Ultra Simple Diet

[Seamus]

If so, some of the issues could be related to the fact that you no longer have the chemical buffers that bind with the opiate receptors and mask symptoms.

If the physical symptoms are masked while consuming an unhealthy diet, what exactly is the advantage of going on the Ultra-Simple-Diet?

It will cause some people unnecessary pain during adjustment, when in-fact they do perfectly fine on a unhealthy diet because the symptoms are masked.

I have gathered that part of the reason of going on the Ultra-Simple Diet is because it benefits the soul/spirit not just because it benefits physical body or brain. This though is not proven, and I am not fully convinced myself.
____

I was going to post the message above because I consider myself not much affected by a dairy/gluten/un-soaked grain/simple-sugar diet. Upon further thought, I get a cold about once a year, I have had dust / pollen and pet allergies all my life, and I have recurring asthma (once a year). I also have headaches and stomachaches once every 3 months.

So maybe my body doesn't mask all the symptoms. Still I think what I wrote above is valid. If people feel perfectly healthy which I kind-of do, what motivation can we garner in adopting the Ultra-Simple Diet. This seems like it would be quite a common "problem" for many people. Also once someone goes on the simple diet--they can never go off it (stellar posts about this). not to mention the fact that the transitory stage can be hell.

These blocks in the way of adopting the USD have been addressed in valid ways, which I have witnessed. I guess ultimately the choice to improve diet will come to each individual when it comes to them which largely will have to do with medical issues.

sorry for my convoluted post. some of my thoughts. I worked out some of the question myself.

Have you read The UltraMind Solution? Mark Hyman presents his case in an rational, logical manner and backs it up with a wealth of case histories and references.

I have gathered that part of the reason of going on the Ultra-Simple Diet is because it benefits the soul/spirit not just because it benefits physical body or brain. This though is not proven, and I am not fully convinced myself.

Dr. Hyman has gathered a great deal of evidence in his case histories that the principles of the Ultra Simple Diet benefit people with any number of seemingly unrelated illnesses. You mention a few specific ailments that you suffer from, perhaps you would be interested in taking a look at this thread:

=http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=11672.0UltraMind Solution Quizzes

It contains some of the symptom quizzes that Mark Hyman uses is his book, which are designed to help you to self-diagnose deficiencies and imbalances so that you can work to correct them. If you take a look at the quizzes they may help you to identify some 'symptoms' that you don't even realize are there.

I was of the opinion until recently that 'healthy food' (organic and local) is enough, and that if you eat 'healthy food' you don't need to supplement with vitamins, etc. I was 'unconvinced' of the benefits of changing my diet as well... even after I read the UltraMind Solution and started to read through the evidence presented here on the forum. As I experiment with the ideas however, I am becoming more and more convinced that there are tangible benefits even for someone like me who is 'healthy', ie doesn't present with any obvious chronic physical illness or mental disorder. Here are some of the benefits I have noticed:

Increased energy
Increased sense of general well being
Improving mental clarity
Reduced mental chatter
Improved GI function (less constipation, greater regularity, less gas and bloating)
Less muscle tension in my body
No dandruff/dry scalp (I didn't even realize I had it until it was gone)
Better skin (no scaly dry patches on my elbows or pimples)
Better sleep/I feel more rested in the morning
I don't feel depressed and discouraged all of the time
Increased patience/reduced irritability

I hope this helps.

Seamas

 

[RedFox]

If so, some of the issues could be related to the fact that you no longer have the chemical buffers that bind with the opiate receptors and mask symptoms.

If the physical symptoms are masked while consuming an unhealthy diet, what exactly is the advantage of going on the Ultra-Simple-Diet?

fwiw I see it as an act of conscious suffering/paying in advance. Given gluten (and the protein in milk if I remember correctly) bind to opiate receptors, you may want to consider that those on the unhealthy diet (wheat/milk) could be considered drug addicts.....you could not expect someone with impaired cognative abilities to progress spiritually.

I gave up gluten over a year ago now (and I also had cramps at the time it seems, the magnesium oil cured that....or a larger dose of oral magnesium....you could be depleted in other trace minerals too) I'm about 2 months in to the ultra simple diet and the last few days I've had flashes of insight/understanding/inspiration that have astounded me. Having enough energy, a clear head and my emotional centre all working together....good grief! The company I work for is going to go under next year....and in a moment of inspiration (asking what I would do if in charge) I worked out how to save the company, enthuse my demotivated/desperate colleagues, do the same for our organisations members (who are leaving in droves) and put the companies name on the map.....all of which we had when I started but my boss has managed to slowly erode through games and an inability to learn/adapt (he has very little creativity).....will be putting something together to get some feedback from the network about at some point in the next month. :)

A few things I've learnt in the last month that may well be useful to others.
The pain in my right side wasn't going away...and my guts where feeling more and more sensitive to food (including the stuff listed on the ultra simple diet).....fortunately the dairy free entieric coated live pro biotics arrived. I felt so much better within about half an hour of taking the first one.....followed 15 minutes later by a herxhimer reaction. Something was dying off!
The article about candida and weight loss was in my mind also at this point.
I've invested in some caprylic acid (which I've been taking with each meal....please research though as it may cause kidney stones apparently), and coconut oil for cooking.....and after about two weeks of taking the pro biotics (two a day) and the caprylic acid, the pain I got in my right side is 99% gone and I can eat things without reacting too them!!

