Update On My Response To A Casein-Free Diet

[tex]

If you have been keeping up with my latest "experiment", you probably recall that I suspected that casein was causing me to develop increasingly worse arthritis. After I cut casein, (IOW, all dairy products and derivatives), completely out of my diet, the benefits weren't immediately obvious. After a few days had passed, however, my arthritis seemed to be significantly reduced. Now that a few weeks have passed, my arthritis is pretty much nothing but a bitter memory.

I'm amazed at the difference. Before, I sometimes had trouble doing something as simple as closing my fingers to make a fist. I could bend my fingers only very slowly, and to completely close them tightly into a fist, I had to squeeze them into place with my other hand. That's no exaggeration. I had trouble climbing stairs, and climbing up onto tractors and other equipment, because of knee and hip stiffness.

Now, that's all gone. I'm just as flexible as I ever was, and, of course, the pain is all gone.

I believe that Joanna was right about the D, though. It didn't stop, just because I stopped eating casein. As she pointed out, sugar seems to be a big factor. As long as I don't overdo the sugar, I have normal BMs. If I eat a little too much sugar, though, D is the order of the day. I'm not sure whether to add it to my list of intolerances, though, since small amounts don't seem to be a problem. It's only a problem if I surpass a certain threshold.

Tex

[harvest_table]

Tex,

Wow, this is great! Glad to hear you have found more freedom with your limbs, especially since your probably climbing into tractors and silos during your work day. Thats a work out when your stiff.

Giving up dairy products also makes me feel so much better as far as stiffness and mobility. I had such muscle and joint pain before my DX that I could hardly move too, but I think the combination of Pred/Entocort and diet brought me out of that for good. Maintaining on a DF diet is working very well.

As far as sugars (also processed foods) I don't think that they should be a daily part our diets -they are non foods. We certainly don't need them to feed our body, but ice cream is good isn't it?

Great news!

Merry Christmas.
Love,
Joanna

[tex]

but ice cream is good isn't it?

LOL. Yes it is. That's the the thing I miss the most, on a DF diet. <sigh>

Thanks for your input, and Merry Christmas to you, too.

Love,
Tex

[starfire]

So glad you have seen such a remarkable improvement!!!

Love, Shirley

[Polly]

Good news Tex!

In my case, I also found that stopping dairy relieved the aches and pains. I used to get out of bed in the morning, stiff and "creaky" and had chalked it up to "normal" aging. However, once off the dairy, no further problems. That was more than about 7 years ago and the reason I always say I feel much younger than I used to. Glad to hear about your success!

Love,

Polly

[MaggieRedwings]

HI Tex,

Was waiting to reply to this post since I was watching how I was doing. I have finally decided that other than a bit of cheese every now and then casein really affects me. Wonder if it affects the ears? LOL too easy of a solution.

Christmas in our family was always oyster stew on the Eve of Christmas. This past weekend I made a seafood stew and used milk, cream and butter and have definitely paid the price this week. It was super scrumptous but the dairy killed me and added to aches, pains and the big D.

Am with you and Polly now on the casein free diet.

Love, Maggie