Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD)

[mftnchn]

Mia, thanks. I don't think it is the yogurt, rather everything right now is making me bloat, even broth. Today is my "herx" after adding in the antibiotic on Sunday (for 2 weeks)--the flu like symptoms that come after killing lyme. I'll see what happens after that.

Many of these infections are notorious for NOT showing up on tests. I have had negative tests for parasites several times, but I have seen many of them with my own eyes so I know very well I have them.

Sherry

[AliB]

I don't want to frighten anyone but I think we have to be very careful that we try if possible to stay away from any GM foods. It can be difficult as these 'Frankenfoods' are insidious. A piece of GM broccoli looks identical to 'normal' broccoli so how do you tell? I am going to try and source local growers if I can.

My little grandson had something growing out of his skin on his forehead like a sharp hair but more like a fiber and has just had another one in his cheek. I had come across this before on the net. Although he only has one little bit some people are suffering inordinately with it. It appears to have been called Morgellons and it seems there may be a link between fungus, bacteria and GM DNA. I am quite frightened by it myself and will be monitoring him to see if he gets any more.

At the moment most doctors pass it off as psychological delusions and there is no cure although a few have found certain things that help.

I so want my family to get on to the SCD, but we are going to have to be careful what veg and fruit we buy now. This system is killing us all.

[aprilh]

I don't want to frighten anyone but I think we have to be very careful that we try if possible to stay away from any GM foods. It can be difficult as these 'Frankenfoods' are insidious. A piece of GM broccoli looks identical to 'normal' broccoli so how do you tell? I am going to try and source local growers if I can.

My little grandson had something growing out of his skin on his forehead like a sharp hair but more like a fiber and has just had another one in his cheek. I had come across this before on the net. Although he only has one little bit some people are suffering inordinately with it. It appears to have been called Morgellons and it seems there may be a link between fungus, bacteria and GM DNA. I am quite frightened by it myself and will be monitoring him to see if he gets any more.

At the moment most doctors pass it off as psychological delusions and there is no cure although a few have found certain things that help.

I so want my family to get on to the SCD, but we are going to have to be careful what veg and fruit we buy now. This system is killing us all.

I agree! I read an article about this somewhere - I can't locate it at the moment. But people are noticing these 'things" growing out of their skin and its related to GM foods.

I know we don't do corn products on the SCD, but you can't hardly find corn that's not GM. Even if its not, it is most likely cross contaminated. I try to always avoid corn products even before the SCD.

Bad thing is, a lot of gluten free products are made with Corn. It's hard to find gluten free that is not loaded with it.

[GermanMia]

You don't frighten, Ali. You're right. We have an experimental GM corn field nearby - placed directly beside the fields of an organic farmer's!!! My dr. whom I saw today is a spare-time beekeeper and he doesn't laugh at all about these GM fields.

By the way I told him about the SCD I'm on and he found it sounded reasonable and very healthy. But - and that's what I'm wondering about now, as a beekeeper he knows a lot about honey (I already had a jar of his honey last year) and he told me that honey does contain a disaccharide, i.e. saccharose, the combination of fructose and glucose. Now why is it allowed? I thought it was fructose and glucose as monosaccharides, but he assured me that it's a disaccharide. Hm.

Anyway he sent me to a gastroenterologist to finally check if maybe I have uc or celiac disease. I can't tell you how glad I am not to have to feel so stupid any longer... I'll get the results about the kidney infections on thursday.

The most frightening thing concerning the GM plants is that you cannot prevent them from spreading. Not only that the enterprises who hold the patents on the GM plants demand payment from accidentally contaminated farmers but no farmer can help being contaminated either. So even if you buy from local farmers you can't be sure about the stuff you get!

[ArtGirl]

...he sent me to a gastroenterologist to finally check if maybe I have uc or celiac disease. I can't tell you how glad I am not to have to feel so stupid any longer... I'll get the results about the kidney infections on thursday....

