Giving Up Processed Foods

[indysteel]

Processed food aside, have you had any blood work done lately? I applaud any attempt to limit processed foods, but I have to wonder whether they fully explain your energy issues and migraines.

[OakLeaf]

Have you ever tried a challenge diet? Eliminate all suspect foods (grain, dairy, nuts, chocolate, yeasts/mold/fungi (which includes any fermented products and processed fruits), shellfish, strawberries, eggs - what am I missing? and anything that you have a suspicion about) for four days, then reintroduce them one by one. Reintroduce grains singly, since it's common for people to be allergic to some grains and not others, or at least in differing degrees.) If you react when something's reintroduced, then tick it off, and stay clean for another four days before reintroducing the next one.

You pretty much have to eliminate processed foods to adhere strictly to an allergy diet, but as you point out, it's worth it for so many other reasons anyway. "Hit by a truck" is a good description of how I feel if I've been significantly off the wagon (e.g. the morning after pizza and beer night ). At best I'm sluggish, which is why I always clean out before a goal event.

Staying off processed foods is a lot less time consuming if you're willing and able to eat a fair amount of meat. But it's not really hard, just time consuming.

(What specifically can't you imagine not using for cooking? Throw it out here and some of us will probably have suggestions for substitutes. If it's pasta, and it turns out you're allergic to wheat, Tinkyada brand rice pasta is pretty good. And unless you're on a paleo diet, I don't think most people consider pasta too highly processed.)

[indysteel]

I would encourage you to keep a food and headache diary. I suffered from migraines for a while before I finally realized that they tended to coincide with my periods. You would think it should have been obvious, but it took me a while to see the connection. You might be able to spot some patterns if you keep a diary. I would keep track of what you ate, drank and your exercise.

Also, if you haven't already, talk to your doc about migraine specific pain relief. In my experience, OTCs will not treat a migraine. I personally take 20 to 40 mg of Relpax. The drug makes me groggy, but it works like a charm.

[goldfinch]

I would encourage you to keep a food and headache diary. I suffered from migraines for a while before I finally realized that they tended to coincide with my periods. You would think it should have been obvious, but it took me a while to see the connection. You might be able to spot some patterns if you keep a diary. I would keep track of what you ate, drank and your exercise.

Also, if you haven't already, talk to your doc about migraine specific pain relief. In my experience, OTCs will not treat a migraine. I personally take 20 to 40 mg of Relpax. The drug makes me groggy, but it works like a charm.

Same with me. Nothing cured my migraines but menopause. I haven't had a migraine now in years.

[indysteel]

Same with me. Nothing cured my migraines but menopause. I haven't had a migraine now in years.

Yay; something to look forward to. Thankfully, mine have largely been a nuisance. I don't get as ill as many when I get a migraine. It's more of a very persistent sense of pressure behind one of my eyes. I can sometimes get by with Excedrin on the tail end of my period. I otherwise have to take all or part of a Relpax pill. While they make me pretty sleepy, I've learned to deal with it. I don't otherwise get migraines from anything else.

[OakLeaf]

I'm just sayin', based on my own experience and what I learned from my allergist in an exhaustive (and exhausting!) initiation when I was first diagnosed.

Fatigue is probably the #1 symptom of allergies in general and food allergies in particular.

Leave open the possibility that it isn't necessarily (or exclusively) the synthetic ingredients that are causing your symptoms, but "natural" ingredients in both processed and unprocessed foods. It's very, very difficult to find a processed food that doesn't contain both wheat and corn products. Also soy - I knew there was at least one very common allergen I was leaving out. Reading the ingredient list doesn't always tell you, unless you know what you're looking for.

I'm not saying it's a bad idea to have your thyroid checked, but if your thyroid panel was normal in the fall and you were symptomatic then, then something else is likely to be the culprit.

[indysteel]

I'm just sayin', based on my own experience and what I learned from my allergist in an exhaustive (and exhausting!) initiation when I was first diagnosed.

Fatigue is probably the #1 symptom of allergies in general and food allergies in particular.

