Plant based diet.

[TommoHFC]

Hi all hope you are all well. I don't post very often but I do read your posts daily.

Do many of you eat a plant based diet ?

And if so in what way has it affected you ?

Thank you in advance for your comments.

[10gingercats]

My diet is primarily plant based e.g c 80% and with little bread....I am gluten intolerant but do not keep to it 100%.This 'diet' keeps my good weight down even a a little more and thankfully i am untroubled by my perm. Afib. for which i do take Apixaban and verapamil.So lots of fruit and veg,some gluten free grains and g. free breads, a little fish and almost no meat keeps me pretty ok.I exercise reg. and walk well.Is this the info. you are asking about?

[researchx in reply to 10gingercats]

Hi there gingercats.just curious how you know its gluten.what does it do to you?there is a lot of info now mentioning its not gluten most people are sensitive but the sugar in the wheat called fructans.just in case you want to check it out!!

[10gingercats in reply to researchx]

I developed Dermatitis Herpetiformis about 10 years ago. I do not wish it on my worst enemy.This is a gluten intolerance 'disease' in the same family as coeliac disease.I had blood checks and an endoscopy with the 'top' guy locally.Fortunately, I do not suffer much from the coeliac element and as for the Derm.Herpet. that went away with treatment....can come back.because I do not suffer,much, with the C. I take liberties with bread!I should 100% gluten free.

[researchx in reply to 10gingercats]

wow-what a relief you got a dx.never heard of it! you are lucky to have that top guy as your dr.I looked at pictures-it looks like a lot like shingles

[10gingercats in reply to researchx]

NO! forget shingles, or chickenpox!The blisters were huge and everywhere, even on the soles of my feet!

[researchx in reply to 10gingercats]

sounds awful....yours must be even a rarer type-the picts I see online are tiny bumps.theres even more things that can happen with gluten problems, like gluten ataxia which is very rare as well.take care 10gingercats!

[Elbows]

I’m on a plant based diet and highly recommend it for good health.

nutritionfacts.org/

[TommoHFC in reply to Elbows]

Yes thanks for your comments.

I'm struggling with my diet at the present time. I do need to shed some weight.

I'm also diabetic and have p afib. Ithink I'm been a fool to myself if I don't do it.

[TommoHFC in reply to TommoHFC]

Thanks for the link elbows,will spend some time researching.

10 gingercats you say 80% do you have any other types of meat other than fish ?

[10gingercats in reply to TommoHFC]

Very little meat.So a small piece of chicken or a small slice of ham,perhaps once a week.Fish c once every 10 days or so.I drink milk and eat cheese .

[doodle68]

Hi Tommo I am on a mainly plant based diet with some dairy and fish.

Since choosing this lifstyle change I have lost weight, feel better and my P-AF remains stable at roughly one episode (of which I am aware) a month.

[TommoHFC]

Thanks doodle68.

I think I've got to sort myself out and have a go at this way of life.

I currently seem to be getting an episode every 7 or 8 days.

I do struggle with food, I gave up alcohol on new year eve no problem.

[willec49]

I’ve only eaten fish and some fowl and no red meat for the past 35 years or so. After my Afib Dx last year, I set about to lose weight. I now buy fresh vegetables every week and steam them. Now I just eat some fish or chicken, the vegetables, maybe a bit of sweet potato, and fruit. That’s mostly it. I’ve lost 40 lbs and am now just about at normal weight. I feel 100% better.

[Hidden]

Yes pretty much although if I eat out I may have some red meat but that's about once every 6 weeks ! What I never have is processed food so no ready meals, takeaways (Mcdonalds etc, mainly disgusting anyway) , some people say going organic helps as well but it will up your food bill !

[Jans5]

My advice would be if you are planning on changing your diet to take it gradually. I changed my diet increasing plant protein, increasing veg and fruit intake to the 10 portions recommended, unfortunately I ended up with gastritis and IBS made worse by the tablets they gave me to supposedly year it. It then took me over a year to rebalance my digestive system and I have gone back down to the five a day and cut back on the plant protein as it appears my body doesn't cope with it. I now rarely eat red meat but, but that's the only restriction I just eat smaller quantities of everything, lots of different veg but don't try but smaller servings and have managed to keep the weight off. I have found that the losing weight rather than what I eat I what has made me feel better. My episodes have remained stable since I was diagnosed 3 years ago. So what I eat doesn't seem to be the issue although I do try to eat healthily to avoid co morbidities. Also didn't drink coffee for 2 years but have started drinking it again a year ago and my episodes have in fact been shorter.

[TommoHFC]

Thank you all for your input. I will really need to give it a go.......

[CJDa]

Hi. I wish you well for making changes to your diet and agree that gradual changes would be best. I have eaten mainly vegetarian for years. With the recent support of an Ayurvedic Practitioner I've lost weight, cook most plant based, low carb meals from scratch and aim for the food to be delicious. It is harder when going out but most places can cook something to specific requests. My proteins are eggs, organic tofu and fish. Making the lifestyle changes of losing weight & being more active has greatly reduced the burden of PAF. But you have to have a long term view. I know I feel better for eating fresh foods which I digest easily. I'm also gluten intolerant and avoid dairy so a degree of creativity is needed. I do think it's hard to do on your own. Best wishes

[TommoHFC]

Thanks for your reply CJDa..

