When I started the diet the biggest improvement I saw was in my SI and back. Groin pain would go away and would also be the first to hurt when I flared.

A few months into it I am no longer sure if I can say I really AM improving because even though overall pain has gone down, I have new symptoms like an inflamed shoulder and knee, and sed rate continues to be in the 120s, whether I am flaring or not. I don't understand.

Do you know anything about this?

My sed rate went down finally after 6 months of nsd. I had 2 infusions of remicade during that time, which may have helped but 2 infusions usually last a few weeks and so I think it is just like I have read it can take months to a year to see labs turn around, espaecail;y when you have it as bad as you do.

How long have you been on metheltrexate? How long did it take to work?

My labs were crummy when I tried antibiotics for my RA they shot up 100's too, my crp and my sedrate was somewhere around the 60's . I felt like my whole body was on fire. I am really sensitive to soo many foods, like dairy, nightshades, beef and any grain.

If you are in a ton of pain maybe a short course of prednisone might help? I never recommend it because it has taken me so long to get off of it and I hate all the side effects. I think it can make you feel anxious and jittery. But for a few days , not a problem.
Hope the best for you and you can figure this out.

Hi Kristine,
You are still starting out, and it is a tricky diet so expect ups and downs. Let us know everything you are eating and we will happily give you feedback. I used to get pain in my hands, knees and feet too.

There is no need to avoid "nightshades" (tomato/eggplant), or almonds / hazelnuts unless you have a specific allergy to them.

z

>> sensitive to soo many foods, like dairy, nightshades, beef and any grain

Hi Valsmum,
Do you react to both tomato and eggplant ?
I think most of us can eat these OK though. Much like some can eat onions / garlic and some cannot. There are always things unique to our bodies we have to sort out (eg. macadamias in my case :'( )

Yes, beef & lamb is an issue for me too. It doesn't cause AS inflammation per se, but some other weird gut inflammation in my case. I don't know precisely what it is, but it is uncomfortable and seems to damage my ability to absorb nutrients properly. Apparently iron can cause an explosions of microbes in the gut (particularly yeast I think it was). I have heard this from two or three sources, one of which was an episode of "House". Very authoritative, no? hehe

I started methotrexate about 5 years ago, right when I was experiencing my first symptoms of arthritis. It worked wonderfully at the time. I went into remission for about a year and a half. Now I don't know if it's doing anything. I would really like to get off it soon before it has a chance to damage my liver. My current dosage is 12.5mg a week. Also taking prednisone short-term just to help with the flare-up, 7.5mg a day. But I don't know if that's helping either.

I eat wild-caught fish almost every day, beef and chicken occasionally, lots of leafy greens, bitter melon, some eggs, and mangoes and coconut. I react to other tropical fruits like papaya and pineapple.

I am thinking of taking the MRT Food Sensitivity Test, except I don't know if it's available outside the US. Will have to research.

Hey Kristin,

How long ago did you start the diet?

I am on month 8, and I honestly feel really awesome now, virtually no pain. I still have damage in my back & fusion in my SI joints, but overall, I feel great. I can live with being a bit stiff and having my own unique stride when walking. But it took like 5 months on this diet before I really started making progress. I did see results in the good fisrt week, but it took another few months before real progress was made.

I also did a 2 week green juice fast, somewhere around month 5 or 6 and that was the first time in years I was pain free! Totally wiped out all of my inflammation, and seemed to reset my gut & body.

Anyhow, I would just keep giving it more time. I was flaring like crazy with hellacious shoulder & back pain even during the first few months on the diet.

We actually eat a lot of the same foods. I am drinking a mango/coconut smoothie right now and I LOVE leafy greens. I would suggest giving up the beef/chicken & eggs for a week, and seeing if you feel any different. I have seen a lot of people mention beef causes them inflammation, and I only eat it very once in a while, because I have noticed that sometimes it does the same to me. Also, eggs are a common food to cause allergies in people too. Just my two cents, which might not be worth anything!

Best of Luck & Health!
-Andrea

Mango : A fair few people react to stone fruits on this forum. I know I used to, but seems to have calmed down now. Sometimes "fringe" foods like this (eg. onion) can be introduced back into the diet slowly, and then the body & gut flora gets a chance to adapt correctly.

Papaya: Quite certain this is normally safe. Again, there are always individual special cases and some things you are just going to have to work out on your own.

Pineapple: S small number of people have issues with acidic foods. Perhaps this is why you react?

Beef: Doesn't cause AS in me, but does cause me gut issues. Most people tolerate beef fine.

I have had similar kinds of peripheral inflammation in me as you experience now, eg. knees, feet, fingers, eyes. Typically it was something like milk powder, milk, or sugar and fat cooked together.

Andrea:

I've been on NSD a little over 5 months now, but earlier around the second month I went on a week-long starch bender while on vacation and it put me in hell for 3 months. I am only starting to recover from that.

I wonder if it's okay to keep drinking beef and chicken broth for the gelatin since I keep reading that's it's super food for those with leaky guts? Also, I eat organ meats, which I seem to do okay on.

What kind of green juice fast did you do? Do you think you would have been pain free had you not done that? I know a lot of people here use fasts to propel their progress but I've never done one so I'm a little scared. I get very cranky when hungry. Also, I live with my aunt who is a doctor and she's already very skeptical about this whole diet thing, let alone a fast.

Thanks for your input. It gives me hope that maybe NSD is the right thing for me after all and I just have to give it more time.

Zark:

So you think it's still food that's causing these peripheral inflammation? Oh dear, my diet is already so restrictive as it is.

I really think the MRT food sensitivity test will help. I JUST want to know. I'm willing to eat only fish and some fruit for the rest of my life if I know it's what's going to heal me. Constantly groping for answers and not finding any is very frustrating.

It shouldn't be like that for the rest of your life! Based on what I've read from people who have been at this longer than myself (including Zark), if you tune your diet to foods that you tolerate best and then keep at it, eventually the condition of your gut will improve. It can take years, but gradually some things that give you troubles now will become safe. I don't know if I'll ever be able to eat potatoes or pasta again (at least in this earthly life; will the New Earth include lasagne and french fries??) but I hope to someday be able to get away with some of those excellent coconut flour recipes Kiwi keeps posting.