Hi everyone I’ve just started following Dr Wahls’ advice on diet to heal your nervous system. She has MS and, she improved her life by eating the hunter gather diet, she started a couple of years ago. She’s on You tube taking about it and I thought I’d give it a try. I know I didn’t eat enough fruit and veg, well now I’m eating lots. I thought I’d give it a go seeing as there is nothing out there to help me. I’ll try anything once. I’ll let you know how I get on.
Lynne xx
Have you looked at the Barry Groves eating ‘regime’. He has been the leading exponent of the low carb/high fat way of life having lived, researched,lectured about this subject for 44yrs. His idea is the hunter gatherer diet. No cereal or grain -
lt is beneficial to everyone especially ms and diabetes. lt was from someone on this site that first heard about him - since then l have a couple of his books.Natural Health and Weight Loss. Then when l read about Terry Wahls in the Pathways mag - l realised that she was following the same type of ‘diet’. Lots of meat and fish and lots of greens - especially kale.
No bread/flour/pasta/biscuits/cakes - Look Barry Groves up online see what you think. lts having the will-power to stick to any diet that l have problems with. l know l am better for following a low carb diet.
Best of luck Lynne - let us know how you get on.
F.
Funny (or not!) but it’s the bread/flour/pasta/biscuits/cakes that give me chronic heartburn.
Good luck Lynne and do let us know how it goes. Well worth trying I think.
Pat x
Just started on some of the ideas suggested by Dr Wahls. Also following diet of Swank and Jelinek - basically taking the best out of each to suit. Going great so far.
Thanks for your comments, I’ll look for Barry Campion on line F. At the moment I’m doing OK following the diet, I have been on a gluten free diet for 6 years so following this strict eating regime isn’t as hard as I thought. The only thing I’m missing is dairy and sugar, but I’m determined to stick to the diet and eventually I hope it will become just a change in my eating habits. I have a very sweet tooth and lately I’ve thought about the chances of me developing type 2 Diabetes so eating like this should help in that respect. It has definitely been a detox for my body, the first 3 days I had headaches and felt very tired but now i feel fine. Eating 3 cups of kale, 3 cups of sulphur veg and 3 cups of coloured veg/fruit is differcult, it’s a large amount. i’ve found that by making soups and drinks is helping me to eat them. I’ve put 3 stone on in the last 4 years due to a mixture of immobility and medication so I’m also hoping to loose some weight as well, especially as my daughter is getting married in July. It would be great if I could be standing for the photos.
Lynne xx
I’ve looked at information about Barry Groves ( I know I put Campion on last post) on line and it was very interesting. I haven’t removed fat from my diet as I also believe that our bodies need it to function properly, I try to have foods high in omega 3 as this fat seems to be good for the nervous system.
Lynne xx
Lynne,
You should lose weight on this diet. l have a Barry Groves book called Eat Fat -Get Thin - Lots of dark green veg and lots of meat - plenty of fat - l find l am never hungry. Cutting out the carbs - makes such a difference. l know if l eat bread/etc
-especially doughnuts - l can never stop - want to eat the whole packet. l also eat quite a lot of tinned pilchards - mackerel. l am going to try growing kale - and chard - and perpetual spinach.
Frances.
Hi Lynne,
I watched this with interest in fact I couldnt believe the change in this lady. I did email but had an automated response. Do you know what you could eat if you are a vegetarian? The fruit and veg are no problem its a source of protein Im not sure what is allowed. Thanks Anita x
Hi Frances
Yes i am loosing weight slowly, probably because I don’t move enough. I’m getting used to eating just meat and veg, lots of veg.
I’ve found jucing kale then blending it with organic apple juice, orange juice, water, blueberries and any other fruit you fancy is a nice drink, i’ve been having a pint of this every day for my lunch. My husband is putting up raised beds in our garden to grow kale.
Anita, I’ve bought Dr Wahls book ‘Minding my Mitochondria’ and I haven’t finished it yet, it’s very interesting and from what I can see she says to eat nuts and free range eggs for protein ( apart from fish and meat). She eats gluten free food and has 100 recipes in the book which are helpful, she also eats grains now but advises people not to at first as this is what she did. Hope this helps abit Anita.
Lynne xx
Lynne,
l am interested in your ‘Kale Smoothie’ - do you cook/blanch the leaves first - or are they just raw. Terry Wahls diet is what Barry Groves has been advocating for over 40yrs. lts the hunter/gatherer diet - no grains - so no bread/cakes etc. l got his books secondhand from amazon. Lots of recipes. He suggests if you want to eat bread occasionally - he has found that bread that is left to rise/prove for at least a day or two is easier to digest. This makes the gluten safer to eat.
l am going out with ‘the girls’ tonight - for a lndian meal - so shall have to try to avoid the naan bread and rice - not easy -
l shall have chicken and spinach. l have lost half a stone - and l never feel hungry. But l now find l can not eat anything like the amount l used to. My stomach must have shrunk. l was brought up to eat all thats on the plate - now l have scrape the leftovers into the dogs dish.
We have our own ducks/hens -so lots of really good eggs.
F.
Hi F
Yes the kale is raw, my husband puts it in the juicer then he blends the juice with apple and orange juice, blue berries or any fruit he fancies and he puts water in to make up a pint and that’s it. He added cucumber one day and it was OK, it’s a nice fruity drink, you can’t taste the kale. Enjoy your Indian meal tonght, that’s something I’m missing, we used to go for Indian meals a couple of times a month with our friends but now I can’t eat it. From what she says in her book you can eat grain, like rice but not at the beginning, she ate it again after she got well.