Mia, I'm so glad the doctor is taking your symptoms seriously and trying to find out what's causing it all.

I am curious, though, how a GI can diagnose you with celiac since I assume you've been off all grains, including those that contain gluten, for some time. That's one of the problems of getting diagnosed with gluten intolerance once one has been gluten-free for even a few weeks. I'm sure you already know this, though. Even if you have uc, the SCD is the way to go, so you're two steps ahead there.

I would suspect, since you've been on the SCD which should have increased your energy and not made you fatigued, that the cause is the infection. I hope the tests show something they can treat.

I MADE THE PUMPKIN PIE PORRIAGE - IT IS AWESOME!!!

I'm sure this is going to be one of my "staples" for the winter.

I'm thinking that it would make a great creamed soup by adding either yogurt or cashew cheese.

[GermanMia]

Hi ArtGirl,

glad you like the porridge - and yes, it's fantastic with yoghurt, too! Absolute comfort food for cold days.

I thought about the grains, yes, and at the moment I'm discussing with myself whether I should eat them again before I have the appointment with the GI or not. I already know the celiac for sure, so that's not necessary. Actually I didn't want to say "celiac disease" but crohn's disease, the system changed my typed "celiac disease" into celiac disease

In fact the dr. told me that crohn's can also cause fatigue, so if the blood and urine tests don't show any infection of the kidneys, I just want to make sure if it really is an intestinal / digestive disorder which troubles me. The consequences are keeping SCD anyway I already like this diet more than any I tried before!

[ArtGirl]

...at the moment I'm discussing with myself whether I should eat them again before I have the appointment with the GI or not.

NO NO NO!!! Don't do it. Besides, you'd have to eat a goodly amount of gluten every day for 2-3 MONTHS to re-damage your villi so it will be picked up on a biopsy - and there's no guarantee there will be enough damage done to your intestines to get a positive diagnosis for celiac. AND - if you're "only" gluten intolerant there would never be the kind of damage to get a celiac diagnosis. But you can be just as sick.

If it were me, I definitely would NOT go back on gluten even for a day. I like how I feel without it and would not go back to how sick I was before I went gluten-free (I am self-diagnosed by positive dietary response and that's good enough for me.)

This topic is being currently discussed on the board in another thread.

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[confused]

Thanks everyone for the tips. I dont eat much processed food now. The only thing that is going to be hard is giving up the corn. I eat corn tortillas or chips at least once an week. But im sure i can give it up, if i have lived without cheese for 2 years, i can give up corn lol.

Yes, sherry, i know detox too well. Im not looking forward to that again. But that is whyi decided onthe 1st, taht way i should feel someone what better by thanksgiving, and with any luck really good by christmas.

I am going to call the bookstore now and see if they have the book.

paula

[GermanMia]

Thanks, ArtGirl

I also came to the conclusion not to go back to grains - not even gluten free grains. It's no more than a month now that I'm on SCD, and I don't think that a whole life long damage will be vanished after six weeks. So if I get an appointment in two or so weeks, there should be still enough damage to see...

Paula,

there are great recipes for mock starch tortillas and chips, made with almond or nut flour After a while you'll probably find that they're even better!

[mftnchn]

Mia, you are right, not everyone has the negative biopsy so quickly after gluten-free, however, many do. Apparently the more visible damage repairs quickly once gluten-free.

[mftnchn]

About the honey, I read an explanation by Elaine I think. Yes it has disaccharides but it is something about the percentage or some other quality that makes it work okay. I can't remember the details, sorry.

[fig girl]

Hey everyone,

Thanks ArtGirl for sharing your tips for making your gourmet meal at Chili's....that sounds like a great meal! Before SCD i would bring my own salad dressing, soy sauce and sometimes bread to restaurants but since starting SCD i've just been bringing an SCD muffin or brownie for dessert. I'm going to start bringing more things though when eating out (we very rarely eat out) because i find with just meat and veggies i'm still hungry with the small portions and i'm not eating salads yet. Glad your energy level is up...my energy, joint pain, brain fog, and other issues greatly improved after starting SCD. I can't remember feeling this good...if ever. Good luck with your coconut yogurt! I'm going to try the basic muffin recipe with the substitutions you used and i'm glad you mentioned you're able to eat Ghee - i just bought some but haven't tried it yet.

