June 17, 2019
This week, in part 1 of this series about autoimmune diseases, you will learn what autoimmune diseases are, how and why diet can heal autoimmune diseases, and read about Dr. Brooke Goldner’s personal story: she healed from Lupus by changing what she ate.
Next week, we share Dr. Goldner’s practical tips on what foods to eat, so you can start healing your autoimmune disease.
AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE – WHAT’s IN A NAME?
Despite the rampant occurrence of this term -it is buzzing in the popular media and on the internet- it still is a hard one to digest.
Breaking it down will give you some clarity: our body has its own system, the immune system, which protects us from outside dangers. We don’t have to think about this, it is an automatic reaction. In some cases, the immune system gets confused and attacks its “self”; it attacks our own body. When that happens, one is diagnosed with an autoimmune disease.
There are more than 80 different autoimmune diseases known and described to date. Many are rare and extraordinarily complicated and more research is needed to understand the causes and to find out how to cure it.
Most people suffering from an autoimmune disease are convinced they can’t do anything about it, because it is in their genes. Well … I have got good news! While genes do play a role in the occurrence of autoimmune diseases, it is not the only factor at play.
Yes, there is more to autoimmune disease than nutrition, BUT this likely is the single greatest modifiable risk factor that affects the prevention and treatment of autoimmune diseases.
There already is scientific research confirming the power of food when it comes to treating –even reversing- autoimmune diseases! On top, there are many healing stories of people who’ve recovered from autoimmune diseases after changing their diet. Dr. Brooke Goldner, MD and author of Goodbye Lupus: How a medical doctor healed herself naturally with supermarket foods, is just one example. She explains the role of food, and why she decided to switch from a vegetarian to a 100% plant based diet:
“The greatest impact on whether our genes for illness get triggered is by what we put into our bodies – what we eat. Your cells are literally created out of the foods you put into your body. If you eat purely for taste and convenience, like many people do, you are likely eating nutrient-poor foods that cause damaged dysfunctional cells. When you learn to eat foods that nourish your body, your cells can repair themselves, and the new cells created will be high functioning healthy cells.”
SAD – THE EFFECT OF THE STANDARD AMERICAN DIET
Unhealthy foods create chronic inflammation. A condition where your immune system is constantly fighting. No need to say this is not a healthy state for your body to be in.
Over time this inflammation becomes the cause of destructive diseases, like Lupus, Scleroderma, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Colitis, and many other chronic inflammatory diseases.
“Eliminating the most inflammatory, unhealthy foods from your diet can reverse your disease and save your life.”
I GOT MY LIFE BACK, YOU CAN TOO
Eliminating the most inflammatory, unhealthy foods from your diet can reverse your disease and save your life. Almost 13 years ago Dr. Goldner discovered this lesson herself.
“I grew up eating an unhealthy vegetarian diet full of processed foods, cheeses and eggs. When I was 16 years old, I was diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Nephritis, and was only months away from dialysis when aggressive chemotherapy was able to save my kidneys. Even with the chemotherapy and steroids, I still had abnormal kidney function, arthritis, migraines and rashes.”
By the time she attended medical school she started having mini-strokes caused by the Lupus.
At 28 years old, she changed from an egg and cheese-filled vegetarian diet to a hyper-nourishing plant-based diet. Which led her body to completely eliminate the disease that had almost killed her multiple times before.
“When I changed to a hyper-nourishing plant-based diet, my symptoms rapidly fell away, and my blood tests all normalized within a matter of 4 months.”
Now, almost 13 years later, Dr. Goldner has two healthy children and no signs or symptoms of any disease at all.
“I know what it is like to be devastatingly ill, and I know the joy and blessing of healing and getting to live a life I love without the fear of illness robbing me of my joy and even my life.
That is why I am tirelessly devoted to helping my patients and anyone who can hear or read my words get their health back from disease, by learning how to eat to heal. I got my life back, you can too.”
You are not just a victim to the genes you received from your parents’ shuffled deck, you have the power to keep your health, and if you are already ill, you have a choice to make, because you can trade in your cards and play out a better hand. There is hope, and you can take back your health.
Our bodies are constantly shedding old cells and creating new ones. Recall that you build your cells from the foods you eat. That means you can literally transform from a sick, tired, achy body to a healthy, strong and vibrant body one cell at a time, one bite at a time. You are building your next body by the mouthful!
Later this month we’ll share the specifics on what foods to avoid and what foods to buy so you can start your own healing journey!
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RESOURCES
- Read the full article on the role on autoimmune diseases: genes, infection, environment & gut on the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies
- Read the full article about How to heal autoimmune disease with supermarket foods on the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies
- Goodbye Lupus: how a medical doctor healed herself naturally with supermarket foods
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