Do you have symptoms that bother you and you don’t really know WHY you have them? Symptoms that nobody can really figure out? Have you ever wondered if you have certain food sensitivities or intolerances?
Underlying food sensitivities and intolerances are so common and can contribute to a plethora of symptoms. Foods that spike even a small bit of inflammation can be the culprit, and prevent you from reaching your health goals. Certain foods can trigger common symptoms like:
Eczema/Rashes
Bloating
Brain fog
Acne
Sinus congestion/infections
IBS
Leaky gut
...and MORE!
It is very common for food sensitivities and intolerances to go on for years before figuring it out! It is also possible to react to foods, without having an actual allergy.
Allergies are obvious. You eat something offensive to your body and it has a histamine reaction that shows as hives, immediate congestion, swelling, etc.
Intolerances are less obvious. You may eat something that triggers an antibody (or inflammatory) response in the body but the symptoms do not show up until perhaps the next morning. For example, you may eat ice cream or some kind of dairy and wake up the next morning with a lot of sinus congestion or feeling really bloated and gassy.
Sensitivities are even less obvious because they are a cumulative response to offensive foods. This means that you may eat the food one time and not really have enough of a reactionary response to notice a change but over time if you eat those “sensitivity” foods, it begins to create that inflammatory response. It could be after a week, a month and for some a year or years before symptoms occur. Because of this, it is really difficult to pinpoint what is causing the symptom and certainly 1+1 just doesn’t seem to equal 2 since it doesn’t show up right away.
Inflammation is the culprit for almost all pathology, pain, discomfort. So what can you do?
These are common foods that cause inflammatory reactions in all bodies whether a known sensitivity or not.
Wheat/Gluten (affects the liver and causes inflammation)
Refined/Processed Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup (inflammatory in nature and mucus producing)
Dairy/Cow’s Milk Products (mucus producing and inflammatory in nature…also can mess with hormones since cows are pumped chocked full of them)
Corn (even “non-GMO”) (affects our liver and causes inflammation)
Soy (this is estrogenic in nature and can affect the thyroid)
Sometimes Grains and Legumes (can cause inflammation and mess with our gut health)
I’m sure many of you are freaking out after reading that list as it may include the majority of your daily intake.
So what can you do? Where do you begin?
If you eat the above foods the majority of the time, you will not know what is really impacting your system until you go clean off of these foods. However, we know this is much easier said than done. Baby step into it…avoiding 1 food for 1-2 weeks like dairy…then begin avoiding another like gluten for the next week or two and so on. OR, you can do a program like Whole30 or our Be Optimal 30 Day Reset. This gets you eating all whole foods and off the processed offensive foods as listed above for 30 days which is long enough to reset the body and get a real feel for how certain foods affect you.
Once complete with the 30 days, you slowly introduce certain foods to see your capacity for handling them. Remember, only 1 food at a time and wait 2 days before introducing another type of food. I know it seems like a lot of work but when you have chronic symptoms that you just accept living with or that are worsening and there doesn’t seem to be an explanation, I promise, your effort will be well worth your while.
EVERYTHING in your body will start to feel better and it will quite literally be measurable. Your weight, inches, blood pressure, digestion…so many things may improve in just 30 days. For some, symptoms are so chronic that 3-4 months of this type of eating is necessary to really flush out the inflammation and get the reset that is needed. Then you can find the balance point. Each of you are different…so don’t fool yourself. Make your effort worth it!
The fuel we put in our body is the foundation. We MUST get that in a solid place first and foremost because if all we eat is junk/crap…that is how we are left to feel…like crap. If we eat nutrient dense food, our body is fueled with optimal energy, able to better heal and we feel our vibrancy in all that we do…even as we age.
Cheers to Clean Eating and Feeling Amazing!
Igniting Love and Light,
Dr. Cari J.