Looking For SCD'ers Here, Need Support

[precious831]

Hi, I posted before I'm grain-free and now I'm trying to do SCD, I would like to connect with those that are also on the same path. I know there was at least one person here. Let me know, thanks!

[Lisa]

Hi, I posted before I'm grain-free and now I'm trying to do SCD, I would like to connect with those that are also on the same path. I know there was at least one person here. Let me know, thanks!

This thread is a couple of years old, but may still be relevant:

[Takala]

Former SCD now recovered to where I can do some grain carbohydrates.

Eating more (good) fat to act as a slow burning fuel so you don't crash and burn as often, as well as the protein and vegetables, is the trick to this.

[YoloGx]

Hi there--you are not alone. I know there are many others here like us. I'm 99% on a grain free diet. I participated with AliBi's thread for 10 months or so. I only eat some rice when nothing else is available. I do eat summer squash and now and then a little winter squash. I can't handle sweets of any kind except stevia--so my diet is actually more restricted than a strict scd that doesn't use stevia but does eat fruit and honey. I am allergic to all nuts too--so for pancakes I use ground up sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds mixed with shredded zucchini. I eat a lot of vegetables and some meat. No eggs either since I am allergic to them too unfortunately... At least my boyfriend says I look great and overall I feel good too except for this darn condition of flaky ears and part of my nethers. It gets worse if I eat any fruit it seems, even lemons--not to speak of grains and anything really starchy. Aach! Fortunately the 24 hour yogurt works quite well for me and I enjoy making soups and stir frys and such and greatly enjoy using fresh spices so there are things I can eat...

[precious831]

Former SCD now recovered to where I can do some grain carbohydrates.

Eating more (good) fat to act as a slow burning fuel so you don't crash and burn as often, as well as the protein and vegetables, is the trick to this.

How long were you on the SCD before you started to improve?

[precious831]

This thread is a couple of years old, but may still be relevant:

Thanks I'll check it out!

[precious831]

Hi there--you are not alone. I know there are many others here like us. I'm 99% on a grain free diet. I participated with AliBi's thread for 10 months or so. I only eat some rice when nothing else is available. I do eat summer squash and now and then a little winter squash. I can't handle sweets of any kind except stevia--so my diet is actually more restricted than a strict scd that doesn't use stevia but does eat fruit and honey. I am allergic to all nuts too--so for pancakes I use ground up sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds mixed with shredded zucchini. I eat a lot of vegetables and some meat. No eggs either since I am allergic to them too unfortunately... At least my boyfriend says I look great and overall I feel good too except for this darn condition of flaky ears and part of my nethers. It gets worse if I eat any fruit it seems, even lemons--not to speak of grains and anything really starchy. Aach! Fortunately the 24 hour yogurt works quite well for me and I enjoy making soups and stir frys and such and greatly enjoy using fresh spices so there are things I can eat...

I'm just starting and I'm a little confused about the legal foods. I can eat pretty much anything on the legal list. I've only used honey, though I have stevia, I haven't used that on baking.

What stage are you? You must be advanced if you're able to use sunflower and pumpkin seeds...is that SCD legal?

I miss starchy foods and I've cheated, lol.

Now I want to try SCD on my 3 yr old and her pediatric GI is very optimistic about this diet but I'm just not sure what she will eat. She's allergic to a lot of meats and other things, plus she's still on Alimentum RTF liquid which has tapioca starch and carageenan and those are not SCD legal. She can't do dairy, and I thought the yogurt is for later stages, especially because she's intolerant to dairy too. Confused about the yogurt part, when to introduce it. My DD needs the formula because her diet is so limited. Anyway she's getting (Company Name Removed - They Spammed This Forum and are Banned) and a comprehensive stool test from Great Lakes Labs and then the GI and I will decide our next action from there.

[sahm-i-am]

I looked but I'm not sure - what does SCD stand for?

Thanks.

[YoloGx]

There were/are a lot of things I did and do that aren't completely in line with scd mainly due to the fact I have so many food intolerances.

Stevia is not really part of their diet. It is a member of the sunflower family actually. Why that should be a problem I never really figured out. There was a big scare about stevia years ago that was completely unfounded--mainly put out there by the artifcial sweetner companies (whose products really are not safe). Due to my ongoing difficulty with sugars its the only sweet I can tolerate and I refuse to give it up. The diet is supposed to help a person, not be something one slavishly follows to one's detriment.

