Chronic inflammation has been my story for the past two decades.  It gradually crept up on me and then ruled my life.  Simple every day things I could no longer do like laying in bed, drawing my legs up and then letting them flop to the side.  The tendons in my groin area would hurt like heck.  Even bringing my arm around to wipe my own butt became a painful chore.  The chronic inflammation and weight gain became the new norm.  Does any of this sound familiar to you?  Does standing at the sink bring about back pain?  When you bend down to pick up something from the floor, is it difficult or impossible to get back up again without holding on to something???

There Is A Solution!!!

I’m here to tell you that it is NOT IMPOSSIBLE to take control of your life again.  It’s been a fight.  The struggle is real!  But, lifestyle choices DO matter!  They make a difference.  I am now in my 60’s and feeling better than I have for many years.  I can do things now that I couldn’t do 10 years ago; little things that are HUGE to me!  I’m still a work in progress, but the progress that I have made has motivated me to continue making the changes in my life that reduce inflammation, weight gain, and chronic pain.  Let me share a few of my findings.

Elimination Foods

It took a lot of determination, but it was WELL worth the effort.  For 30 days, I eliminated all wheat products, all dairy products, all citrus, all chocolate, all alcohol, all spicy foods, all tomatoes, all onions/garlic, and all strawberries.  Yes, I know it sounds like a BIG drag BUT, in about 4 days I had found alternatives for everything.  😃 I didn’t limit my caloric intake, necessarily, I just didn’t eat these foods and I WASN’T HUNGRY!  It took about two weeks and I noticed that my inflammation issues had drastically reduced.  Not completely eliminated, but my pain level was W A Y down!

RE-INTRODUCING FOODS

Wheat

Since I LOVE bread, I tried eating a slice initially.  JUST ONE PIECE caused almost immediate pain in my esophagus. It was a BIG BUMMER, but having NO PAIN was more important to me than that slice of bread.  A couple of weeks later I tried a half slice.  It still made my swallowing difficult.  So, there was a definite correlation between wheat and my inflammation.  If it wreaked havoc on my esophagus, who knows what other issues it was causing my joints!?!?  There’s this cool book called, “Wheat Belly”.  It was VERY enlightening and informative about modern-day wheat and the negative effects it can have on our bodies.  I would DEF recommend reading it.  You can find it here.

Dairy

Yes, I’ve heard that dairy can help reduce inflammation, BUT not in me!  After determining that I could no longer eat wheat, I tried dairy again.  What I found was it produced an inflammation in my sinuses which caused me to snore.  In the early morning it took about an hour to clear out my lungs.  I was constantly clearing my throat.  It was pretty annoying.  I went back and forth on the dairy trying it and then laying off of it.  When off, I found I could sleep on my back with ease.  No snoring.  (which my significant other was SUPER happy about!) No more breathing issues.  No more constantly clearing my throat in the morning.  YAY ME!  There are plenty of other non-dairy options to choose from.  I’ve fallen in love with a couple of nut milks. I especially LOVE the Forager Cashewmilk Yogurt.  I don’t feel like I’m missing out at all!  In  fact, I feel like I’m  treating myself to something special! 😃

Citrus

I re-entered citrus fruits back into my diet.  They have pretty positive anti-inflammatory reviews.  AND, YAY ME AGAIN!!!  They don’t seem to bother me at all.  I just make sure I don’t eat citrus in the evening in case it causes a reaction like acid reflux.  Acid reflux can be a big deal in the evening, if you’re not careful, and citrus has been known to aggravate it.  BUT, that doesn’t stop me from having an orange mid-day once or twice a week …guilt free!  Whew!  Boy am I relieved!

Chocolate

I’ll admit it.  I LOVE 💖 chocolate.  So, it was tough to let it go for a full month.  Which is why after only three weeks I snuck a few cacao nib sprinkles on top of my Cashewmilk Yogurt. 😍 There were NO negative side effects, so I kept them in my diet.  There’s no sugar in them at all, but there’s something about that “crunch” that is sooooo satisfying.  And, I swear, they taste sweet! I haven’t eaten any chocolate with sugar at all since I quit.  These cacao nibs satisfy my chocolate cravings immensely!  Also, I use a couple of teaspoons of the cacao powder in my smoothies.  It’s a GREAT way to get that chocolatey craving without the sugar.

Alcohol

I’ve really struggled with this one!  I love to unwind in the evening and have a glass of wine at dinner.  If it’s been a particularly stressful day, I’ll sip down two.  I’ve been back and forth and back and forth.  On and off.  What I’ve found is that if I drink a couple of nights in a row, (one to two glasses in the evening) my hip joints pay for it.  I’ll wake up in the middle of the night with hip joint pain. There’s an article here that I’ve found to be QUITE accurate.  It lists 5 ways alcohol can negatively effect your joints and your muscles.  Check it out when you have an extra moment.  I do have a fun solution that will be a GREAT Emotional Boosting alternative instead of that glass of wine! 😎. (coming soon in my Shop) Available October 1st 2021!

Spicy Food

If you have an acid reflux issue, this should be a NO BRAINER!  I use to buy hot salsa instead of the medium or mild types.  I just LOVED the extra “kick” it had in it.  Yep!  I gave that up.  It just wasn’t worth the pain that came with it.  The bottom line is, I just had to Change My Attitude about food!  Once the pain started diminishing and the weight started inching downward on the scale, I had a LOT of positives to be thankful for and it was SO MUCH EASIER to focus on THAT instead of what I could no longer eat.

Tomatoes

Since these are a little acidic I eliminated them for awhile.  Once I started eating a few again, I didn’t notice any negative side effects.  Soooooo, I’m keeping them in my diet.  They are in the night shade family, so some people might find them inflammatory.  It’s good to eat a few and then eliminate them and see if you notice a difference or not.  We are all individually different.  There is no “one shoe fits all” when it comes to eating.

Onions/Garlic

These are highly touted as being SUPER good for you and as an anti-inflammatory food.  However….. I eliminated them for awhile (doctor’s orders) because of a higher inflammation-trigger status for some.  What I noticed when I re-introduced them into my diet is, I can only eat them in small amounts.  Too many created heart burn.  Oh well, being moderate isn’t a bad thing, right?

Strawberries

Here’s another one that has great reviews as being healthy but they DO have a little more acid in them.  So, I eliminated them for awhile.  Once I reintroduced them back into my diet, I didn’t notice any additional side effects.  They have now landed in my smoothies! 😃

The Bottom Line

Although chronic inflammation progresses silently, it is the cause of most chronic diseases and presents a major threat to the health and longevity of individuals.  I might of started this elimination diet a little later in life, but better late than never!  You’re never too old to try and turn your life around!  I’m 60 at the moment I’m writing this blog and I can attest to the fact that this elimination diet works!  I feel better!  I have less pain and I’ve lost almost 30 pounds in the past five months.  Maybe some of you don’t need to lose the weight but do you need your joints and muscles to move better with less pain?  If so, give it a try!  You might be pleasantly surprised!

Lots of love,

Sarah💕

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