There is a wide range of vegan diets:
- Those who might live on cheese (dairy) & bread (gluten) or chips & salsa
- Those who live on “Processed” vegan “Junk” foods (pizza, veggie burgers, etc.)
- Those whose vegan diets consist of whole food-based, nutrient-dense meals (not processed)
- Raw food vegans
- Fruitarians
- Everything in between…
- And those of us on the Vegan AIP (AutoImmune Protocol) — eat a nutrient-dense, highly diverse veggie diet while eliminating other inflammatory foods.
So, You Can be Vegan and be eating diets that are:
- Full of nutrition, plant diversity, nutrient-dense (but still eating some potentially inflammatory foods)
- Full of nutrition, plant diversity, nutrient-dense (while eliminating potentially inflammatory foods – like the Vegan AIP)
- Lacking in plant diversity, quantity, and nutrition.
Most “Processed” vegan foods are full of — soy, gluten, chemicals / additives, grains, nightshades, legumes, and seeds which are known to be inflammatory, especially if your immune system is struggling. * See the full list of Vegan AIP “Yes” and “No” foods under my Vegan AIP Info / menu tab.
I ate lots of salads, but more and more, my diet consisted of the same meals every day – processed vegan foods like veggie burgers, vegan pizzas, cheeses, dips, salsas, corn chips, corn tortillas.
My vegan diet was vegan processed food heavy and lacking in the nutrient density and diversity that my body needed.
So – I needed to go a step further to deal with my decades-long health crisis and eliminate other foods and elements that are inflammatory (seeds, nuts, grains, legumes, nightshades, additives / chemicals). * See the full list of Vegan AIP “Yes” and “No” foods under Vegan AIP Info / menu tab.
These are all things that are eliminated in the “Elimination” Phase of the Vegan AIP diet.
Many vegan diets alone are cited as curing chronic illnesses and autoimmune diseases. But, it’s likely that some vegan diets (like the first two above) — Can Contribute — to getting ill, especially with more and more “processed” vegan foods available.
The Vegan AIP has been a savior for me. Within 90 days of going on it – all of the debilitating symptoms that I’ve had, some for decades, disappeared: constant migraines, extreme joint pain, skin rashes, gut issues, eye inflammation, fatigue, hair falling out.
As I’ve healed, I’ve been able to add many more foods back in! Everyone is different regarding what and how many foods one is able to add back in. Sometimes one must troubleshoot other issues.
Can A Vegan Diet Help Auto-Immune Disease?
As noted above, many, many people claim to have cured their Chronic Illness and Auto-Immune diseases with vegan diets alone.
A few examples are:
A woman, Catherine, sited in a N.Y. Post article – who cured herself of Hashimoto’s autoimmune disease by going vegan.
She said, “something happens when you change to vegan, your body rebalances, your gut flora normalizes and I eat more “fat” on a vegan diet, and yet my weight is as low as it was in my 20s.”
The VeganTeaRoom website notes a study published in 2014 “which looked at 198 patients to investigate further whether eating a strict plant-based diet could stop or reverse heart disease.
The study found of the 177 patients who stuck to the diet, the majority reported a reduction in symptoms, and 22 percent had disease reversal confirmed by test results.”
They note that “research shows that plant-based diets are low-risk interventions that may lower body mass index, blood pressure, HbA1C, and cholesterol levels. They may also reduce the number of medications needed to treat chronic diseases and lower ischemic heart disease mortality rates.”
Further, they state, “based on those biomarkers, the vegan group had the lowest risk for cancer, heart disease, and hypertension, compared with the other groups. The vegan group also had higher omega-3 fatty acids and higher serum levels of carotenoids and isoflavones associated with lower inflammation.”
Dr. Brooke Goldner, who cured her Lupus (autoimmune disease) with a vegan diet – (mainly green smoothies and raw food) claims that there is no nutritional need for humans to eat animal products. We get everything we need from plants. The consumption of animal products has been conclusively linked to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, etc.
In 2019 “Harvard Health Publishing” website noted that “ a vegan diet may help lower heart-damaging inflammation more than the diet recommended by the American Heart Association (AHA), a new study finds.”