If you and your daughter can tolerate the honey, however, so much the better!

The low carb muffins and pancakes etc. the scd'ers use which are made using almond meal did not work for me since I am severely allergic to almonds as well as other nuts--and eggs. I now can tolerate thoroughly rinsed walnuts say once every week but that is all. Thus I use the sunflower seeds and yogurt rather than eat meat for every meal...I think however its possible the almond meal is nicer. Especially if you can add an egg or two. If not, then you need to add ground up flax seed and think of using other non scd stuff like xanthum gum to hold your concoction together.

And yes, CC can be a problem for many here. So I suggest you make your own almond meal or whatever--rinse the almonds well and dry them out before grinding them. Its actually cost effective and in many ways more convenient than trying to chase down truly gluten-free almond meal (or sunflower and pumpkin seed meal in my case...) that hasn't been CC'd.

The yogurt as said works out well for me since I am not casein intolerant.. I am otherwise intolerant of all dairy (except butter) --but fortunately its just the lactose that really is the problem -- though I don't tolerate cheeses or kefir either.

I make the yogurt by using an improvised double boiler ( a large double handled cooking pot set on top of another yet larger double handled cooking pot with a small metal base underneath to separate the pots. I used canning lids as an improvised base for a long time. I now have a round shallow stainless steel grater I use since the canning lids were starting to rust. I scald (to 185 degrees F.) the milk and then cool it down (to 90 t o 100 degrees F) and then mix in 2 or 3 tablespoons of fresh yogurt in it. I then set the pot on a warm heating pad with a towel on top for 24 hours. By fermenting it that long or a little longer it gets rid of all the lactose. I only use organic milk to avoid the chemicals and antibiotics they put into the cows which thus also gets into the cows milk. I suggest you also consider this when it comes to meats too.

There is also an acidophilous fermented cabbage drink people make --especially used by those who are casein intolerant that is also listed on AliBi's scd thread. I never did try it yet though I am still interested. You can probably just google it on the site for directions. There is a wealth of information on it--including many recipes using zucchini.

Good luck Hope some of this helps.

Bea

[precious831]

There were/are a lot of things I did and do that aren't completely in line with scd mainly due to the fact I have so many food intolerances.

Stevia is not really part of their diet. It is a member of the sunflower family actually. Why that should be a problem I never really figured out. There was a big scare about stevia years ago that was completely unfounded--mainly put out there by the artifcial sweetner companies (whose products really are not safe). Due to my ongoing difficulty with sugars its the only sweet I can tolerate and I refuse to give it up. The diet is supposed to help a person, not be something one slavishly follows to one's detriment.

If you and your daughter can tolerate the honey, however, so much the better!

The low carb muffins and pancakes etc. the scd'ers use which are made using almond meal did not work for me since I am severely allergic to almonds as well as other nuts--and eggs. I now can tolerate thoroughly rinsed walnuts say once every week but that is all. Thus I use the sunflower seeds and yogurt rather than eat meat for every meal...I think however its possible the almond meal is nicer. Especially if you can add an egg or two. If not, then you need to add ground up flax seed and think of using other non scd stuff like xanthum gum to hold your concoction together.

And yes, CC can be a problem for many here. So I suggest you make your own almond meal or whatever--rinse the almonds well and dry them out before grinding them. Its actually cost effective and in many ways more convenient than trying to chase down truly gluten-free almond meal (or sunflower and pumpkin seed meal in my case...) that hasn't been CC'd.

The yogurt as said works out well for me since I am not casein intolerant.. I am otherwise intolerant of all dairy (except butter) --but fortunately its just the lactose that really is the problem -- though I don't tolerate cheeses or kefir either.

I make the yogurt by using an improvised double boiler ( a large double handled cooking pot set on top of another yet larger double handled cooking pot with a small metal base underneath to separate the pots. I used canning lids as an improvised base for a long time. I now have a round shallow stainless steel grater I use since the canning lids were starting to rust. I scald (to 185 degrees F.) the milk and then cool it down (to 90 t o 100 degrees F) and then mix in 2 or 3 tablespoons of fresh yogurt in it. I then set the pot on a warm heating pad with a towel on top for 24 hours. By fermenting it that long or a little longer it gets rid of all the lactose. I only use organic milk to avoid the chemicals and antibiotics they put into the cows which thus also gets into the cows milk. I suggest you also consider this when it comes to meats too.

