This will be the first post that looks at changes I have made in my life that I have made consciously to be healthier and try to dampen down some of the symptoms of my mixed connective tissue disease. There is one reason I am writing this, I am sick to death of reading articles online that suggest you can treat or even cure Lupus through diet, stopping your medications and changing your lifestyle. I am sorry if this offends anyone, certainly not what I am here to do, but you cannot cure lupus through your diet. I don't want to give out false hope of this kind, instead I want to give hope that there are some foods that do help me.
The power of what we consume is immense. We all know that if you put large amounts of fattening food into our bodies it can clog up our arteries etc. I love cake, crisps and coffee - 3 of the worst foods for me, but I haven't cut them out of my diet, instead I am just more aware of when I am eating them. This is not just about eating too much of the "bad" foods we all know and love, this is also about some of the surprising things I have learnt about how what we eat can affect our pain levels, joint swelling and so on. So it is time to share this with you guys. I hope this helps you too!
Avoid Food that Contains Nightshade
This is probably the most interesting bit of diet information I have found out on my journey - certain foods contain higher levels of nightshade which can react with our bodies to cause inflammation especially in arthritic diseases. This breakthrough is not that old and you can read more here. The worst offenders are white potatoes, tomatoes and peppers.
Each of these foods I love, so I have switched from eating white potatoes to red ones that have less of a level of nightshade. I will limit my consumption of the others and I found after doing this for a few weeks I felt better directly after eating.
Switch from Red Meat to Fatty Fish
Fish is well known to help with joints and memory - two things that are not working for me. So it is fairly obvious to state that eating fish will help with our joints. However I didn't realize the extent fish would play a part to my diet (that is the strangest sentence I have ever written).
Red meat contains high levels of saturated fats and as those of us with lupus are at a higher risk of heart disease it will help you to switch from this to fatty fish. My personal favorites are salmon and tuna. Nowadays I eat fish almost every day and I have noticed a difference to my memory, although only slight, the smallest change helps.
Calcium for those of us on Steroids
Oh the steroids, how I hate them. So many of us rely on them for controlling our symptoms even though they can damage our bones, sometimes resulting in brittle bone conditions in the future. So I have upped my calcium intake to try and limit damage in the future. I am lucky as I enjoy milk products, but I know many people don't.
Calcium supplements are a great way to up your intake, however make sure you ask your doctor if you can take anything like this first.
Watch out for Alfalfa
Alfalfa is possibly the worst food that you can eat if you have lupus, I have tested this by the way and trust me it was not a pretty outcome. Alfalfa contains an amino acid named L'canavanine, known for it's immune system boosting properties - which is not what we need at all. Foods that contain these acids are mainly shoots such as bean sprouts and cress.
These types of foods have even been known to affect the blood tests results for some lupus patients - I would avoid these is you can.
Cut Down on the Salt
We all know that too much salt is bad for us in general, so I wont go too much into it here. The general issue that many of us face, with raised blood pressures and cholesterol can be helped by simply cutting down on our salt intake. I rarely have salt now, unless I am having chips and I rarely add it in for seasoning nowadays. I have instead substituted seasonings using lemon juice, paprika etc - so that it is not too bland.
I Have Cut Out White Rice and Pasta
This is a personal one I have found that helps to relieve some pain and digestive issues. All the others here have been backed up medically, this is simply something I have done that really helps me. Over the years I have noticed that white rice has caused me so much pain after eating it - bloating, heartburn and even extreme joint pain. So one day I just cut it out completely and to a lesser extent pasta too. I now opt for noodles, wholemeal pasta or couscous to add as an accompaniment to meals.
I noticed the difference almost immediately - no more heart burn.
So there you have it...this is what I have learnt so far and I hope this helps you too!
