1 Month of 85% Healthy Stools Since Joining This Discussion

[Smiley]

I am deeply grateful to all of you for your help. When I joined one month ago, I immediately started the BRAT diet, and for the next two weeks, I had healthy BMs, except for one day when I tried celery Juice and lemon water. I stopped those and quickly bounced right back. Since that first two-week period, I have included new items and have had some loose stools. Never watery, and always a very thick consistency, and this would last for a day or two, with one or two loose stools each day, and then I would recover while still consuming the food item. And I am continuing to consume the food items that I added, except for one.

Here's what I consume daily:
Sweet and ripe bananas
Brown, 100% whole rice
Raw, with skin, applesauce made in our Vita-mix
Gluten-free toast
Steamed potatoes
Raw un-soaked almond butter https://www.luckyvitamin.com/p-1051774- ... %20Product
Olive oil
Grapes
Oatmeal, rolled oats cooked normally
Miso

I mentioned that after I introduce a new food item, I sometimes, but not always, have one or two super thick stools instead of solid, and then I recover in a day or two. So here's my question: After I start a new food and get the thick stools, how long should I wait before I stop ingesting that food? Does it sometimes take a week? Should I make certain that I consume all of the foods on my good list during the day for a couple of days to ensure that they all work together before adding a new item?

What a glorious feeling to have 85% excellent extractions after having 99% runny stools for four years. And all I had to do was join this board!!

I would love some feedback on my questions. What has your experience been while adding new foods?

Thank you!

[tex]

Hi Smiley,

It sounds as though you're doing well, despite the fact that you continue to eat oats, a food that virtually all of the rest of us find to be inflammatory, due to the digestion of oats resulting in certain peptides that are very similar to some of the reactive peptides in wheat. Your body has apparently developed a tolerance for oats. This is not uncommon. I, myself, can eat dairy products without any digestive issues, despite the fact that my immune system produces antibodies to them. But if I continue to eat dairy products, the casein in them will cause me to develop osteoarthritis. So I totally avoid dairy products. So please remember that diarrhea is not the only symptom of food sensitivities — it's just one of several possibilities. And if we ignore any of these food sensitivities, we're at a greatly increased risk of developing additional autoimmune diseases in the future.

Usually, when testing a new food, a reaction to that food will show up by the end of the third day, if the food is not safe.

If you react to a food, then before testing another food, allow your system to clean out for a few days before testing another. You don't necessarily have to eat all your safe foods, just don't eat any unsafe or untested foods.

I hope this helps,

Tex

[brandy]

Now when I eat problem foods (generally contaminated) my first symptoms are knee pain in my right knee.

I generally live a pain free life.

If you eat oats make sure you get oats that are tested and labeled GF due to frequent contamination.

[Smiley]

Thanks so much, tex. I will keep an eye on things.

Another question if I may: I've noticed that with some of the newly added foods I get a reaction (loose, thick stool, but not watery.) This lasts for maybe a day or two. But if I keep eating the new food, after three or four days my stool returns to normal. When I add new food and get a reaction, how many days should I wait before I throw in the towel?

[tex]

Normally, for most of us, when introducing a new food, if that food doesn't trigger a reaction within three days (eating it every day), it can be considered to be safe. But in your case, it sounds as though the first time you eat a new food, your digestive system is not quite producing enough of the correct enzyme, or enzymes to completely digest it. But as you continue to eat it, your digestive system is able to increase the production of those enzymes enough that after a few days, it can properly digest that particular food. At least, I get the impression that's what's happening.

Tex

[Smiley]

Howdy, tex,

Yes, your knowledge, experience, and caring are shining brightly, my friend, because that is precisely what is happening. And as I mentioned, it has happened with most of the new foods that I introduce. Currently, the same trend is occurring with my introduction of Greens (watercress, collards, kale, etc.) and Lettuce (various kinds) four days ago. The first two days, I had the usual new-food reaction (loose, but not watery, thick stool) and I held back on the amount of greens and lettuce that I ate. But yesterday and today, I decided to go for it and have eaten a lot of greens and lettuce and have had two days of all-solid BMs. I am recovering (recovered?) from the food's introduction.

So, what's next? I worry about when to introduce another new food after having successful BMs. How many days of solid should I have before I add another food?

[tex]

We're all different, so it's difficult to say when anyone is ready to introduce new foods, and which ones to try. If you're having almost all failures, it may be too soon to be introducing new foods, especially raw vegetables. Most of us need to heal for a few months before we can do that. Many of us have to heal about two years or more, before we can eat raw salads. But as I said, were all different, so we all heal at different rates. Intestinal damage heals slowly. Young people can heal in less than a year, but it takes most older adults from 2 to 5 years to accomplish that.

Tex