There is also an acidophilous fermented cabbage drink people make --especially used by those who are casein intolerant that is also listed on AliBi's scd thread. I never did try it yet though I am still interested. You can probably just google it on the site for directions. There is a wealth of information on it--including many recipes using zucchini.

Good luck Hope some of this helps.

Bea

Thanks, I buy the almond flour from an SCD website and no problems with them, it's great! I know about that acidophilus drink, you mean kombucha? I don't like that at all, I don't like kimchi either. I've not tried to do anything with kefir grains yet but I'm thinking about it. I grew up w/ my dad making those fermented vegetable and he always tried to get me to eat them, never liked them.

Eventually I'll start grinding my own almonds into meal and/or flour.

Well it's funny you said that because I've looked a the other support groups and even in the book it's so strict. That's why I was like holy cow I don't know how I'm gonna do this with my daughter, she's 3 and her diet is already so limited. You know what though, sticking with the diet makes a whole world of difference for me! First of all I no longer crave sugar like I used to, that itself is amazing! LOL, I used to be a sugar addict, I ate tons of candy, drank soda, I mean name it. I did go through a really bad withdrawal with the sugar but now I'm fine w/out it. And like I said I'm no longer pre-diabetic and also my blood pressure is now normal, not high like it was before. The dramatic improvements were my GI symptoms.

I used to make coconut yogurt, I bought a dairy-free yogurt starter, expensive but it was great yogurt. I have a yogurt maker. However I kind of want to do the goat milk too as suggested and before I only cured the yogurt for 12 hrs, this time it has to be 24 hrs. I react to the casein, this is a huge problem for me, a real bummer.

I am a real health nut so I make most of the foods we eat from scratch, I only buy organic meats, veggies, everything so don't have to worry about that. I take a bunch of supplements they seem to be ok with the SCD, they don't contain any of the forbidden stuff.

Where do you get your almonds? I need one that is certified gluten-free. My sis bought me one fr Trader Joes and it says it's processed in shared equipment, I don't even want to take a risk with that. The ones at Whole Foods are the same, processed equipment.

Thanks!

[precious831]

I looked but I'm not sure - what does SCD stand for?

Thanks.

Hi, SCD stands for the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. There is a wonderful book called "Breaking the Vicious Cycle" that details it but you can also find a lot of info online.

HTH

[YoloGx]

Thanks, I buy the almond flour from an SCD website and no problems with them, it's great! I know about that acidophilus drink, you mean kombucha? I don't like that at all, I don't like kimchi either. I've not tried to do anything with kefir grains yet but I'm thinking about it. I grew up w/ my dad making those fermented vegetable and he always tried to get me to eat them, never liked them.

Eventually I'll start grinding my own almonds into meal and/or flour.

Well it's funny you said that because I've looked a the other support groups and even in the book it's so strict. That's why I was like holy cow I don't know how I'm gonna do this with my daughter, she's 3 and her diet is already so limited. You know what though, sticking with the diet makes a whole world of difference for me! First of all I no longer crave sugar like I used to, that itself is amazing! LOL, I used to be a sugar addict, I ate tons of candy, drank soda, I mean name it. I did go through a really bad withdrawal with the sugar but now I'm fine w/out it. And like I said I'm no longer pre-diabetic and also my blood pressure is now normal, not high like it was before. The dramatic improvements were my GI symptoms.

I used to make coconut yogurt, I bought a dairy-free yogurt starter, expensive but it was great yogurt. I have a yogurt maker. However I kind of want to do the goat milk too as suggested and before I only cured the yogurt for 12 hrs, this time it has to be 24 hrs. I react to the casein, this is a huge problem for me, a real bummer.

I am a real health nut so I make most of the foods we eat from scratch, I only buy organic meats, veggies, everything so don't have to worry about that. I take a bunch of supplements they seem to be ok with the SCD, they don't contain any of the forbidden stuff.

Where do you get your almonds? I need one that is certified gluten-free. My sis bought me one fr Trader Joes and it says it's processed in shared equipment, I don't even want to take a risk with that. The ones at Whole Foods are the same, processed equipment.

Thanks!

