Need Help with Raw

[LauraPaulsen]

I'm not sure if this is the right section but here goes..

I was eating raw over a year ago and then got pregnant. Once I was pregnant I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's , which is an autoimmune disorder. My antibodies attack my thyroid. After the baby was born , I went back to eating raw. At that point my TSH levels were level with medication. Once I was eating raw my thyroid slowed down. So much so that my medication was raised again. I was exhausted from the side effects of a slow thyroid.

I started thinking that eating raw was causing part of the problem. I went to a chiro/nutritionist who practices kinesiology. He tested my body and it turns out that my body doesn't process fruit sugars and wheat well. I'm so saddened by this because I LOVE eating Raw.

Any suggestions? Has anyone else had this issue? Any advice?

I'm grasping at straws here because I would love to go back to eating 100% raw. My dh just got me a vitamix for my b'day.

[rawstrength]

Thyroid and immune system - my specialty!
I've been researching both these topics a lot. I research thyroid health a lot because all of the women in my family over the age of 20 have thyroid problems. And I've been researching the immune system a ton because I feel it is most important to our health, our defense against an increasingly viral, infectious world because everyone travels and the planet is over-populated by humans and livestock (swine flu, anyone?).

A lot of raw foodists eat a ton of cruciferous vegetables, which can slow down your thyroid. Kale, broccoli, cabbage, etc. You might want to really cut back on these until your thyroid is better.

The best foods for the thyroid are coconut, seaweed (especially kelp and bladderwrack), brazil nuts, maca and radishes. I recommend a huge radish juice daily, you'll feel amazing. Juice 2-3 bunches of organic radishes a day, try to use a variety of different colored radishes if you can. You can juice the leaves and roots or just the roots. Maca is related to the radish - it is like a supercharged radish.

You mentioned that the thyroid condition was caused by an auto-immune problem. I think you should focus on getting to the root of the problem, which is your immune system. Your immune system can be stimulated or supressed. In your case, your immune system is running too high, attacking the cells of your thyroid. Rather than trying to supress your immune system, I recommend getting on adaptogens that regulate your immune system. Adaptogens set the level of your immune system to where it needs to be for optimum health. The best adaptogens for the immune system are the medicinal mushrooms, such as maitake, shitake, reishi, and cordyceps. I think reishi is the strongest of them all. You can buy the medicinal mushrooms dried from a bulk herbal supplier (such as mountain rose herbs) and then boil them in water for a few hours - not a raw solution, but extremely effective. Making your own medicine is much cheaper and more potent than buying little capsules (worthless in my opinion). Another immune system adaptogen is astragalus, a Chinese herb. I've used all these herbs and stayed really healthy even when living in a college dorm situation where literally everyone around me is sick and no one washes their hands :eek: . The adaptogens turn your immune system up when you are sick and down when it threatens to attack your own cells. They help your immune system adapt to all situations, essential with our modern lifestyle.

MAY YOU BE HEALED!!!!

[rawstrength]

PS: Lucy's thyroid testimony is amazing! She healed her hypothyroid. http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=26306

[ShelShel]

Rawstrength, I love your posts and replies. That was so helpful and I don't even have a thyroid or immunity problem.;) Very good info. Thank you for sharing.

[Raw Angel Mom]

Rawstrength, I love your posts and replies. That was so helpful and I don't even have a thyroid or immunity problem.;) Very good info. Thank you for sharing.



I agree, thank you for the info.

[dolfinluv8]

Hi Angel Mom,
I am new to this whole "blog" "thread" thing, so I hope this goes through. I love being raw too and am encountering some challenges as well. I went raw because of some health challenges I've had since I was in high school (now 43), and although in many ways I am SO much better than before (about 90%), I have encountered some obstacles. One thing I have learned is that I, too, cannot process sugars well. So I have eliminated almost all fruit except for maybe a banana occasionally. I've now become accustomed to that and have lost my taste for sugar almost completely! I do munch on dates occasionally which tastes like caramel to me :) I haven't eaten wheat in probably two years because that also was a problem for me. Lastly, I have recently discovered through medical testing that my gallbladder functions at a very low level (which explains a lot of mysterious pain I've had for years), so nuts are a problem for me as well. As you know, a lot of the gourmet raw recipes call for nuts, so that has posed a challenge for me. While I still make things occasionally for parties, co-workers, etc., I have learned that for me and my body, keeping it very simple works best. I don't have a huge variety in my daily menu, but I find that I crave certain things every day. I start out with a green juice, usually spinach, cucumber, zucchini, celery (I used to use kale but the I've been reading that the cabbages and dark kales are tough on the gallbladder). I always add lemon..I love lemon in everything!..and sometimes add beets. Occasionally I add a carrot, but it's funny how my body is so used to NOT having sugar that even THAT tastes too sweet to me now! Lunch is always a big green salad with avocado, tomatoes, cilantro, onion and beets, with lemon and olive oil or flaxseed oil as dressing. I top it with raw sesame seeds and sometimes raw sunflower seeds (the seeds are not an issue for me, just the nuts it seems). Dinner is usually more salad..that's all I crave these days! I'm still trying to figure this all out, but like you I love eating raw and know that when I find the right combinations that it will be worth the journey! My doctor recommends I have my gallgladder removed, but no way am I going down that path without working on healing myself first. I would love to hear any feedbak from you on this and what you like to eat on the raw diet. All the best to you!!

[dolfinluv8]

Rawstrength,
thank you for your blog on the immune system. My acupuncturist has created an herbal remedy for me because I seem to have an auto-immune challenge (I have shingles..never had that before in my life and am 43). They're not horrible, it's a very mild case on my right hip and they are going away after only about a week, but with the muscle testing he has been doing it appears that my immune system is the culprit. Also I have a low functioning gallbladder (see my post to Angel Mom) and just noticed you recommend being careful of kales and cabbages, which is also recommended with gallgladder issues. Thank you for the insightful knowledge..so glad I found this site!

[LauraPaulsen]

When my dr. Tested me using Kinesiology (muscle testing), it was my spleen that was the primary problem. The last time I went my spleen and thyroid tested very well. So i'm considering going 100% raw and keeping my fruit to a minimum. More green salads etc.

[shine72]

Hi there Laura! :D

We don't use wheat as part of our raw plan because of J's autism. As far as fruit, keep the veggies and greens up, make salads, soups, have some fats, and keep to more of the lower sugar fruits (think berries, tomatoes, zucchini, cucumber). Raw CAN be done quite easily w/o wheat and so long as you keep the sugars to a minimum for your issues, I would think it would play out nicely. :)

[LauraPaulsen]

Hi there Laura! :D

We don't use wheat as part of our raw plan because of J's autism. As far as fruit, keep the veggies and greens up, make salads, soups, have some fats, and keep to more of the lower sugar fruits (think berries, tomatoes, zucchini, cucumber). Raw CAN be done quite easily w/o wheat and so long as you keep the sugars to a minimum for your issues, I would think it would play out nicely. :)


Hi Sunshine!!

I miss ya on the other board.

Thanks for the info.

How's your family? Your son?

[RawHeaven]

Rawstrength, this is truly amazing information and I personally appreciate it very much. Thank you for doing your research and sharing. No wonder I've been using more maca lately and attracted to radishes. The answer always comes from somewhere and you just provided it.

Laura, congratulations on your new baby and I also send healing blessings.