Hi AS kickers,

I've had these questions in my head for a few weeks now and would like your thoughts and comments:

1. I've been listening to a lot of podcasts on autoimmune diseases and they do say the underlying cause is a leaky gut, which can be corrected by diet. But so far there hasn't been any mention of a blanket approach like avoiding ALL starch. Mostly, they say to check for food intolerances and avoid dairy, gluten, eggs, and nuts. Are all starch really bad for AS? Are there people who can tolerate certain healthy starches or for whom the SCD is a better approach?

2. I've read here that watermelon is one of the safest fruits, but I have proven from experimentation that it causes me excruciating pain. Pineapple and papaya don't work for me as well, but they're not as bad as watermelon. I wonder why this is? Anyone here with the same experience? I think maybe it is more about food intolerance than just starch.

3. Eating lots of protein used to keep me full until the next meal but lately, I've been feeling constant hunger. I'd be hungry just two hours after stuffing myself to near bursting. Does this mean my body is somehow starved of nutrients so it's looking for more nourishment or does it mean that I'm sort of a protein type so I digest protein and fats really efficiently and this is really the way I'm supposed to be eating?

4. I am 5'1" and now 92 lbs, previously 103. I eat A LOT. If I continue on this restrictive diet and continue to lose weight I will become a toothpick. People tell me I look unhealthy at this weight and I agree. Again, I want to know if this is a signal from my body that I ought to be eating differently? Or is this my natural weight (my mom looks anorexic and she's a normal eater

5. My dad read in the papers about stem cell therapy for rheumatoid arthritis and wants me to check on the net if it also works for AS, since they are both autoimmune. I have found some articles, but nothing comprehensive or conclusive. Anyone know anything about this?

Please share your thoughts. Thank you.

Hello Kristi,

Will try and answer some of your questions.

1. I've been listening to a lot of podcasts on autoimmune diseases and they do say the underlying cause is a leaky gut, which can be corrected by diet. But so far there hasn't been any mention of a blanket approach like avoiding ALL starch. Mostly, they say to check for food intolerances and avoid dairy, gluten, eggs, and nuts. Are all starch really bad for AS? Are there people who can tolerate certain healthy starches or for whom the SCD is a better approach?

I believe leaky gut is part of the problem and can be improved... but for all the work I have put into leaky gut I have marginal results. From my personal experience, bacteria health/balance in GI seems more important. So I try to use probiotics or eat food with probiotics to help the balance. I also limit sugar somewhat, as in excess can also lead to problems.

2. I've read here that watermelon is one of the safest fruits, but I have proven from experimentation that it causes me excruciating pain. Pineapple and papaya don't work for me as well, but they're not as bad as watermelon. I wonder why this is? Anyone here with the same experience? I think maybe it is more about food intolerance than just starch.

I have not had issues with watermelon or pineapple. Never tried papaya. If sugar is causing me a problem (candidas) then fruit like pineapple and watermelon would also cause me a problem. But your issue seems specific to these fruits.

3. Eating lots of protein used to keep me full until the next meal but lately, I've been feeling constant hunger. I'd be hungry just two hours after stuffing myself to near bursting. Does this mean my body is somehow starved of nutrients so it's looking for more nourishment or does it mean that I'm sort of a protein type so I digest protein and fats really efficiently and this is really the way I'm supposed to be eating?

I am pretty lean as well... I eat walnuts as snack to help and I have found saurkraut also seems to help (natural). I think some of us have absorption issues and therefore eat large meal and few hours later are hungry again. I also found the 3 days of apples to help out, as i believe the pectin in the apples helps to clean up the GI.

4. I am 5'1" and now 92 lbs, previously 103. I eat A LOT. If I continue on this restrictive diet and continue to lose weight I will become a toothpick. People tell me I look unhealthy at this weight and I agree. Again, I want to know if this is a signal from my body that I ought to be eating differently? Or is this my natural weight (my mom looks anorexic and she's a normal eater

See above comment

5. My dad read in the papers about stem cell therapy for rheumatoid arthritis and wants me to check on the net if it also works for AS, since they are both autoimmune. I have found some articles, but nothing comprehensive or conclusive. Anyone know anything about this?

Cannot help here, do not know anything on topic.