Mia - I made the pumpkin porridge last night too and had a bowl this morning...i agree with you and ArtGirl it is one of my favorite dishes now! Very, very good...absolutely loved it! Especially on these cold mornings. I can't wait to have some again in the morning! Thanks for posting about the almond flour tortillas - i have a recipe but was waiting a while to try them....can't wait...i miss crunchy foods! I hope your Dr's appt. went well and you can figure out what's causing the fatigue.

Shay - I've been dying to make a pumpkin smoothie so thanks for posting! I baked the other half of the pumpkin last night also while making the porridge so i have that in the fridge....warming up the smoothie sounds really good! I'll use yogurt instead of almond milk though - i made some almond milk Sun. and drank some Mon. morning but it didn't agree with me too much so i'll have to wait a while and try it again. Oh and the calabas sound yummy....i'll have to keep an eye out for those. Thanks for posting the link to the coconut cream - it sounds delicious....i'm going to try coconut milk soon (found another young coconut) - i'm eating coconut oil fine right now so hopefully it'll be ok.

Sherry - I had tried pumpkin and butternut squash a couple of weeks ago i think and had some bloating too but had the porridge w/pumpkin this morning and have been eating baked acorn squash and it seems ok - hope you can eat it soon too. Hope your C clears up soon also - i still have it off and on and read that the electrolyte drink helps some with C so i made some this weekend and drank about 4 oz. of it but we were gone a lot over the weekend so i didn't really drink anymore - maybe i'll drink some tonight , i guess it's still good. It did seem to help a little.

April - I'm glad your yogurt making is going well and you're going to teach a class...how neat! That's good too you can fit 4 quarts in your pot. I can only get 3 in mine but my hubby just ordered me a bigger pot on-line so i'm hoping i'll get more in there - i'm getting another candy thermometer too. I thought the one i was using was a meat therm. but it is a candy therm. - i could use another one though and found one at a good price. Let us know how your class goes - oh and i posted before about making nut butter with the omega juicer in case you didn't see it - they're yummy

!!

Ali - I tried a chicken pancake SAt. morning made w/one egg and only ate half of it but my tummy didn't like it too much. But, i remember that you had said it took you a few tries before you could finally eat them again so i'm hoping i'll be able to in the future - i'll try in another 3 mths or so. I'm in search of some duck or quail eggs - i called a few places today but haven't had much luck. I'm going to call some Asian markets tomorrow. I'd like to possibly bake with them over the holidays.

Paula - Good luck with the diet! Everyone is so helpful on here....i've learned so much!

Hope everyone is having a good week...sorry this is so long.

fig girl

[GermanMia]

Sherry,

thanks about the honey. Anyway - whatever it is, I can tolerate modest amounts of it, so I'm just happy as it is

No, I didn't mean the results concerning celiac - that was diagnosed more than one year ago already, so I'm gluten free since august 2007. But as the problems didn't get better but worse being gluten free, there has to be something else which my doc thinks may be ulcerative colitis or crohn's disease. If it is, one or two month's SCD for sure won't have healed a 20 year damage, so I will have something I can work with.

Fig girl,

yesterday I made the pumpkin pie porridge, too, but added two apples which had to be used up, and left out the carrot. It didn't taste far as good as with one apple and carrot!

What is this electrolyte drink you mentioned? Maybe it would help with muscle cramps and pain, too? I'd try it, then, because the magnesium and kalium stuff I tried was with starch and lactose and just made me sick.