I've started cooking buckwheat pancakes again (with coconut oil this time) and they are sitting really well with me...no muscle aches. I reintroduced garlic....that's fine also. Introduced beef three days ago (about the same day that SOTT carried the articles on meat making us smarter etc), and boy is that good! I may be blood type AB, but it really is working for me! The second day (I had buckwheat pancakes with apple sauce, followed by quinoa with fried minced beef/garlic and boiled beets for breakfast) I was full of energy and had that flash of inspiration about the company I work for.

So its possible that I either had a candida infection (with no symptoms) or bacterial overgrowth in my small intestine....the only symptom was a very very small spot of fungal nail infection on my smallest toe (which is now disappearing). It may be those experiencing severe food sensitivity, cravings and/or weight loss also have this....so you may want to check out a really good live enteric coated probiotic and see what happens (I'm using DR. Ohhira's 12PLUS), it was a supprise to me.

On the negative side, I still only weight 9 stone 5 pounds. Went to the doctors yesterday (a pretty good one, seems we're reasonably lucky in the UK to have good GP's)....blood pressure is good and he commented that my heart beat sounded really good, lymph nodes are clear, and nothing else spotted from the checkup...so he's sent me for a chest xray and blood work next week (will know the results in 2 weeks when I go see him again).
I'm hoping that my ability to tolerate fats and red meat in my diet may solve the weight issue (which may well have been candida related....)
I'll keep y'all posted on how things are going. If I weighed another stone and had that high level of energy constantly I think I may be over the moon! I'll be off and DOing and you won't see me for dust :D
Oh, and I must be doing something right because general law really is kicking in....lol

*edit* spelling

 

[Mrs.Tigersoap]

Are you taking the 5-htp with lunch and dinner? GABA? (depending on your profile). I've found that regular intake of 5-htp has really put an end to cravings.

Yes, we're taking between 100 and 200 mg of 5-HTP during the day. We haven't tried GABA yet. I should order some.
My cravings aren't that bad, really, since my periods are almost over. It's very fleeting and they involve things I don't usually crave anymore (things I see when I go somewhere).
Yesterday I felt I 'needed' something and I had chopped up banana and apple sprinkled with ground flaxseeds. It was lovely.
I think what I am missing more are my habits: my bowl of puffed brown rice or quinoa with rice milk in the morning, xylitol in my hot rice cereal (the D-ribose makes my nose runny apparently), but they can be reintroduced later, so that's fine.
I have a lot of willpower for many things, but food used to beat me every time. So I'm really happy to go through all this, if that makes sense.

I can actually eat just a few little squares of chocolate and not want anymore. I can eat a couple of chocolate cookies and be satisfied.
When I was feeling really bummy I would have a cup of tea or iced tea with xylitol.

Since stopping gluten, I had this strange thing with chocolate (before the USD) where I needed to have some every day (like a true addict), but after three squares, it was too much. So I guess my body was transitioning already (I used to be able to eat the whole tablet).

 

[Laura]

Yes, we're taking between 100 and 200 mg of 5-HTP during the day. We haven't tried GABA yet. I should order some.

At one point, I was taking 500 mg of 5-htp. Did that for a couple weeks and then the effects started reversing, so I backed it down and now just need it occasionally. I think the tank gets "topped up."

My cravings aren't that bad, really, since my periods are almost over. It's very fleeting and they involve things I don't usually crave anymore (things I see when I go somewhere).
Yesterday I felt I 'needed' something and I had chopped up banana and apple sprinkled with ground flaxseeds. It was lovely.

I had to curtail the flaxseeds, as good as they are in many ways, because I am so sensitive to lectins.

Perhaps you will want to transition to a good protein breakfast, like ham or bacon or sausage or hamburger/steak and a couple of buckwheat blinis? I've found that getting plenty of protein and fat in the morning really gets the metabolism going right and stops cravings for the whole day.

I think what I am missing more are my habits: my bowl of puffed brown rice or quinoa with rice milk in the morning, xylitol in my hot rice cereal (the D-ribose makes my nose runny apparently), but they can be reintroduced later, so that's fine.

