Dr McDougall

I was doing some research today and found a very interesting article about diet and arthritis that I would like to share with you. I say diet, but really it is more of a lifestyle change, eliminating certain foods while eating more of other foods. Here is the link, and in today's blog I will be talking about the article and some key points that I think may be of interest.

The article is from Dr McDougall's website and talks about his way of treating patients, which is by a vegetarian or vegan diet. Dr McDougall eliminates certain foods depending on what disease or condition he is treating. For arthritis he also eliminates gluten from the diet.

A few interesting points he stresses is the importance of low fat in the diet. He says "Those vegan diets that have failed to help arthritis patients have been high in vegetable oils, which are known to damage intestinal integrity" and he also mentions that little to no oil be used, including flaxseed oil.

I was under the impression that flaxseed oil was very good for you, but I guess if one saw it as a must, they could stick with the actual flaxseed. I am not sure what I make of this yet, but am still eliminating meat from my diet.

I have been doing good so far, at least with the red meat. Right now my biggest problem is with dairy. I just can't seem to say no to the cheese. I hear that nutritional yeast has a cheesy like flavor and is great on top of casseroles and the like. I may have to give it a try.

My other concern is eliminating fish from my diet. I am a born Newfoundlander, and love my fish. I don't eat it every day, but usually have it once to twice a month. I am pretty sure I have no reaction to fish, and am really thinking about riding my diet of all other meat and poultry.

What is your take on Dr McDougall's diet and study?

RA and the immune system

I know I already blogged today, but I am having a bit of a brain storm and thought you might want to hear it.

We know that rheumatoid arthritis is when the body's immune system begins to attack the joint tissue, in particular the synovial fluid between the joints. So maybe the way to begin to treat arthritis is to help with the immune system. Some questions I have are:

Why is my immune system attacking my joints?
What caused my immune system to attack the synovial fluid?
What will help(naturally) with the inflammation and pain?
Will eliminating red meat from my diet help?

I am hoping to find the answers to these soon. Maybe by reducing the inflammation it will help with reducing the pain, and reduce the amount of damage. I just have to find some natural ways to reduce inflammation!

Glucosamine Sulfate and an update!

Wow, it has been a while since my last post! I just wanted to send a very big thank you for all my followers who are still following me...even though I have been very inconsistent as of late.

It's interesting that my last post reflection on what would you do with a week or day left to live. I had to go through this with my father recently, who we discovered had cancer. It all started with a growth, which was then discovered to be cancer that had spread along his liver, gallbladder, ribs, and lining the heart. We were told that he had cancer on June 15(my birthday) and I sat through that doctor's appointment the entire time, trying to understand everything. The doctors began talking to my father and I about removing him from dialysis in the next month or so, but the cancer progressed much faster. I couldn't be strong anymore...I cried. I was losing the closest person to me, I was losing my daddy. We stayed strong though, and I saw him almost every day until the day he passed, on July 9th.

I have been absent due to the illness and trying to get things back on track. I can't use that as an excuse anymore...So, here I am!

I am still free from medication but experiencing more pain and stiffness then before. It could have to do with the fall weather and the amount of meat I am eating. I am going to make an appointment to see my doctor to try and get a specialist.


For now, I am stretching more, cutting out red meat(again!), reducing the amount of night shades I eat, and resting when my body needs it. I am also beginning to take the supplement glucosamine sulfate, although the pharmacists said there was no evidence of it helping people who suffer with RA. Still, it is worth a try. I'm going to take 1000mg a day with food. I am taking the Life brand version, because money doesn't grow on trees(oh how I wish it did sometimes!).

I tried to take the glucosamine this morning, but it is so hard to swallow. I am going to take it, I just need to figure out how to get it down. I'll update tomorrow with how that went.

Thanks again for following me, and I hope you are all doing well.