What is the Truth About How Foods Can Cure or Damage Your Body?
Dear Reader, I have been meaning to tell you what has been going on with me. But I wanted to wait for my doctors to get all the facts to give a clear picture of the situation first. I endured a summer of extreme pain and was barely able to produce the most minimal of blog posts. I had to put my style books on hold. While I waited for specialists who could manage my pain, I struggled to find ways to alleviate it on my own. In the process, I came across a book that guided me in changing my diet. I have noticed definite improvements and am now ready to begin sharing with you the truth about how foods can cure or damage your body.
This is What Happened:
I’ve had allergies since I was 13 years old and after getting the Covid vaccine, I had a reaction. My body gradually became more and more inflamed and stiff. At the site of the injections on my right shoulder, the pain became worse over time instead of better. Acute pain began to shoot down my arm and then spread to my other shoulder, hands and hips. The pain kept me awake at night.
My doctor had me wait a month to see if it would go away. Once she referred me to a specialist, I had to wait for months to get an appointment. Meanwhile, I was given medications that didn’t work and had side effects. I began taking ibuprofen around the clock.
Some Natural Alternatives to Pharmaceutical Meds
I didn’t like being dependent on pharmaceuticals, so I tried all of the natural alternatives I could think of:
- I am a certified reiki practitioner so I gave myself reiki treatments and drank lots of water;
- went to physical therapy twice a week;
- used arnica cream and arnica homeopathic tablets;
- took CBD of all types;
- stocked up on kombucha teas;
- got daily massages from my husband;
- took long hot showers and applied heating pads;
- used a TENS unit (neuromuscular electric stimulator);
- listened to guided healing meditations.
The thing that worked best was a meditation on YouTube by Abigail Wainwright: “Perfect Physical Health Activation With Affirmations, Light Language and Reiki.” It alleviated the sharp pains and made my condition more bearable after listening to it in the morning.
The Book With the Truth About How Foods Can Cure
At the time, my doctor thought I had arthritis. So one day as I was searching online for alternative pain relief, I saw a book called Healing Arthritis by Susan Blum, M.D., M.P.H. This is what it says about Dr. Blum on her website:
Dr. Susan Blum is a best-selling author and the foremost expert on healing and treating arthritis. Her work has helped to heal, treat, and prevent chronic diseases for nearly two decades. She is the founder of the nationally recognized Blum Center for Health and serves on the Medical Advisory Board for The Dr. Oz Show.
Dr. Blum is a functional doctor, which means she has studied how to heal the whole body. The crux of her treatment to heal arthritis is a clean eating plan and in-depth supplementation to reset the digestive microbiome. She explains that the digestive tract is responsible for 90% of the body’s immune response.
I’ve been a lacto-ovo-vegetarian since I was 18 but I’ve been meaning to get more strict about processed foods, sugars, etc. The big problem is that we are surrounded by unhealthy foods in our society. They are grown and raised with chemicals and then they are processed with unhealthy additives.
I firmly believe that the unnatural way that our foods are grown and processed are at the root of many of the sicknesses people are suffering and dying from.
The Elimination/Detox Diet and Supplements
Desperate to escape the pain that was stopping me in my tracks, I had no problem trying Dr. Blum’s extreme elimination diet for just two and a half months. While all trigger foods are avoided for that period of time, a supplementation program is recommended to increase good bacteria and combat bad bacteria within the digestive system. Everything should be close to balanced by then. After that, each trigger food is added one at a time over six months to test whether any of them cause symptoms to flare up.
Once you understand which foods to avoid, you are left with a permanently healthy diet that’s specifically good for you.
Dr. Blum explains why she thinks the widely-acclaimed Mediterranean Diet is healthiest overall for everybody.
If you don’t need to battle arthritis or inflammation, the Mediterranean Diet still stands as the best choice for lifelong health.
