Elimination Diet 2012

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DoingItNow2012
DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi. I am considering doing the elimination diet. I suspect that I have food sensitivites/allergies. I also have fibromyalgia and would love to identify helpful foods and foods that hurt. However, allergy tests are expensive. One way to test for sensitivities is to elimnate and slowly introduce foods to your diet. Of course there is a side effect of weight loss, among other things. It is for 28 days. I don't love the idea or being so restrivtive with my diet and have been doing just fine weight loss wise with what I am doing. So I find the idea daunting... I figure I might need some support. Or even advice.

Has anyone tried it? Would anyone be interested in a group/challenge?

Here are some links with info on elimination diets. (I prefer the first link)
http://www.wholelifenutrition.net/id16.html
http://www.mercola.com/nutritionplan/index.htm
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Replies

  • mamapuddin17
    mamapuddin17 Posts: 108 Member
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    I am interested in this.
  • miss_kisha
    miss_kisha Posts: 74 Member
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    I did an elimination diet after "The Seven Day Detox Miracle". I did lose 10 pounds and I felt great, but once I found out what was irritating my system, I figured out how to still have it sometimes and not get as sick. I probably should leave those things alone altogether... What was fustrating to me when I did it was how difficult it can be to find acceptable, whole foods. But nowadays gluten free, vegan and other food lifestyles are so popular, there is much more out there than when I did it.

    I would like to do this again, but I find it difficult now that I'm working full time. When I did it the first time, I had a week in between jobs to get started, and then I worked part-time in a really casual environment. It really takes planning and dedication... but I know health is worth it! I hope you blog about your journey so you can inspire others (like me) :wink:
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    @ miss_sarajane

    Yeah, working can pose a challenge. This one starts with green smoothies for two days. I figure I would start it on a saturday so that it wouldn't be so inconvenient. I know I will have to plan meals well so I can have them ready to take to work. I'll consider the blog.

    When you did it, what did you find the most challenging?
  • miss_kisha
    miss_kisha Posts: 74 Member
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    Whoah sorry for sloooowww response! The most challenging for me was grocery shopping and family and friends not understanding that I wasn't on a diet to get thin - I was trying to stop being sick all the time! I had horrible nausea 24/7 and it was a friend that told me about detoxing and elimination diet. I found that I am mostly sensitive to flour, sugar and processed and fried foods. When you tell family and friends you can't eat those things, they take it personal and think you're trying to put yourself above them or something.
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    Well think I can handle that. I suspect wheat/gluten allergy or sensitivity along with dairy/casein. We will see.
  • KokomoJoe
    KokomoJoe Posts: 435
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    I looked at it, but I have tried to eliminate wheat from my diet and feel a lot better already. After reading wheat belly, I am not sure I really want to eat that stuff. I don't eat much dairy, and red meat isn't part of my diet. I rarely eat processed foods. Personally one of the best things I think I did for myself was stop drinking milk, and the cheese I use is all cheese made with raw milk.
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    Yeah it's amazing that sometimes we know certain foods don't agree, but still eat it. Even though I have been eating less and less wheat. The idea of giving it up causes angst.
  • sriraw
    sriraw Posts: 31 Member
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    Hi, I am starting it today. However, due to digestive issues, I am going to swap the 2-day green smoothie fast for a fast of just quinoa and salt all day long. I figure this will detox my body in a kinder and gentler manner.

    We can keep each other updated on our progress. I have found a few great posts around the web of folks that have tried it and identified allergies.

    Sriraw
  • chronosfire
    chronosfire Posts: 52
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    I think I might give this a try! I have the worst food sensitivities, and I have no idea what causes them. I'll mhead to the grocery store tomorrow and pick up the stuff for the smoothies!
  • LilMissFoodie
    LilMissFoodie Posts: 612 Member
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    I think I'm a tad biased being a registered dietitian but I don't think an elimination diet is something you should tackle on your own but rather under professional guideance. It needs to be done in a very structured manner. There are different types of elimination diets and it is important to choose the one that best fits your circumstances, or at the very least to recognise the limitations and know the other options available for progression.

    As a side, most allergy and in particular 'intolerance' tests aren't very accurate anyway so don't be tempted to pay for them.

    Unfortunately, many people who attempt an elimination diet do not find an answer to their problem. Those few that do though, find it so incredibly valuable. Good luck!
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    I probably won't start for at least a week. I want to get the book and read thoroughly first, plus I am a planner. But would love the support.

    @ Lilmissfoodie... I just recently read more about the accuracy of the tests and am glad I didn't shell out money for that. Have you read The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen? If so, what do you think about it? I figure I will give it a shot, doesn't seem like it would be harmful, so can't hurt right?

