Feel better by eliminating certain foods
It’s that time of year, Lent, where folks across the country give up something for their religious beliefs or personal decisions. Call it, personal spring cleaning. This year, I’m not limiting myself to just one thing. Instead, I’ve decided to give up a few things - soy, peanuts, corn and (grouped together) sugar and artificial sweeteners. - all things from “The Virgin Diet”, by JJ Virgin. Now there are other things in The Virgin Diet that I have already given up - gluten and diary - and one that I am not - eggs.
I have different reasons for giving these foods up. Some are mostly GMO (corn and soy), some I have an allergy to a version of it (corn syrup & corn starch) and some are just altogether bad for you (sugar & artificial sweeteners). I’m not doing it to lose weight though - I’m only doing it to see if I feel any different (ie: better).
The Diet
The basis of this diet is that you can’t lose weight, no matter what you do, due to food intolerances and these 7 foods that are mentioned above are all high on the list of food intolerances/allergies.
Food intolerance, unlike food allergies, is a series of physiological responses that your body has to certain foods. Do you get gas and experience bloating after meals? Joint pain, diarrhea, moodiness, headaches, brain fog and fatigue are all common responses to food intolerance.
A friend of mine recently removed both dairy and gluten from her kids diet. Not an easy thing to do, but the pay off was enormous - higher scores on their tests at school.
By removing these foods, and anything that is made with them, from your diet, your body has a chance to reset. After 3 weeks, if you want, start adding the foods back, one at a time, and see if you notice any changes in how you feel.
Easy Tests to see if you are intolerant to certain foods
There are two tests that you can do yourself to see if you are intolerance to any of foods - the Coca Pulse test and the Sensitivity Test.
Coca Pulse Test - Developed by Dr. Arthur F. Coca this test simply tells you if a particular item is causing your body stress (when you experience stress, your pulse goes up).
1. Take your baseline pulse by counting your pulse for a full minute. Write it down.
2. Put a food in your mouth (on the tongue). Do not to swallow it. Taste it for at least one minute.
3. While the food remains in your mouth, retake your pulse for a full minute.
A change of six or more is considered a sensitive reaction. The greater the degree of sensitivity, the higher the pulse will be. Spit out the tested ingredient (it must not be swallowed), rinse your mouth and retake the pulse. When it returns to baseline, you can test another food.
Note: This test may not be valid if you are taking a drug that controls heart rate, such as a calcium‐channel blocker or beta‐blocker.
The Sensitivity Test - developed by Dr Natasha Campbell-Mcbride, this test is a bit more involved but very accurate.
At bedtime, take a drop of the food in question (if the food is solid, mash and mix with a bit of water) and place it on the inside of the wrist of the patient.
Let the drop dry on the skin, then go to sleep.
In the morning check the spot: if there is an angry red reaction, then avoid that food.
Give one of these tests a try and see what food(s) you may be intolerant of and then eliminate that food. Your body will thank you!