The cause of my RLS

[Restless10]

I have had intense RLS for 30 years.

I recently discovered a major cause.

Fruit or vegetables contaminated with agricultural chemicals.

It is probably a pesticide, herbicide or fungicide. Or all of them.

I changed my diet to include only organic food.

Not good enough. It turns out that many organic foods are contaminated with one or more of the agricultural chemicals to which I am sensitive.

And also many common medications.

But if I eat a restricted diet, more often than not, my RLS is diminished by 90%.

The connection:

Studies (Google Scholar) show that agricultural workers exposed to pesticides, fungicides and herbicides get Parkinson's more often than the general population.

There is speculation in the medical literature that Parkinson's and RLS have a common cause.

People with RLS have a 2 to 3 times greater likelihood of developing Parkinson's than the general population.

The best way to check is to stop all medications and fast for 3+ days.

If your RLS disappears, you are closer to knowing the cause. And you can have hope again. I would love to hear from you if something similar has helped you.

[ChrisColumbus]

Funnily enough, I only read an old post earlier today from notnowdad about being on a low oxalate diet but having issues with fruit and veg sprayed with oxalic acid...

[bookish]

Hi, as pesticide exposure has also been linked to airway disease and T2 diabetes amongst others and seems to affect DNA methylation, it would make sense to ensure that methylation and other phase 1 and 2 pathways are working optimally and that there is adequate glutathione etc. Perhaps those who are most susceptible are those who have impaired metabolism and clearance of chemicals and toxins. For me the main trigger seemed to be gluten, but I am very chemical reactive and avoid as many as possible, as well as supplementing for methylation, glutathione and detox pathways. RLS and tremor have gone, either way. Best wishes

[b1interest in reply to bookish]

Hi, I understand supplementation for methylation. Could you tell us what you mean by supplementation for glutathione and detox pathways?

It's wonderful that you're doing so well!

Thanks!

[bookish in reply to b1interest]

Hi, sorry for the delay. A few years ago when I'd realised some of what was affecting me (a bit of trial and error, a bit of reading and some family history), I'd tried and failed to get my NHS consultants to do a little extra testing for me, so I ended up using Micki Rose at Pure Health and doing my own. I did a basic genetic test and a hepatic detox test as I couldn't then find anyone to take blood for me, and these gave me a bit of information without needing blood, enough to make me think I was on the right track! Micki's site has been updated numerous times since and the tests aren't all the same, but she is still working hard and available to support. This page might be interesting (but so is the rest of the site!) purehealthclinic.co.uk/heal...

The factsheet is very useful, and Micki did some great notes for me on my test results (as I chose to pay for that too) - there are several stages and pathways involved in metabolising and getting waste products (our own or ingested etc) out efficiently, so a number of supporting nutrients needed, and there are a few places where (epi) genetic polymorphisms may play a part. This is a nice diagram to give you an idea

rogersmedicalltd.com/blog/d...

I found that my phase 2 was slower than my phase 1, so things were hanging around a bit too long and that I have a glutathione absent gene - there are other glutathione pathways, so this isn't dire, but I use a detox support with glutathione, NAC, vit C, histamine/mast cell support and my B vitamins. I got a big benefit with methylfolate rather than folic, and with magnesium, and I eat eggs for choline. Our family issue is predominantly B12/folate/pernicious anaemia and I have a few autoimmune issues now. Regular B12 injections are helping roll back some more symptoms.

Hope that helps a bit, best wishes

[b1interest in reply to bookish]

Thanks so much for taking the time to provide more detail. I'll read through the links/articles you've attached. I also give myself b12 injections after tests revealed I had parietal cell antibodies that prevented me from absorbing b12. For that reason, I take methylated b vitamins, too. But I understand that if b12 absorption is a problem, iron and b1 often are, too. So I'm doing some low level experimentation (with a doctor's ok). Though I'm better than I was, I still have weird leg symptoms after a short amount of walking. It could still be the b12 resolution taking a while, I realize. The genetic testing is a good idea. You were thorough, as it looks like you're approaching this from every angle! Thanks again.

[bookish in reply to b1interest]

Some say treatment is like peeling back the layers of an onion - you keep finding one more thing to look into. But it doesn't seem as if it is usually just one main thing at fault, so trying to get as many as possible as optimal as possible seemed to give me the best chance. You are right about B12 absorption issues also affecting other nutrients, and those need to be ok to use the B12 effectively. I hope the experimentation goes well and that you continue to make progress. SI is the best way, as our needs vary so much over time. Best wishes

[b1interest in reply to bookish]

I had been looking for the one solution to it all, but am seeing that there are a lot of interactions, such as inflammation, that can be problems.

Thank you for your kind wishes, and I wish the same for you.

And can I ask--does 'SL' mean 'sublingual' or 'slow?'

[bookish in reply to b1interest]

Sorry, should have written it in full. SI (not SL), in this context meant self injection. But slow is always good, and only one change at time if at all possible.

B12 is also anti-inflammatory. Both gluten and dairy were inflammatory for me, although it took many years to find that out. Cheers

[b1interest in reply to bookish]

Thanks. Gluten is for me, too, and fluid dairy. So far cheeses are ok, but I know I have to drop all dairy for a while to see if that helps. I've been putting it off! Thanks for the reminder. I hope you're seeing significant improvement in your autoimmune issues these days, or even some improvement to help morale. Sometimes this is so involved it can be emotionally challenging.

[bookish in reply to b1interest]

Thank you, too. You obviously understand - healing is exhausting, emotional and painful. I was lucky to get a clear (if unexpected) benefit from quitting gluten and then another with dairy, then magnesium supplementation, then went full grain-free/minimal chemical which calmed down my autoimmunity noticeably and measurably and then methylfolate supplementation on top of the oral B12 resolved some neurological stuff (neuroinflammation) - so I know that doing things for ourselves can make a vast difference, as well as simply feeling less out of control by learning - if we know more we can do better (if we choose) - if we don't know, we can't......That doesn't mean that sometimes it doesn't all feel a bit much, but I know I'm very much better than many people (and much better than I was), so I'll keep plodding my way through the rest of my onion! The blue sky helps. Best to you, too.

[NeuroSeeker]

Super interesting. Thanks for this post.I do warn, however, against stopping all meds without talking with your doctor. Stopping some, like dopamine agonists, without tapering is setting yourself up for potential agony.

Just a PSA. ❤️