See above. Seems that the best research (see the book "Big Fat Lies") shows that a really good fatty, protein breakfast really IS the way to start the day. There are several threads with good info about fats, but we have been experimenting and discovering that we do need a lot more fats than we realized and saturated fats ARE good as long as you get plenty of Omega 3s to go with them. The chapter in Sydney MacDonald Baker's book really explains WHY you need so much fat and what happens if you spend years eating the wrong fats - vegetable oils, margarine, low fat stuff - and how all the cells in your body are affected. It can take months or years of replenishing the fats to correct this problem so that all your cells can once again begin to communicate with each other properly.

 

[Mrs.Tigersoap]

Maybe you guys could try the Magnesium Oil/spray? (Or one of the other products listed there)

Thank you Oxajil, I will have a look at it!

I commend your willpower Mrs Tigersoap!

I'm also at 'that time of the month', and have something to report. For the very FIRST TIME in many years, I didn't have to take painkillers to fight the pain. I can hardly believe it!!! For years I have taken extremely strong painkillers (those with endless contra indications) because the pain was so strong that I just couldn't stand it. Once I even called an ambulance, something I've posted previously at the swamp. The fact that I have to take these pills every single month has been bothering me for a long time.

Thanks for your support Gertrudes! As you said, it's funny to see we're all getting started at the same time!
About you not needing painkillers for your periods: FWIW, the meridian governing the menstruations is the Stomach meridian (I know, it seems bizarre), so anything making digestion easier, i.e. making the job of the Stomach meridian easier, will have a positive impact on how you feel during your menstruations. I was just telling Tigersoap today how I should say that here on the forum to maybe help the ladies and motivate those who have not started the detox yet. That's so great for you!

I was going to post the message above because I consider myself not much affected by a dairy/gluten/un-soaked grain/simple-sugar diet.

I thought this way too. Then I started going gluten-free and found myself on my sofa, shivering despite the many covers, sweating and being in the foulest mood ever, having killer headaches, just like an addict kicking dope. I could not believe it. As others have pointed out, you need to be on that kind of diet for quite some time and discover little by little what had gone slowly wrong with your different systems, senses of smell and taste, etc. to really know what wheat and dairy were doing to your system.
I felt mildly concerned (but that was probably my predator's mind talking) until I read The Celiac Iceberg. It really drove it home. That text was so important to me that I asked the translators group if I could translate it and now I routinely give the link to Futur Quantique where it's published to my clients (and hopefully they keep on reading the rest of the website as well ;)).

This diet changes are also, as others have mentioned, a way to work on oneself, to not do what 'it' feels like doing.

At one point, I was taking 500 mg of 5-htp.

Oh wow, maybe I'll up the quantities a bit, then.

Perhaps you will want to transition to a good protein breakfast, like ham or bacon or sausage or hamburger/steak and a couple of buckwheat blinis? I've found that getting plenty of protein and fat in the morning really gets the metabolism going right and stops cravings for the whole day.

I'm ashamed to admit this, but ever since reading this in one of the threads (I remember you mentioning that the girls loved to eat this way since it kept their cravings at bay and they managed to keep the weight off), I've been recommending it to some of my clients, and, of course, I have not tried it yet. I guess it's always the baker's children who have no bread... Thanks for the reminder!

The chapter in Sydney MacDonald Baker's book really explains WHY you need so much fat and what happens if you spend years eating the wrong fats - vegetable oils, margarine, low fat stuff - and how all the cells in your body are affected. It can take months or years of replenishing the fats to correct this problem so that all your cells can once again begin to communicate with each other properly.

Yes, that chapter prompted me to take 15 g a day of omega 3 (fish oils). But since I needed to buy quite a lot, I chose cheaper ones and after a month or so, I began wondering if I was putting more mercury in my body. So I stopped them. I think I will increase my intake of organic flaxseed oil (which is not too expensive) and take the rest as better quality fish oil supplements.

It can take months or years of replenishing the fats to correct this problem so that all your cells can once again begin to communicate with each other properly.

Oh, I had obviously forgotten that part. Months or years! In the examples he was giving (with the autistic kid), the effects were visible within weeks, so, I was stuck on that time frame. I think I'm gonna take some right now...

Thanks for your input, Laura!

 

[Laura]

Perhaps you will want to transition to a good protein breakfast, like ham or bacon or sausage or hamburger/steak and a couple of buckwheat blinis? I've found that getting plenty of protein and fat in the morning really gets the metabolism going right and stops cravings for the whole day.

I'm ashamed to admit this, but ever since reading this in one of the threads (I remember you mentioning that the girls loved to eat this way since it kept their cravings at bay and they managed to keep the weight off), I've been recommending it to some of my clients, and, of course, I have not tried it yet. I guess it's always the baker's children who have no bread... Thanks for the reminder!

Don't knock it 'til you've tried it. Fresh blinis fried in duck fat or bacon fat, (I fry the bacon and add the bacon fat to the duck fat - gives the blinis a wonderful flavor!) and some nice bacon - maybe a fresh garden tomato with olive oil and balsamic vinegar so that it becomes a bacon/tomato sandwich - or a slice of ham, or a nice, juicy burger, and I'm set for hours. I may not eat again until late afternoon and then that's it for the day.

