Food Combing & More

[Issy]

Has anyone tried food combing and has it helped with MC?
Also, has anyone switched to a vegan diet and did it help with MC?
Finally, has anyone tried accupuncture and Chinese herbs and did it help with MC?


Issy

[Polly]

Hi Issy,

What is food combing?

I was a vegetarian for 12 years before the MC hit, and I suspect that it may have facilitated the development of the MC. I ate TONS of whole grains, cheese (I wasn't strictly vegan), and tofu. Then I found out I had hunter-gatherer genes and couldn't eat gluten, dairy, and soy. So I have always wondered if perhaps the large amount of those earlier foods might have "forced" the issue, precipitated the MC in some way.

Love,

Polly

[MaggieRedwings]

Hi Issy,

I want to know what food combing is too!

I was a vegan for 35 years and since I found out I am intolerant to soy and other items like tempe, etc. are made from gluten I continued vegan into going GF. I eventually had to come to terms with not being vegan any longer - long hard decision - but I was just not getting any protein at all and pretty much wasting away. To say it was the hardest decision in years is an understatement. I don't feel being vegan helped at all in my healing and to be honest, I think I am better off eating some fish and chicken now.

Hope this helps.

Love, Maggie

[harma]

Hello Issy, before I was diagnosed with MC I was a vegetarian for 10 years. To replace meat and fish I ate a lot of soy and whole grain products and dairy. Before my diagnoses I already experienced a 10 year episode of bowel problems. I agree with Polly, probably the whole grain products and dairy only made things worse. If you see my list of allergies/intolerances, staying a vegetarian or vegan is not an option anymore. Meet/fish are my protein sources now. The book of Cordain on the Hunters/gatherers diets convinced me that a diet consisting of mainly meet-fish-fruit-vegetables is the healthiest choice for any human being, of course in the right quantities.

Does combing mean, eating certain food combinations together or you just avoid certain combinations (like no meat and pasta together). If so, I never did this, but am doing it now. Not on purpose or whit a reason, just I eat twice a day fish or meet with vegetables and no carbs. I have no idea it makes any difference.

I have no experiences with Acupuncture or Chinese herbs. Also with the herbs I would be very careful, since this enter your body through the GI track. You never know how the MC will react to it, since different kinds of medications also can induce MC.

[Issy]

Polly, Maggie, Harma,

First thanks for your input with respect to a vegan diet. I tried going vegan when I was in college, but couldn't keep it up for too long. Then somewhere around the 15th year in my marriage, hubby and I went vegetarian, but after a few months grew bored with it.

Now close to 40 years of marriage we are thinking of trying it again. My biggest concern is the protein issue and of course getting all the essential nutrients. Since you all were vegetarians you know how important it is to get B12 I think that is missing in a true vegan diet.

I am currently eliminating gluten and dairy, and I don't know what I would live on if I went meatless too....other than hubby's enduring love...and that will only carry me so far.....lol

Harma, you're right about food combining. A big no no is combining proteins with starches.... such as wheat and rice, and all starchy vegetables like potatoes, pumpkin, all squash and peas, beans, lentils. All fruits are eaten alone.
Also proteins should not be eaten with fats and oils, but carbs can be combined with them.

I read somewhere that food combining is very gentle on the digestive system....but not sure if there is real scientific evidence supporting it. However it stands to reason that if you can't eat too much at one time....then that in and of itself would be good for a sensitive gut.

Thanks all for your input, I found it very helpful
Issy

[IDontGiveA]

Interesting.... had to comment on the whole veggie thing. I also was vegetarian for about 7 years, which meant I lived on cheese, pasta, and tofu. My two favorite food groups were pizza and beer. I have played with candida/yeast diets and recently became aware of the paleo/scd diets and now believe that my veggie diet may have been a contributing factor to my current condition. I would be very interested to hear how common the high carbo veggie diet was among other posters here.

I have tried the food combing thing as well, and it does make sense to me, but I cant claim I experienced any huge difference. As far as the reasoning for FC goes, I believe a lot of the idea centers around the different acids secreted by the stomach. Apparently, there are different types of acids/enzymes needed to breakdown starches/proteins for example, and if you eat them together they dont get digested fully/properly. Or if you eat fruit, for example, that does not need to be broken down with some other food that does, this also impairs digestion.

I have not tried enough acupuncture to give much of an opinion, but I did practice Chi Kung for years, and can say that it did improve my well being. IMO a lot of these 'alternative' therapies can be great, but they are preventative in nature. Once you are seriously sick, they may help, but often do not get to the root of the problem.

As a side note, here is a link that may be of interest. This guy is kind of 'out there' but he has a clinic in AZ where among other things he promotes a paleo vegan diet that he claims has had success curing diabetes. I suppose I could live with such a diet if I had no doubt it was a 'cure', but honestly, if I could Id still eat pizza everyday......

http://www.treeoflife.nu/home-index/

[harma]

hello Izzy, if you are not reaction to soy, that could be your protein source than. Vitamin b12 can also come from a supplement.

and a vegan paleo diet, that is an interesting one, I will take a look at that website

[Gabes-Apg]

hi all

food combining is not eating protein with carbohydrate

i did this back in the late 1990's as a treatment for IBS, post bowel surgery
it worked ok when i stuck to the principles, as soon as I ate a meal that did not follow the principles then i basically couldnt digest it and i would vomit. this made socialising totally impossible unless i took my own food (mmm sounds familiar to now!)
another part of the food combining principles was eating fruit at least one hour before meals so you could avoid fermentation etc

I found it tricky to juggle the timetable with working life and with the vomiting thing i found it too isolating.

