Ah, the Paleo Diet, or what I called the caveman diet when I tried it for the first time two years ago. As a quick history, I was having these undeniable cravings for enormous quantities of fruit. A simple Google search provided two possible results: I was pregnant or had an imbalance of candida in my body. Ignoring the first option for various reasons, I started digging a bit deeper into this idea that my food choices were causing a microbial disruption within my digestive system that, in turn, caused me to crave more sugar. I guess we skipped that topic in my nutrition classes…
Anyway, I began reading about the various ailments that people were attributing to an overgrowth of candida, and I was shocked to learn that so many issues that I had been living with were being alleviated by others through dietary changes. I had never put these issues together as having the same root cause because they seemed so drastically unrelated and random: my brain fog, fatigue- even after plenty of sleep, sinus congestion, weird skin rashes, and more.
Now, I cannot vouch for the scientific validity of the candida anecdotes. I, myself, tried two forms of anti-fungal medications, since candida albicans is technically a fungus, with absolutely no improvement. Many healthcare professionals, including the ones I spoke with, are taught that yeast overgrowth is only found in folks with HIV or other immune system suppressing conditions. My guess is that some of us are walking around with somewhat suppressed immune systems stemming from unknown/unrecognized causes, but that’s just speculation. What I know is that, for me, the culmination of these unresolved health issues (and years of allergy meds, nutritional supplements, and topical creams) into one specific condition that could be controlled through my eating habits seemed beyond coincidence. I’d be stupid not to give it a try; the worse case scenario would be that it didn’t work and I was left right where I started…
I decided to try out a version of the Paleo diet, called the Anti-Fungal diet. Paleo hadn’t become the buzzword that it is now, but the ideas are very similar: cut out the processed foods, grains, sugars, and most dairy (in this case, I could keep butter and Greek yogurt). These are the things that fungi feed on, allowing candida to spread and, supposedly, wreak havoc on the system. To be completely honest, the first 4 days were horrific; I was cranky, sleepy, unable to concentrate, my skin got a bit more irritated, my stomach was not happy (I’ll spare you the details), and good God all I wanted was a damn soda! On that 5th day, however, I woke up without an alarm after 7 hours of sleep (SO not like me), and felt incredible. I was clear-headed, congestion-free, and 8 pounds lighter. Within a week, my skin had healed and was softer and less dry than it had been in years. I had to adjust to the diet, but the physical cravings disappeared and I felt good, really good. I lasted about 8 weeks, and tapered to a semi-Paleo diet for a few months after that. Then, I just got lazy. The benefits, however, lasted for over a year. It’s been quite some time since I gradually fell of the wagon, and I have noticed a recurrence of some symptoms. So, my goal here is to detail my transition back toward the Paleo lifestyle.
The truth is that this is a lifestyle, not just a diet. There really doesn’t need to be an end to healthier eating. And the results are not for weight loss in my case, though I do expect some. I will document the process regularly, including my feelings, symptoms, diet strategies and so on. I plan to do this in a more staggered, transitional approach than I did in the past. Hopefully, my experiences can offer some guidance to anyone attempting a transition of their own. I’d love to hear about your own stories with the Paleo lifestyle or any other transition that has made you healthier and/or happier.