Sometimes we DO have a nice dinner in the early evening, but usually, it is something light.

In short, I've completely reversed what I was doing for years - most of my life - and, of course, I realize that it was doing what I was doing all those years - skipping or skimping on breakfast or eating some fruit or some grain thing - that got me in the condition I ended up in. So, as they say, if you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten. I decided it was worth trying the complete reversal. And after months and months of it, it sure seems to have turned a lot of other things around for all of us. It even has a very beneficial effect on adrenal fatigue!

The chapter in Sydney MacDonald Baker's book really explains WHY you need so much fat and what happens if you spend years eating the wrong fats - vegetable oils, margarine, low fat stuff - and how all the cells in your body are affected. It can take months or years of replenishing the fats to correct this problem so that all your cells can once again begin to communicate with each other properly.

Yes, that chapter prompted me to take 15 g a day of omega 3 (fish oils). But since I needed to buy quite a lot, I chose cheaper ones and after a month or so, I began wondering if I was putting more mercury in my body. So I stopped them. I think I will increase my intake of organic flaxseed oil (which is not too expensive) and take the rest as better quality fish oil supplements.

Another good source is evening primrose oil. And don't forget the saturated fats! Stop being afraid of fried foods! Just make sure you use a GOOD fat like duck fat or lard!

I swear, I think that the reason that the French come in so well on disease statistics is NOT because they drink wine (there's a lot of liver problems here, but very low heart problems) is BECAUSE of the duck fat! It is used liberally in many dishes, and they sure eat quite a bit of fried foods - fried in duck fat.

It can take months or years of replenishing the fats to correct this problem so that all your cells can once again begin to communicate with each other properly.

Oh, I had obviously forgotten that part. Months or years! In the examples he was giving (with the autistic kid), the effects were visible within weeks, so, I was stuck on that time frame. I think I'm gonna take some right now...

Thanks for your input, Laura!

Yes, you can feel SOME benefits quickly, but remember that a child is young and has not yet had time to have all the cell surfaces in his/her body taken over by what amounts to plastic. They also have better functioning organs and can recover more quickly.

 

[Laura]

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2009/06/06/saturated-fat/

7 Reasons to Eat More Saturated Fat

Mid-Section Fat Loss: Problem Solved?

A couple of generations ago two physicians—one on the East Coast, one on the West—while working long hours with many patients, serendipitously stumbled onto a method to rapidly decrease fat around the mid-section. We’re sure that other doctors figured out the same thing, but these two were locally famous and published their methods. Interestingly, neither was looking to help patients lose weight.

Blake Donaldson, M.D., who practiced in Manhattan, was looking for a treatment for allergies; Walter Voegtlin, M.D., a Seattle gastroenterologist, was trying to figure out a better method for treating his patients with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Dr. Donaldson got his inspiration from a meeting he had with the aforementioned Vilhalmur Stefansson; Dr. Voegtlin came up with the same idea based on his knowledge of comparative anatomy. Though they came at two different questions from very different angles, they arrived at the same dietary answer. Both solved the problems they were seeking to solve and, coincidentally, noticed that their overweight patients lost a tremendous amount of fat from their abdominal areas while undergoing the treatment. As happened later with us and with Dr. Atkins, word of their success in combating obesity spread rapidly, and before long both physicians were deluged with overweight patients seeking treatment, completely changing the character of their medical practices. In retirement, both wrote books about their methods. Donaldson’s was published in 1961; Voegtlin’s in 1972. And as far as we can tell, although their years of practice overlapped, they never knew one another.

What was their secret? What did these two men independently discover? What kind of nutritional regimen did they use to bring about such great results in their patients?

Both had their patients follow an all-meat diet.

Keep in mind that the "all-meat diet" was prescribed for very specific problems and that we know that an all-meat diet over a long period of time is not right for everyone. Notice the conditions that were being treated, and also realize that these guys probably weren't onto the issues about gluten and casein. So, don't take this "all-meat diet" as a complete guideline!

An all-meat diet?

Yes, an all-meat diet. Remember that when these physicians were in practice, there hadn’t been all the negative publicity about saturated fat and red meat that there has been in recent years. At that time, most people considered meat as simply another food, just like potatoes, bread, or anything else. No one worried about eating it. The (misguided) hypothesis that fat in the diet causes heart disease hadn’t reared its ugly head, so telling people at that time to go on an all-meat diet didn’t provoke the same sort of knee-jerk emotions that it does—at least in some quarters—now.

The patients who followed these all-meat diets rapidly lost weight from their midsections and improved their blood sugar and blood pressure problems if they had them. Calculations of cholesterol in all its various permutations was still decades away, but both doctors even used the all-meat diet for their patients with heart disease without problem. The all-meat diet proved to be a safe, filling, rapid way to help patients lose abdominal fat while improving their health. And remember, one of these diets was developed to treat GI problems, the other to treat allergies. The rapid weight loss that followed was a surprising, but welcome side effect.

