Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

12

1

If there is a food that bothers you and you eliminate it for say a year and then reintroduce it, will you now:

Be able to eat it without getting bad reactions because you've healed?
react even more because your body is not longer used to it?

Let me first say that I don't think there is one answer to this question. I'm sure it both options are sometimes true.

In some cases, removing a substance from your diet lets you heal. This means that the underlying problem was that there is some sort of damage caused by X. Remove X. Let the sore heal. Now that you don’t have an open sore, so to speak, you can handle small amounts of the offending food. This is the idea behind the GAPS diet.

In another scenario, a person react to X because they don't have enough of something like, for instance, and enzyme to digest it. You remove food X and later re-introdunce. Now you REALLY don’t have the missing enzyme/receptor/whatever after not needing it for a year. Dr. Ayers is against avoiding dairy. He says you should eat a small amount of yogurt daily to build up tolerance.

What about FODMAP foods? Has anyone eliminated them and reintroduced? Did the sensitivity increase or decrease?

Thanks in advance for any insight.

flag	asked Aug 12 2011 at 11:33 Glither 3,617●5●26

gooood question – g. Aug 12 2011 at 16:24

Senneth · Answer 1 · 2011-08-18 17:04:30Z UTC

In order to correct my leaky gut, I bought into that whole avoidance leads to healing theory. After high IGG bloodwork to Gluten/Dairy/Eggs, I started down that path. At the same time, tried cures and trials of everything from homemade 24hr yogurt, 1000K in a variety of probiotics, every herbal remedy under the sun, and lots more. I even experimented with cutting out all high sulphur (thiol) foods, no nuts, no caffeine, no nightshades. That really doesn't leave that much left to eat.

What did it boil down to? No change at all and some pretty odd blood work and nutritional deficiencies.

After a nutritional consult with the controversial Ray Peat, I have gone against my 'programming' and have been eating eggs and drinking raw milk for the past week and half.

With no reaction. Thats right, no intolerance reaction. (With gluten/soy I get major pain in colon area -lower left, major bloating, major GI disruption, and painful joints)

In fact all my tummy symptoms have been REDUCED by 50% so far. (I won't be trying this with gluten or soy -I don't want those back ever anyway). While there have been other dietary changes recommended by Ray Peat, they were custom to my particular health issues (leaky gut being #1). Am I causing some major lasting damage that I will see in a few weeks down the road? Maybe. Is it worth the risk to try something that is totally opposite of what I have tried and failed at for the past 3.5 years? Hell yes.

EDIT: After having looked at FOODmaps I have eaten that way for months at a stretch during my many food elimination trials.

UPDATE: The eggs had to go. Took 2 weeks to get the reaction I usually get in a day. I am going to re-intro them on a rotating basis, instead of 1 a day. Probably too much at first. I just love them though!

Joey · Answer 2 · 2011-08-12 13:39:19Z UTC

From my own experience I can tell,that lots of food intolerances are born bc of leaky gut.So healing the gutlining&increasing good gutbacteria is key. However some intolerances are related to other metabolic issues from thyroid,liver etc. So healing your gut will help heaps,but it might not overcome everything rightaway.

Bread-Eating Beelzebub · Answer 3 · 2011-08-13 14:02:56Z UTC

1

I'm going to concur with Senneth here in that elimination is just part of the equation. I did elimination diets starting my senior year of high school and they never worked. I think paleo/WAPF + removing FODMAPS worked for me because they removed the source of the irritation AND provided me with nutrients I was missing. Both are needed to heal.

answered Aug 13 2011 at 14:02

Bread-Eating Beelzebub
55.6k●9●62●236

I was assuming a paleo/WAPf diet. After being Paleo for some time, if you then got rid of all foods that were suspected irritants and reintroduced them to see what caused a problem - what happens? Melissa, did you try to reinstate any FODMAPs? If so, did you find you were more sensitive to them or less. Or did you simply take out FODMAPs forever? – Glither Aug 13 2011 at 14:32

1

Yes. I did VLC for a few months, then gradually reintroduced foods. It's been about three years now and I did an inulin trial recently where I ingested some inulin to see what would happen. Last year I tried it and it destroyed my stomach. But this year...nothing happened. I did have some issues with brassica vegetables and onions though, but I seem to tolerate them now if they are well-cooked. – Bread-Eating Beelzebub Aug 13 2011 at 16:44

So there is a healing after a break from FODMAPs - at least for you. Good to know. – Glither Aug 13 2011 at 20:42

gilliebean · Answer 4 · 2012-03-20 14:58:06Z UTC

I used to have FODMAP intolerance and SIBO and although I still need to be careful with my diet, I have A LOT more flexibility with my food choices than I used to have. I can now enjoy almost any vegetables, including onions, broccoli and asparagus without any problems! SOme of my journey is described on my blog adietitiangonepaleo.

I think that eliminating FODMAPs to allow your gut to heal and your gut flora to rebalance itself can make a BIG difference.

Jay · Answer 5 · 2011-08-12 19:41:31Z UTC

0

I have found that excessive FODMAPS reliably cause me to experience reflux.

Of all the high-FODMAP foods, onions, lactose, and peanuts are the worst.

answered Aug 12 2011 at 19:41

Jay
4,395●6●11

Lou · Answer 6 · 2012-06-12 17:31:22Z UTC

elimination of offending foods is one thing, but you have to ADD beneficial bacteria lacking in a sick gut, too. Cooling Inflammation has just posted a very insightful piece about that (I'm in no way affiliated) here: http://coolinginflammation.blogspot.com/2012/06/dr-oz-on-gut-flora-repair.html

Roth · Answer 7 · 2012-06-12 18:20:06Z UTC

From personal experience, I can vouch that #2 happens before #1, but #1 does happene eventually.

After *re*introducing gluten, I REALLY noticed significant digestive upset. But then once I introduced grains slowly, my body seems to do fine on it now with no symptoms at all. I still don't eat grains regularly for obvious reasons but if I ever wanted to, I don't worry much about the ramifications.

Elimination Diets: Do they heal? (especially FODMAP)

7 Answers