Leave open the possibility that it isn't necessarily (or exclusively) the synthetic ingredients that are causing your symptoms, but "natural" ingredients in both processed and unprocessed foods. It's very, very difficult to find a processed food that doesn't contain both wheat and corn products. Also soy - I knew there was at least one very common allergen I was leaving out. Reading the ingredient list doesn't always tell you, unless you know what you're looking for.

I'm not saying it's a bad idea to have your thyroid checked, but if your thyroid panel was normal in the fall and you were symptomatic then, then something else is likely to be the culprit.

I only mention the thyroid because not every blood test necessarily includes it. Even if her blood test included it, it would be worth finding out what the the TSH value actually was as some docs are still using an outdated standard for what is considered a normal TSH. Otherwise, I agree with you that food allergies could be a culprit. Frankly, while I think a predominance of processed food isn't optimal for health, I'm just not buying that it would make someone that fatigued.

[Dannielle]

aspartame/equal/blue packet is the most common sweetener in diet soda/drinks and it causes headaches in many.

It definitely causes them for me. I gave up all sweeteners/sugar for a month last April as a personal challenge. I was shocked that I didn't get a headache at all that whole time. The first time I had a diet soda afterward I got a wicked headache. It took me 2 or 3 times more and I decided no more diet soda for me ever. Once I made the connection it was easy to choose another drink.

That month-long challenge was really productive for me, I think. Even though I did reintroduce some sweetener in small amounts I'm much more conscious of my use, pickier about which sweeteners I choose, and overall reduced my intake by about 70%.

[GLC1968]

I'm just sayin', based on my own experience and what I learned from my allergist in an exhaustive (and exhausting!) initiation when I was first diagnosed.

Fatigue is probably the #1 symptom of allergies in general and food allergies in particular.

Leave open the possibility that it isn't necessarily (or exclusively) the synthetic ingredients that are causing your symptoms, but "natural" ingredients in both processed and unprocessed foods. It's very, very difficult to find a processed food that doesn't contain both wheat and corn products. Also soy - I knew there was at least one very common allergen I was leaving out. Reading the ingredient list doesn't always tell you, unless you know what you're looking for.

I'm not saying it's a bad idea to have your thyroid checked, but if your thyroid panel was normal in the fall and you were symptomatic then, then something else is likely to be the culprit.

This. I also had fatigue symptoms, migraines (since I was 22 when I first went on the pill, actually) and brain fog, digestive distress and a few other minor problems. None of these things were enough to see a doctor about (except the migraines), and most of them I attributed to being either 'normal' or just due to aging or something (like the brain fog). My thyroid tested fine twice, so I know there were no issues there.

The migraines reduced to only once every couple of months once I got off all forms of hormonal birth control.

They went away completely once I had been paleo for about 4 - 5 weeks. All the other symptoms are gone now too. I thought I felt damn healthy for having lost weight and gotten back in shape, but I had no idea how much BETTER I could feel once I eliminated so many other things from my diet.

I have experimented with adding a few different things back in here and there and discovered that I do have sensitivities to certain grains. I haven't tried eating legumes yet...that'll be my test in January.

There is an online guide to doing a complete elimination for 30 days. It's called Whole 30 and the website is here: Whole30 It's based on the paleo diet, but it goes further to be very, very strict for the first 30 days. I haven't done it, but I've heard very good things from some of the people I work with, most of which are not paleo, by the way.

[Dannielle]

my month long personal challenge was a "Whole30" I ate paleo for 2 years...until recently when I tweaked things again and feel even better (which I didn't think was possible...I felt awesome with a paleo way of eating!)

[Veronica]

Diet sodas, or anything with fake sugars in it, almost immediately give me a headache. My MIL loves to cook with fake sugars to cut calories and I just can't eat a good chunk of what she cooks.

For quick lunch fixings I'll get pre cooked frozen chicken breasts or thighs and serve it with two cups of frozen mixed vegetables. I like to cook so when I have spare time (like this week) I'll prep and freeze a bunch of stuff for us to have for lunches. Yesterday was meatball day and today was meatloaf day.

Veronica

[ny biker]

I think the only way to cut out processed foods is to start cooking. I have found that organic processed foods tend to have regular food ingredients rather than lots of chemicals. Like Amy's organic frozen entrees and pizzas, or things from Kashi. Unfortunately they also cost more.

