Building the Probiotic Arsenal

I made a trip to the big city today for a visit to a doctor I went to years ago. I really liked her back then except she loaded me up with pills and the side effects made me wish I would just die. I got frustrated, ran out of money, and stopped going to her. The eight hour round trip with traffic jams also discouraged future visits. However, I am so incredibly disgusted with the doctors who are closer to me I thought I'd suffer the drive and go back to this doctor. I told her I was the "prodigal patient". LOL I did NOT admit I am also the "reluctant patient".

She was wonderful. Knowledgeable, articulate, pleasant, conversational and had LOTS of ideas. We also had a long discussion regarding my intolerance to pills and she very respectfully acknowledged my issues. It's so nice to have someone who listens.

First step: probiotics. Nothing will work without good digestion and she suggested the fermented foods I have been reading about for quite sometime: kimchi and kombucha. These bizarre probiotics are difficult to get anywhere in my neck of the woods, but they are plentiful in the big city. So I headed to Whole Foods after the appointment and loaded up on kimchi and kombucha. I already have sauerkraut at home and I forgot to buy artichoke hearts which are supposed to help with digestion. Oh, yeah, and I bought dandelion greens and some other weird bitter to help with fat digestion but I don't remember the name. Neither of the greens taste good. They are bitter. Maybe that's why they are called "bitters." Duh.

 

The kombucha is really interesting. It's tangy, carbonated, and one of the bottles is ginger flavored. It's a little like drinking carbonated soda...only it's healthy! I can't quite get used to the idea something that tastes so decadent is actually really good for your digestion.

UPDATE: Can you believe I'm still eating/drinking things without researching them first? When will I learn? Kombucha is made with black or green tea. CAFFEINE! First, no wonder I thought it tasted so good and second, yes it was too decadent to be good for me. I can't go near caffeine. I didn't seem to have a reaction but I was only sipping a little each day. Supposedly it has less than regular tea, but with my sensitivities it would be best if I avoided it. Also, due to the fermentation, it's considered an alcohol...so strange to have an upper and a downer all in one drink? Maybe they cancel each other out? Yeah, I knew this was too good to be true! I have found if I drink more than a few sips over more than one day I become irrationally depressed. Caffeine is evil.

The first time I tried the kimchi I didn't think I'd like it. It was really hot with peppers so at first I thought maybe I'll just do it a little spoon at a time. But ten minutes later I was CRAVING more. That is always a good sign that my body wants it. I try to listen to my body.  I love it on top of food like hamburger or fish.

Here's to being on a new path for improved health!

Wish me luck!

Probiotic Farting

I've never really been an excessive farter. There are always foods that are commonly problematic for almost everyone, but as a health-crazed, vegetarian teenager I read Diet for a Small Planet and discovered proper digestion is all about food combinations to create whole proteins out of incomplete proteins. So if you eat beans, you should eat dairy with them. Hey, I can do massive amounts of sour cream with my wheat-wrapped, deep-fried bean burrito! The Paleo-Hashimoto's diet restricts not only wheat and oils, but beans and dairy so that solved any issue I might have had with incomplete proteins.

I've always thought farting was a sign something was not quite right with one's digestion. Lack of digestive enzymes or hydrochloric acid? Impaired liver function or intestinal mobility? The question is always what is causing it? Food? Stress? Chemicals? Besides the typical fart-producing foods, eating while stressed is never good for digestion and eating foods laced with chemicals is suicide. If I get anywhere near certain essential oils I get severe intestinal cramps so it would make sense that any number of unknown environmental contaminants might have an effect on my digestive tract. Fortunately, my digestion is rarely effected by much.

Unfortunately, I started farting yesterday. Out of control. Yeah, I thought this might be too private a confession to share, but I see it as a AIP diet tale of caution. I was worried. I had added back allspice to a dish filled with onions. Although neither is absolutely restricted on the AIP diet there was a short note that both might be an issue for some. I hope it's not allspice and I don't know how I'd live without onions. Then it dawned on me...

According to Girl Alive farting is a sign your probiotic bugs are in the house and farting is the by-product of bacterial breakdown of food during the digestive process. I'm not sold on the farting is a normal, healthy process theory. Long ago I wrote another post on farting: medieval people thought farting was demonic possession. I'm more inclined to believe this than the beneficial bacteria theory. If anything, it's a sign of gut flora imbalance. The satanic bugs are working too much or too little.