I am so glad to hear the scd diet is helping you so much. Bravo for you! Given your family history with your dad's concoctions, you probably aren't the only ones in your genetic lineup to have this and similar conditions. though honestly the standard american diet is not very good for anyone...and does create cravings for carbs and sugars.

As far as being strict with the scd diet, well I think it all depends on how well the diet works for you. If it does, fine. If there are glitches you need to adjust. The book was written for this woman's daughter in mind who had a specific intestinal condition which is not the same as celiac.

The TJ bags of raw almonds my bf has says its made on same equipment as other tree nuts, not wheat etc. I'd still wash them though. I don't know more than that since I am allergic to all nuts as said...and haven't really looked into it. The raw sunflower seeds and raw pumpkin seeds from TJs seem fine. Nevertheless I would check out sources on the internet if you have any problems with TJ's or WF. I am betting you could order a bag from a grower if needs be. You could also check out the source of the scd almond meal perhaps.

I would be interested in your coconut yogurt recipe for a friend of mine who also has celiac and is going off milk.

If you are truly casein intolerant then any milk is probably not so great. Though I do recall goats milk casein being a little different so you never know. For me actually I am More allergic to goats milk so go figure. I also seem to be allergic to goat and sheep meat...as well as tuna.

With us folks who have celiac or severe gluten intolerance the problem is usually having too many "holes" in the intestines causing leaky gut syndrome, not that there aren't enough. We actually in my opinion sometimes need these so called "gucky substances" to help our intestines heal if we have just been "glutened" (such as marshmallow root and/or slippery elm--both strictly non scd by the way!!). For celiacs our auto immune reacts to gluten; it attacks the villi and basically either flatten or destroys them which then causes inflammation which makes the whole thing worse. Marshmallow root and slippery elm take down the inflammation and soothe the intestines. Once healed enough one can go off them. The gluten attack and resultant flattened villi and inflammation creates some scar tissue yes but overall creates too much permeability in the intestinal membrane. This then allows undigested proteins into the blood stream which our bodies then treat as foreign invaders, creating inflammation. This then creates toxicity and blockages in the liver and the lymphatic system. When this happens I get out my trusty herbs like dandelion root and cleavers to the rescue as well as marshmallow root, acidophilous and a variety of other things.

Oh I am rambling. Sorry.

Meanwhile i am very glad you are finding things that are working for you and your daughter.

For myself I am an inveterate inquisitive and doubter of all things truly fixed. I like structure, but am inclined to play with it to see what is real or not and what does or does not work for me.

I thus combine things I learned from scd with the paleo diet and my own experience and those of others I have observed, which can improve and change over time...

Bea

It also creates and environment where it is very difficult to absorb basic oil soluble nutrients like vitamins b, d, a and e and the like as well as most minerals. B vitamin absorption also becomes difficult I think in part due to the liver being so overwhelmed--which is why I take co-enzyme B vitamins since they absorb into the blood stream right away (on an empty stomach), thus by passing the need to go through the liver.

[precious831]

I am so glad to hear the scd diet is helping you so much. Bravo for you! Given your family history with your dad's concoctions, you probably aren't the only ones in your genetic lineup to have this and similar conditions. though honestly the standard american diet is not very good for anyone...and does create cravings for carbs and sugars.

As far as being strict with the scd diet, well I think it all depends on how well the diet works for you. If it does, fine. If there are glitches you need to adjust. The book was written for this woman's daughter in mind who had a specific intestinal condition which is not the same as celiac.

The TJ bags of raw almonds my bf has says its made on same equipment as other tree nuts, not wheat etc. I'd still wash them though. I don't know more than that since I am allergic to all nuts as said...and haven't really looked into it. The raw sunflower seeds and raw pumpkin seeds from TJs seem fine. Nevertheless I would check out sources on the internet if you have any problems with TJ's or WF. I am betting you could order a bag from a grower if needs be. You could also check out the source of the scd almond meal perhaps.

I would be interested in your coconut yogurt recipe for a friend of mine who also has celiac and is going off milk.

If you are truly casein intolerant then any milk is probably not so great. Though I do recall goats milk casein being a little different so you never know. For me actually I am More allergic to goats milk so go figure. I also seem to be allergic to goat and sheep meat...as well as tuna.

