Entry tags:
fasting and eating
Suspecting that I may be starting to get rheumatoid arthritis, I've been reading about it.
(I hope this ends up being one of those weird body issues that goes away on its own after a while, even though I can't be sure if anything I did helped it go away or not.)
It's not unusual for someone my age to get it. This even seems to be the median age for symptoms to start.
I recently read several articles about how fasting for x days (2? 4? 7-10?) can temporarily relieve rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. I had read how food sensitivities may trigger inflammation, causing the symptoms in the first place. I took this to indicate that by fasting, one stops eating the foods one is sensitive to, and that results in the inflammation or symptoms going away. So, if the symptoms go away after fasting, that would be evidence that one does have a food sensitivity of some sort.
Something I read today (Ramadan Fasting and Rheumatoid Arthritis) mentioned: "It is well known that malnutrition suppresses immunity".
This gave me the idea that maybe fasting, by not taking in any nutrients, reduces one's immune system function, and that may be why it lowers inflammation. So that even if one experiences relief from fasting, it still may not indicate a specific food sensitivity.
This article: Nutrition and Immunity: You Are What You Eat, goes into more detail on the topic of malnutrition and the immune system. This one doesn't say that malnutrition reduces inflammation; it indicates that malnutrition leads to infection, which leads to inflammation. So maybe my idea was wrong. I'm not sure (after reading a bunch of articles like this, I'm never sure about anything. I feel more confused than to begin with).
I had previously read some things about how some vegan diets may be low in EPA/DHA fats, which tend to reduce inflammation (the last linked article also mentions EPA/DHA), and high in fats which tend to increase inflammation. That may have contributed to my episode of chalazions & blepharitis four years ago... the eye doctor had even advised supplementing with Omega-3 oils, which I did for a year. My eyelid got better, and that problem hasn't recurred since then. But maybe my particular vegan diet (which involves not eating animal-based foods, but otherwise isn't particularly low-fat nor limited to healthy foods) still leaves me prone to inflammation.
When I search on "vegan arthritis", most of the articles are about how becoming vegan may help to reduce arthritis symptoms (by removing the foods that one may have been sensitive to - dairy, eggs, etc. - from one's diet), not about how it may contribute to them.
This week, I decided to temporarily cut out sugars and sweets from my diet, to see if that helps with my joint symptoms. Since Tuesday, I've only had one piece of dark chocolate, and a few sips of a sweet drink. I haven't noticed any improvement so far (I'm impatient).
Yesterday I took the day off work to attend a funeral with Qiao - one of his uncles whom I had met a few times, had passed away. On the way back, as it was 2pm and I hadn't eaten lunch yet, I decided this was as good a time as any to try a 2-day fast. I had already gotten through 5 hours without eating, so that gave me a head start.
I had done a 2-day fast before back in 2003. That time, I had no food, only water and unsweetened tea, and an attempt at drinking some fruit juice the first night, which I threw back up (too much of a shock to my system after not eating the whole prior day).
This time I decided to do either a plain water fast, or an unlimited juice fast.. I'd do some more reading about it and decide which after getting home. On the way back, I stopped by a store to buy some unsweetened juice and Kombucha drinks. This was the store that sells squares of vegan cornbread, yum, so I got some of that too, thinking that I could eat it after the 2 days.
I also still had a gluten-free vegan pizza which Qiao bought me on Thursday; I figured I could eat that after the 2 days too.
After getting home and doing some reading, I decided a plain water fast was best. Otherwise, how would I know if I happened to be sensitive to something in the juices? I got through the rest of the day ok, and by 11pm was tired enough to be in bed (almost unheard of!) and actually fell asleep. But I woke up too early today, hungry. If fasting didn't interfere with my sleep, it would be much easier.
My left hand was still stiff - not nearly as bad as yesterday morning, but still not good. And my knees were feeling uncomfortable too; they don't often feel that way. Not sure if that was due to my long drive & yard-work activities yesterday, or due to not eating.
