April 5, 2010
My Mother Thinks I'm Crazy...a.k.a. Dispatches from Whole Foods
I'm sitting at Whole Foods in Aventura, Florida, an empty glass of an all-greens juice, sans spinach, plus apple beside me. I'm in heaven. Before leaving her apartment for this excursion, my mother wryly told me to have fun." "I will!" I responded, "I love Whole Foods!" She looked at my skeptically, and said, "That's very strange."
Sigh. What can I say? The director of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition (which, if your new to the blog, or me, is where I study) likes to point out that we IIN students tend to be a little different from the rest of our families (okay, to be brutally honest, he said that we tend to be the kids who were the black sheep of our families). So noted. It's not really so bad, though that we're the types that like to go food shopping, especially if it's for expensive food that maybe not everyone else we related to has in their pantry (for example, I'm dying to try chia seeds).
You love what you love, and I love healthy food, which is not so easy to find these days. Not that I'm saying Whole Foods is a bastion of healthy food but it's better than your typical supermarket. So, first of all, let me answer a few questions I've been asked lately.
Q: Are all the foods in Whole Foods or natural food stores healthy?
A: No! Sadly, not by a long shot.
Q: How do I know what is?
A: As in any other food store, you don't know until you read the ingredient list. And I mean the ingredient list. Not the little box, somewhere on the package that touts some health claim. And, now that I think about it, if there's an ingredient list, be skeptical, unless it's a very, very short (3-5 ingredients) list.
Q: If you could only buy one or two things in a natural food store, what would it be?
A: If I could only buy one or two things from a natural food store, at this point in my life I'd starve. But, if you can only buy one or two things I suggest they be eggs, but only if they are humanely raised (truly pasture-raised in the sun, not debeaked, get to eat what chickens should, which is bugs at least part of the time). You have to ask to know the eggs were well-raised and not factory-farm raised - access to fresh air on the egg carton can mean raised indoors with an open window. Item #2 would be a good quality cod liver oil. We're so depleted in Omega 3's - you've heard this, it's been in the news...it's high on my radar these days. Get the capsules if you can't stand the idea of a spoonful of oil. I put the oil in smoothies, and even my picky, picky sons don't notice.
Now, back to my juice. I've been making green smoothies for breakfast when I'm home. I take kale, parsley, kefir (ooh, that's the other thing I'd buy at the natural food store if I could get three things), 1 T cod liver oil, 1/2 t flax oil, and an apple (or a handful of blueberries), whir it up in my blender and Voila!, I get a morning of energy! Today's juice, without the pulp I get from using my blender, tastes.....naked. As they're both so green, you may want to close your eyes the first time you drink one.
Salud!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Junk and Food
The definitions below are from my online dictionary.
Food: Any nutritious substance that people or animals eat or drink, or that plants absorb, in order to maintain life and growth.
Junk: anything that is regarded as worthless, meaningless, or contemptible; trash.
Today I offer this quote from Dr. Mark Hyman, the medical director of Canyon Ranch and author of a number of very good books, "There is no such thing as junk food. There is junk and there is food."
You wouldn't eat junk, would you? Somehow, stick the word food after it and it seems okay, at least on occasion or for a treat, right? It's ubiquitous and cheap, too, which makes it both hard to avoid and...well, it kind of looks like a bargain.
Old habits die hard. I know that. And so you don't go screaming away from the computer, never to read this blog again, I offer a strategy. When you want to eat junk, follow these five steps:
1. Remind yourself that you are not a trash bin. This goes for whether or not you paid for the junk. Free junk is still junk. When you've paid for the junk, remember you're not saving money when you eat things that will cause you to feel badly or negatively affect your health. What you eat today really does affect your long-term health.
2. Eat food. If you want crunchy junk, try crunchy carrots, celery or an apple. If you want sweet junk, try adding more sweet vegetable into your diet - sweet potatoes, carrots, cooked onions, fruit. If you crave creamy, try natural peanut butter or your own homemade rice pudding.
3. The craving for putting junky things in your mouth is often a sign that something is missing from your life: sleep, love, joy, relaxation, meaningful work, or enjoyable movement. Examine your life and you may find what's causing you to want to put junk, instead of food, in your body.
4. If you're going to eat junk, portion some out. Studies have shown that the more you have in front of you, the more you'll eat. So, pick a reasonable amount, portion it out, put the rest where you can't easily reach it for more. Better yet, resist the temptation to buy the bigger, cheaper bag or box: the less you have in the house, the less you'll eat. As Dr. David Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University said about all-you-can-eat buffets, "You are going to get fat at no extra charge and then spend a fortune to lose the weight you gained for free. Wake up and smell the Slim Fast! This is not a bargain." I think his point works just as well when it comes to pillow-sized bags of chips, etc.
