Elimination Diets
Heal Your Gut
A major component of healthy eating is to establish a healthy gut microbiome. The 100 trillion or so microorganisms that actually do the dirty work, literally. They break down everything we eat and make the compounds we need to live. Unfortunately there are many things we eat that cause inflammation and damage the lining of the intestines and disturb the healthy microorganisms. Therefore the first thing we must do is heal the gut. The process takes about two weeks for a reset.
Reset Fructose Metabolism
Fructose, the main sugar in fruit, High fructose corn syrup and half of table sugar (sucrose) is the primary trigger that turns on fat storage. The longer amount of time we eat fructose the better our system becomes at digesting it, making a vicious cycle of getting fatter easier. It really is true that we put on weight easier as we get older, but it has nothing to do with age. During the two week reset we must completely eliminate all sugar! I know, I hear the groans. But I love sugar Dr. Dan! We all do, we are genetically programmed to do so. There was a time in our evolution when sugar helped us survive. It’s just not possible to reset your system while you are also eating sugar. This includes artificial sweeteners. Everything sweet must go. If you absolutely must slowly reduce sweets for your sanity, that’s OK. However any sweets at all does not start the clock. The two weeks starts when you have zero sugar and sweets. Zero. Also know that alcohol and sugar are the evil fraternal twins. Each of them stimulates the desire for the other as well as more of themselves. The combination is more powerful to fight against.
Eliminate the Villains
Now for the healing. Chronic inflammation is the main source of leaky gut. Leaky gut allows these molecules to enter your body. These foreigners light up the immune system to attack them. Some of them look similar to our own tissues leading to a confusion between us and the invaders, and the immune system then attacks both. This is often called “autoimmune” disease and there are a huge number of them like psoriasis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoid. We do not magically become allergic to ourselves. Healing the gut wall allows it to do its job and keep these molecules out. Think about when you cut your skin and it gets infected. It is red, hot, painful. That is the same reaction in your gut but you can’t see it. So here are the main villains in causing gut inflammation: Wheat, Sugar, Seed Oils, Dairy. They all have to go for a minimum of two weeks but honestly once you get rid of them it’s unlikely you will even want them back.
Pick a Food Group
Ready to start? I hope so. The other key to helping the gut heal is to make it’s work simple. The more variety of food you eat the more work has to be done. For two weeks it is great to just eat the same thing over and over. I have sample foods in each of the categories so pick something you like and for the next two weeks you won’t need a menu. Sure it is boring. That’s the whole idea, we’re trying to give the gut a rest to heal and reset the fructose system. Once you start feeling better and fasting longer you can start to add other foods one at a time. Eventually you’ll have a nice selection of foods you love to eat and your microbiome loves to digest. Now you have happy mitochondria.
"Cheating" and Failure
Let’s address the number one problem with all types of diets. First, almost all of them work. People really lose weight on just about every type of program; Keto, Low carb, Mediterranean, Paleo, Carnivore. You name it and someone has done well with it. Check back with them in a year and the majority are back on their previous food. Why? Because they don’t like the new food. It’s not a mystery, people eat what they like. The intention of this food plan is to replace what you like now with real food that you like as much or better. This takes time for you microbiome to influence your taste buds. There will definitely be times when you really want to have something from the old ways. Go ahead. That is not cheating and not failure. That is being human. This is not a race, its a destination. With persistence you will be able to replace edible stuff that is slowly killing you with healthy delicious food. Over time you will no longer crave or even like your old food! It’s really true. I still have a bourbon every once in a while. It doesn’t satisfy me the way it used to and I’m enjoying it less and less. So it’s OK. Go at your own pace. It is not failure.