7 Reasons to Eat More Saturated Fat

In the not-so-distant past, the medical establishment considered all fats equally loathsome: all fats were created equal and they’re all bad for you. Things have changed in that quarter, if only slightly. You have no doubt heard the drumbeat of current medical thinking on fats: some fats are now good for you—olive oil and canola oil*—but others are bad for you—trans fats and all saturated fats. That’s an improvement from the old cry, but far from the truth.

It seems that no matter how the story spins from the denizens of the anti-fat camp, one piece of their advice remains staunchly constant: “You should sharply limit your intake of saturated fats.” The next admonition will invariably be, “which have been proven to raise cholesterol and cause heart disease.” Their over-arching belief is that saturated fat is bad, bad, bad.

You see with just a glance at [our suggested meal plans] that we’ve included fatty cuts of meat, chicken with the skin, bacon, eggs, butter, coconut oil, organic lard, and heavy cream in the plan. Aren’t we worried that these foods will increase your risk of heart disease and raise your cholesterol? In a word, nope. In fact, we encourage you to make these important fats a regular part of your healthy diet. Why? Because humans need them and here are just a few reasons why.

All good except the cream!

1) Improved cardiovascular risk factors

Though you may not have heard of it on the front pages of your local newspaper, online news source, or local television or radio news program, saturated fat plays a couple of key roles in cardiovascular health. The addition of saturated fat to the diet reduces the levels of a substance called lipoprotein (a)—pronounced “lipoprotein little a” and abbreviated Lp(a)—that correlates strongly with risk for heart disease. Currently there are no medications to lower this substance and the only dietary means of lowering Lp(a) is eating saturated fat. Bet you didn’t hear that on the nightly news. Moreover, eating saturated (and other) fats also raises the level of HDL, the so-called good cholesterol. Lastly, research has shown that when women diet, those eating the greatest percentage of the total fat in their diets as saturated fat lose the most weight.

2) Stronger bones

In middle age, as bone mass begins to decline, an important goal (particularly for women) is to build strong bones. You can’t turn on the television without being told you need calcium for your bones, but do you recall ever hearing that saturated fat is required for calcium to be effectively incorporated into bone? According to one of the foremost research experts in dietary fats and human health, Mary Enig, Ph.D., there’s a case to be made for having as much as 50 percent of the fats in your diet as saturated fats for this reason. That’s a far cry from the 7 to 10 percent suggested by mainstream institutions. If her reasoning is sound—and we believe it is— is it any wonder that the vast majority of women told to avoid saturated fat and to selectively use vegetable oils instead would begin to lose bone mass, develop osteoporosis, and get put on expensive prescription medications plus calcium to try to recover the loss in middle age?

3) Improved liver health

Adding saturated fat to the diet has been shown in medical research to encourage the liver cells to dump their fat content. Clearing fat from the liver is the critical first step to calling a halt to middle-body fat storage. Additionally, saturated fat has been shown to protect the liver from the toxic insults of alcohol and medications, including acetaminophen and other drugs commonly used for pain and arthritis, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs, and even to reverse the damage once it has occurred. Since the liver is the lynchpin of a healthy metabolism, anything that is good for the liver is good for getting rid of fat in the middle. Polyunsaturated vegetable fats do not offer this protection.

And the liver is the main organ of detox, so getting and keeping your liver up and running is a HUGE part of detoxing from about everything that is toxic!

4) Healthy lungs

For proper function, the airspaces of the lungs have to be coated with a thin layer of what’s called lung surfactant. The fat content of lung surfactant is 100 percent saturated fatty acids. Replacement of these critical fats by other types of fat makes faulty surfactant and potentially causes breathing difficulties. Absence of the correct amount and composition of this material leads to collapse of the airspaces and respiratory distress. It’s what’s missing in the lungs of premature infants who develop the breathing disorder called infant respiratory distress syndrome. Some researchers feel that the wholesale substitution of partially hydrogenated (trans) fats for naturally saturated fats in commercially prepared foods may be playing a role in the rise of asthma among children. Fortunately, the heyday of trans fats is ending and their use is on the decline. Unfortunately, however, the unreasoning fear of saturated fat leads many people to replace trans fats with an overabundance of polyunsaturated vegetable oils, which may prove just as unhealthful.

5) Healthy brain

You will likely be astounded to learn that your brain is mainly made of fat and cholesterol. Though many people are now familiar with the importance of the highly unsaturated essential fatty acids found in cold-water fish (EPA and DHA) for normal brain and nerve function, the lion’s share of the fatty acids in the brain are actually saturated. A diet that skimps on healthy saturated fats robs your brain of the raw materials it needs to function optimally.

