Last month the flu hit our house and I was sick for a solid two weeks despite getting the flu vaccine. I have psoriatic arthritis. The biological drugs I take to treat it are immunosuppressants.
While I was resting, I picked up a book a friend had recommended to me a few months ago. The book is titled How Not to Die: Discovering Foods Proven to Prevent and Curb Scientifically Proven Diseases and was written by Michael Greger, MD.
The diseases this book focuses on are the top killers in America, and whole food, plant-based diets address the nutrition the body needs for optimal function, disease prevention and treatment. We focus on research that shows that
I changed my diet many times in the hope that it would make me feel better. I tried Weight Watchers and Noom. I am vegetarian and have done keto. I have also stayed gluten-free all my life.
Removing the extra weight from the frame will allow your joints to move more easily and possibly be less painful. But shrinking your waistline isn’t your main goal.
What I consider to be a greater success is being able to walk barefoot without clinging to a wall for support, because walking without shoes to support is too painful. , is to finally heal stubborn patches of psoriasis that itch and burn to crack and bleed.
My problem with the calorie-in-calorie game is that I’m missing the goal of nutrients that help the human body thrive.
I know how to lose weight, but what I really want is to be pain free. My conversations with doctors have focused on medications and medical interventions. But why haven’t we talked about nutrition yet? The Mediterranean diet has been talked about as a way to reduce inflammation, but the bottom line is that no nutritional research has been done.
Pharmaceutical companies profit from medicines and focus their research on what they can fund and sell for profit. There appears to be no funding to support research on whole food nutrition. Still, I went looking and found some. All included some measure of success and the following tagline:
I also found a caring doctor who provided several case studies related to my specific diagnosis and information about individual patients successfully managing their psoriatic arthritis with whole food, plant-based diets. rice field.
That’s one thing I haven’t tried.
I used to be a vegetarian, but I never cut out dairy or processed foods. That means you can still eat cheese puffs and ice cream, even if you’re technically a vegetarian.
I passed this information on to my doctor. She also warned me it would not cure me. I do not expect a cure. I expect diet to help manage symptoms along with medication. I don’t mind if my quality of life deteriorates and I can’t enjoy the time I spend with the people I love. With the support of my doctor, I reduced my medication and adjusted my diet.
The most incredible thing is that a stubborn patch of psoriasis that had been lightly applied with steroid cream daily cleared up in just one week. indicated that they are working on
It’s not easy (I mean, my lower back still hurts), but chronic illness is never easy.
What I know for sure is that I have a lot of life left.I want to do everything I can to be here for my children as long as possible.