    @Sriraw and Chronosfire, please keep me informed of your progress and experience, and I will do the same when I start.
  • missjoci
    missjoci Posts: 412 Member
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    I didn't go by any of those specific plans to eliminate foods, but I suspected I was gluten intolerant so I tried Atkins. Then through all that, I had cut dairy because of the carb restriction. When I came out of the diet...voila...dairy intolerance. I think it's the best way to go. Allergy testing doesn't necessarily show things that you are sensitive to. Even if it stalls weight loss, I think it's a good start. A lot of my pains I found out were due to the intolerance: athma, sinus infections, mental fog, stomach aches, acid reflux. If you can pinpoint something in your diet that irritates your body, you'll have a better starting point to reconstruct your diet.
  • sriraw
    sriraw Posts: 31 Member
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    DoingItNow201 - I had read a few blogs on the web and found this one to be the best about how to tackle everything.

    http://bubbiegirl.blogspot.com/2010_04_01_archive.html

    One thing a few people have mentioned is that the cookbook only has a few page on the elimination diet and that most of the recipes are NOT phase 1 friendly. I am not trying to talk you out of getting the cookbook. I have heard great things about the cookbook from reviews on-line. It is more that you probably need to do that in tandem with readng the Eliminiation Diet section of the Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen site at http://www.nourishingmeals.com/p/elimination-diet.html.

    So, yesterday went pretty well. I was really bored of quinoa and thankfully my BF made a wonderful phase 1 friendly juice of beets/carrots/ginger/apples/celery. So, that broke the monotony. Today, I decided to switch to Phase 1 foods because I have to work (ugh) and I really need to have my wits with me.

    I read a lot online about how other folks did it and got some great information to get started. I would definitely like to keep in touch with progress. I am going to do Phase 1 for a few weeks as I have a bunch of health issues. Let me know when you get started and I can send along any tips that I have learned. Good luck chickie!
  • chronosfire
    chronosfire Posts: 52
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    I went and got everything I need for the 2 day smoothie fest, I'm going to start it tomorrow while I'm still on vacation. I know I'm lactose intolerant, but I have a bad feeling gluten also might be a culprit :(
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    Awesome guys, thanks for the info. I was wondering about the book, because tree is so much on the Internet. I just didn't want to miss anything. I am definitely starting on the weekend. But who knows, maybe I will get all my stuff and start before then. I just know that when it comes to juicing, I prefer the juice fresh, so thought it might work the same for the smoothies. But will deinately let you know.
  • sriraw
    sriraw Posts: 31 Member
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    Yeah! more people to discuss the diet with!
    I am now on my fourth day and I am just going crazy! I didn't do a good job of making snacks for myself, so I have to do that this weekend when I get some time. I saw a few recipes for nori rolls that sound good. I am already a vegan, so i wasn't a huge deal to give up meat and dairy. However, I do miss the variety.
    Good luck guys and keep me udpated on how you are doing.
    I hope the 2-day smoothie part goes easily for both of you.
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    Ok, I started. Think I overpacked the blender, because I had some spillage. Especially when I tried higher speeds to liquefy. Needless to say, my "smoothie" isn't so smooth, but it doesn't taste bad. I held the glass and stared at it awhile, because it just looked and smelled so green. I did the winter green smoothie and substituted spinach for kale. Still working on my first glass, but definitely think I can do this.

    How are you guys doing?
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    BTW, how many green smoothies did you drink per day?
  • delipidation
    delipidation Posts: 34 Member
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    I was diagnosed with food sensitivities somewhere around 1980. I generally avoid the foods that I need to, but once every couple of years I need to reboot my immune system. My elimination diet isn't especially complicated -- just rice, with which I've never had any problems. Rice cakes, long-grain, short-grain, mochi, you name it, spices to taste, but just rice morning, noon and night. The elimination phase is 6 weeks long, and I generally get a serious energy boost about two weeks in, once my body realizes that it doesn't have to fight with food all the time.

    After the elimination phase I do the same thing we do with babies: add one thing every week or so and note the results. I generally start out with the foods that I'm pretty sure are going to be problematic, just to verify whether or not they're still a problem, and if so, to what degree (wheat and peanuts are both fairly high, for example, so while I might get away with eating wheat once in a two-week period, a wheat meal that also contains peanuts is going to generate a reaction). I then preferentially select a few foods that are high in the micronutrients I've been lacking (green veggies, fish oils, etc.), but in general just keep adding and taking notes for the next few months. Note that this sort of experiment is so lengthy that doctors will never have the time to run it to completion: if it's going to happen, you need to do the work yourself.

    There are probably more complex ways to do this, but I've gone through the system I've outlined above at least half a dozen times in the last 25+ years, and it works for me. Next time around I'll probably use quinoa rather than rice, because it contains all eight of the amino acids needed to synthesize protein, but other than that I'll just do what's worked before.
  • DoingItNow2012
    DoingItNow2012 Posts: 424 Member
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    I like the sound of your elimination diet...I love rice! This is the first time I'm trying out anything like this, so I have no idea what my sensitivities are. Once I do, I can do my own thing. But you are where I want to get, knowing what works and what does not for my body.

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