After reading some more articles, including some of the ones mentioned above, I started thinking maybe fasting wasn't a good idea. Some of the articles indicated it could take 4 to 7 days of fasting for RA symptoms to go away, not just 2. Maybe I should start an elimination diet instead. I could eat only plain oatmeal for the next few days. If my symptoms go away, then at least oatmeal should be ok. Then I could add rice, potatoes, etc.
Then I read that oatmeal which isn't certified as gluten-free may be cross-contaminated with gluten. If I was sensitive to gluten, would that be enough to trigger it, or is that trace amount only a concern for people with celiac disease? The oatmeal that I have isn't GF-certified.
I went ahead and ate a bowl of my oatmeal. I fell back asleep for another hour and half. Then I again woke up, still too early. So I did more reading, while feeling very groggy. It was hard for me to decide whether to eat more oatmeal, or to go ahead and eat or drink something else.
Oh yeah, the cornbread and pizza in the fridge was bothering me even as I lay in bed thinking, as doing a well-executed elimination diet would take a lot longer than the 2 days I had originally planned.
In the meantime, I've had a handful of cashews, some almond-fruit butter, and some of the Kombucha drink (which has sugar from included fruit juices, but only 16g per bottle).
I guess that's it then, the fast is stopped. And no elimination diet right now. I lasted 22 hours with nothing but plain water and a few sips of a sweet switchel drink.
I'll continue avoiding sugar & sweets for a while, to see if it helps. (But I still have a partial piece of frosted chocolate cake & half a cupcake from last week in the fridge. My willpower for ignoring it seems diminished compared to before the fasting. I mean heck, if I'm going to eat xyz now, why not eat the cake too?)
If my hand stiffness continues, I suppose I should see my doctor to get tested for arthritis, before I start thinking of it as the "new normal". But it's not bad enough for me to want to take any medications which could have other bad side effects. I'd rather deal with it through diet, if possible. Nip it in the bud.
(I hope this ends up being one of those weird body issues that goes away on its own after a while, even though I can't be sure if anything I did helped it go away or not.)
It's not unusual for someone my age to get it. This even seems to be the median age for symptoms to start.
I recently read several articles about how fasting for x days (2? 4? 7-10?) can temporarily relieve rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. I had read how food sensitivities may trigger inflammation, causing the symptoms in the first place. I took this to indicate that by fasting, one stops eating the foods one is sensitive to, and that results in the inflammation or symptoms going away. So, if the symptoms go away after fasting, that would be evidence that one does have a food sensitivity of some sort.
Something I read today (Ramadan Fasting and Rheumatoid Arthritis) mentioned: "It is well known that malnutrition suppresses immunity".
This gave me the idea that maybe fasting, by not taking in any nutrients, reduces one's immune system function, and that may be why it lowers inflammation. So that even if one experiences relief from fasting, it still may not indicate a specific food sensitivity.
This article: Nutrition and Immunity: You Are What You Eat, goes into more detail on the topic of malnutrition and the immune system. This one doesn't say that malnutrition reduces inflammation; it indicates that malnutrition leads to infection, which leads to inflammation. So maybe my idea was wrong. I'm not sure (after reading a bunch of articles like this, I'm never sure about anything. I feel more confused than to begin with).
I had previously read some things about how some vegan diets may be low in EPA/DHA fats, which tend to reduce inflammation (the last linked article also mentions EPA/DHA), and high in fats which tend to increase inflammation. That may have contributed to my episode of chalazions & blepharitis four years ago... the eye doctor had even advised supplementing with Omega-3 oils, which I did for a year. My eyelid got better, and that problem hasn't recurred since then. But maybe my particular vegan diet (which involves not eating animal-based foods, but otherwise isn't particularly low-fat nor limited to healthy foods) still leaves me prone to inflammation.
