Me, Food Sensitivity Testing, and Life!

So it’s been about two months since I received my food sensitivity testing results. Things have been going pretty good. I was really excited after the first two weeks and 5 lb. weight loss. And then I began to get a little bored. I was going to have to really start “working” the list – by that I mean really avoiding my yellow foods (yellow list = mild sensitivity) and stick to my green (green list = no sensitivity). I had done really well avoiding my reds (red list = severe sensitivity) and oranges (orange list = moderate sensitivity). That was the easy part because there weren’t very many! The yellow list (yellow list = mild sensitivity) on the other hand was quite a bit longer!

Grocery shopping has become a little more intense. I am buying more fruits and veggies – but not just any fruits and veggies. Only certain fruits and veggies that appear on my green list! Oh, and did I mention my husband has gotten his food sensitivity test results? That makes grocery shopping even more challenging! Bored? Did I say I was bored? Ha! Not anymore. Now I have a mission!

Being a working mom with two small boys, I have to be prepared: meal planning, activity planning (not really a strong suit of mine), etc. We have always been a family on-the-go trying to eat healthy. But somehow, fast food has snuck into our lives. Let’s face it, it’s just easier.

But no more fast food for this family! With my and my husband’s food sensitivity results, I am armed and ready to tackle the healthy lifestyle…again! We have always enjoyed exercise, being outdoors and considered ourselves healthy. But with work and busy schedules, the diets have fallen by the wayside. My food sensitivity results have given me the perfect opportunity to get my family in check!

I know it won’t be easy to get everyone on board, but the benefits will be worth it! I am so fortunate that my husband is doing this with me and that we will be educating our children along the way. They already are aware of the “green” list and what Mom and Dad can and can’t have. It’s really cute!

And so the journey continues…

Me, Food Sensitivity Testing, and Fear of the Unknown

I did a lot of debating with myself about having food sensitivity testing.

At first I didn’t want to do it. I forbid myself to think that I wanted to do it. Why? I didn’t want to know what it was going to tell me. I was afraid of it. I was afraid that it would tell me that I couldn’t eat the things that I love to eat.

But I know of the success stories. Our patients who have eliminated foods from their diets they were sensitive to feel better and lose weight. And I wanted to feel better. Don’t get me wrong. I feel pretty good. But as the working mom of two young boys, I need every ounce of energy I can possibly generate from my body! Weight loss wasn’t necessarily my goal, but it could be an added bonus.

So here’s a look at me before food sensitivity testing. My symptoms were:

• Headaches
• Tired often
• Lack of energy
• Cravings (carbs, chips, salty)
• GI Symptoms (stomach issues)
• Trouble losing weight
• Didn’t feel 100%

The great irony of this whole story is this–I was telling my patients to do it (and I try to do everything that I tell my patients to do) but I hadn’t had the courage to face it myself. That fear of the unknown can be so overpowering, can’t it? I w anted to be able to tell them first hand what it was like, and why the sacrifices would really be worth taking the test.

And then, 3 weeks after sending my blood to the laboratory, the results arrived. As expected, there were sacrifices that would have to be made.My results revealed that I had a tremendous food sensitivity to — are you ready for this? — coffee. Argh. I crave coffee every day. I was not excited about this. But, I stopped cold turkey. And not only did I stop coffee, I’ve stopped diet cokes, too.

The results? 2 weeks in and I have lost 5 pounds AND I feel a lot better. Significantly better. I’ve gotten back into running and exercising. Even my husband said that he could tell a difference. Just from seeing what it has done for me, he is sold….he came to Seasons yesterday to have his blood drawn to check his food sensitivity.

And that, my friends, is the story. Two weeks and results. It hasn’t been easy. Ridding your body of the causes of inflammation is one of the keys to the health and wellness kingdom.