As the intro blurb shows, December 25, 2006 was the turning point for me. I was in so much pain from the gallstones, I’d cut out almost all food. I was having a few slices of bread and a few vegetables a day. My mom got so worried, she made me vegan, organic soup. Gallstones are a result of fat in food, and fat and sugar can aggravate gallstones. Hence, the no-fat deal.
I’d given her Ultrametabolism by Dr. Mark Hyman, because she saw him on PBS and loved what she heard. She devoured it and announced that she was going to go on it. I read it and it’s grounded in good science, taking the latest research and applying it to healthy eating. It fits what I know to be true – fruits, vegetables, grains, and water are what we should be eating most of/almost all of the time. He talks about how so many diseases are the result of inflammation, and what we eat can contribute to inflammation. What he discusses in the context of inflammation runs the gamut from diabetes to environmental allergies and a whole lot in between. It has three phases – one is a one-week, sort of “weaning” phase where a lot of foods are contraindicted. The second (what he inexplicably calls Phase I) has quite a limited variety of food. It basically cuts out sugar, dairy, wheat, any gluten, red meat, and all white meat except for lean, unskinned turkey and chicken. Very few condiments are allowed, and those that are allowed are mostly herbal. Olive oil is okay, thank goodness. Phase I lasts for 3 weeks. The third, known as Phase II, lasts for 4 weeks to a lifetime. You choose one food that has been forbidden for 3 weeks, have it, and monitor your body for any allergic reactions. Don’t add anything else for at least 48 hours. The rationale behind this is to discover if you have any food allergies, because allergies can cause inflammation and are a real culprit. There is a list of food that should be avoided for the rest of your life, including transfats and high fructose corn syrup. It generally recommends what I think we should all eat anyway – grass-fed beef, animals without hormones, organic food, as much unprocessed food as possible, and so forth.
When Mom announced she was doing it, I read some of the book. I surprised her (and myself) when I sighed, shrugged, and said, “I’m in.” I was unhappy, unable to eat much, and I just *had* to do something to get my health back. This seemed good. It’s healthy, based on current nutritional research, and I really couldn’t go wrong. It’s almost one month since Christmas, and I haven’t looked back since. I’ve just completed Day 14 of Phase I, and I’m liking it.