With us folks who have celiac or severe gluten intolerance the problem is usually having too many "holes" in the intestines causing leaky gut syndrome, not that there aren't enough. We actually in my opinion sometimes need these so called "gucky substances" to help our intestines heal if we have just been "glutened" (such as marshmallow root and/or slippery elm--both strictly non scd by the way!!). For celiacs our auto immune reacts to gluten; it attacks the villi and basically either flatten or destroys them which then causes inflammation which makes the whole thing worse. Marshmallow root and slippery elm take down the inflammation and soothe the intestines. Once healed enough one can go off them. The gluten attack and resultant flattened villi and inflammation creates some scar tissue yes but overall creates too much permeability in the intestinal membrane. This then allows undigested proteins into the blood stream which our bodies then treat as foreign invaders, creating inflammation. This then creates toxicity and blockages in the liver and the lymphatic system. When this happens I get out my trusty herbs like dandelion root and cleavers to the rescue as well as marshmallow root, acidophilous and a variety of other things.

Oh I am rambling. Sorry.

Meanwhile i am very glad you are finding things that are working for you and your daughter.

For myself I am an inveterate inquisitive and doubter of all things truly fixed. I like structure, but am inclined to play with it to see what is real or not and what does or does not work for me.

I thus combine things I learned from scd with the paleo diet and my own experience and those of others I have observed, which can improve and change over time...

Bea

It also creates and environment where it is very difficult to absorb basic oil soluble nutrients like vitamins b, d, a and e and the like as well as most minerals. B vitamin absorption also becomes difficult I think in part due to the liver being so overwhelmed--which is why I take co-enzyme B vitamins since they absorb into the blood stream right away (on an empty stomach), thus by passing the need to go through the liver.

Thanks for all the info, I'll look for the coconut yogurt, it's been a while since I made it. I actually got it off someone's site so it's not really my recipe. It was really easy to make.

I'm changing GI drs because the last one is no help really,we disagree on a lot of stuff. He said I might have "ulcerative colitis" he did the colonoscopy and wants to do it again to make sure. I just got it done and I'm not about to go get it done again! I hope the new GI is better.

I don't know yet about SCD and my DD, like I said she hasn't tried it yet, it's just me doing it.

[T.H.]

A very sensitive celiac I know buys her nuts on-line from either anuts.com or nutsonline.com

I have yet to try these, and I believe they are unshelled (?), but she seems to have success with these ones.

[precious831]

A very sensitive celiac I know buys her nuts on-line from either anuts.com or nutsonline.com

I have yet to try these, and I believe they are unshelled (?), but she seems to have success with these ones.

Thanks, one of them sounds familiar and I have it bookmarked.

[WheatChef]

I feel good too except for this darn condition of flaky ears and part of my nethers. It gets worse if I eat any fruit it seems, even lemons--not to speak of grains and anything really starchy.

This sounds almost entirely like a yeast infection, have you been tested?

[YoloGx]

This sounds almost entirely like a yeast infection, have you been tested?

I have been tested though its been a while since I was. Supposedly I don't have candida overgrowth. Its hard to believe since I also get gunk on my tongue in the morning when I have eaten an offending item. I thus have treated myself for fungal infection using herbs from time to time as well as topical creams. I was treated with nystatin years ago by a rather decent AMA doc. down in San Diego (though I also went on a "cave man" diet at the time). And also lefenuron more recently--which helped my tongue but did not do the complete thing with my ears etc.

However even more recently I have found vitamin C is also a culprit.

Many moons ago a naturopath told me I was allergic to fructose--he did muscle testing using vials of various things... which of course I did not want to believe. I really should have listened to him. I did on other items, but I thought the fruit thing was going too far. I went on eating fruit for a long time but eventually it seems it may have caught up. So... am thinking it may be more of an allergy to all fruit and vit. C with some fungal overtones since sugars are a definite no too.

Some years ago I reacted badly to carrots so I avoid that family too. It is a true allergy with welts (if I eat them often enough) plus more commonly causes mental confusion and depression.

I should go on a complete elimination diet (i.e., no food for five days before reintroducing foods one at a time every other day) but hate to do that due to weak kidneys and a bad experience in that regard years ago. So I've just been doing trials by avoiding and keeping my diet simple and then reintroduce what I think may be the offending element. Early last week I went without lemons (as well as avoiding the sugars and fruit and starchy stuff) for instance and then reintroduced a lemon and the flakiness reappeared in spades. I thought lemons would be OK but this does not bode well for that thought...