For me, migraines were related to hormones, plus changes in sleep and eating habits (like not getting enough sleep or missing a meal). Also stress; I frequently developed a migraine after meeting a tough deadline at work.

I've taken Depakote every day for more than 20 years. In recent years I've been able to decrease the dosage significantly, but I still take 250 mg per day. It has helped tremendously; before I started taking it I had a migraine almost every day. It did not suppress them completely but did significantly decrease the frequency and severity. It also helped me gain weight, but a few extra pounds are better than wanting to drive a spike through the side of my head every afternoon.

I used to take Imitrex when I would get a migraine. However in recent years (as I get closer to menopause and my periods changed) the headaches have not been as bad and the side effects from the Imitrex hit me more with the less severe symptoms, so I've been taking extra strength Tylenol and it's worked pretty well for me.

I have never found a link between specific foods and migraine symptoms. The important thing was not skipping meals and getting plenty of sleep. I drink plenty of Diet Coke but it has not affected the migraines.

I went to a neurologist who specialized in headaches for years, because they tend to know more about available treatments than GPs.

[pll]

What processed foods are you thinking? There are processed foods and, then, there are processed foods... My quick oatmeal is processed, but a lot less than a Twinkie...

Sodas are the easiest thing to eliminate from your diet. It will also save you some money. Water works just fine and you don't have any sweeteners, artificial or not.

You might do it in stages. I did not use to cook, but during the last two years, I started. I do not particularly enjoy cooking, nor do I have a huge amount of time, so I have resorted to a few "tricks":

• I bought many 1.75 cup and 2 cup zip lock containers, as well as 1/2 cup containers. On weekends, I will prepare large batches of soups, chili and other stews which I put in single serve containers (1.75 cups or 2 cups). I will also make a large batch of ragu sauce and put that in 1/2 cup containers, which are enough for a single serving of pasta. I freeze everything, so I have home made frozen dinners. I move something from the freezer to the fridge the night before and reheat in a pot.
• For lunch at work, I bought a bento box and I cook for the work week every Sunday. The bento box (search for "lock lock" in Amazon -- mine is a 700 ml one) allows me to take a main course, some appetizer (e.g. olives and some pieces of cheese), as well as some fruit. A lot more satisfying than something from the cafeteria. I used some Japanese guidelines to chose the size of the box.
• For dinners, I tend to alternate salads or some steamed vegetables with a baked fish, or my home made frozen dinners.

[Aggie_Ama]

My last bloodwork was this fall my gynecologist ordered it because for the first time in my life I had a blood pressure spike, normal as can be. I have been trying for years to find the trigger for my migraines. They aren't constant but they usually take two days of my life away. They aren't at a certain time of the month, they don't seem to be completely stressed triggered. They do respond to OTC but the next day I feel like I went on a wild bender and have the hangover from hell. It just seems weird I never had migraines or any issues until I developed a strong diet soda addiction and started eating frozen dinners nearly every day.

My migraines are maybe 2-3 a year but overall I feel run down all the time. For instance today I slept 12 hours last night and then still took a three hour nap. This is not an abnormality for me, I will feel like I need to sleep this much several times a month. I am only 30, other than allergies and the occasional migraine my doctor thinks I am healthy.

When I am saying processed I mean things with creepy chemicals. Diet sodas, frozen foods with weird named ingredients. Basically something that sounds more like a chemistry experiment than food when you read the ingredients.

Locally we have two places that do 21 day challenges (My Fit Foods, Mel's Meals)they have dieticians and nutritionists that plan meals and they make the food. Usually they involve giving up things like caffeine, alcohol. The people I know that have done them to get them started and they felt like it changed their life. But the cost is a bit steep when I could give up sodas and cook for myself for a lot less! I know how to do portion control, I learned that through Weight Watchers.

[soprano]

You might look up the "migraine diet." It avoids foods high in tyramine which, surprise, surprise! is found in many aged and/or processed foods.

If you haven't already seen a neurologist, I highly recommend it. My neurologist put me on a preventative medication that I take every day. I used to have 10-15 migraine days per month. Now I have 1-2. Even though I take a pill every day, overall I am taking much less medication this way, and I am able to work and enjoy an active lifestyle.

Definitely keep a headache journal.