5. Don't give in to using the euphemism - you're not eating "junk food", you're eating "junk". There's something to be said for honesty.
If you still put junk in your body or more junk than you'd planned, be kind to yourself. It's not the worst thing you'll ever do and you'll survive it (as long as it's not an everyday thing that's leading to chronic illness - but be clear that it might be). We're talking how to be madly healthy here, and looking for ways to be healthier. Berating yourself is never a path to health - loving yourself, no matter what, is.
And just so I don't soundall high and mighty - let me come clean right here, I'm as likely as the next person to eat junk. Especially when tired or stressed: those are my triggers. The strategies I use to deal with it is to keep only the healthiest snacks I can find, or make, in the house. Our newest treat is agave sweetened, coconut milk "ice cream". Is the better stuff expensive? You bet it is, but we're worth it! The expense is one reason I often bake our own desserts: it helps keep the food budget in check (and it gives me complete control over the ingredients). Another tip my health coach gave me when I was having trouble avoiding a bag of pretzels was to put a note on the bag, just under the clip that closed it, which said, "Carrots!" This immediately solved the problem I was having - I'd want something crunchy, there were the pretzels and in the moment, I just didn't think about an alternative. The note worked like a charm!
How much junk do you eat? Do you think of it as food? If you try to avoid it, what's your strategy?
Food: Any nutritious substance that people or animals eat or drink, or that plants absorb, in order to maintain life and growth.
Junk: anything that is regarded as worthless, meaningless, or contemptible; trash.
Today I offer this quote from Dr. Mark Hyman, the medical director of Canyon Ranch and author of a number of very good books, "There is no such thing as junk food. There is junk and there is food."
You wouldn't eat junk, would you? Somehow, stick the word food after it and it seems okay, at least on occasion or for a treat, right? It's ubiquitous and cheap, too, which makes it both hard to avoid and...well, it kind of looks like a bargain.
Old habits die hard. I know that. And so you don't go screaming away from the computer, never to read this blog again, I offer a strategy. When you want to eat junk, follow these five steps:
1. Remind yourself that you are not a trash bin. This goes for whether or not you paid for the junk. Free junk is still junk. When you've paid for the junk, remember you're not saving money when you eat things that will cause you to feel badly or negatively affect your health. What you eat today really does affect your long-term health.
2. Eat food. If you want crunchy junk, try crunchy carrots, celery or an apple. If you want sweet junk, try adding more sweet vegetable into your diet - sweet potatoes, carrots, cooked onions, fruit. If you crave creamy, try natural peanut butter or your own homemade rice pudding.
3. The craving for putting junky things in your mouth is often a sign that something is missing from your life: sleep, love, joy, relaxation, meaningful work, or enjoyable movement. Examine your life and you may find what's causing you to want to put junk, instead of food, in your body.
4. If you're going to eat junk, portion some out. Studies have shown that the more you have in front of you, the more you'll eat. So, pick a reasonable amount, portion it out, put the rest where you can't easily reach it for more. Better yet, resist the temptation to buy the bigger, cheaper bag or box: the less you have in the house, the less you'll eat. As Dr. David Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University said about all-you-can-eat buffets, "You are going to get fat at no extra charge and then spend a fortune to lose the weight you gained for free. Wake up and smell the Slim Fast! This is not a bargain." I think his point works just as well when it comes to pillow-sized bags of chips, etc.
5. Don't give in to using the euphemism - you're not eating "junk food", you're eating "junk". There's something to be said for honesty.
If you still put junk in your body or more junk than you'd planned, be kind to yourself. It's not the worst thing you'll ever do and you'll survive it (as long as it's not an everyday thing that's leading to chronic illness - but be clear that it might be). We're talking how to be madly healthy here, and looking for ways to be healthier. Berating yourself is never a path to health - loving yourself, no matter what, is.
And just so I don't soundall high and mighty - let me come clean right here, I'm as likely as the next person to eat junk. Especially when tired or stressed: those are my triggers. The strategies I use to deal with it is to keep only the healthiest snacks I can find, or make, in the house. Our newest treat is agave sweetened, coconut milk "ice cream". Is the better stuff expensive? You bet it is, but we're worth it! The expense is one reason I often bake our own desserts: it helps keep the food budget in check (and it gives me complete control over the ingredients). Another tip my health coach gave me when I was having trouble avoiding a bag of pretzels was to put a note on the bag, just under the clip that closed it, which said, "Carrots!" This immediately solved the problem I was having - I'd want something crunchy, there were the pretzels and in the moment, I just didn't think about an alternative. The note worked like a charm!
How much junk do you eat? Do you think of it as food? If you try to avoid it, what's your strategy?
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