When I search on "vegan arthritis", most of the articles are about how becoming vegan may help to reduce arthritis symptoms (by removing the foods that one may have been sensitive to - dairy, eggs, etc. - from one's diet), not about how it may contribute to them.
This week, I decided to temporarily cut out sugars and sweets from my diet, to see if that helps with my joint symptoms. Since Tuesday, I've only had one piece of dark chocolate, and a few sips of a sweet drink. I haven't noticed any improvement so far (I'm impatient).
Yesterday I took the day off work to attend a funeral with Qiao - one of his uncles whom I had met a few times, had passed away. On the way back, as it was 2pm and I hadn't eaten lunch yet, I decided this was as good a time as any to try a 2-day fast. I had already gotten through 5 hours without eating, so that gave me a head start.
I had done a 2-day fast before back in 2003. That time, I had no food, only water and unsweetened tea, and an attempt at drinking some fruit juice the first night, which I threw back up (too much of a shock to my system after not eating the whole prior day).
This time I decided to do either a plain water fast, or an unlimited juice fast.. I'd do some more reading about it and decide which after getting home. On the way back, I stopped by a store to buy some unsweetened juice and Kombucha drinks. This was the store that sells squares of vegan cornbread, yum, so I got some of that too, thinking that I could eat it after the 2 days.
I also still had a gluten-free vegan pizza which Qiao bought me on Thursday; I figured I could eat that after the 2 days too.
After getting home and doing some reading, I decided a plain water fast was best. Otherwise, how would I know if I happened to be sensitive to something in the juices? I got through the rest of the day ok, and by 11pm was tired enough to be in bed (almost unheard of!) and actually fell asleep. But I woke up too early today, hungry. If fasting didn't interfere with my sleep, it would be much easier.
My left hand was still stiff - not nearly as bad as yesterday morning, but still not good. And my knees were feeling uncomfortable too; they don't often feel that way. Not sure if that was due to my long drive & yard-work activities yesterday, or due to not eating.
After reading some more articles, including some of the ones mentioned above, I started thinking maybe fasting wasn't a good idea. Some of the articles indicated it could take 4 to 7 days of fasting for RA symptoms to go away, not just 2. Maybe I should start an elimination diet instead. I could eat only plain oatmeal for the next few days. If my symptoms go away, then at least oatmeal should be ok. Then I could add rice, potatoes, etc.
Then I read that oatmeal which isn't certified as gluten-free may be cross-contaminated with gluten. If I was sensitive to gluten, would that be enough to trigger it, or is that trace amount only a concern for people with celiac disease? The oatmeal that I have isn't GF-certified.
I went ahead and ate a bowl of my oatmeal. I fell back asleep for another hour and half. Then I again woke up, still too early. So I did more reading, while feeling very groggy. It was hard for me to decide whether to eat more oatmeal, or to go ahead and eat or drink something else.
Oh yeah, the cornbread and pizza in the fridge was bothering me even as I lay in bed thinking, as doing a well-executed elimination diet would take a lot longer than the 2 days I had originally planned.
In the meantime, I've had a handful of cashews, some almond-fruit butter, and some of the Kombucha drink (which has sugar from included fruit juices, but only 16g per bottle).
I guess that's it then, the fast is stopped. And no elimination diet right now. I lasted 22 hours with nothing but plain water and a few sips of a sweet switchel drink.
I'll continue avoiding sugar & sweets for a while, to see if it helps. (But I still have a partial piece of frosted chocolate cake & half a cupcake from last week in the fridge. My willpower for ignoring it seems diminished compared to before the fasting. I mean heck, if I'm going to eat xyz now, why not eat the cake too?)
If my hand stiffness continues, I suppose I should see my doctor to get tested for arthritis, before I start thinking of it as the "new normal". But it's not bad enough for me to want to take any medications which could have other bad side effects. I'd rather deal with it through diet, if possible. Nip it in the bud.