Hello everyone

[jesterhead]

Hi all,

I've been eating raw meat for about three years now. I'm going to start following raw paleo more closely to see if I can further reduce the symptoms of my autism spectrum/aspergers. I'm not sure if I've got full blown Aspergers, although I am definitely somewhere on the spectrum. So far, I've noticed an increased desire to be social and my social abilities feel like they have increased from eating raw meat.

Here are/were some of my symptoms:
- Generalized anxiety: gone for the most part.
- Auditory and olfactory hypersensitivities: I have to wear earplugs at the movie theater, cover my ears when I hear loud noises, and am distracted by odors that most people don't even notice.
- Chemical sensitivities.
- Difficulty with conversations. Has been slowly resolving itself. I'm fine with one-on-one convos, still working on group convos.
- Difficulty making eye contact with people: This one resolved when I cut out grains and dairy and started eating raw meat, thankfully.
- Sometimes I speak in a monotone voice.

I've been mainly eating muscle meats, veggies, cooked eggs, almond butter, cooked sweet potato, liver sparingly, and bone marrow sparingly. I did try suet a few times, although I couldn't digest it. I've still been binging on processed carbs though: potato and tortilla chips lol.

I'm in the process of transitioning to a true raw paleo diet. For the past month I've cut out all junk foods, been drinking lots of veggie shakes (1-2 day), and am going to start increasing the organ meats. I've also been cutting down on the massive amount of almond butter I was eating (going to replace with animal fats).

My goal is to keep a journal here and outline my diet and improvements. I want to outline where I was when I started, where I'm at now, and how much further I improve, so that others can benefit. I lurked around the forum some and didn't see anyone else with the exact issues as myself. So, we will see how this goes!

Michael

[bookittyrun]

welcome, i hope things go well for you as you document your progress.  there is a wealth of information on this forum, and plenty of members who are happy to offer advice! 

[cherimoya_kid]

Good luck.  I'd suggest eating lots of fatty wild fish, and perhaps fatty cuts of grassfed meat.

[jessica]

Awesome Michael, glad you are finding some relief from your symptoms!

I have definitely dealt with being over sensitive and weird socially in the past.  Patience, moderation, keeping a really clean and simple diet and doing a little bit of supplementation have been what has helped me the most so far. 

Cutting out things like nuts and seeds really helped me, even if the replacement was butter, bacon or raw cheese.  For whatever reason those animal sourced fats just seem to keep me much more on track with diet and allieviate any don't leat to "cravings", or overeating, which lead to symptoms.  So it seems like you are definitely on the right track!
 
Keep us posted!

[TylerDurden]

Raw meat cures a genetic condition. I'm surprised.

[Poncho]

Raw meat cures a genetic condition. I'm surprised.

Whys that?

I thought that the whole 'genetic condition' thing was usually bullshit anyways

I mean, people consider allergies to be genetic. Bullshit.
People consider cancer to be genetic. Bullshit.

How far does it even go?

[cherimoya_kid]

Whys that?

I thought that the whole 'genetic condition' thing was usually bullshit anyways

I mean, people consider allergies to be genetic. Bullshit.
People consider cancer to be genetic. Bullshit.

How far does it even go?

There are genetic tendencies, but they don't necessarily have to develop into full-blown diseases.  A great deal depends on diet and environment.

[Poncho]

The more I read, the more I learn from my own body, the more I understand that it is all due to diet. If you followed the disease train's tracks, all the way back to where it came from, youd find an oven. Thats what I think, haha.

(Not literally an oven, I know that wasnt the first way people began cooking. Its just a simple word that signifies cooking.)

[bookittyrun]

Raw meat cures a genetic condition. I'm surprised.

just to chime in, my sister's children (between the two of them) have been diagnosed with aspergers, and adhd.  they both have severe food allergies.  aside from a drastic change in diet to address the allergy symptoms, i believe the dietary changes have also helped alleviate symptoms from aspergers, and adhd.  is raw meat the cure?  who knows, as they do not participate in that style diet.  however, i feel it is the omission of certain foods that helps control the side effects of their respective conditions...

although not raw, she keeps a recipe blog...
i'll shamelessly plug it here:  http://myaspergersgirl.blogspot.com/

on this forum, it seems pretty unanimous that following a raw type diet is beneficial in many ways, for many people.  exploring what works for the individual is part of the raw journey.  finding help, relief, and solutions for personal problems / issues is the end reward.  the effort made to explore a means of natural, holistic treatment, without suffering harsh effects from man-made chemicals and pills, should never be discouraged.

on a personal note, my transition has alleviated my tendency for frequent, severe migraine headaches...  allowing me overcome something often considered "hereditary", and now found to be possibly genetic in nature (http://www.livescience.com/37822-migraines-genetics-biological-triggers.html).  have i rewritten my genetic code with the diet change?  no, but i've managed to help alleviate the symptoms and tendency to suffer from them, and that truly is a reward.

[cherimoya_kid]

The more I read, the more I learn from my own body, the more I understand that it is all due to diet. If you followed the disease train's tracks, all the way back to where it came from, youd find an oven. Thats what I think, haha.

(Not literally an oven, I know that wasnt the first way people began cooking. Its just a simple word that signifies cooking.)