The appointment with the dr. really was good. Funny thing - he's a friend of mine and I always thought he didn't take me seriously because he knows me and knows that I'm a bit of a hippie kind alternative with strange ideas about natural medicine and diet. But he did take me seriously - he thought I'd refuse conservative medical diagnosis because I'm used to handle everything myself... There you are, it's all about communication.

The tortillas I didn't try yet but from the looks the recipes sound very good. So do the crackers. If you need a recipe, I'll write it down here. Those recipes are from some SCD cookbooks I found at amazon.

Mia

[ShayFL]

Alas, the dairy (kefir) I was eating, was back to it's old tricks. No bloating. No D or anything GI. But when I eat dairy I gain weight. But not good weight. I get Edema ALL OVER!! So while I was excited to be a little plumper, it isnt healthy. Edema is your body's way of saying NO!!

So last night I made more coconut SCD yogurt. I got a young coconut the other day. I am eating some now. I used just acidophilus from Pure Encapsulations this time. It turned out great. Not too tart. Very nice.

[chatycady]

You don't frighten, Ali. You're right. We have an experimental GM corn field nearby - placed directly beside the fields of an organic farmer's!!! My dr. whom I saw today is a spare-time beekeeper and he doesn't laugh at all about these GM fields.

GM crops are sterile, I believe.

[ShayFL]

Anyone eat Kimchi?

I want to get plenty of good bacteria in my system, but feel food is the way to go. And honestly, I am weening myself off of pills (supplements). Ack!!

Dairy is out. I can make coconut yogurt, but so want something that is already made. So at my local health food store, I saw Kimchi. It is this brand:

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It says it is full of the lactic acid bacteria (acidophilus) and helps digestion.

Well I was afraid to eat it at first. My Dad was in the Korean war and he always talked about them eating this "nasty" fermented vegetable stuff called Kimchi. He said they would throw vegetables in a whole in the ground, cover it for months and then eat it. Needless to say....I have never eaten Kimchi.

But I opened the jar and to my surprise it didnt smell bad at all. I sampled some and it is absolutely YUMMY!! A little salty and sour (but not too sour). Almost like pickles.

I read a few places that Kimchi is SCD legal. And this one has no weird ingredients. All SCD legal ingredients.

Anyone else?

[Yenni]

I got my book yesterday (written by Elaine) and looking through it, well it looks very promising. I am allergic to nuts though and intolerant to casein, but it still had a bunch of new things to try. I have pretty much been eating this way for the last year without knowing it, so I don't think it will be too hard to follow for me... The hard part is when I feel peckish and crave snacks like popcorn.. And then maybe finding substitutes for the dairy. I am not sure if coconut milk would work..

Excited to start reading it though.

Just a quick question, and probably a stupid one, green tea doesn't count as a herb tea right?

[GermanMia]

chatycady,

no, it isn't. Last winter was a very mild winter here so that the grains that dropped by harvesting the corn could sprout uncontrolled.

Shay,

I don't eat kimchi because it's far too hot for me - I tried it once at a Korean friend's and I couldn't stop weeping for hours But I know that traditionally kimchi is kind of Korean sauerkraut, it's lacto fermented cabbage with tons of chili added. I can imagine that in Korea they used to ferment the cabbage in an earth hole, though

Yenni,

green tea indeed isn't herb tea. Did you look at www.scdrecipe.com/recipes-snack/

Maybe you could try something like beef jerky or onion rings (you could substitute the almond and nut flours with coconut flour)?

If you don't find a substitute for dairy, maybe you could lacto ferment veggies in order to get some probiotics.

Good luck!!

Mia

[AliB]

GM crops are sterile, I believe.

Hmm, a bit like 'local Army guns are never loaded with live ammunition'. Do I believe that? Hardly. They can tell us what they like at the end of the day, but how much of it is true?

It kind of begs the question - if these crops are sterile, why would they try and charge farmers who inadvertently end up growing the crops by accident? Where would they come from?