6) Proper nerve signaling

Certain saturated fats, particularly those found in butter, lard, coconut oil, and palm oil, function directly as signaling messengers that influence the metabolism, including such critical jobs as the appropriate release of insulin. And just any old fat won’t do. Without the correct signals to tell the organs and glands what to do, the job doesn’t get done or gets done improperly.

7) Strong immune system

Saturated fats found in butter and coconut oil (myristic acid and lauric acid) play key roles in immune health. Loss of sufficient saturated fatty acids in the white blood cells hampers their ability to recognize and destroy foreign invaders, such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi. Human breast milk is quite rich in myristic and lauric acid, which have potent germ-killing ability. But the importance of the fats lives on beyond infancy; we need dietary replenishment of them throughout adulthood, middle age, and into seniority to keep the immune system vigilant against the development of cancerous cells as well as infectious invaders.

—

Footnotes:

*We advocate the use of olive oil, but recommend against the use of canola oil, despite its widely perceived healthful reputation. In order to be fit for human consumption, rapeseed oil (which is canola oil) requires significant processing to remove its objectionable taste and smell. Processing damages the oil, creating trans fats. Also, the oil is sensitive to heat, so if used at all, it should never be used to fry foods.

 

[Gertrudes]

About you not needing painkillers for your periods: FWIW, the meridian governing the menstruations is the Stomach meridian (I know, it seems bizarre), so anything making digestion easier, i.e. making the job of the Stomach meridian easier, will have a positive impact on how you feel during your menstruations. I was just telling Tigersoap today how I should say that here on the forum to maybe help the ladies and motivate those who have not started the detox yet. That's so great for you!

That's very interesting, thank you Mrs Tigersoap! I had noticed before then whenever being more careful with my diet during the week before my period, I would get less pain, but it would still be very painful. Nevertheless, I never got to the point of no pain as I got to this last time, it was pure bliss!

And I completely agree, I do think that having the extra information you've given can be a great motivator for ladies who suffer from a difficult menstruation.

Just make sure you use a GOOD fat like duck fat or lard!

I'm a little bit concerned because I suspect that I am allergic to hard fats. Before entering the USD, I noticed that my skin would immediately react with acne to lard, palm oil, coconut oil, and I'm still unsure about Ghee. I have not yet found duck fat around here. I've also done an hair analysis test for food allergies that showed me as allergic to hard fats.
I will test them again further along the diet, but so far the only thing that I can think of and that I have been doing lately, is to use water for cooking and pour generous quantities of olive oil (that I seem to tolerate well) afterwords :(

If the physical symptoms are masked while consuming an unhealthy diet, what exactly is the advantage of going on the Ultra-Simple-Diet?

wetroof, I think that others have addressed your very question well.
I would also like to add a thought, there is a saying that goes something like this: you only know that someone is stepping on your foot when that person steps out. In other words, you will only notice pain, when you are given the opportunity to experience a different state.
I believe that to be true with the food we eat and our perception of health. Often we think of ourselves as healthy, considering some ailments as minor normal disruptions, when in fact, we are in pain.

As I see it, we are so disconnected from our bodies that we loose perception of what is going on. We live in a toxic state, and we assume it as normal. True, changing it demands perseverance, work, and discipline, qualities that are also lacking in nowadays world, so it is not surprising that most of the time we just reach for fast solutions such as taking pharmaceutical drugs, to disguise our symptoms. This leads to a lifetime of stockpiling toxicity.

So maybe my body doesn't mask all the symptoms. Still I think what I wrote above is valid. If people feel perfectly healthy which I kind-of do, what motivation can we garner in adopting the Ultra-Simple Diet. This seems like it would be quite a common "problem" for many people. Also once someone goes on the simple diet--they can never go off it (stellar posts about this). not to mention the fact that the transitory stage can be hell.

Well, what personally motivated me was reading so much evidence that stimulated my curiosity towards the thought, can I feel better?
The transitory stage is really just that, transitory :) I think it is a much worth transition towards a greater of well being.

Edit: added sentence

 

[Laura]

Geertrudes, read Sydney Baker's book, and pay special attention to the section on fats. I don't think that you can be "allergic" to fats, but since your skin is an organ and often gets used for excretion when you are toxic, adding good fats to your diet might trigger this action.

 

[Gimpy]

Geertrudes, read Sydney Baker's book, and pay special attention to the section on fats. I don't think that you can be "allergic" to fats, but since your skin is an organ and often gets used for excretion when you are toxic, adding good fats to your diet might trigger this action.

Do you still have your gall bladder Gertrudes? I had to have mine out, and too much sat fat can trigger what I call a "bile dump". It can be painful, but after it runs its course, any skin problems clear up. Like Laura mentions, eating the sat fats can aide in detox, but you may need to take extra digestive enzymes, L-glutamine, and even DGL to help your body process them.

