Clearly Alive: ICYMI: On Diet, Weight and Food Intolerances

General Guidelines

Most guidelines start out very vague.

Higher sodium, watch the potassium.
Three balanced meals a day.
Make sure you drink enough water, especially when it's hot outside.

As Kim interacted with more people in various support groups, she found other tips such as...

Avoid gluten.
Limit carbs.
Treat the hypoglycemia with multiple small meals throughout the day with a combination of carbs and protein.
Avoid dairy.
Avoid white sugar.

Some Basic Principles

Kim would like to remind us that before starting any dietary change, please consult with your doctor first. And health always always ALWAYS comes before weight. She also comments on how sensitive our bodies are and encourages us to handle them with care. And to be patient. You may have to try several different things before you find what really works well with you.

How AFAA Eats

Kim then explains the general diets that our team follows. As you can see, we all do something a bit different.

Debby

Debby eats light. She avoids potassium but loads up on sodium. She limits carbs and sugar and starts each morning with a breakfast of yogurt and blueberries. When I visited her in November, she treated me to one of her blueberry shakes. For her dinners, she eats a balanced meal that contains meat, veggies and some sort of side.

Nichole

Nichole follows the ketogenic diet. She strives to have her food consist of 70% good fat, 5% carb, and 25% protein. She uses macros based off of her individual measurements, energy expenditure, and physical activity.

Our team would like to state that you should not start a ketogenic diet without the consultation of your doctor first. Also, people with certain medical conditions should not follow this diet. However, the ketogenic diet has worked well for Nichole.

Amber

For me, I started reacting to dairy at a very young age. I've never really been able to drink milk, but I can handle cheese and yogurt. I must be very careful of my sugar intake and I avoid caffeine. I mostly drink just water, and I carry my water bottle everywhere I go.

I also have been gluten free since September 2013.

Something happened during my nightmare crisis and suddenly my body could not handle gluten. I must confession that this dietary change has left me rather bitter. Kim can relate. She has a very limited diet and it's hard to not be able to enjoy traditional food. She encourages us to grieve that loss, because it is a loss. If you are struggling, please reach out to us. We understand.

Kim

Kim's food sensitivities caused her chronic inflammation. She started out with no gluten, lower carbs, and following the hypoglycemic protocol. Although the changes helped, they did not completely eliminate the problem. Her endocrinologist discovered she had insulin resistance. Through treatment, she was able to loose some weight. Yet the chronic inflammation did not go away. After her diagnosis of EDS, she completed a food sensitivities test. Learning about her food sensitivities helped her modify her diet.

For a while, Kim followed the Autoimmune Paleo Diet protocol. This is an elimination diet tailored for people with autoimmune diseases. You stop eating a food for a minimum of thirty days. After that, you reintroduce it back into your diet. If you notice a reaction, then stay away from it.

After completing that, she switched to a rotation diet. She highly recommends keeping detailed records for this diet as each family of food can only be eaten every few days. Although it is a difficult diet to follow, it has worked well for her.

ICYMI: On Diet, Weight and Food Intolerances