Healing...how Long Does It Take?

[Natlay]

I know that everyone is different, but in general how long does it really take before your intestines are "normal"? I think I'm impatient...I do really well about only eating fruits, vegetable, and meat for a week and feel so good and start trying other things and immediately feel terrible (I have a weakness for any dessert ) It feels like anytime I eat any kind of grain or legume I get sick. Does it just take a long time for things to improve?

[Ursa Major]

I'm afraid that perhaps the answer may lie where you'd rather not look (but should). The tipoff is 'any grain or legume'. You may be intolerant to lectins. Meaning, you should try an elimination diet, cutting out all lectin groups, and then testing them one at a time after about a month, to see which groups are a problem. Apparently, you've really identified two already.

The groups are: All grains (including rice and corn), eggs, all legumes (including soy and peanuts), all dairy and all nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant).

If you follow the link in my sig on lectins, and read through the website, you'll find that usually, even if you are initially unable to tolerate any of the groups (that's me), after about a year you may end up just being intolerant to one or two of them (I'm still hoping, it's been ten months, and I still can't tolerate any of them).

I hope you figure it out.

[Mayflowers]

I'm afraid that perhaps the answer may lie where you'd rather not look (but should). The tipoff is 'any grain or legume'. You may be intolerant to lectins. Meaning, you should try an elimination diet, cutting out all lectin groups, and then testing them one at a time after about a month, to see which groups are a problem. Apparently, you've really identified two already.

The groups are: All grains (including rice and corn), eggs, all legumes (including soy and peanuts), all dairy and all nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant).

If you follow the link in my sig on lectins, and read through the website, you'll find that usually, even if you are initially unable to tolerate any of the groups (that's me), after about a year you may end up just being intolerant to one or two of them (I'm still hoping, it's been ten months, and I still can't tolerate any of them).

I hope you figure it out.

So what's left to eat then?

[CarlaB]

So what's left to eat then?

I don't know, maybe we need to all start biting our fingernails

[Ursa Major]

You know, I didn't suggest cutting out all salicylates (which is what I have to do on top of gluten and lectins), so there is lots and lots left to eat. All fruits, most vegetables, meat and fish, non-grain starches like buckwheat, arrowroot and tapioca, nuts, seeds....................

To stop eating lectins is not nearly as hard as enduring constant stomach pains, believe me.

[BBadgero]

Yes, I followed your link and it was very helpful. I have not done the elimination diet yet because of a follow up with my GI in 2 weeks. However, I might be fortunate enough to be gluten-free only, but time will tell.... anyone know if following the South Beach diet correlates with being gluten-free and Lectin free? I see dairy would be a problem, but maybe it would be close???

Thanks for the info Ursula.

[Natlay]

I've been working on doing the elimination diet recently because I thought that soy and corn were problems for me...and potatoes too. I lasted for six days eating meat, fruits, and vegetables. Then I had a bite of peanut butter and felt sick immediately. But it tasted so good I thought I might as well keep eating it if I was sick already. Well...a few bites turned into a whole jar...then I think about 3 more in the next few days I know I feel better when I don't eat these things, but I guess I'm wondering how long I should wait before trying to reintroduce things. Obviously I'll have to try to hold off for more than a week After how I felt after all that peanut butter I don't think that will be an issue for a while anyway.

I looked at your link for lectins...that's really interesting. I've had a lot of those symptoms. Were you tested for that or do you figure it out through an elimination diet? I'm curious because all of my blood tests have been negative so far...but I don't believe them since my symptoms always go away when I stop eating certain things. And it explains so many of the problems I have had since I was a baby.