In the past week it seems physically my machine turned a corner, and my moods have been really good. Hubby just stares at me sometimes and says "Are you my wife or did someone replace you with a happy pod person?" Its the diet that has made this big a difference. It may be tough at first, but I can't argue with the results.

Just be gentle with yourself. :)

 

[Mrs.Tigersoap]

And don't forget the saturated fats! Stop being afraid of fried foods! Just make sure you use a GOOD fat like duck fat or lard!

I agree, and we have taken steps in that direction already (before the USD we were using coconut oil to cook), but finding organic saturated fats in not easy here. We had bought some lard (blanc de boeuf or ossewit here in Belgium) but since it was not organic, I was concerned about the toxins stored in it. So most of it is still in my fridge. It has proven difficult to find organic lard (it is not sold in health food stores and there are only a handful organic butchers, apparently all of them out of Brussels). And we haven't found organic bacon or ham that has no nitrates in it yet. The only thing I might be able to find is duck fat from a local producer. It's a real detective job to find something OK, but then again, it's always harder to find when it's actually for you!

 

[Gertrudes]

Geertrudes, read Sydney Baker's book, and pay special attention to the section on fats. I don't think that you can be "allergic" to fats, but since your skin is an organ and often gets used for excretion when you are toxic, adding good fats to your diet might trigger this action.

Thank you Laura, that makes sense. I have read the book but it was so much information to take in that I definitely need to o back to that chapter and read it again for some more clarity. I will do that within the next days.

Do you still have your gall bladder Gertrudes? I had to have mine out, and too much sat fat can trigger what I call a "bile dump". It can be painful, but after it runs its course, any skin problems clear up. Like Laura mentions, eating the sat fats can aide in detox, but you may need to take extra digestive enzymes, L-glutamine, and even DGL to help your body process them.

Yes, I still have my gall bladder. I am also taking a digestive enzyme complex from Now Foods. But you are both right, maybe I do need to wait to see if with continuous consumption my skin problems will disappear. I think that after a few weeks on the diet, and having detoxed some more, my body will tell me more clearly what really is going on when I test those fats again.

I've had a sensitive skin to certain foods since I can remember, my skin reacts badly to nuts, olives (not olive oil) and chocolate. These would become progressively worse the more I ate them. Only when I started to pay more attention to my diet and trying out different things did I notice my apparent sensitivity to many fats. I never wanted to push it with fats because of my previous experience with the other foods.

In the past week it seems physically my machine turned a corner, and my moods have been really good. Hubby just stares at me sometimes and says "Are you my wife or did someone replace you with a happy pod person?" Its the diet that has made this big a difference. It may be tough at first, but I can't argue with the results.

Glad to hear that Gimpy!

but finding organic saturated fats in not easy here.

Same here. The last fat I used for cooking was coconut oil from a bottle in which the label is written in a language that I have no idea where it comes from. But it was the only coconut oil I could find. I think that finding good fat from a local producer is a good idea, I will try that as well Mrs. Tigersoap.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I'm really glad it's not that annoying time of the month for me right now because my sweet cravings are worst then.

You are lucky indeed! I'm on day 5 today of the USD and yesterday was the first day of 'that time of the month'... Oh boy, that was not pleasant at all. Really bad sugar cravings, really painful (a little progesterone cream rubbed on my lower belly did help), really bad and dark mood... It was a real test of willpower! :P

Hi Mrs. Tigersoap,
The day after I wrote this I woke up and for the first time since I can remember I did not crave something sweet. I thought maybe it was a fluke, but as the day progressed I noticed the craving was still gone. Now it is days later and I just got my period :P, but still do not have sweet cravings! This is absolutely amazing, because I have never been able to avoid the urge to eat something sweet during this time, yet here I am happy without sweets! I even took that candy out of my purse, because I seem to have kicked the habit! :D Now I'm scared if I have one I'll mess up my progress, because I know how addicting refined sugar can be.

I'm also at 'that time of the month', and have something to report. For the very FIRST TIME in many years, I didn't have to take painkillers to fight the pain. I can hardly believe it!!! For years I have taken extremely strong painkillers (those with endless contra indications) because the pain was so strong that I just couldn't stand it. Once I even called an ambulance, something I've posted previously at the swamp. The fact that I have to take these pills every single month has been bothering me for a long time.

Hi Gertrudes,
That is nothing short of spectacular and I am so happy for you! I have also noticed that I have less pain during my period when I have eaten better prior to it. I've especially noticed that minimizing my refined sugar intake has seemed to help prevent some of the pain. However, I just started today and have what I consider a normal level of pain. This is much better than the feeling of being run over by a semi-truck that I have experienced in the past though, when 1200mg of Ibuprofen doesn't even dull it. :( Also, I noticed that I did not exhibit the usual PMS symptoms yesterday. I didn't even know I was "PMSing" and that was wonderful! :D

Maybe you guys could try the Magnesium Oil/spray? (Or one of the other products listed there)

_http://bioreform.be/products.php?brand=Ozmag&orderby=p.name

That's the one I use.

