rheumatoid arthritis

[kmckay]

Hi,

My name is Kevin and I have been eating paleo (purist) for several years and went from 212 to 170 and have put on allot of muscle to boot but last October I woke up with terrible pain in my hands and blood work shows I have an elevated rheumatoid factor.

I am super strict eating only meat fruit vegitables nuts and seeds. I keep carb intake between 40-80 grams a day. I supplement with fish oil and magnesium. Don't touch grains legumes dairy. I also practice daily intermittent fasting with a (4-6) hr feeding window.

I work out 3 days a week using high intensity short workouts
( www.simplefit.org )

I heard about you guys from several different sources ( Rob wolf, theperformancemenu.com, Loren Cordain, Ph.D. paleodiet, and www.simplefit.org ) all hold you guys in high esteem so wanted to see if you had any suggestions?

Thanks
Kevin McKay

[deirdra]

The elevated rheumatoid factor is thought to be genetic, however mine was elevated but now is normal now that I have eliminated all foods I am sensitive to. It causes inflammation due to immune system reactions, which you may be able to reduce with careful attention to what you eat. Getting rid of the grains, legumes & dairy has probably helped you immensely, but you may have other food sensitivities.

Some people find red meat aggravates joint pain. I find some nuts and seeds cause me pain; others don't - I figured out which ones work for me by eliminating them and adding them back one at a time. The Coca pulse test can help identify food reactions too - take your pulse for a full minute first thing in the morning while lying down. After a meal, take your pulse 30, 60, & 90 minutes later while seated (for at least 3 minutes). If your pulse rises by more than 16 beats/minute you are sensitive to at least one of the foods. If your pulse rises by more than 12 beats/minute you may be sensitive to at least one of the foods, so test each food again, one at a time. I spent a couple of weekends having one food at a time meals and found that sunflower & sesame seeds & walnuts caused reactions but other seeds & nuts did not.

[Mitra]

Welcome, Kevin.

Have you read Protein Power Life Plan? There's a chapter on leaky gut and autoimmune disorders. Of course, the worst culprits are grains and pulses, and you've already dealt with them, but you might spot something in the detail that gives you a clue. If you just want to look at a few pages, you could try the amazon search inside feature - or a library, or just hang around in a bookshop while you read that chapter.

As Deirdra suggests, you could have a sensitivity to some food that's not so broadly problematic as grains and pulses.

Good luck with your investigations.

By the way, as a palliative measure, Dr Mike Eades has blogged about the benefits of krill oil - if you search on that, here on the board, or on his blog, you should pick up some discussion and links to his articles. It might help with the pain and inflammation while you're trying to get the root cause.

[kmckay]

Deirdra, I will try eliminating nuts for a while and see if that does anything, maybe if that does not work I will try xing eggs.

Mitra, Leaky gut, is that the whole molecular mimicry thing? I have not got to that chapter yet just got the book yesterday so will be sure to read carefully. Is krill more than just a denser source of n3's?

Thanks, This is a great site and I am enjoying the book allot, should probably finish this week I read slow and carefully. It seems to validate all the stuff I have see from Cordain.

Ps: yes all my meat/and eggs are grass/wild fed organic

Any other suggestions or ideas I would love to hear.

Thanks!

[Mitra]

Yes, leaky gut is basically about the problems when inflammation of the gut walls allows molecules to pass into the body that can cause immune responses that, because some of the molecules (generally proteins) are similar to certain human ones, have been linked to various auto-immune problems.

Research published in the most recent issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition shows that a modest daily dose of krill oil markedly reduces inflammation and reduces the pain, stiffness and functional impairment associated with rheumatoid and osteoarthritis within one week.

That's from Dr Mike's blog, Krill oil and inflammation (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/?p=605), but there are several other blog entries with additional bits and pieces of info - you'll find them if you put "krill" into the blog search box.

The first time he outlined the use of krill oil as an anti-inflammatory was: Ditch your NSAID meds (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/?p=261).

[laughingW]

There's an interesting if scary/nutty/skinny guy from the ultra-low-fat vegan world who identified inflammation as the source of his problem, and talks about how he got rid of all his "itis" es (arthritis, bursitis, etc etc)

He talks about the acid-base balance being key. Cordain has an article on that too.

http://www.aristotleadventure.com/anti-itis/

and have you explored the nightshade connection for your own satisfaction?

[kmckay]

laughingW, I have read Cordains info on the subject and since I derive 100% of my carbs from fruit and veg I think I have this aspect covered. I try to use the more alkaline stuff from here http://www.thepaleodiet.com/nutritional_tools/acid.shtml

Mitra, I will check out the krill oil I was under the impression it was just a much more dense source of omega 3's I will check it out.

In regards to the leaky gut I do not eat any grains or legumes so not sure I would be getting any lectins from?