Re Acupuncture and natural therapies - yes i am using this.
i have a great acupuncturist who uses chinese and japenese techniques, in the treatment he treats the points to alleviate inflamation that is evident in the digestion area, and then he treats points that balances all the meridians connected to digestion process.
at the end he uses very miniscule needles and ball bearings on key pressure points which i call 'homework' you dont even realise they are there (at the moment i have some in my ears, on my back and on my feet) if the homework points become itchy or noticeable your body doesnt need then any more and you take them off
For me post treatment, my thought process improves, emotions are not as sensitive, energy improves.
I have been having acupuncture for over 10 years. when i got my MC diagnosis he apologised as we had always been treating my symptoms as IBS type symptoms.
My acupuncturist said they cant always get diagnosis right, but with medical diagnosis they can definately treat the cause of the symptoms

It is my acupuncturist and naturopath that have given me the advice to eat 'baby food' after the chronic attack during diagnosis, and with the evidence of inflammation we need to retrain my digestion.
following GF/YF/LF principles if i eat small amount of ingredients (no more than 4 per meal) and have them overcooked and mashed up, and small meals, I seem to be fine. My recent flare was when i tried to progress to quickly. (too many ingredients and not mashed up)


Natural therepies i use herbs and vitamins moreso than chinese herbs (my acupuncturist and naturopath provide them to me at cost ie no mark up)
at the moment i am using: -
liquid zinc(cell repair)
golden seal (anti inflammatory)
multi vitamin

prior to MC i used liquid Olive Leaf Extract (auto immune booster, anti bacterial and anti viral) any time i had flu symptoms or was feeling poorly.

i know that acupuncture does not work for everyone. for the past 10 years i have always had really good reactions to treatments. it costs me $30 per treatment and it is cheaper than some of the drugs the GI specialist prescribed for me (some of which i no longer take)

what i have learnt on this site is that what works for one person doesnt necessarily work for another! self management is the key to controlling this demon, and if you find something that works, stick with it!

[Issy]

I, Harma, Gabes,

Thanks for all your comments. With respect to food combing and acid and alkaline enzymes....critics of FC say that the acid in the stomach will break down all foods....regardless of how they are combined at meals. I have not tried FC so I can't say at this time if it makes a difference.

It is a very hard program to follow if you are a diabetic (as I am) because protein and fats are suppose to always be eaten with carbs if you are diabetic. Also fruits are not to be eaten alone because of their high sugar content....however when consumed with other foods the sugar is absorbed more slowly. So I have resisted trying food combing, even though there are claims that it helps with digestive disorders....such as IBS.

I have tried acupuncture, but it was for a short time, many years ago, after being involved in a car accident. I went for traditional physical therapy but the acupuncture seem to really help with my soreness and neck stiffness the most. So I am thinking of trying it again for my LC.

I checked out the Tree of Life website, but I think it basically implies that you can control your diabetes better with a vegan diet. If there was a cure....it would be like the shot heard round the world......and I have been a diabetic for over 30 years and haven't heard of a cure yet.

Issy

[Bifcus16]

Interesting discussion.

Whilst I rather think if there was a 'cure' for diabetes it would have made headlines, it is possible this diet could help some. For people with type 2 diabetes the diagnosis is not always a yes/no thing - 'pre-diabetes' can also come into the picture. For these people a low GI diet will help to restore the balance - it is what their doctor will try to tell them anyway. For some, it may get them back to a point where they no longer need the drugs - and I could imagine them calling that a 'cure'. For folk like my brother who had his pancreas removed, no diet will cure his diabetes.

The vegetarian question is also interesting. I would like to go vego for ethical reasons, but have to accept that my body is currently a lot happier if I eat meat. So my approach is to try to include more vego meals, and to favour organic meat, or meat from small farmers who care for their charges.

Lyn

[Gabes-Apg]

issy

i think it is a case of coming up with meal options that suit
- all health situations,
- lifestyle (work and home etc) esp if you are eating meals with others

maybe have one meal a day that follows FC principles

I find having my main meal at lunch and small dinner helps alot
weekends when i spending time with TK (the keeper) i have meals where i can vary ingredients and cooking style to suit me but still make the meal interesting for him.

[Gabes-Apg]

further....

alot of the protein replacements in vegan or vego diet usually rely on legumes dont they?
it really depends on what foods you can tolerate ie so that you can digest protein replacements.

re food acids: as far as I understood, everything we knew about digestion process goes out the door once you have the MC diagnosis.
again it would come down to what works for you as an individual.

[adelie]

Hi Issy,

I follow a somewhat restricted paleo vegan diet now and have been vegetarian or nearly so my entire life. Up until I was about three years old, the only thing I could keep down (Mom said she learned the meaning of projectile vomiting)was a special "pre-digested" soy formula. Now, even with meds, my system will really only tolerate low fat, low glycemic fruits and vegetables. I take a free-form amino acid powder for my protein and make sure I get a good mutli-vitamin. At this point with multiple conditions, relying on food for my main nutrition just isn't possible. My last bloodwork looked good, so it is possible, but it is quite an adjustment if you haven't done it before. I do not do food combing as has been described. I quite often combine my fruits and veggies. Diabetes is pretty rampant in my family, so I try not to eat a whole lot of fruit at once. I'll combine things like apples with squash or carrots, peaches or apricots with zucchini. As the weather gets warmer, cantaloupe and cucumber with a bit of mint will be a staple.

Karen