Lynne xx
Hi guys
I have been following a gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free and almost yeast-free diet for about 6 months. I have cut back on red meat but am eating more chicken,a lot more fish and plenty of fruit. Instead of cakes and biscuits which I don’t really miss, I will have a healthy snack such as a couple of juicy dates or a handful of almonds (great for calcium if you’re dairy-free) though I do eat Eat Natural gluten-free nut/cereal/cranberry bars. I have substituted porridge for toast for breakfast and the only milk I drink is Kara coconut milk which is the best milk-substitute I have tried. We use olive oil for cooking and salads but otherwise our diet is very low in fat. I have also reduced my alcohol intake though still have a couple of glasses of wine/ gin and tonics a week.
Anyway I don’t know if my (fairly mild) MS symptoms have improved hugely though I was starting to get pains in my legs when I started the diet and I hardly ever get these now. However I definitely feel healthier overall and have lost weight. These benefits were confirmed yesterday when I went for a BUPA Healthcheck, courtesy of my employer. Compared with my last visit 2 years ago I have lost 9 pounds and am now back to just over 9 stone for the first time in years. My bad cholesterol is down, my BMI is perfect and the % of my body weight that is fat has decreased (though is still a little high). I am confident that I can keep this up and bring down my fat content further as well as lose a couple more pounds as a side benefit. So, my conclusion is that whether or not these diets ameliorate your MS, and we know that different people respond in different ways, there are wider health benefits that are really worthwhile.
What’s next? Well, I have started eating more kale and spinach after hearing about Terri Wahls’ diet but have not yet got into the swing of the volumes she recommends. That is my next challenge along with cutting back on coffee. I haven’t given up pulses as some of these diets suggest as I love beans, houmous and enjoy fresh fruit with soy yoghurt or custard as a dessert now and again. And occasionally I will go ‘off piste’ and have a small cake or biscuit - but only if I’m out for a special meal and it’s a really delicious treat.
Would love to hear more of your diet tips/experiences.
Onward and upward!
Hilary xx
Thanks Hilary I’m now dairy free, gluten free, I’m eating no grains or pulses and I’m not drinking tea or coffee (only fruit tea) and I don’t drink alcohol. I haven’t been eating anything out of a packet, tin etc. I’ve found it OK up to now. Just eating fruit, veg , fish and meat. If I get peckish I have a handful of nuts, but really I haven’t been hungry there seems to be lots to eat. I thought I’d miss biscuits and coffee but I haven’t yet. My complexion has improved, I had a bit acne rosecea and it’s gone I’ve been doing this diet for nearly 4 weeks now and I feel it’s doing me some good. Hopefully I’ll drop a couple of dress sizes soon.
Lynne xx
Hi Lynne
Yes I found it easier than expected and I have been going for 6 months now. You will definitely lose weight and there will be other health benefits too.Good luck with it and do contact me if you need any help or support with it.
Hilary xx
Thank you Hilary, I will. I got a lovely complement off my youngest daughter today. she said ‘Mam I can see that the diet is doing you good because you’ve lost the puffiness off your face.’ Well I laughed because she meant well and she’s right I can see a difference in my face already, probably the detox.
Lynne xx
I got weighed, I’ve been on this diet for nearly 7 weeks and I’ve lost 4 lb, that’s very good when I don’t move much. I’ve been trying to remember to do exercise from my chair, and to use the vibrator gym that hubby bought me. I feel good, this diet definitely gets your metabolism moving, if you a troubled with constipation this diet is for you.
Lynne xx
hi everyone, just want to ask, is anyone still doing dr Terry Wahls diet and if so has it made a difference?
it looks very stricked.
also does it work on all ms groups?
Lisa
sorry, just realised this is for ppms sufferers, so now i know if it has helped any of you then it might help me.
Lisa.
Hi there!
I’ve been trying to follow the Wahls Protocol diet, and looking into it in a big way. I find her story incredibly inspiring. I have SPMS, diagnosed just over a year ago, but was told by my neurologist that I needn’t fight this as I couldn’t beat it. He also told me to try to “accept it and adapt”! So finding Dr Terry Wahls online has given me some hope. I’d be really interested to hear from any others out there who are also interested in this.
Hi,
I’m really new to this & fairly new to MS (diagnosed in Jan this year) - I’ve found changing my diet really helped - practically saved me. I had pain in my hand and arm and it very quickly spread all down my right hand side & into both of my legs - i was struggling to walk. February was the worst month of my life.
My Neurologist was fairly dismissive about the role diet would play in treating MS but, I found a video online (google ‘Terry Wahl’s ted talk’) so I bought her book. She likes to use her own name a lot but she does make a lot of sense & it’s really helped me.
She believes that auto-immune diseases are cause but a lack of vitamin & minerals in our diet (mainly from eating too much processed & packaged foods in the west) she recommends excluding gluten & diary. Which is not easy, gluten especially is in just about everything! It’s really worked for me – I still have pain in my arm but the rest of me is back to ‘normal’.
It’s still early days for me – and the nature of RRMS is I don’t know if this is a permanent fix but I’m sure it’s really helped me. I can’t recommend it highly enough try it!!! Especially going gluten free – since being gluten free I’ve had it twice by accident & both times my MS symptoms were worse in the days after. Dairy not so much – I’ve had dairy a couple of times and my MS hasn’t gotten worse but it gave me spots!
Hope this helps.
Rob.x