The study included 100 people with heart disease, defined as having at least one narrowed heart artery. Half were randomly selected to follow a vegan diet, excluding meat, poultry, dairy, eggs, seafood, and fish. The others followed the AHA diet, which encourages lean poultry, fish, low-fat dairy products, and plant-based foods.
After eight weeks, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were 32% lower among people in the vegan diet group when compared with the AHA diet group. Elevated levels of CRP — a marker for inflammation — are associated with a higher risk of a heart attack.
A post on AreVegan.com describes Lydia Cronin. She reversed ankylosing spondylitis, a type of arthritis that causes inflammation in the joints and ligaments of the spine – after adopting a raw-plant-based vegan diet.
Her disease had reached a stage where she lost her ability to walk and was put in a wheelchair. She was also diagnosed with multiple other health problems, including metal toxicity, Hashimoto’s, and mold in her body.
Soon after, she went to Hippocrates Health Institute and made a massive shift in her diet and lifestyle. She adopted a 100% raw, plant-based diet. She gave up all sorts of meat, dairy, processed & refined foods and started eating raw, organic, plant-based meals consisting of leafy sprouts, green vegetables, and lots of green juices.
After 5 months on this diet and lifestyle, she no longer had the diseases she had suffered from.
https://arevegan.com/woman-cures-ankylosing-spondylitis-on-a-raw-vegan-diet/
Can A Vegan Diet Cause Leaky Gut?
Dr. Amy Meyers is a Functional Dr. and AIP advocate. She notes that: “Autoimmune diseases are diseases of the immune system.”
With autoimmune diseases – at some point, your immune system starts attacking your own tissues: your joints, your thyroid, your intestines, your skin, your brain, your pancreas, or another organ.
To treat, prevent, and reverse your autoimmune disease, you’ll need to get your immune system back under control, which means addressing your gut health.
She notes that: 80% of your immune system is located in the gut. Without a healthy gut, you can’t have a healthy immune system. You’re open to infections, inflammation, and autoimmune disease without a healthy immune system.
A “Leaky Gut” happens – when the tight junctions that hold your intestinal wall together become permeable. This can be caused by: toxic foods and stress.
https://www.amymyersmd.com/article/leaky-gut-autoimmune-disease/
What Is the Fastest Way to Reduce Inflammation in the Body Using Vegan Foods?
Every person’s chronic health condition or an autoimmune condition is different. Many factors can go into it. Did you begin having symptoms decades ago or did they just start? As many studies show – just going vegan can reduce significant inflammation.
But, if you have significant inflammation – you may need to go a step further as I did by eliminating other inflammatory foods temporarily (and, with some things permanently).
Either way – if you want to reduce your inflammation, going vegan and eating a nutrient-dense, highly diverse diet of veggies – is the best way to go!
Can a Vegan Diet Reverse Arthritis?
I reversed my arthritis – my extreme joint pain – which had been building for a decade but overnight became debilitating – with the Vegan AIP.
I also reversed my constant migraines, skin rashes, gut issues, eye inflammation, fatigue, and hair falling out.
Everyone and every case are different. First, you’ll need to look at where you are at? What is your diet currently? Are you already vegan? What kind of vegan are you? Do you live on processed vegan food? Chances are your diet isn’t nutrient-dense and veggie diverse?
Depending on what your symptoms are and how long you’ve been dealing with them – you may be able to reverse your symptoms with a Vegan diet that is:
- Full of nutrition, plant diversity, and nutrient-dense (while still eating some potentially inflammatory foods: seeds, nuts, legumes, grains, nightshades, additives / chemicals, etc.)
Or, you may need to go a step further and go on the Vegan AIP and dive into a diet / lifestyle that is:
- Full of nutrition, plant diversity, nutrient-dense (while eliminating potentially inflammatory foods: seeds, nuts, legumes, grains, nightshades, additives / chemicals, etc.)
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- To deal with some autoimmune condition or chronic illness
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Vegan AIP was the perfect thing to get me back on track, and I’ll bet it can do the same for you.
In Vibrant Health ~
Tanya
ThriveHealVegan.com
Foodie, Traveler, Blogger, Healer, Writer, Artist, and More!
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