Autoimmune disease, gut flora & fungal infections

[einhippo]

Hello everyone.

I’ll try my best to make this as concise as possible…

I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis back in 2006, and started medication a few weeks after (Avonex). Up to 2011 I kept at it dutifully, despite no improvement in my symptoms and a handful of new plaques on each new MRI (which was why I switched to Tysabri after 4 years). By this time I almost hated the side effects of the meds more than the disease itself.

In the summer of 2011 I watched a video with Dr. Terry Wahls. After a lot of reading I cut out dairy first, within weeks grains and refined sugars followed. I stopped the meds cold turkey too. Within months my symptoms decreased dramatically, and haven’t visited me since.

The only remnant of my symptoms is fatigue and decreased sensitivity in my fingertips due to constant tingling, a big success considering I had tingling in most of my body, severe vertigo, facial numbness and stiff and unwieldy limbs (not all at once!). For me this diet changed my life.

Though my symptoms decreased dramatically, nothing happened to the seemingly non MS related issues. It only recently dawned on me that I had none of these things listed below on a SAD diet, except acne. (Hence the inquiry here.)

Dry scalp (entire flakes coming off all the time)
Dry face (which nothing seems to alleviate, not even shaving or scrubbing, or both...)
Somewhat dry skin over my entire body
Acne on face (back acne disappeared after removing dairy, a significant improvement in my face after removing virgin coconut oil/fat, but still it persists)

Dental caries forms easily (a teaspoon of honey for a week and my teeth object- it doesn’t take much longer before a dark splotch emerges on a tooth)

Nail fungus
Athlete’s foot
(these two are on my left foot solely, plus the skin on my big toe, from the base right up to the nail
is hard and cracked like an elephant’s, and it itches like crazy)
I also have these strange hard bumps on my soles, on both feet, little balls of hardened skin, that come off in one piece and leaves a crater.

Cuts and nicks take weeks to heal, and the mark is there for months sometimes.

I’ve been to several dermatologists about this, but the remedies they prescribed (ointments/creams) did nothing for me. I looked inwards.

Convinced I had candida, I did(summer of 2012) a pretty strict diet for about 6-8 weeks, low carb with lots of Oil of Oregano and other antifungals, with subsequent zombielike fatigue (herxheimer?) for about 2 weeks. Once that passed, I felt great. Still unsure whether it actually was a candida overgrowth…

I have tried cutting out the following to no avail, giving it at least 6 weeks each;
Eggs
Nightshades
Nuts & Seeds

I recently discovered that coconut fat/oil does me no good (stomach gurgling), and I had been eating 1-2 tablespoons a day since I started my modified Paleo diet.

These are the supplements I take;
Vitamin D (D3) around 4000IU a day
Vitamin B12 1000µg a day
Occasionally omega 3, and a combination of calcium-zinc-magnesium (perhaps twice a week)

digestive enzymes (13 different in one pill)
probiotics (6 billion, 10 different strains)
naturally fermented pickles, homemade kimchi, homemade and storebought sauerkraut

Eggshells for the calcium
Recently started eating oatmeal, either soaked or fermented with raw cocoa (the oatmeal is gluten free, and since i don't feel strange after eating it, I go for it)

What’s strange is that when I exercise (mostly with weights) I sometimes start yawning in the middle of it, and have to push myself through it as a massive fatigue comes over me. But once I’m finished, I feel great, my mind’s lucid and my whole body is happy.

I have tried figuring out the cause/causes of this, asking myself whether it might have been any of these things;
Antibiotic treatment for acne repeatedly as a teenager (from age 13-16) which damaged my gut flora
Impaired organ/organs due to the MS meds
Nutrient deficiency
Food allergy/sensitivity
Candida or other fungi/bacteria behind it (behind the MS?)




All thoughts are greatly appreciated, since I feel like I’m at a dead end.


Thanks for your time

Best wishes einhippo

[Adora]

WOW - amazing that you've recovered so much from MS. I think I know how you feel about your other symptoms. Hitting a health plateau, has been a strong lesson in patients and endurance for me. I'm glad you posted and are looking to refine your program even further. A couple of things come to mind things, in no particular order:

What makes you think the VCO isn't working for you? I find it difficult to digest and use small amts with other fats, but still eat what little I can tolerate. Not seeing anything amazing happening with it though and I have questioned it's efficacy too.

Have you tried high meat?

Do you include fish and shell fish?

Do you eat enough fat, esp. raw animal fat?

Do you drink enough water? do you eat dehydrated foods or spend much time in dry environment? Do you use harsh soap, or hot water? Have you considered that the dry skin could be long continual detox? - I can see how that might be a drag, but since when you ate poorly you didn't suffer, maybe the suffering is detox- I think you alluded to having already thought of that yourself, not certain

How is your sleep?

Are you eating mainly, or completely raw?

BTW - Hi, welcome, and interesting post


   

[Alive]

Hi einhippo,
it is great to hear how much you have improved by improving your diet following Dr. Terry Wahls. She is very inspiring, although while she is into raw plant food and cooked offal, she is missing out on the amazing healing benefits of raw animal foods.

My opinion is the next step to become fully nourished & get your microbes balanced would be to eat a variety  of raw animal foods, with lots of fat and offal, and totally avoid carbs.

