New....any other autoimmune folk?

Anna83704

Hi all. I'm taking the plunge and adopting a paleo lifestyle. I have a lot of weight to lose, but was steered towards paleo because I have Hashimotos disease and have horrible inflammatory issues. I gave up gluten one year ago and dairy two months ago, but I'm still fighting inflammation so I'm hoping paleo will eliminate all the foods I'm reacting to.

Anyway, any other autoimmune folk here? I'd love to hear how paleo has helped! Non-autoimmune folk are welcome to respond as well, I'm going to need all the help I can get!

maril101

I also have immune system deficiencies. I've been battling Chrone's Disease and other inflammatory issues all my life. I've been flirting with Primal/Paleo for a while but am now working on transitioning into it fully. One thing that just came to my attention was the use of probiotics to assist in getting some good bacteria working better in my system and it's been amazing. I am weaning myself slowly from dairy products only now realizing that they have probably been an issue of which I wasn't aware. I don't know how I could have missed that one because I'm a bit on the OCD side with constantly examining all that I do with regard to food and exercise. In any event, I'll be very interested in seeing how this works for you. Do you have specific foods that you have been able to identify that set off a bad reaction?

Cheesy567

I have Myasthenia Gravis and Neuromyotonia, both are autoimmune neuromuscular disorders. I've followed the AIP for about 18 months or so, and just this last week re-started to full elimination phase again to figure out some ongoing issues with joint swelling, pain, etc.

The AIP helped me avoid weight gain despite high steroids. I didn't notice much improvement in the MG symptoms, but the disease was progressing rapidly when I started so it's hard to say. Now, with a much more robust medical regimine, the MG is stable as is the NMT, so hopefully I'll be able to better see an improvement or worsening of symptoms as I reintroduce things.

The whole process was eye opening into how many foods I routinely are were causing an inflammatory response.

This time I'm doing a keto version of the AIP to help lose weight as well.

Cheesy567

In response to your question, I found that almonds, gluten, corn, most nightshades, and dairy sugars set off inflammatory responses for me.

And AIP is the Autoimmune Protocol. You can search for "PaleoMom autoimmune protocol" for more details, or just ask!

netalius25

I have hashimotos disease and pcos along with metabolic system x and gout at 33yrs old. Been doing paleo for about 3 months and have barely lost weight. The up side is I feel a little better but my doctor suggests lap band surgery. Anyone else have advice?

nickymaire

I have family who I put on AIP and used these two websites, http://autoimmune-paleo.com/ and http://www.thepaleomom.com/ they are very helpful for AIP . Also if you just want recipes then there is this site for paleo recipes (combines recipes from all over the web) but you can select the AIP option http://stalkerville.net. Hope that helps

Anna83704

Thanks for the tips everyone! I'm not sure that I'm ready to go full AIP yet....I'd miss eggs so much! But it's definitely a possibility if my inflammation isn't controlled with standard Paleo. This weekend will be spent meal planning, grocery shopping and prep. I think that's the only way I'll be successful....major planning!

Kimberly_Harper

I don't think I have any diseases, but before I started eating Paleo I would get hives on my hands and feet every day/night. About a month in, that started happening less and less until I could go almost a month or two without that happening. I decided it stopped because Paleo lol

homesweeths

Anna83704 wrote: »

Thanks for the tips everyone! I'm not sure that I'm ready to go full AIP yet....I'd miss eggs so much! But it's definitely a possibility if my inflammation isn't controlled with standard Paleo. This weekend will be spent meal planning, grocery shopping and prep. I think that's the only way I'll be successful....major planning!

I felt the same way when I went AIP. Going without eggs -- whatever would I do for breakfast??? (And tomatoes and potatoes, those were hard to give up, they were such staples for us... I've healed enough that I can eat these again, so long as it's not often, without three days of joint pain.)

I discovered bacon. And other meats. (Stir fry with onion, sweet potato, and greens like kale or spinach in fat (duck fat, lard, bacon fat, coconut or palm oil), finish off with something acid like lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and a grinding of sea salt, yum!)