Am also avoiding tomatoes and potatoes--since I could also have an allergy to the nightshade family--like my dad did. If so, I might need to avoid peppers too though I hate to... Am still playing with that possibility. I had peppers in some stew I made last night. I had my bf add in his tomatoes separately. I got some flakiness, though it could also be the fact I had a little brown rice yesterday. I should avoid both and reintroduce one item at a time later on.

What a bother, but having this condition could otherwise become serious since it degrades my skin in places that could get bacterial infections.

At least I am not allergic to pollen like some members of my family.

Another naturopath tested me a few years ago and told me I have difficulty absorbing Vit. B1. So I take co-enzyme B vitamins--which have helped a lot since, within two weeks, the con-enzyme B's stopped my heart from racing etc.

Despite all, my body seems to manufacture plenty of vit. C from all the veggies I eat... Just makes for a less than inspiring diet at times... Thank heavens for fresh spices and herbs--and a good ability to improvise--like with the sunflower seeds and zucchini.

I saw a regular AMA doc about a year ago concerning my ears and he gave me antibiotics that really knocked me out and made me quite ill last Fall. He seemed to have a nice personality but the effect of his treatment was disastrous.

I have had very bad luck with the AMA and at this point overall just try to stay away from them unless I get a kidney infection that needs antibiotics--which fortunately at this point rarely happens. Usually if my kidneys act up I successfully treat them with herbs and diet...which is what I have been doing successfully for years.

The last time they acted up badly was when I first went off all trace gluten and got CC several times in the spring of 2008. I contracted a bacterial infection that went into my lungs and then progressed to my kidneys. I seem to be one of those celiacs that gets inflammation in my respiratory system and kidneys from gluten if it happens often enough. My herbs helped somewhat but just couldn't get rid of the infection entirely. So yes then the antibiotics were a great help and saved me from crossing over in an untimely fashion...

I have been told I should have a regular care from a doctor, but I have yet to find one that really can understand my condition--or even wants to. I have at various times been called "too sensitive" even by that naturopath who called himself a health detective and gave me stuff that had gluten in it to detox. Go figure! This was after I told him I might have celiac. Unfortunately I didn't realize that the things he was giving me were making me ill until several months passed. He ended up not liking me I was told. Well, I didn't particularly like what he did to me although some of the lab tests he had done were helpful and I am grateful at least for that since he was the one that discovered I am low on B1.

So over the years I have gleaned what I could from various healing professionals. I now as said just avoid them in general when I can... and have become my own best doctor and overall am in great condition--whereas the opposite was the case when I was younger. I am experiencing the blessing of having a very healthy and vital beginning of my sixties. I just have this flakiness that at this point comes and goes. That is good news since it seems I will be able to treat it by learning what I am allergic to and avoiding the offending items. Sometimes this is what we have to do--heal ourselves in spite of the limited medical system out there when it comes to celiac, sensitivities, and allergies...

Bea

[WheatChef]

Best of luck with the peppers issue, losing those too would certainly be rough. I mentioned yeast infection largely because I was experiencing the same flaky ear thing along with around the corners of my nose, my elbows, knee caps and bottom of my feet. I treated it for some time with miconazole and initially experienced a severe herxheimer reaction most markedly in my ears. I think that reaction is most noticeable there because of the decreased circulation of the ear which was slightly helped out by frequent massage/rubbing/stretching of the cartilage. Unfortunately even when the severity of it started to diminish I ended up right back where I started once I discontinued use of the fungicides. The flare-ups ended up being directly linked to days of high carbohydrate consumption. So far I'm on week 2 of that "cave man" diet and even without the fungicides the severity of the flaking is greatly diminishing.

[YoloGx]

Best of luck with the peppers issue, losing those too would certainly be rough. I mentioned yeast infection largely because I was experiencing the same flaky ear thing along with around the corners of my nose, my elbows, knee caps and bottom of my feet. I treated it for some time with miconazole and initially experienced a severe herxheimer reaction most markedly in my ears. I think that reaction is most noticeable there because of the decreased circulation of the ear which was slightly helped out by frequent massage/rubbing/stretching of the cartilage. Unfortunately even when the severity of it started to diminish I ended up right back where I started once I discontinued use of the fungicides. The flare-ups ended up being directly linked to days of high carbohydrate consumption. So far I'm on week 2 of that "cave man" diet and even without the fungicides the severity of the flaking is greatly diminishing.