[LePatron7]

Welcome. Congrats on wanting to make dietary changes, and already having implemented so many.

http://www.foodlady.org/scdinfo.html

"In closing, I just want to say that if you or someone you love are having chronic problems with any of the many intestinal ailments, autism, multiple sclerosis (MS), certain auto-immune problems, or even allergies or basic lethargy (that "blah" feeling), I highly encourage you to investigate the SCD program and then talk with your own doctor regarding the appropriateness of this diet for you."

I definitely think doing a raw diet, of all raw animal foods, no oils, and only raw scd legal carbs would benefit you the most.

Though opinions vary from individual to individual as to what the "best" diet is. For example Inger thinks a diet of mainly raw animal foods from the sea, and seaweeds is most optimal. Some, like Alive (and many others) feel a raw diet excluding plant foods would be best.

I think a raw specific carbohydrate diet is best for various reasons:
1) absorb ability - all the foods are extremely bio-available, and easy to digest. Complex carbs, or polysaccharides, are very difficult to digest because the body needs to break down those complex carbs into simple sugars before they're absorbed. While seaweeds are high in minerals, they still have a carbohydrate structure similar to grains, so I advise against that.

2) the gut flora - one of the biggest benefits to eating this way is that your gut flora will go through dramatic changes. The overflow of available nutrition for the microbes will be starved off. No more undigested carbs, or indigestible food additives feeding microbes.

[cherimoya_kid]

Most of what you mentioned are usually auto-immune problems. Either the brand of vitamin D isn't worth anything, or you're not absorbing the pills, or you're not eating enough fat.

I'd suggest switching to the Now brand vitamin D softgels.  They are easier to absorb.  I'd also lower your carb intake and increase the good-quality fats. What kind of animal fats are available to you?

[einhippo]

Wow, thanks for all the replies.

I used to have stomach gurgling and a heavy feeling around my stomach frequently, and once I removed VCO it stopped. But perhaps the gurgling was due to the high dose, I used to eat 1-2 tablespoons of it a day...
Apparently it's a great antifungal, so I might just get back on it, a little at a time. Perhaps it was aiding me without me knowing it...

I've stopped using soaps, shampoos, and I try to shower in not necessarily cold water, but tepid. On days that I feel that I can handle it, I shower in cold water...

I've only just now began to look more deeply into raw, so not much of my diet is raw...


Thanks once again!

[blobby]

Looks like u have skin probs similar to me I have also had fungal infection and blister ulcers

Lot's of advice here thankyou for posting i'm sorry I can't be of any help but it has been an interesting read and provided me with lot's of information and the knowledge that i'm not alone I hope u feel better soon good luck!

[Ferro]

Maybe you should consider intermittent fasting, meaning eating only one big meal every day ( there are other ways to do intermittent fasting) . When the body is in intermittent fasting  it enters into autophagy mode, a process where the body cells consume their own damaged components for energy. This process can be very benefial for your health. It sure has worked wonders for me. Check the following link for more information http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autophagy

[LePatron7]

Wow, thanks for all the replies.

I used to have stomach gurgling and a heavy feeling around my stomach frequently, and once I removed VCO it stopped.

Interesting. Actually I have trouble with VCO too. My tongue is usually completely clear, no white stuff which is supposed to be a candida symptom. But the second I consume VCO, it'll start getting white stuff on it.

[van]

Most coc. oils are not worth the money, and are completely dead/heated.   Find the one's that are truly cold centrifuged. I used to use Wilderness family, but their  product has changed, and I believe I can taste and smell the heat process, what ever it is.   A good test for coconut oil is to rub it into your palms till warm, and smell.  You can smell the differences that way.    I tried to inform Wildness F. and got nowhere with them, where prior I had bought gallons from them.  I enjoy using shredded coc. oil (hardened at below room temp) along with animal fat.   There is a huge difference.  Also to control candida, as some one else here has mentioned try using Flora Balance BOS strain.  It works.    I get mine at 800-583-1939.   the lead guy there has lots of experience. 
 I doubt that truly raw coc. oil would support candida on your tongue, but may simply sit there looking like candida.   The same can be true by swishing with bentonite to clean mouth.  Unless brushed off, it will linger as tiny little pieces, but will not support yeast or bacteria....

[LePatron7]

I doubt that truly raw coc. oil would support candida on your tongue, but may simply sit there looking like candida.   The same can be true by swishing with bentonite to clean mouth.  Unless brushed off, it will linger as tiny little pieces, but will not support yeast or bacteria....

It's actually not immediately after consuming it. It's usually a day later.

Being that I'm eating mainly SAD and some raw foods, having a clear tongue is kind of nice. Wasn't like that pre-rpd.

Any way. I had white stuff on my tongue constantly. Every day I would have 2 eggs scrambled using coconut oil instead of butter.

I stopped the eggs for a week or more (no eggs). And it went away, and stay gone for over a week.

Then the day after I had eggs again, bam white stuff on my tongue. Btw only home made eggs w/ coconut oil caused the white stuff, eggs from a restaurant for example had no effect.

I personally don't believe in "killing" bacteria the way coconut oil is talked about. I think killing bacteria leads to the weaker ones dying, then the stronger ones survive and multiply to occupy the room the other ones kept.

[van]

I agree, I don't think you kill it with coc. oil, I think it simply isn't a source of energy that yeasts etc. like, as with sugars.    But,  I don't cook foods, so I don't know about that.  The brand I like the most is from first quality organics, and I order the virgin oil de coco creme variety.  You've 'probably' had nothing like it before.