[fig girl]

Fig girl,

yesterday I made the pumpkin pie porridge, too, but added two apples which had to be used up, and left out the carrot. It didn't taste far as good as with one apple and carrot!

What is this electrolyte drink you mentioned? Maybe it would help with muscle cramps and pain, too? I'd try it, then, because the magnesium and kalium stuff I tried was with starch and lactose and just made me sick.

The appointment with the dr. really was good. Funny thing - he's a friend of mine and I always thought he didn't take me seriously because he knows me and knows that I'm a bit of a hippie kind alternative with strange ideas about natural medicine and diet. But he did take me seriously - he thought I'd refuse conservative medical diagnosis because I'm used to handle everything myself... There you are, it's all about communication.

The tortillas I didn't try yet but from the looks the recipes sound very good. So do the crackers. If you need a recipe, I'll write it down here. Those recipes are from some SCD cookbooks I found at amazon.

Mia

Hi Mia,

The electrolyte drink is listed under recipes on pecanbread.com, under Drinks. Below is the link. Maybe it will help with muscle cramps. I put a splash of Welch's grape juice in it like was recommended and it tasted better. I didn't put the full amount of honey - just a little but it didn't seem to bother me. Maybe i'll drink some today - i think it's still good. I'm glad your Dr. took you seriously - it's so frustrating when people don't.

fig

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[Yenni]

Yenni,

green tea indeed isn't herb tea. Did you look at www.scdrecipe.com/recipes-snack/

Maybe you could try something like beef jerky or onion rings (you could substitute the almond and nut flours with coconut flour)?

If you don't find a substitute for dairy, maybe you could lacto ferment veggies in order to get some probiotics.

Good luck!!

Mia

Good ideas. I'll look into it. Thanks! Coconut flour...I see possibilities in the horizon.. Mmm.. Deserts..

[mftnchn]

I got worse after gluten-free too, but the reason I knew I was on the right track was that on day 10 and for ten days after, I had normal bm's--like I had never had in my life. I think that gluten was attacking my system and over the years the body's response had sort of deadened. Once I stopped eating gluten, many more issues started coming to light. Of course my lyme disease complicates everything.

The electrolyte drink sounds useful, I haven't tried that.

I decided to try going back to take large doses of Magnesium and Vit C like I had to do the first few months of gluten-free. That seems to be working with the bloating and "C". At least the first day. Maybe my gluten exposure is still the problem. I have read on the forum that for some it can take as much a weeks and even months to recover after a gluten exposure.

I'll retry the squash if this works consistently for a few days.

By the way, I eat my chicken/carrot/ginger porridge in the morning sometimes to. I like it for any meal. I add salt, honey, cooked fruit, cinnamon, yogurt, curry, raisens, or any combination.

Sherry

[ArtGirl]

By the way, I eat my chicken/carrot/ginger porridge in the morning sometimes to. I like it for any meal. I add salt, honey, cooked fruit, cinnamon, yogurt, curry, raisens, or any combination.

Now, that sounds good. I'm making pumpkin pie porridge this morning (and did add some salt) - I think I'll pop in some raisins in the bowl for breakfast.

[ShayFL]

Ive been making that pumpkin smoothie "warm" now since it is cold here. Delicious and satisfying.

The Kimchi I bought is mild. Not hot at all. I did burp it all day though..........cabbage.

I've been enjoying eggs since SCD, but am beginning to suspect I have just been living in denial. They always bothered me before, but I added them back in because on SCD, so many things are made with eggs (baked goods!!). So out they go again!

I have one recipe for peach cobbler that doesnt take the eggs. And a few others like baked apples. It will limit me, but I need to find out if this nagging "stuffy" nose is from the eggs. I suspect so as that was my main symptom with them before.

The dairy makes me swell up and cough mucus (tho the kefir only caused swelling) and the eggs stuff up my nose.

Please share any dessert recipes you have that dont use eggs.

[ArtGirl]

Please share any dessert recipes you have that dont use eggs.

ditto