Am glad to hear the cave man diet is working for you. It mostly does for me too -- its just that it is complicated by allergies which I also seem to have. Years ago I used to get cracking around my lips and the outside top and bottom of my ears. I think that was both allergies and malabsorption of minerals and vitamins caused by celiac etc.

The flaking in my nethers is probably more subject to problems due to scar tissue from an accident involving scalding hot apple cider when I was a kid (it fell in my lap and I got a nasty burn there on one side).

The ear thing can drive one a little batty. So I am glad to hear (lol!) someone else is getting good results on the cave man diet. I also throw in a few pointers from the scd and thus avoid winter squash for the most part and instead rely on summer squash etc. And eat the 24 hour yogurt. You get the picture.

Unfortunately like what you experienced the fungicides seem to be of limited use. They are hard on a body to take and then the effect doesn't last. You might want to look into lefenuron. It changes the fungi so they no long have a chitonous shell and are thus easier to kill afterwards using more natural methods. My bf found out about it online. I tried it this summer and it has helped overall with internal fungi problems though not so much with the ear thing. The same people have another product called pythium oligandrum. Its supposed to be very good against foot and elbow fungi. It helped me somewhat but again I still have to avoid the carbs and the things I am allergic to. I need to pack my ears with cotton drenched with the liquid (water mixed with the pythium oligandrum) again for three nights. It was a bother to do the first time but I have to admit it really helped for a while.

Bottom line--there seems to be no magic pill. Exercise and diet remain the best treatments. And using herbs like olive leaf and oregano oil and garlic etc. long term seems best.

Bea

[Mari]

I've been using the SCD for about 2 years and it has been helpful. The book gave me a better understanding of the problems as I have both celiac disease and Leaky Gut Syndrome. I can add a few of the grains for a short time but then begin reacting again. People who suspect or know they have gall stones or bile insufficiency are warned not to use stevia. I don't tolerate goat's milk very well so only use kefir occasionally for the probiotics. I can tolerate sprouted quinona and am going to try out sprouted grains sometime.

[precious831]

I've been using the SCD for about 2 years and it has been helpful. The book gave me a better understanding of the problems as I have both celiac disease and Leaky Gut Syndrome. I can add a few of the grains for a short time but then begin reacting again. People who suspect or know they have gall stones or bile insufficiency are warned not to use stevia. I don't tolerate goat's milk very well so only use kefir occasionally for the probiotics. I can tolerate sprouted quinona and am going to try out sprouted grains sometime.

Do you know when you're supposed to introduce other nuts? I can't seem to find that in the book. Thanks.

[jenngolightly]

Do you know when you're supposed to introduce other nuts? I can't seem to find that in the book. Thanks.

I've been on the SCD diet for 7 months and follow it strictly (no cheating). Even after 2.5 years gluten-free, I had severe reactions to food and couldn't figure out the culprits because I randomly got sick, so I decided to do the diet and eliminate everything and then add 1 thing back every 4 days. I feel wonderful! Like you, I had a major junk-food addiction which has now disappeared. That was a shock for me because I never thought I could go without chocolate.

I'm committed to the diet for a year, then will introduce the most common offending foods. Funny thing about the diet - I've found that I can't tolerate strawberries, grapes, Parmesan cheese, and pineapple. I would never know that if I didn't follow the diet to a T.

Here are some resources for you:

Open Original Shared Link (good for introducing a child to SCD - also gives suggestions on introducing foods into the diet)

Open Original Shared Link (great recipes! and a legal/illegal list of foods - also has a bunch of links to other SCD sites)

[cahill]

I know this is an older thread, but I am hoping that someone can help me out and answer a question or two for me ,,,

For those who can NOT tolerate dairy ,,, can you tolerate regular yogurt and /or kefir??

I am truly not sure what I can tolerate any more, I seem to react to everything.

I believe I have a yeast thing going on,,, white on the back of my tongue and burning in the back of my throat,,I have an appointment with my doctor on Thursday,, if she prescribes medication (( what do they prescribe for yeast?? ) should I start a SCD diet then or wait until after the course of medication??

What happens when the yeast dies off?? How will my body react ??

[cahill]

This sounds almost entirely like a yeast infection, have you been tested?

How do they test for an yeast infection ??