Lasting relief from the Low Chemical Diet

[Graham3196]

Diet News.

Sorry if you are tired of hearing about this.

As you know I have been lucky to get relief through diets.

I adopted the FODMAP diet and got (say) 80% relief.

Tried the Low Chemical diet and have had 100% relief when I have stuck to it.

In both diets I have had trouble expanding the types of food I can eat but I think I am getting a reasonably healthy diet whilst adhering to the basic exclusion diet. I eat a lot of rice and a lot of Uncle Toby's oats.

I also take iron biglysinide before going to bed. When I wasn't on the diet this didnt help. Now I'm not game to stop the iron in case it plunges me back to the bad old nights. I also take glucosamine and fish oil for arthritus.

About 6 weeks ago I went to Thailand and decided I would rather taste the local gooddies than sleep all night. For three weeks I ate what I liked except I avoided some of the onions and garlic I was offered. Zero RLS Arrived home expecting an immediate relapse so I (sort of) adhered to the diet. Still no RLS except for a couple of occasions that have driven me back to the diet.

Fully back on the diet and so far zero RLS.

On one occasion before Thailand I went to a special party held by an excellent German cook and after a good start decided to throw away a few nights sleep and enjoy the food. Again I had no RLS after that.

I have a theory that this might indicate that my problem is with chemicals. When you start a chemical diet its usual for whatever you are suffering to get worse for the first few days and then start to improve until you are symptom free. Hence there is a delay in the response. So what I am hoping is that if I stick to the diet I can accept the occasional exceptions and enjoy any special event that turns up. This also encourages me to continue challenging my body with small serves of different foods.

I think this is good news for the lucky ones and encouragement to give a diet a chance, in case you are among the lucky ones.

I think that even if the drugs are working for you now it would be a good idea to try the diet. I don't know, yet, how long the diet will keep working so you might be glad to have the drugs as an alternative as you get older.

Good Luck

Graham

[Eryl]

I know very little about the FODMAP diet but my research has not shown me any evidence of any scientific basis for why it works. Another elimination diet is the RPAH diet which does have scientific basis, and is not meant as a permanent diet, but as a tool to take all possible triggers out. Food groups are then reintroduced in a controlled manner to find which can or can not be tolerated. A leading advocate of this is Sue Dengate, who has a website fedup.com.au

[seppamaki]

What is the chemical diet?

I have cut out all sugar and white flour and am having much relief.

[Graham3196 in reply to seppamaki]

The Low Chemical Diet has been developed by the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital for discovering many allergies and intolerances. The chemicals they are talking about are not necessarily man made colouring and preservatives. Most are chemical that are developed by the food. They are not intuitive (to me anyway). For example slightly green bananas are allowed but ripe bananas have developed some chemical to which many people are intolerant.

You are lucky that sugar and/or white flour have given you great relief. It possibly indicates that you would benefit by adopting the full Low Chemical diet and perhaps ridding yourself of all the symptoms. There are many references to this diet on this forum so its worth searching for them and reading all about it.

It sounds like it would be a good idea to see the website Eryl refers to and also you can search for the hospital and I think they have some information. They sell a book that has info on the diet and recipes but I think it might be only available to recognised dieticians.

I recommend you find a dietician who claims to have some expertise in these particular diets. I have found a few useless dieticians Some people really need help to reintroduce foods successfully.

[Glosgran]

Please would you post details of where to find out about the Low Chemical Diet. Thanks.

[EveW]

hi Graham, I have been having a look at the low chemical diet and I found it hard to figure out exactly what should be eaten/left out - did you do the whole failsafe diet? if you could point me in the direction of what level of diet you did, and where the info was that you used, I would be very grateful. Thankyou