We got back yesterday from my brother's house in International Falls, MN. It's about a 14 hour drive from Billings, and I wasn't looking forward to sitting in the car that long and stiffening up. I was worried that I'd really be hurting for the long weekend only to turn around and drive back again and be stiff for a few more days. God spared me. I had very little pain and stiffness.
I truly believe that God is taking care of me through this, and that He allowed me to find all of the information on the effects of diet on AS in order to allow me to make some necessary changes that would help me. Changing my diet has been hard, but worth it. I think my sister-in-law felt bad that I was preparing my own food all the time, but I told her that it was just something I had to do and didn't mind doing it. I felt bad not eating her food, as it all looked delicious, but I didn't want to give up any headway I've made so far.
Anyway, we had a great time visiting my brother and his family and I'm so glad we made the trip. I even got to do a little ice fishing. That was my second time ice fishing, but the first time I was in a pickup truck driving across the ice. That was a different experience, especially when the driver (Matt's father-in-law Lloyd) turns around and tells you to take your seatbelt off as you're driving down the boat ramp to start across the ice. "Just in case you have to get out quick," he said. We had a good day fishing too, 2 shy of our 30 crappie limit.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
'Cereal'
Just got back from grocery shopping with the kids. Kristin had a baby shower tonight that she was helping with, so I took the kids to Costco and Walmart. Stocked up on some good stuff to continue this diet, but I'm starting to get creative.
I had a bowl of 'cereal' when I got home tonight. Almonds, flax seed, kiwi, and almond milk. It was quite delicious and made me feel a sense of normalcy again in the diet, even though it was still all starch free foods. I think it will be easier to stick with this the longer it goes because I will continue to get more creative. Hopefully I'll be able to sneak in some actual starches occasionally as well.
I had a bowl of 'cereal' when I got home tonight. Almonds, flax seed, kiwi, and almond milk. It was quite delicious and made me feel a sense of normalcy again in the diet, even though it was still all starch free foods. I think it will be easier to stick with this the longer it goes because I will continue to get more creative. Hopefully I'll be able to sneak in some actual starches occasionally as well.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
A New Dimension - Lactose Free
The no starch diet is extremely hard! I was extremely disappointed to find out, then, that many who seem to have had the most success on the diet in controlling pain and inflammation had also cut dairy. While researching the theory behind why this diet supposedly works, however, it began to make sense. Reluctantly, I decided on Monday to also remove the lactose from my intake. That's right, no milk, cheese, or yogurt (all good sources of the high protein levels I'm shooting for).
The good news is this. Whether it is related to the slightly warmer weather we've been having, or the diet, I have not had as much pain the last few days and have not had the numbness in my feet that I was getting on a daily basis as a result of the inflammation.
The theory behind why the diet works for AS patients actually does make sense. Autoimmune disorder symptoms are caused when the immune system responds to a perceived attack by attacking a part or parts of the body. There is a doctor in England that has done studies on the level of a certain bacterial (Klebsiella) antibody that is present in higher quantity in the systems of AS patients. His theory is that this immuno-response is the problem that is causing the immune systems of AS patients to go awry, and that if you lower the level of Klebsiella in the gut (everyone has this in their tracts, AS patients just have high levels) of those patients, their immune systems will calm down resulting in a reduction in symptoms of AS. The reason for the diet is because the bacteria are lactose fermenting, so their main food sources are lactose and starch. If a person eats less of those, theoretically the level of Klebsiella will decrease due to a lack of food. Makes perfect sense to me.
At this point, this means that I could be stuck on a low starch diet and may possibly be lactose-free for good. I'm certainly sticking to it for now. Looking around for some good recipes so that I don't get bored eating the same things all the time (I found the blog of an AS patient who is a registered dietician that contains some good no-starch recipes). Thank God that He created an abundance of different fruits and vegetables! I'm glad that someone invented lactose-free products somewhere along the way. Almond milk is pretty good stuff! Peanut flour pancakes anyone?
The good news is this. Whether it is related to the slightly warmer weather we've been having, or the diet, I have not had as much pain the last few days and have not had the numbness in my feet that I was getting on a daily basis as a result of the inflammation.
The theory behind why the diet works for AS patients actually does make sense. Autoimmune disorder symptoms are caused when the immune system responds to a perceived attack by attacking a part or parts of the body. There is a doctor in England that has done studies on the level of a certain bacterial (Klebsiella) antibody that is present in higher quantity in the systems of AS patients. His theory is that this immuno-response is the problem that is causing the immune systems of AS patients to go awry, and that if you lower the level of Klebsiella in the gut (everyone has this in their tracts, AS patients just have high levels) of those patients, their immune systems will calm down resulting in a reduction in symptoms of AS. The reason for the diet is because the bacteria are lactose fermenting, so their main food sources are lactose and starch. If a person eats less of those, theoretically the level of Klebsiella will decrease due to a lack of food. Makes perfect sense to me.
At this point, this means that I could be stuck on a low starch diet and may possibly be lactose-free for good. I'm certainly sticking to it for now. Looking around for some good recipes so that I don't get bored eating the same things all the time (I found the blog of an AS patient who is a registered dietician that contains some good no-starch recipes). Thank God that He created an abundance of different fruits and vegetables! I'm glad that someone invented lactose-free products somewhere along the way. Almond milk is pretty good stuff! Peanut flour pancakes anyone?
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