Elimination Diet

[Scarlett]

I started doing this on Monday to see if it helped with my symptoms of arthritis/joint pain/ joint swelling/ fizzing soles of feet. Varied thoughts on it so far, but I wondered whether anyone else had tried it and what their results were?

[jamesnan]

When my daughter was about 16 she was suffering from various problems, which it was suspected were caused by an allergy. After visiting a private hospital and seeing one of the leading food allergy specialists, (at that time the notion of food allergy was poo-poohed) she was put on a very strict exclusion diet. She was, after 3 weeks allowed to add a limited list of foods, and she did react after a time to various ingredients, but the most startling food she ate was a steak - within half an hour she was just fast asleep. Certain items made her joints ache, and dairy was a definite food which caused problems. She went on to use goat's milk, and a limited diet and there was a massive change in her medical problems. She still uses goat's milk, it is much nicer and easier to obtain than it used to be, and still has reactions to certain foods, but now it causes irritable bowel symptoms, rather than joint problems.

[woofgang]

I had to eliminate certain foods from my dog's diet because he had eczema in his ears. We were warned by the vet that it would take around six weeks to show any change as the allergens had to leave his system. Sure enough after about 5 and a half weeks he was showing improvement and by 7 weeks his ears had more or less cleared up. Provided we keep him off pork, duck and dairy he stays fine.

anyway what i am wittering on about is be patient, it will take time.

[diddlydo]

Sorry but when I was growing up no-one ever had food allergies. No nut/gluten/edible anything allergies. So what has happened? Is it really all in the mind??

[Spoonboy]

diddlydo: I am 53, but had an allergy to high sodium salt, and beetroot at a very young age - 8.

[jamesnan]

My daughter is 45, so that is 30 years or more ago when she was being tested, and no one then believed that you could be allergic to food, but she had swellings of the knees after drinking cow's milk, and various other reactions, and was so very different after being on the exclusion diet. She had the usual skin tests, and reacted to several of those as well, but the food allergy problem was the most severe.

[Scarlett]

I'm 43 and I had allergy testing as a child, as I had bad asthma and eczema. I was put on goat's milk but clearly that wasn't enough of a change. I had a runny and blocked up nose til I was 23. It wasn't until I did a detox that I managed to clear out my system- and anyone who thinks that food allergies don't exist might be interested to know that I was bed ridden and had the entire contents of 30 years worth of snot all come out in 2 days. Since that detox I have no longer needed a handkerchief stuffed in my sleeve every hour of the day. Also since then though, my eating has become less disciplined. So now I am faced with these problems again. By the way, I'm now on week 2 and already feel a surprising difference.

[Zeuhl]

/Sorry but when I was growing up no-one ever had food allergies/

diddly, how would you know?

I suspect when you were growing up there were sick people with 'food allergies' not diagnosed as such

My friend's daughter nearly died a few years ago when someone unwittingly fed her peanut oil - I'd like you to see you telling her it was 'all in the mind'

[Zeuhl]

scarlett

are you on Addenbrooke's? or a variation of it?

should be interesting as long as you are scrupulous and patient to allow the absence and readmission of particular foods to show up.

If nothing else it's a harmless bit of masochism rewarded by the gradual reintroduction of things that you will appreciate when before you perhaps took them for granted

[Scarlett]

I'm just doing it myself having read lots of sites and books. I am being stricter than some suggest, by not eating any chicken or beans for 3 weeks. I'm basically eating turkey, fish, rice, veg but no potatoes or tomatoes, some fruit but no citrus, no wheat or dairy or alcohol.No sugar or processed food. Breakfast is puffed rice cereal (made from only brown rice) and almond milk. Lunch is cold turkey (!) or buckwheat crispbread and almond nut butter or organic houmous. Dinner is something like fish, rice, veg. It's not so bad!

[jamesnan]

I would be interested in knowing how you get on, and what long term benefit you feel. I have 2 daughters with arthritis and joint pain, and also have it myself, so knowing how the younger daughter benefitted from the exclusion diet many years ago, it may be worth trying the same for the other 2 daughters and myself. I can remember cooking various odd foods for the youngest daughter many years ago, and clearly can still here her say to the doctor (who was at the private wing of Addenbrookes many years ago) "Millet? that is what budgies eat"