Drug-Free Rheumatoid Arthritis Program Part 1: "What's Eatin' You?"

So, what's eatin' you?

If you have Rheumatoid Arthritis or any other chronic illness, this is a very important question to ask yourself. When I was first diagnosed with RA I knew there would be important lifestyle and diet changes that I would make to support my treatment. But it was several months before I realized that the lifestyle and dietary changes would BE my treatment. It was several months before I realized it wasn't just what I was eating, it was what was eatin' me.

I spent those months struggling through the initial phases of what I can only call "the mourning process". Learning you have an incurable, chronic illness is a bit like dealing with a death. I'm not trying to be melodramatic here, if you've been through it you'll understand. There's the denial phase, the bargaining phase, the anger phase, and finally, acceptance. I got stuck in anger. Really stuck. Really angry. I won't digress into all the details of what I was angry about, I could write about that all night. I only mention it because in hindsight I realize it was a very useful time for me. Anger is an "active" emotion, it's energizing, it's motivating. Anger propelled me towards an understanding of the cause of my illness, namely a malfunctioning immune system. Anger fueled the hours of research. Anger made me look for a fix for my immune system. Anger forced me to ask myself, "what's eatin' me"?

The single most important aspect of my drug-free RA program is my diet. I'll say it again: You. Are. What. You. Eat. Think about it. Junk in, junk out. Toxins in, toxins out. If you're eating foods that offend your immune system then your foods are EATING AT YOU. If you don't believe me just give this program a try for a couple of weeks. But I warn you, it's not for the faint of heart. Oh no, you gotta have balls to do this. You gotta be committed. You gotta want to heal. But I figure, if I can do it, anyone can. You see, I live for food. I'm a foodie. I've been in the food industry for nearly 20 years now and part of my anger was tied up in the realization that I would have to give up certain foods that I love.

I did the research, I read the books (Dr. Weil, thank you very much!), I frequented the chat-rooms. I decided to go on the most restrictive anti-inflammatory diet I could find. I would eliminate ALL of the potential arthritis triggers for one month, and then, one by one, add them back to see which were offending my body (this is called an "elimination diet" and you can find lots of info about it online). That was the plan anyway. After a couple of false starts (this was NOT an easy transition) I was on my way. Two weeks into it I felt dramatic improvement. My joints moved freely and my pain was greatly decreased. I desperately missed the eliminated foods, especially gluten and corn. But I felt so good that I resisted cheating. I kept telling myself that those foods were poison to my body, it really helped me psychologically. After a month I was free of symptoms completely. It felt like a miracle to have my body back.

The time had finally come to add something back to my diet. This was the moment I had waited for! But I couldn't decide which potential offender I would try first. And then I had a thought, "what if it makes me sick again?", "what if the pain comes back?". I decided I was feeling too good to risk it so I waited another week. And another. And another. I was two months along when I decided to test gluten. Fail. Within 8 hours of eating a tiny slice of whole grain bread my wrists tightened and became sore. Ok, no gluten for me. Ten days later I tested corn. Fail. Again, my body let me know very quickly that it did not want corn. That was enough for me. So here I am, still on the super-restrictive diet, completely symptom-free (and 10 pounds lighter, I might add). And here I will stay. It may take several more months to heal my immune system to the point of being able to reintroduce those foods, or several years, I honestly don't know. I do know that this diet is powerful, that it is healing my body, that it has changed my life for the better. Not only am I free of RA symptoms but I sleep better, have more energy, think more clearly, and have lost 10 pounds. My body feels like a perfectly functioning machine for the first time in my life. And just to reiterate, I take NO MEDS. None for RA, none for allergies, none for pain, none for acne, etc, etc. I am completely med free. I support my body with supplements, Chinese herbs, homeopathic treatments, and acupuncture, all of which I will detail in upcoming posts.

So here's the nuts and bolts of my eating program. Make sure you clean out your pantry of offending foods and stock up on the good stuff. Buy a juicer if you can, they are good as gold. Prepare yourself mentally too. It's not easy at first, but it does get easier as you go along. For me, the first 4 days were pretty hellish. But seriously, 4 days of feeling deprived isn't a terrible price to pay for the miracle of healing.

The No's

No processed sugar

No gluten- wheat flour, spelt, barley, rye, triticale, bulgur, farina, semolina, durham, graham

No oats unless specifically labeled gluten free

No peanuts

No dairy

No corn

No citrus

No eggs

No nightshades- tomatoes, potatoes (sweet potatoes are ok), peppers, eggplant

No red meat or pork

No alcohol

No caffeine 

No artificial anything, no MSG, nothing fried, nothing you can't pronounce

I know what you're thinking. "What the hell do you EAT"? I eat LOTS of vegetables and fruit, beans, rice, quinoa, nuts and seeds, salmon and tuna. I have found that I can cheat on a couple of these too. I have never given up my morning coffee, I just couldn't wrap my head around facing caffeine withdrawal on top of everything else. I don't have any other caffeine the rest of the day, just the one cup in the morning. I also have a glass of red wine now and then, but for the first 6 weeks I abstained completely. Only one glass, a couple of nights a week. Any more than that and I feel dull, foggy and sore. The other cheat is citrus. I use lemon and lime juice in my cooking, in small amounts for flavor balance, but I don't drink citrus juice or eat the fruit.

The Yes's

Eat vegetables, especially leafy greens like kale, mushrooms, ginger and turmeric

Eat fruits, especially berries

Eat beans (and Beanitos Chips)

Eat quinoa (this is a seed but is treated like a grain in the kitchen. it's a complete protein)

Eat salmon (VERY important! you need lots of omega 3 oils to fight inflammation)

Eat rice (including rice noodles found in the Asian foods aisle)

JUICE DAILY (veggies mostly, but some fruit too, see my "BACK to health blend")

Push your flavonoids (spinach, blueberries)

Push your quercetin (apples, onions)

Push your omega 3's (salmon, walnuts, flax seeds)

Push the turmeric and ginger

Drink lots of filtered water and green tea

Goji Berry Tea

 

What I Eat (or juice) EVERY SINGLE DAY

beets

apples

carrots

kale

ginger

turmeric

brocolli

shiitake mushrooms

onions and garlic

salmon or tuna

beans

walnuts or flaxseeds

Beanitos Chips

Mrs Mays Cran-Blueberry Crunch or a Kind Macadamia & Apricot bar

turmeric tea 

Ready to make dinner!

Ok. So there you have it. Give it some time to sink in. It's not an easy program to follow at first but when you start feeling the benefits it gets so much easier. I've discovered new foods and flavors, and have challenged myself in the kitchen like never before. I spend time perusing aisles at Central Market that I used to skip over, specifically the Asian section and the bulk bins. It can get a little boring if you eat the same things every day, so mix it up. I can make broccoli 10 different ways now and all are absolutely delicious. And if the thought of beets makes you go "eeewwwww...", all I can say is don't knock it until you try it prepared properly! Oven-roasted beets are heavenly! And yes, I'll share my recipes with you in future posts.  

For now, I'm signing off, it's time to head to Central Market for fresh kale, mushrooms and beets. And remember, you are what you eat, so don't let your food eat at you!