We did a super speedy version of the GAPS intro diet in two weeks in October. Now we've been on the full GAPS diet for an additional month. I've had die-off symptoms pretty much this whole time -- mostly increased heart rate and a tickley sensation in my upper chest. But it seems like that's finally going away. I'm hoping that means that I've reached the end of getting rid of the bad guys and I'm moving into seeing some improvement with the help of the good guys. The girls, on the other hand, are convinced that the diet has led to increased acne. I'm hoping that's just a die-off symptom as well and that they'll soon have clearer skin. Here's to hopin' anyway. If their acne continues to worsen, I fear there'll be a mutiny and they'll go off the diet entirely. That wouldn't be the end of the world, but it's easier on me when we're all on the same diet page.
Although I miss bready stuff once in awhile, for the most part I think we've been appreciating all the healthy, fresh foods we've been getting. I've slowly been adding a few new dishes into our repertoire. As I refine them to a point where I like them, I try to post them here, though I notice I've mostly only been posting snacky/desserty things. Meals have mostly been the boring meat, veggie, veggie variety or something along those lines. I made BBQ ribs tonight for dinner. I found the recipe for the sauce on
Journey to Food that Gives Life. We still miss having easy snacks on hand to eat. For the most part the quickie snacks are homemade yogurt (but Nathan is mostly staying off dairy, so that's out for him), panna cotta (no one likes the version without sour cream so again, this one's out for Nathan), fresh fruit, eggs, muffins (no one seems to like them after day one), and cookies (almond raisin or snickerdoodle so far). I miss the days of grabbing a box of cereal and milk and chowing down on an easy bowl of cereal or granola.
Since starting the GAPS diet I've watched a few videos from the
GMO Summit and a few from the
Gluten Summit. One of my struggles with the concept of a grain free diet is that people have been living on grains for thousands and thousands of years. Why is a no grain diet suddenly better for us? If Jesus ate bread, why shouldn't we? But according to some of the speakers I listened to, wheat today is very different than the wheat of 50 years ago. I'd like to hear more on how, exactly, it's different, and why we can't just go back to growing the old stuff again. If there's a version of wheat out there that didn't use to cause problems, then I would think there would be a market to start growing that grain again, even just as a niche sort of thing. According to one speaker, however, once your body has built up antibodies for any type of grain (most notably for the kind that's popularly grown today) there's no turning back. You can't even go back to the old kind of wheat. But then wouldn't we want to feed the old kind to our kids? And why, when people go to Europe, do they notice a difference when they eat the bread there? Doesn't that mean there's hope that we could eat wheat again? ... All of this to say that I'm left with more questions than answers. Suffice it to say that between GMOs screwing with things and altered genetics through nonGMO means have led to a poisoning of our food supply. And most people are shoving those poisons into their bodies at an alarming rate. That alone is enough to keep me on this diet (or something similar) for the foreseeable future.
The photos shown here are of various breakfasts over the last week or two. We always have one egg, plus something on the side, usually fruit (mostly because it's easy).
Top photo: fried egg, fresh banana and tangerine
Second photo: one egg omelette, half a kiwi fruit, and pumpkin pancakes with honey
Third photo: fried egg, fried bananas, homemade sour cream
Fourth photo: one egg omelette, cantaloupe and pomegranate seeds
Daily pills: Nathan has a few that he takes that the rest of us don't including zinc picolinate (but when I looked up the spelling just now I saw that it apparently is good for acne, so maybe I'll have the girls start taking it, too), L Theanine, and Lemon Balm. All of us take
Bio-Kult probiotic, an Omega 3 pill with more EPA than DHA,
fermented cod liver oil, and an additional probiotic called
Optima by Nature's Way.
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