I gave up gluten over a year ago now (and I also had cramps at the time it seems, the magnesium oil cured that....or a larger dose of oral magnesium....you could be depleted in other trace minerals too)

Hi Oxajil and RedFox,
I have never heard of using this, but it seems to have helped you both so I will gladly look into it! Thank you both for mentioning it here, because I am always looking for better alternatives to pain killers. I am curious to know how much you use, when you use it and where you put the oil, but I can do this research on the internet. Thank you Oxajil for the link!

Check this article out titled "The Celiac Iceberg". The references are listed at the bottom of the article. :)

Hi Vulcan59,
Thank you for posting this link to information on Celiac Disease. I am looking forward to a gluten-free diet. I made buckwheat pancakes for the first time yesterday and could you guess what I put on them? I put olive oil and *salt*. :P Who puts salt on their pancakes?? They weren't bad, but I need to find some better recipes, lol. Which reminds me, I am looking for good USD recipes. Maybe there is a good post on this forum. I still need to look. :)

Are you taking the 5-htp with lunch and dinner? GABA? (depending on your profile).

Hi Laura,
What do you mean by "depending on your profile?"

Just an update: I am in day nine of the USD and I noticed yesterday morning after an hour of yoga that I felt AMAZING and the feeling lasted throughout the day. I have had more endurance, my mind seems clearer and my mood has been great! Today I woke up and got my period, yet I still feel amazing! Now who would have thought that would have been the case? :D All this makes me laugh because I honestly thought I would be starving and desperate to return to all the foods I have been avoiding, but I am feeling just the opposite! I still have that Yogi tea sitting in my cabinet, but I am no longer fiending for it. Like I mentioned earlier, I am actually afraid of having a cup now, because I don't want the sweet cravings to return. I do plan to reintroduce stevia, but perhaps not for another week or so.

On another note, I have this stubborn dyshidrotic eczema on my hands still. In the past week it seems to have moved more to the pads of my fingers and away from my knuckles. I am happy that the backs of my hands are getting softer, especially my left hand, but not happy about the cracking on my fingertips. I know it takes a while for eczema that has been caused by food allergies to go away so I will be patient. I hope it is food-related and cutting dairy out has really seemed to help clear it. Maybe a gluten-free diet can help too.

Time for more research while my broth finishes boiling. Cheers to the USD and thanks again for all the helpful input, everyone! ;D

 

[Oxajil]

Hi Oxajil and RedFox,
I have never heard of using this, but it seems to have helped you both so I will gladly look into it! Thank you both for mentioning it here, because I am always looking for better alternatives to pain killers. I am curious to know how much you use, when you use it and where you put the oil, but I can do this research on the internet. Thank you Oxajil for the link!

Hi Scarlet,

You might wanna search for magnesium oil from USA websites, since that one is from Belgium and that might cost ya.

Best is to use it everyday, and for the oil, you can pretty much put it everywhere on your body. In the book "The Magnesium Miracle" it is recommended to spray 5/6 times on each leg, arm, your front and your back. And that you need to leave it for 30 min. "After about thirty minutes, most of the magnesium has already been absorbed, so if the oil feels a bit itchy when it dries, you can wash it off in a quick shower, or just simply wash the itchy areas with a washcloth." But perhaps it's cheaper to purchase magnesium in a powder form.

Best to check this thread out and see which magnesium form is recommended: http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=2354.0

 

[Gertrudes]

On another note, I have this stubborn dyshidrotic eczema on my hands still. In the past week it seems to have moved more to the pads of my fingers and away from my knuckles. I am happy that the backs of my hands are getting softer, especially my left hand, but not happy about the cracking on my fingertips. I know it takes a while for eczema that has been caused by food allergies to go away so I will be patient. I hope it is food-related and cutting dairy out has really seemed to help clear it. Maybe a gluten-free diet can help too.

Hi Scarlet,

One other possibility for the cause of your eczema could be a toxic gut and problems with candida. Have you had the opportunity to check out this thread: http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=9796.0 ?

If not, I think it would be really worth it. Also, since you have already started on the USD, the Candida diet would be an excellent follow up to help heal the gut.

About the cracking on the fingertips, I don't know if they are eczema related, I never had eczema so I am really not sure of the symptoms. However, cracking hands and/or scaly skin is often associated with a deficiency in fatty acids. For those, you can supplement with some good mercury free fish oil. But as I said, I'm not sure of whether that could be the problem.
In any case it is always good to supplement with fatty acids, that is if your budget allows for one more supplement. :)

Also, I noticed that I did not exhibit the usual PMS symptoms yesterday. I didn't even know I was "PMSing" and that was wonderful! Grin

The effects of this diet never cease to amaze me! I'm very glad for you too!