Take care,

Tim

If you are avoiding dairy, eggs, and nuts, along with all starch, then I can see why you have a problem maintaining your weight. For me, I lost a lot of weight when I excluded dairy due to gut problems (turned out to be SSZ causing the problems). I now eat dairy, eggs, and almonds while staying on NSD. I'm feeling better than I have in a long time.

--Greg

Hi AS kickers,

I've had these questions in my head for a few weeks now and would like your thoughts and comments:

1. I've been listening to a lot of podcasts on autoimmune diseases and they do say the underlying cause is a leaky gut, which can be corrected by diet. But so far there hasn't been any mention of a blanket approach like avoiding ALL starch. Mostly, they say to check for food intolerances and avoid dairy, gluten, eggs, and nuts. Are all starch really bad for AS? Are there people who can tolerate certain healthy starches or for whom the SCD is a better approach?

i've been trying to hit this from a few different sides, leaky gut being one of them, as i clearly have GI inflammation (gastritis and inflammation / crohn's-like ulcers in my ileum.

doctors have put me on probiotics, one (lactoflamX) especially shown to work well for inflamed bowel. the logic behind this was partly due to stool sample testing and noticing i had no lactobacilli despite eating yogurt on a daily basis, the good stoneyfield brand. i'm also on bifidobacterium one as well, as my gastroenterologist says this seems to be the most important bacterium in our gut.

i also had food sensitivity testing done by the naturpath. with that it was found that i'm severely sensitive to casein and a little bit to eggs. so i limit the eggs and am off cow's milk. i wonder if i can get away with goat and/or sheep dairy products? i need to have further testing done for that. it is common that we are allergic to western cow casein, not everyone, but from what i've read, its as common a problem as celiac. and for me, that could be a big part of the puzzle. i really like almond milk in my tea. i'll miss custards, but will get over it. i'd rather be healthy. and not eating baked goods (LSD), its pretty easy to avoid the dairy and eggs that would be in things like that.

my suggestion, get your own food testing done to find out what in particular you are sensitive to. then avoid those foods.

i'll let others address the NSD vs LSD. i'm on LSD as it does wonders for the insulin resistance problem i have. though for me, i think the casein was the real smoking gun when it came to food.

2. I've read here that watermelon is one of the safest fruits, but I have proven from experimentation that it causes me excruciating pain. Pineapple and papaya don't work for me as well, but they're not as bad as watermelon. I wonder why this is? Anyone here with the same experience? I think maybe it is more about food intolerance than just starch.

keeping a food / symptom diary can also be really helpful. told me within a few months what was flaring my gastritis back when this all first started in 1993. for me, my excruciating pain was the inflammation in my stomach. caffeine, dairy, underripe fruit, and anything too acidic were the culprits. yours will most likely be different, but the food / symptom diary is good generic advice that could help anyone.

3. Eating lots of protein used to keep me full until the next meal but lately, I've been feeling constant hunger. I'd be hungry just two hours after stuffing myself to near bursting. Does this mean my body is somehow starved of nutrients so it's looking for more nourishment or does it mean that I'm sort of a protein type so I digest protein and fats really efficiently and this is really the way I'm supposed to be eating?

a combo of protein and fat (and veggie fiber) keep me the fullest.

fatty fishes, olive oil are nicely caloric.

dark chocolate if you can eat it (some here on NSD have found some chocolates that are safe for their diet) is, trust me, very caloric. when i need to lose weight, i must cut out all chocolate if i hope to drop even a few pounds.

if you find you can eat nuts and seeds, that's another great source of good fats.


4. I am 5'1" and now 92 lbs, previously 103. I eat A LOT. If I continue on this restrictive diet and continue to lose weight I will become a toothpick. People tell me I look unhealthy at this weight and I agree. Again, I want to know if this is a signal from my body that I ought to be eating differently? Or is this my natural weight (my mom looks anorexic and she's a normal eater

i'm 5'1.5" tall, small bones, and was 92 lbs through high school. was between 100-105 in my 20s. both weights i think were perfectly healthy. there is lots of research now that shows that being under weight and always a little bit hungry (first studies were with animals, then with humans) helps both with longevity and health into older age. lots of science behind it, lots of discussion as to what is happening on the molecular / metabolic level. don't remember the details now. but its all out there. so if you are eating a highly nutritious diet (lots of healthy foods, nutrition packed) then i wouldn't worry about the weight so much. gauge it more by how you feel. i know everyone, doctors included thought i looked "healthier" when i put some weight on. truth is, i was healthiest back then. now that the insulin resistance has become a bigger problem, its next to impossible to get the weight off, but i keep working at it.

