hello

Today I start my fast. I certainly will try.

My problem lately is the inflammation in the gut. Anything I eat bothers me, I have a theory that my immune system has a number of gunmen, and when they are not working at my joints, they work in my gut.

I've learned a trick, if I want the inflammation in my gut to stop bothering me for some hours, I drink milk + sugar, this will give me a flare and my joints will hurt, but I can forget about my gut for a while!

So, this is as good time as any, as I've been waiting for some window of opportunity where I will not have much to do in the next days and it never comes.

I will try to make it to 1 day first, to see how it goes.

I, like many of you have mentioned, have the problem of being hungry after even minutes of having eaten. This was a problem even before I started the NSD so it's not necessarily related to not getting enough carbs.

Oh, I totally know all about living with inflammation in the guts, and of course pain in the joints.

I also LOVE juice fasting, and it's so easy too. I think I would have a harder time with only drinking water, because the homemade green juice is so invigorating, and it totally gives you a satisfied feeling. I saw major benefits when I did a 14 day juice fast. And then last week I wasn't feeling so great one day, so I did a 24 hour juice fast and felt pretty awesome afterward.

I am really stoked about this curcumin (tumeric extract) I started taking, at the advice of another AS'er. It is totally knocking out all my inflammation in my gut, and I don't have any noticable pain in my joints when I take it. I have also been eating NSD for going on 8 months, but the curumin has made a huge, huge difference. I am currently taking it a few times per day, and it works so much better than the harmful NSAIDS I used to rely on.


Best of Luck!!
Andrea

Day 1, 7:30pm update

Well, I don't feel as much inflammation in the guts anymore, no pain whatsoever in my joints, maybe just a little in the left ankle, but I think my joint pain was already semi-controlled.

I haven't had a headache either, but I do feel a bit lightheaded.

To achieve the full day I will have to go to bed without eating since I had something to eat at about 2am.

betty,

what juices did you drink? I mean what ingredients??

milk & sugar? that will sent my guts down my toilet asap...

read my response to kristiengo thread for the hungry stuff.

Alinus,

What fats do you eat?

My being hungry all the time is recurring, but I can remember having it for years now. I had some depression problems in the past, and yesterday as I went through my 1-day fast, I experienced some different moods swings in very little time: going from grim outlooks to not so bad, and every time the swings was when something advanced in the gut..

I sort of realized that when food is in my small intestines I've been having inflammation in the neck, guts, chest; and when it moves further, perhaps to the doudendum or colon, I have pain in my SAC joints and arms/legs joints.

Also, I'm 1.80 and about 82 kgs. I'm still a couple of kgs above my ideal weight according to the tables, but still I feel I could do some weight lifting, I feel too thin.

My 1-day diet didn't end with all my gut problems. I felt better at the beginning, but as the night advanced, I started feeling like I have something that is not advancing completely.

I haven't eat nothing yet but I want to stop it later , and try a 2 or 3 day-fast in a week or so.

I feel the inflammation more in the colon now, but being able to breathe easily it's been nice.

My favorite feel good juice on a juice fast (and currently most mornings) is:

1 large green apple
1 inch ginger root
1 lemon
1/2 bunch fresh parsley
few stalks celery
wheatgrass (if available)

And to make it a pain/inflammation zapping tonic, add 1 tsp+ tumeric powder.


I also like making juice combos like:
carrot + ginger + lemon
apples + greens (lettuces, kale) + mint + cucumber
pear + cucumber + lime + basil

I have dealt with inflammation in my gut, back & bones for years, and I can't convey strongly enough how much I have found fresh green juice for a short fast & tumeric can totally wipe it all out! THANK goodness for that!!

-Andrea

Is ginger root safe? I know it's good for inflammation,but I tested a piece of ginger root with iodine and it turned black as coal.

That is a great question, and I stayed away from ginger & spices for my first few months on NSD, and tested EVERYTHING with iodine. But now, a few months later, I no longer hold back at all with most herbs & spices.

Also, when "juicing" the ginger root, what you end up with is mostly plant water, and I personally don't think it hinders the NSDiet. I believe the anti-inflammatory properties far out weigh the trace amount of starch in ginger juice.

I also include a chunk of ginger root in my mango smoothies now too, and don't notice any ill effects from the whole root either. I also eat almost ALL fruits & veggies (except NO bananas, oranges, potatoes, or tomatoes) regardless of how starchy they are, and I have yet to have any of my old horrible pains pre LSD/NSD return!

I LOVE Ginger & Tumeric!!

-Andrea

Not all of us are equally sensitive to starch, so I think the balance between starch vs anti-inflammatory properties in things like ginger and turmeric can tip either way. Try testing it on yourself when you're at a fairly stable point so you can tell whether it is making you worse or not.

If it turns out you're currently too sensitive to starch, hopefully that will change over time; if your gut condition improves, some things that used to problematic can stop bothering you. Hasn't happened to me yet, but people who have been on NSD for several years often report being less sensitive.