[jeanjeannie50]

Yes, I'm on a mainly plant based diet. I do have a little meat and fish at times and try my best not to eat anything that has artificial additives. No bought, cakes or biscuits etc., but eat lots of fruit and nuts (no salt in them). This has certainly decreased my AF attacks.

Jean

[Rbyy]

Hello. I have been on a pbd for over one year. Many benefits including more energy, cholesterol and glucose numbers lower and normal now and others. I started for over all health reasons and after researching what eating meat and dairy actually does to the body. A pbd can really help your heart health. Its not for everyone but the science is so strong that eating less meat and dairy and eating more plants nuts seeds and legumes is very good for your health and longevity. Hope that helps.

[Ianc2]

Sugar in a plant based food but I avoid it totally if I can, but it is surprising what food manufacturers can cram it into, under a variety of different names. Some 'healthy' fruit drinks contain a good amount of fructose which is sugar under another name. The NHS balanced diet has a lot to be said for it.

[TommoHFC]

Cardiologist said to loose weight as it may help. It can't do any harm.

[jwsonoma]

Hi,

I have been a card carring vegan for about 3 years. Mostly vegitarian for about 30.

How ever the word "mostly" really means I was not a vegitarian I just tried to limit animal product consumption.

My wife and I go through 10 lbs of potatoes a week. Rice is the other staple. We are both in our 60's and our BMIs are in the low 20s.

I found giving up cheese was the hardest thing to quit and that took a couple of years.

The biggest impacts of being plant based is you eventually get skinny and the less weight you carry the less stress on the heart. You BP drops, if your diet is also low fat your arteries unclog. Throw in moderate exercise and no alcohol and you will have a longer (and possibly more boring) life.

We live in California and probably have more motivation than those in the UK. USA meat and dairy is full of antibiotics, growth hormones, and bioaccumilated pesticides. Yum.

I think the secret to eliminating meat and dairy is to find non meat/dairy dishes that you find tasty and slowly switch out. If you are determined to go vegan I would give your self a couple years not cold turkey.

Check out Dr. John McDougall

drmcdougall.com/health/educ...

[TommoHFC]

How do you decide it's chronic ?

I have an episode about every 7 to 10 days. Lasting 6 to 12 hours and when in AF it's no big problem just feel a little lethargic.

I'm self employed and can't afford to have 8 to 10 weeks with no income.

I do seem to go longer between episode's if I eat well and less....

[TommoHFC]

Thank you for your input jwsonoma.

I will try and gradually transfer over to a much healthier lifestyle.

[TommoHFC]

I've been led to believe by people on this site that you can't do anything for 2 weeks. Then take it steady for 4 to 6 weeks after that.

Total healing time 3 to 6 months ????

[TommoHFC]

Thanks for all your comments I wil take them all into consideration

[Roto]

I've been a none meat eater for 25+ years...it didn't stop me getting Afib or prostate cancer...no medical person has told me that there is a confirmed link between the two..IMO if you have a balanced diet carry on until your told not to...

[Hidden]

Plant based diet keeps sugars out of your diet (mostly - fruits have LOTS of sugar, as does carrots, peas, etc.). Here is what I found:

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After 9 years of trying different foods and logging EVERYTHING I ate, I found sugar (and to a lesser degree, salt – i.e. dehydration) was triggering my Afib. Doctors don't want to hear this - there is no money in telling patients to eat less sugar. Each person has a different sugar threshold - and it changes as you get older, so you need to count every gram of sugar you eat every day (including natural sugars in fruits, etc.). My tolerance level was 190 grams of sugar per day 8 years ago, 85 grams a year and a half ago, and 60 grams today, so AFIB episodes are more frequent and last longer. If you keep your intake of sugar below your threshold level your AFIB will not happen again (easier said than done of course). It's not the food - it's the sugar (or salt - see below) IN the food that's causing your problems. Try it and you will see - should only take you 1 or 2 months of trial-and-error to find your threshold level. And for the record - ALL sugars are treated the same (honey, refined, agave, natural sugars in fruits, etc.). I successfully triggered AFIB by eating a bunch of plums and peaches one day just to test it out. In addition, I have noticed that moderate exercise (7-mile bike ride or 5-mile hike in the park) often puts my Afib heart back in to normal rhythm a couple hours later. Don’t know why – perhaps you burn off the excess sugars in your blood/muscles or sweat out excess salt??

Also, in addition to sugar, if you are dehydrated - this will trigger AFIB as well. It seems (but I have no proof of this) that a little uptick of salt in your blood is being treated the same as an uptick of sugar - both cause AFIB episodes. (I’m not a doctor – it may be the sugar in your muscles/organs and not in your blood, don’t know). In any case you have to keep hydrated, and not eat too much salt. The root problem is that our bodies are not processing sugar/salt properly and no doctor knows why, but the AFIB seems to be a symptom of this and not the primary problem, but medicine is not advanced enough to know the core reason that causes AFIB at this time. You can have a healthy heart and still have Afib – something inside us is triggering it when we eat too much sugar or get (even a little) dehydrated. Find out the core reason for this and you will be a millionaire and make the cover of Time Magazine! Good luck! - Rick Hyer