5. My dad read in the papers about stem cell therapy for rheumatoid arthritis and wants me to check on the net if it also works for AS, since they are both autoimmune. I have found some articles, but nothing comprehensive or conclusive. Anyone know anything about this?

i've seen some of those papers too, but haven't thought about it much, so no true opinions to date.


Please share your thoughts. Thank you.

additionally, we're trying to affect the immune system, with things like fish oil, vitamin C, low dose naltrexone. those things seem to be helpful as well.

Hi, sorry I'm just dropping in really quick so don't have time to answer all your questions but I just wanted to mention that here in New Zealand watermelon tests very starchy with iodine and my husband reacts to it. The iodine turns black like as if I were testing wheat flour. So that is probably the problem.

The starch content of foods seems to vary depending on where you are in the world and with the seasons. If you aren't already then I'd suggest testing with iodine. You may actually be eating more starch then you realise and that could be the source of your problem.

everyone reacts differently to different foods. yes, most probably a leaky gut - and i know i have one since i also have IBD - will cause troubles for foods others can digest properly (inflammation can be triggered by bad digested proteins that pass into our blood).
maybe some food intolerance/alergy test will help you.
also a food journal in wich a correlation between diet and health can be drawn helped me a lot.
regarding the starch problem - i do avoid it, but i do not test everything with iodine. so i am not 100% no starch. maybe 96% since some root veggies or nuts i eat contain amall traces of starch. i have my list of foods which agree with me and i stick to it. it took 2 years to get there...




i can eat pineapple - but if i eat it too much and too often it will put me into a small flare though.
watermelon - lots of sugar (sucrose). sugar is pro-inflammatory per se. there is also the chance that your small intestine will not digest it all. then sugar will pass into your colon, and cause some trobles. i eat watermelon, but with moderation, same as with pineapple.
the point is: if you know some food will trigger pain then avoid it, starchy or not. there will be some time when you will be able to put it back on your table. i eat lots more than 2 years ago and my list continues to grow.


1. do not stuff your self. eat smaller meals and more frequently. your stomach cannot properly digest huge meals.
2. it will take some time for you body to adjust and switch from carbs as an energy source to fats. for me it took about 2 to 6 months not to feel hungry anymore.

i've lost about 30 kg's in 1 year. at some point i hit a plateau state then started gaining some back. now i am as in my 20's. Lean and i like it. from 105 kg to 75 and now around 80-82 since last year. i am 1.82 m tall.

Hi Kristen,
I think your questions were great. I read a book called "Eat TO Live" and the dr that wrote it helped many people get off of metheltrexate and their arthrtis drugs by avoiding foods that made their arthritis worse.
Some folks around here can't eat too much fruit, as it aggrevates there arthritis and that could be the reason you can't have watermelon and pineapple.
I'm the skinnest I've ever been too, my doctors tell me I'm so thin, but I am actullay not underweight when I check the bmi index. I'm not sure about your body craving more food, I've wondered that too, maybe you need more carbs---just an idea, I feel bad without carbs. I do not know anything about stem cell research. I did try Serracor NK lately, an enzyme that removes excess fibrin in the body and I did feel better, but the bottle costs $75 and I don't have that kind of money, but I just wanted to pass the info along , becasue it did help me for the 4 weeks I took them.
Hope you feel better and that you don't feel hungry.Take care and let us know if you figure something out about your diet.
Take care!

After a particularly damaging starch binge, I found that foods I used to tolerate well like eggs, nuts, and all non-starchy fruits seem to cause me pain now. So I have changed my approach from no-starch to experiment-with-absolutely-everything. I am back to square one.

One thing I am really happy about is that I can eat mangoes!

Yeah I really shouldn't stress too much about my weight. I agree that most people seem to judge health by weight. Doctors here also tell me I looked healthier a year ago, but I was actually worse back then. I do have arm muscle pain now that I didn't have before, and it's so severe that my left arm is practically useless (the muscles have started shrinking).

my rheumy has me on CoQ and Magnesium for my muscles. i think one or both have been helpful in this respect.