WEEK 5: January 30, 2024 “Starting a Therapeutic Diet Plan”

30 Jan

30Jan

I have started 4 new things this month:

• Health Journal

• Colon Cleansing supplements

• Dietary fiber = fruit in the morning, a salad with meals

• Meal prep healthy choices

I’ve noticed a real difference in my energy level, my ability to focus, and I’m getting better quality sleep (even though that was not an issue).

Just being real here… I was “busy” this week – translation – UNFOCUSED. Yep. Totally spent the second half of the week opening the fridge and thinking, “There’s nothing in here to eat.” And what was my new thing for the past week? MEAL PREP! Ugh.

The very thing I set out to do, is the very thing I didn’t do at all. But guess what? That will not be the case next week. I think sometimes it’s just like that. That’s part of the learning curve. So this week, I’m giving myself some grace to go back and review the good work I’ve been doing and get re-focused on these little changes so that they become habits I don’t even think about. And I’m posting the moral of the story on my fridge, “If there’s nothing in the fridge to eat, it’s time to do some MEAL PREP!”

Moving forward… It’s time to get serious. Like have a very specific plan AND follow it. One of the things that has to go in this cleanse is overgrowth of CANDIDA. This is a yeast which naturally grows in the colon and is harmless – in small amounts. It is estimated that the majority of Americans do have Candidiasis simply because the Standard American Diet is so high in sugars and sugar-forming processed foods. Candida overgrowth contributes to a great many health issues including mercury build-up in fat tissues, hormonal imbalances, chronic fatigue, depression, brain fog, allergies, schizophrenia, autism, lupus, IBS, and ADHD. It can grow outside the colon, so if you see it on your skin, as a vaginal yeast infection, thrush in the mouth, or nail fungus, there’s really no question that your gut bacteria is out of balance.

Doctors know there is a direct connection between candida overgrowth and cancer because the tumors they remove are covered in it. Unfortunately, they are under a lot of pressure to make quick diagnoses by the insurance companies and candidiasis is difficult to diagnose because there are no routine lab tests to identify it.

YET, we are not hindered by the limitations of the insurance system. That’s the beauty of natural health – the focus is on wellness and prevention of all those nasty diagnoses we don’t want anything to do with – EVER!

The battle against candida is win-able (is that a word?). There are quality supplements out there and there are effective “home remedies” to kill off the candida and re-establish a healthy balance of the bacteria in the gut. The bigger issue for most of us, is stopping the onslaught. Changing the diet is crucial to getting this turned around. If you’ve ever tried to get rid of an infection of toenail fungus, you already know that this is no joke. We need to bring out the big guns here. Let’s look at the supplement options briefly, and then we will address the issue of DIET.

There’s an old natural remedy for killing off candida that uses garlic and acidophilus supplements for 3 years. I think I need something a little more efficient than that, so I’m choosing to attack from several angles. I’m going to purchase a quality brand supplement that is designed to fight candida as well as a really high qualityprobiotic. I plan to take these for a few months along with the colon cleanse I’ve already started. This may seem like a lot of supplements, but getting the gut clean and healthy is truly foundational to all the rest of the cleansing we are doing throughout this year. And it’s a big job.

We’ve laid some important groundwork with the colon cleanse – clearing the way for the yeast die-off to exit the body. You definitely should not move forward in the cleansing process if your bowels are not getting flushed out daily. This is important to minimize the potential for a “healing crisis”, AKA Herxheimer reaction when detoxing. This is why I’ve taken it slowly – because I have a whole year to cleanse, but I don’t have time for headaches and withdrawal symptoms.

Most healthy diet plans have an initial phase that is similar to the yeast-cleansing diet which is basically protein, nuts (except peanuts), vegetables (except potatoes, peas, and corn), and fats. There is zero sugar in any form in the Candida Diet. Grains / flour, milk, carbonated drinks, and most fruits are also excluded, as these things feed the unwanted yeast bacteria.

It is time for me to choose a healthy diet plan that is good for long term. There are some great options to select from:

1) The Maker’s Diet by Jordan Rubin. This is an interesting book and with a very do-able diet plan. I especially like it for families. It is Biblically based health plan, but I do think our food supply has really changed since it was first published. The cookbook he published in 2014 reflects this and has very good recipes. I’m pulling this one off the shelf to read through again, but I know I need something that will go deeper for me therapeutically right now.

2) Vegetarian, Genesis / Daniel Diet plans come in lots of different forms. There is so much benefit to focusing on fresh fruits and vegetables – including its natural detoxing effect. Personally, I think long-term, especially during certain stages of life, animal protein is beneficial to the diet. The other downside, for me personally, with vegetarian and vegan diets is the tendency to incorporate over-processed foods to replace meats and cheeses in our recipes. I do intend to do a Daniel Diet for a short time this spring, but the main reason, I’m passing on this option for now is that I’m actually struggling with grains and some vegetables, so I’m looking for something that will help me deal with food sensitivities.

3) High protein diets that incorporate a lot of meat are also not of interest for me since my goal is to cleanse my body and these foods are congestive, as well as acid-forming.

4) The Whole 30 Diet plan actually looks like a great option – just not sure how I feel about it being my Whole 352. This is more basically the Daniel Diet with meat and more appropriate as a periodic cleanse. And the Trim Healthy Mommas recipes look like a good fit for me as well. I love reading these modern health heroes because they are very in tune with the negative ingredients that are on the market and how to avoid them. I am going to dig a little deeper into the Trim Healthy Momma plan because there’s some hip terminology I need to learn. There’s a learning curve with most every plan.

5) There’s a new kid on the block in the diet world that’s getting lots of marketing play. This is the Lectin-Free diet popularized by Steven Gundry. He has done a great job of explaining the science behind this way of eating, but an even better job of putting lots of great recipes out there and making it doable for most people. This diet takes gluten-free to a new level and also removes nightshades and the most common allergy causing foods in our diets today. The first two phases are well laid out to get the metabolism adjusted and support the cleansing process. There are some things he allows (probably to make the plan pleasing for the general population) that some people will want to adjust. For example, he actually fasts through the morning, but his diet plan offers breakfasts because that is what most people want. I’m going to stick with fruit in the morning, but I will focus on the fruits he recommends in his plan.

I’ve selected a plan I can live with, now I need to make my shopping list and make a special note for all the things I can prep ahead to keep my fridge stocked with handy healthy foods.

A few years ago, I really wasn’t feeling well at all. I went on a lectin-free diet and not only did I start feeling better very quickly, I also lost 15 pounds and kept if off for a couple of years. Once I got a good understanding of the no-no foods on this plan, it was very easy to follow and I was never ever hungry.

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Let’s pray… Lord we thank you for 2024 and for blessing this plan. We ask your Holy Spirit guidance in every decision. Just as we ask you to bless the food at the table, we ask your blessing over what we choose to put on the table. Give us wisdom and focus as we seek to be good stewards of our bodies – your Holy Temple. We give you all the glory and the praise! In Jesus’ name, we pray.