 

Then I had an epiphany of sorts. Sauerkraut is cabbage. It is most definitely a fart-producing food. As a cruciferous vegetable and especially in it's difficult-to-digest raw state, eating it would incite even the laziest of beneficial bugs into a satanic frenzy. This sauerkraut is as raw as those bugs are alive. This made me ponder the origins of sauerkraut. Was fermentation a solution to make eating cabbage more socially acceptable? Probably.

Cabbage is also a goitrogenic or a thyroid-suppressing food which is another reason people experiencing hypothyroidism should be cautious when eating cabbage. I've never really liked cabbage in any form and that should be a clue for me. I'm not eating more than 2-3 tablespoons of sauerkraut a day, but I'm thinking I've added too much.

I'll be really happy when this diet is OVER.

Probiotics

Probiotics. What a weird word. I wonder who made it up? Nevertheless, probiotics is a very popular dietary concept. Not that it's new or anything as for years eating yogurt with live cultures has been touted as a cure-all for all manner of illness.

Now, however, it seems everyone knows we must cultivate and keep good bacteria in our digestive tract for optimal assimilation of nutrients and proper digestion of foods. We've killed off these beneficial bugs with too many antibiotic drugs, or by eating too much antibiotic-saturated meats, or ingesting any number of chemicals found in our food and water. Junk foods high in sugar and low in nutrients have created the perfect environment for the bad bacteria (yeast) to grow and overuse of antacids have depleted our system of much needed hydrochloric acid required for digestion. Is it any wonder we can digest anything?

The AIP diet is all about healing the digestive system by eliminating foods difficult or impossible to digest, and most importantly, replenishing good bacteria with foods such as sugar-free coconut milk-based yogurt, water kefir, kombucha, and/or raw, fermented vegetables such as kimchi, ginger, cucumbers, or sauerkraut. It is highly suggested to use anaerobic fermented products that use air-tight containers in the process to avoid common side effects of rashes, digestive upset, or inflammation. Also, to further avoid any bad reactions, wait about three weeks after starting the AIP diet and introduce the probiotic slowly and in small quantities.

Of course, I didn't find these instructions until later or maybe I was in denial and just ignored the whole fermented foods thing? Fortunately I was already aware of potential problems with adding large quantities of new foods to my diet and I didn't get brave enough to try fermented, bug-filled foods until after the second week of the diet. Hooray for good timing! I can't seem to find plain, coconut yogurt without sugar, I won't drink kefir (blah), and I have no idea what kombucha nor kimchi is although I can't find either at my co-op anyway. For too long I was eating dairy-based yogurt with real bacteria with no problem, but dairy is not allowed on any diet since it is so problematic for most.

Sauerkraut. Eeeewww. I remember sauerkraut from my childhood. Nasty texture and nasty sour taste. It made hot dogs taste like crap. Of course, my family bought the processed stuff that looked like a pile of thin, white tapeworms, tasted like someone soaked it in battery acid, and squeaked between your teeth with every chew. I didn't have any hope for sauerkraut but I thought maybe if I just eat a small spoonful a day this would work.

At the co-op they sell raw, locally-made sauerkraut for $7.91 for 16 ounces. I checked with a friend who loves sauerkraut and who just took a class on how to make it at home. I told her if I can't eat it, I'd give it to her rather than waste the money by throwing it in the garbage. I've thrown a whole lot of expensive food in the garbage since starting this diet which embarrasses me since there are so many starving people in the world. It makes me feel like an entitled, spoiled American.

I got it home, eager to experiment, and ate just one small teaspoon. Hmmm...nothing like I remembered. Yes, it had a tangy taste, but no skinny worms. It looked like thinly sliced cabbage. Recognizable. I can do that.

Fifteen minutes later...I was craving more! THAT IS A GOOD SIGN! So I ate more, but not a lot. I've learned my lesson. No side effects or bad reactions. Who would have thought? I've been eating small amounts of it 2-3 times a day.

I am on my way to a healthy, bug-replenished digestive system!