My World Turned Upside Down and So Thankful Part II

As mentioned in the last post Natural Living...My World Turned Upside Down and So Thankful, our family completely changed our eating as of June 1^st.  It started out as a trial run in the form of an elimination diet hoping to figure out my child’s delayed food intolerances that manifested themselves in chronic loose stools.  Instead our “trial run” has turned into a journey that has just begun. 

Beginning on June 1, the whole family took out all the major food allergens: dairy, gluten, preservatives, eggs, dyes, shellfish, peanuts, soy, and we ate little to no sugar.  We also ate nothing processed and bought all fresh foods, mostly organic.  We anticipated this only lasting ten days.  If one had to do it, we all would.  I basically made most things from scratch; however, there were some things I bought such as coconut keiffer, allergen-free bread, and a few other items.  The odd thing was that our son’s stool initially got worse with the shift in diet.  What I know now is that most foods that are considered gluten free or free of a lot of allergens such as the So Delicious brand are laden with corn.  Over time, through recording the foods eaten and bowel movements along with reading books, I discovered corn must be the culprit or at least one of them.  I cannot stress enough how important it was for me and still is to write down everything.  When looking at the spreadsheet, over time it begins to tell a story, the story of offending foods and foods that heal.  We also recognized that stone ground oatmeal caused problems, but looking back, we are not sure if the culprit was the oats or the addition of the honey.  To date, our son is pretty much experiencing “normal” stools now; however, as I have begun to add things back in, I have muddied the water some and now unsure if we have other triggers.  I have question marks by certain fruits, a few vegetables, honey, and even milk.  We have decided to seek out a conventional medical practitioner in another state who thinks outside the box and does some alternative testing that offices in our area do not perform hoping to find the exact triggers. 

So where are we today?  Well, after a month of eating strictly allergen free organic and following the elimination diet to the tee, we made the call that things would have to change to some degree.  For one, money does not grow on trees, and two, there is no need to indefinitely omit all the foods we initially excluded.  Our grocery budget for the month of June tripled.  Yikes!  I was given the daunting task in July to cut our grocery bill in half.  Only three weeks into July, my husband told me I was done, which meant I had reached my allotted amount and would have to get creative with what I had.  This challenge proved to be a blessing in disguise because it forced me to be creative with foods in our pantry and fridge somehow making it work.  To my surprise, we also ate well.  Who would have figured?!  This month, the month of August, I am cutting my grocery spending back even more.  How am I doing it?  Well, for one, I do not go to the store but about every 7-10 days.  Mind you, in the first month of this experiment, I went easily 3-4x a week.  When I don’t go to the store, I don’t spend money.  It’s a no brainer! Not frequenting the store often forces me to plan very specifically for each meal.  We eat our fresh veggies at the beginning of the week, and toward the end of the week we eat apples, oranges, carrots, celery, and frozen veggies along with homemade hummus, etc.  Secondly, I do not buy all organic. I wish I could, but I can’t, so if we buy organic, we buy the items that are considered to be the “dirtiest” of them all: peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, pears, grapes, spinach, lettuce, and potatoes. Thirdly, I make most things from scratch and save a lot that way.  Yes, it does take time, but I double and triple things when I make them.  Fourthly, I shop at Aldi.  I love Aldi and can save so much there!  When I read the labels, Aldi’s foods appear to have fewer preservatives in them than conventional stores and very well priced.  Fifthly, I am in the process of making a spreadsheet with the best prices, so I know when I spot a deal to get double the amount.  Sixthly, we eat a lot of homemade soup made with vegetables or beans for lunch.  I also serve sandwiches with subutter and jam or celery and hummus or fruit for the kids especially during the lunchtime meal.  This fills us until snack time and is very economical.  Our biggest meals of the day are breakfast and dinner. 

What exactly are we eating: We are eating foods as close to their natural state as possible.  We eat a lot of raw veggies, fruit, grains, beans, chicken, and fish.  We also juice.  I use herbs and spices and olive oil to flavor foods.  I don’t usually buy boxed items anymore.  I don’t cook with cream of mushroom soup, or heavy whipping cream, or boxed potatoes, or lots of sugar anymore.  Our taste buds have adapted fairly well.  What I make for my husband and myself, I also serve to the children unless the meal is spicy, etc.   The children have adapted surprisingly well.  The oldest has had the hardest time of the three, but I expected that as he is older; but honestly, he has done fabulous if I think about the total diet overhaul I took him through. J For example, I made cauliflower pizza and they asked for seconds.  I could have fallen over backwards out of shock! I do not force them to eat any particular food, but I also do not make special meals.  If they choose to not fill up at a meal, they will have to wait until either the next snack time or meal.  Don’t worry; they don’t go hungry.  They eat 3 meals and 3 snacks in our house! Thus, what we are having for dinner is what we are having for dinner. 

Our son who has the food intolerances is still eating foods free of most allergens, and I am eating the way he eats for the most part; however, I do eat stone ground oatmeal and corn, which he cannot have.  The rest of the family is following in our footsteps with some exceptions. 

Are we experiencing results? Yes! I do not remember when it was that I began to feel energetic, but I can say confidently that I feel and act like a different person since my diet has changed.  Ask my husband.  People who know me well know that ever since I was young, I was the first to bed.  I hit the bed by 9 every night like clockwork.  Since changing my eating, I am staying up on average 2-3 hours later than before and still feeling great.  I am not sure what is causing the surge in energy.  It could be the fact that I have ridded my diet of most preservatives, sugar, food dyes, etc. and replaced it with fresh veggies, fruit, fish, lean meat, etc..  It could be the fact that I am currently gluten free or dairy free.   Who knows exactly?  Our kids have been healthier than before in the sense of avoiding colds, etc., and I attribute that to their eating.  Sugar especially really suppresses the immune system, and they are consuming hardly any sugar.  Also, our son’s stools have become normal for the most part. 

Where we do we go from here?  I plan to keep learning and keep experimenting with foods.  My eyes have been opened to the dangers, if I may, of the traditional American diet.  I want to feed my family real food that nourishes their bodies and minds and have come to the conclusion that to do that I must break from a lot of my old habits, cookbooks, and ways. 

So I journey on!

Click here to listen to an excellent video that has shaped how I see food.