An oven, a keg of beer, and a grain mill.  We've sickened ourselves with grains too, and humanity's major health problems didn't really kick into high gear until grains started being widely consumed. Cooked paleo diets definitely cause some health problems (all the groups Dr. Price studied had thick green plaque on their teeth, and he had to clean it off before he could photograph them), but adding grains really brought the human race to its knees.

[jesterhead]

Yea Jessica, the nuts can be worthless sometimes. I eat a whole jar of almond butter and don't feel full.

Some cases, probably genetic. Others more so epigenetic combined with heavy metals and abnormal gut flora, leading to improper neurodevelopment. I found an interesting article on PubMed a while ago saying that normal gut flora actually modulates brain development.

For myself, I was born via Cesarean section. I read in Dr. Campbell-McBride's Gut and Psychology Syndrome book that this increases the chance of autism spectrum issues, since a newborn receives their gut flora from the mother’s birth canal. And my mother worked in a dental office for 12 years. She had some contact with mercury, which got stuck in her tissues and passed through the placenta.

I don't think it's fully reversible (sound and smell issues probably will never change), but I'm making a ton of improvements in other areas.

[Poncho]

An oven, a keg of beer, and a grain mill.  We've sickened ourselves with grains too, and humanity's major health problems didn't really kick into high gear until grains started being widely consumed. Cooked paleo diets definitely cause some health problems (all the groups Dr. Price studied had thick green plaque on their teeth, and he had to clean it off before he could photograph them), but adding grains really brought the human race to its knees.

I just meant that it all began with cooking.
Theres a lot that has come since then.
I bet that a cooked paleo diet wouldnt have people being born with 3 arms or with deathly food allergies

[cherimoya_kid]

I just meant that it all began with cooking.
Theres a lot that has come since then.
I bet that a cooked paleo diet wouldnt have people being born with 3 arms or with deathly food allergies

I wonder if there's a planet somewhere where the aliens achieved high technology without ever deviating from their natural diet. Certainly we've paid a high price, in terms of health, for what technology we've developed.

[jessica]

honestly we are just co developing with the earth, just on different time scales, so who knows who's developing whom.  sometimes I look around in these fields in surrounded by and think, damn, garbanzo beans, wheat and corn, they are high ranking vegetables, like soy, bananas, etc, somehow they are these veggies have achieved supremacy.  and we destroy all other plants in favor of them even if those plants and biodiversity is much more usefull.  so is it weird to think that maybe these veggies are also developing us?

[Dr. D]

High ranking according to whom? And by what standard of rank, do you mean?

[jesterhead]

so is it weird to think that maybe these veggies are also developing us?

I think about this a lot. Our society is as technologically and scientifically advanced as ever (unless you buy into ancient technology theories, which I don't), yet most are on Standard American Diet and stricken with health issues. Plus humans have been harvesting grains and other plants for thousands of years before modern processing. Would we have developed computers and other technology without the increased carbohydrate intake from corn, grains, etc? Or, from another perspective, maybe we always had the brain power, but would we even have been interested in doing such things? Who knows.

Surely, grains have been affecting our gene expression, genome, and epigenome. When I go to the gym, I see a lot of teenagers with long skinny limbs. There was a section in Dr. Staffan Lindeberg's book (link) discussing how this is related to grain consumption. I lent the book to a friend, otherwise I would look up the reference.

[goodsamaritan]

I just saw Man of Steel, it must be the super hearing you've got...

Welcome!

[TylerDurden]

I just saw Man of Steel, it must be the super hearing you've got...

Welcome!

Is that film any good?

[jesterhead]

I just saw Man of Steel, it must be the super hearing you've got...

Funny thing is, I just saw that movie too. It was good, better than I thought it was going to be.

[cherimoya_kid]

Would we have developed computers and other technology without the increased carbohydrate intake from corn, grains, etc? Or, from another perspective, maybe we always had the brain power, but would we even have been interested in doing such things?

The Maasai, who traditionally never consumed grains, developed the smelting/refining of iron about 400 years ago, possibly without influence or help from other societies. Once you're refining metals, you're usually on your way to computers, IMO. But either way, they used iron regularly after they learned to smelt it, and had religious beliefs against growing or eating grains.

[Dr. D]

Imagine how much more COULD have been developed if not trying to promote the storage of grains. Silos, grinders, animals for employment, all used solely for food. If gone the other way, more time could be spent either enjoying life or developing planes or some crazy shit like that.

[TylerDurden]

The Maasai, who traditionally never consumed grains, developed the smelting/refining of iron about 400 years ago, possibly without influence or help from other societies. Once you're refining metals, you're usually on your way to computers, IMO. But either way, they used iron regularly after they learned to smelt it, and had religious beliefs against growing or eating grains.

  It seems that the Masai did indeed traditionally eat grains.....http://www.culturequest.us/maasaitribe/masaai_food.htm

[Poncho]

grains make me feel pretty rough
sprouted grains on the other hand, not bad at all

[cherimoya_kid]

  It seems that the Masai did indeed traditionally eat grains.....http://www.culturequest.us/maasaitribe/masaai_food.htm

Some Masai groups did not eat grains.  Also, the ones that did/do eat grains usually eat much less in terms of carbs than the Bantu.