Dr. Blum’s diet plan removes foods that are considered inflammatory triggers. To start her diet for healing arthritis and inflammation, I had to quit eating sugar, gluten, dairy, soy, corn, eggs, peanuts, processed foods, nightshade vegetables (such as tomatoes and white potatoes) and foods high in histamines such as shellfish, processed/smoked meats, sausages and wine.
Instead, the following foods formed the basis of my diet.
Foods to Enjoy for Lifelong Health
These suggestions are lifelong recommendations that Dr. Blum says you should begin now:
- Eat a rainbow of colorful vegetables and fruit. These are filled with antioxidants that support your immune system and fiber that feeds your healthy gut bacteria (also known as flora).
- Enjoy coconut products such as coconut oil, milk, yogurt and kefir. Coconut is filled with medium chain triglycerides, which feed the cells lining your intestines, and has yeast-killing properties. It’s also an easy-to-burn fuel source that feeds your brain and muscles. Use coconut products in place of cow dairy.
- Discover ghee. People with dairy sensitivities can eat this clarified butter because all the milk proteins are removed and it is pure fat. Also, ghee contains butyrate, a critically important fatty acid for the care and feeding of cells in your colon.
- Eat only organic, non-GMO foods. These are low in pesticides, which can alter your flora and damage your intestinal lining, causing leaky gut and autoimmunity.
- Incorporate healthy anti-inflammatory oils and fats. These include fish, flax, olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, seeds and avocado.
- If you eat meat, then choose only grass-fed, pasture-raised or free-range organic animals when possible. This limits your exposure to hormones, antibiotics and pesticides. Also, the meat from grass-fed animals has higher quality, anti-inflammatory fats than corn fed animals.
- Cruciferous vegetables. These include arugula, bok choy, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, broccoli rabe, cabbage, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage (napa), collard greens, daikon (a type of radish), kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radish, rutabaga and turnips.
The Takeaway
As I discovered on this diet, there is still plenty to eat and plenty of flavor. It is actually a pleasure to partake of pure foods; it’s hard to eat too much; it’s easy to lose weight; and it’s filling!
I have noticed a definite improvement in my overall health. I have become leaner. And previous allergy symptoms seem to be almost gone only one and a half months into this detox diet.
In the past, when I heard claims about how food can heal you I wondered if it was really true. I have yet to see if this healthy way of eating keeps me healthy after the medications are discontinued. But with the improved health I am already experiencing, I now believe. With that said, I have plans for more blog posts on this subject in the future. So stay tuned to learn more of the truth about how foods can cure or damage your body!
In the end, I was diagnosed with a temporary condition called poly myalgia rheumatica. With treatment, I am expected to be well in six months to two years. Yet the doctors recommend I get the booster shot because they believe the actual virus can be much worse, even deadly.
What are your thoughts about the Covid vaccinations? Do you believe that foods can cure or damage your body? Please join in the conversation by leaving a reply below!
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Angie
Angie, I am so sad that you have had so many months of pain! But I am happy that a version of the Mediterranean diet has made a difference for you. I hope you’ll continue to improve. Hoping that the booster won’t be a set back for you, and that your new diet will strengthen you.
Thank you so much, Allison! It felt like forever and I was depressed about it. But now I feel positive that it will all be over and I will be healthier than ever because of it. I can see improvements in my health from this detox diet and I thought I was healthy before I ever got the vaccine! I’m really happy about how this is turning out. XO, Angie
Thank you for your thoughtful blog. I follow research in professionally vetted journals. Yes, i encourage those who able to complete all recommended vaccine series, and get the booster(s), but ultimately the decision should be determined between the patient and her Primary Healthcare Provider.
There is plenty of evidence to support the positive association between the Mediterranean diet and life longevity. It’s flexible, simple and cost-effective as well.
Thank you for your informed feedback! Although these vaccines are ultimately being tested on the public as they are rolled out, doctors agree that it is safer than having the actual virus invade your body. You are right that the decision should be determined between the patient and her Primary Healthcare Provider because some people should not take the chance due to certain conditions.