Then I discovered IF (intermittent fasting) and BP coffee. For me, it works this way -- I have between 4 and 8 hour window where I eat, turns out to be about two meals. That doesn't count the BP coffee.

Most days I'll start out the day with a cup of coffee with either 2 TBS collagen, or 2 TBS coconut oil, or both. That can hold me until 2 pm or later. If I cook something yummy-smelling for dh, I might eat earlier (like at 10 or 12).

Then in the evening I'll have supper with the family, filling up the calories still needed to get past my goal (1500-2000 calories for the day, roughly 50g carbs, 80g protein, and the rest fat). This is usually meat, chicken or fish, with a large salad or roasted veggies (our favorite roasted vegetables are Normandy mix -- broccoli, cauliflower and carrots -- or brussels sprouts, but there are lots of combinations). If I still have carbs left over, I'll grab a bowl of berries or half a grapefruit for dessert. If not, I'll grab a fat bomb or two (coconut oil, shredded coconut, and carob powder).

I still can't eat rice without paying the consequences, so if I want a "rice" dish it's cauliflower rice for me. Very rarely we'll go out for Thai food, but I always pay for it with joint pain the next day. Too many carbs in those rice noodles. Or maybe it's the peanuts in the Pad Thai.

I now eat nuts on a rare basis. I got hives last week after eating raw almonds -- but they weren't my usual (I soak them in salt water and then dry them in the oven) so maybe that's why. We were out of town and I was trying to buy some friendly snack food, which included nuts and dried coconut, because the meals available were pretty horrendous and I'd used up my supplies before the week was out.

Hope this helps.

homesweeths

nickymaire wrote: »

I have family who I put on AIP and used these two websites, http://autoimmune-paleo.com/ and http://www.thepaleomom.com/ they are very helpful for AIP . Also if you just want recipes then there is this site for paleo recipes (combines recipes from all over the web) but you can select the AIP option http://stalkerville.net. Hope that helps

Those are my go-to sites as well, along with http://hewontknowitspaleo.com/ and Pinterest.

homesweeths

netalius25 wrote: »

I have hashimotos disease and pcos along with metabolic system x and gout at 33yrs old. Been doing paleo for about 3 months and have barely lost weight. The up side is I feel a little better but my doctor suggests lap band surgery. Anyone else have advice?

Sorry, don't know what lap band surgery is. But one thing you might look at is how many carbs you're eating, if you're looking for weight loss.

homesweeths

maril101 wrote: »

I also have immune system deficiencies. I've been battling Chrone's Disease and other inflammatory issues all my life. I've been flirting with Primal/Paleo for a while but am now working on transitioning into it fully. One thing that just came to my attention was the use of probiotics to assist in getting some good bacteria working better in my system and it's been amazing. I am weaning myself slowly from dairy products only now realizing that they have probably been an issue of which I wasn't aware. I don't know how I could have missed that one because I'm a bit on the OCD side with constantly examining all that I do with regard to food and exercise. In any event, I'll be very interested in seeing how this works for you. Do you have specific foods that you have been able to identify that set off a bad reaction?

I improved my joint pain immensely by following the auto-immune protocol as outlined at www.thepaleomom.com -- I've been doing this for three years now, and have added back some things since then.

I find that nightshades, legumes, and rice give me the most trouble. I can manage eggs if I don't eat them every day (we get free-range eggs from a friend, from chickens not fed soy or corn). I have even been able to manage full-fat dairy (butter and cream) and occasional cheese (the higher fat content, the better, as it's the protein I'm allergic to), but if my immune system is stressed, even full-fat dairy will give me bad stomach cramps.

I'm not gluten intolerant, at least, I don't think I am. I don't seem to have any reaction to wheat. However, I think of it as playing with fire, especially after reading "Wheat Belly" and "Grain Brain", so my "wheat cheats" are very few and far between. What's ironic to me is that gluten-free baked goods do cause me problems, if they're made with rice flour or bean flour.

Anna83704

Thanks for the info everyone!