Are you an IBS sufferer?

I didn't know, until I was in my 20's, that I actually had IBS. I'd been going to doctors for several years by that stage and the doctor couldn't really pinpoint what was wrong with me. He prescribed things like imodium, buscopan and some vile orange goop called fybrogel which I would do anything to get out of taking.

Symptoms of IBS can vary from person to person and can be tough to diagnose if you aren't familiar with it. Because IBS is mostly related to food intolerances and stress, doctors often misdiagnose it, call it a stomach bug and prescribe medications to alleviate the symptoms, but not the cause. Isn't that usually the way with doctors though? Most of them believe in curing the symptoms rather than actually getting to the root of the problem and fixing that. Medicine is a big business these days and doctors are booking appointments just 15mins apart to try and increase their intake of patients AND their intake of money. Very few of them charge medical aid rates anymore and even fewer will sit and get a comprehensive history of your problems, to try and work out the reason for them. Food intolerances are not even considered because food is not seen as a cure or a cause for anything.

My domestic is actually the reason I decided to post on this. I am convinced that she has IBS. She is permanently afflicted with severe stomach pains, diarrhea and constipation. She's not shy to talk about it either;)

This morning I walked into the bedroom to find her doubled over in pain on the floor. She asked me for painkillers and, of course, I had none! I don't take them so I don't even buy them. The best I could do was give her a beanbag, warmed in the microwave, to help soothe the pain, and I told her to lie down until it passed. It eventually does. But it's hell while it's happening. I'm so familiar with those pains. It's like someone has stuck a knife in your intestines, then gripped both knife and intestines, and squeezed and twisted. I remember times, when I was younger, running, screaming from one room to the next and crouching on the floor, to try and escape the pain. Nothing ever really worked but waiting it out.

The root of the pain is a spastic colon (which I think is a terrible name, personally! I just hate the word spastic) and this means that the muscles in your colon are contracting and twisting out of control. The cause of it is still not entirely known but some researchers believe it is caused by changes in the nerve structure while others believe it's caused by changes in the central nervous system. Because women suffer more from IBS than men do, others believe it may be hormonal changes causing it. Whatever causes it, I DO know what triggers it, for me, and for most people.

The two main triggers are food and stress. When I was told, by a homeopath, that I had IBS, he advised me to begin eliminating certain foods from my diet, and then gradually reintroduce them, to work out which ones were aggravating my IBS. The main culprits, for most people, are wheat and gluten, dairy and sugar, but I'd also noticed that red meat was a trigger food for me. Whenever I ate it, within minutes I would be running for the bathroom. So I started with wheat, gluten, red meat and dairy. Sugar is tough to cut out and I was VERY new to the whole food journey so I didn't even know how to start that. Sugar is in EVERYTHING.

As it turns out, so is wheat, gluten and dairy! I cut out the main things like bread, pasta, milk and cream and then all the red meat too and I felt an IMMEDIATE improvement. It wasn't easy. These days you can buy so many things that are grain-free and dairy free, and restaurants cater to every kind of eater, so there is always chicken and fish available. 20 years ago, it was impossible to find anything gluten-free, never mind grain-free and most restaurants had very little chicken and fish options. It's amazing how much has changed in that time and I'm extremely thankful for that!

Something that was less easy to cut out of my life, was stress. I am a naturally highly strung person. Things get to me far more than they do to most people. I'm a sensitive soul, what can I say;) My body doesn't handle it very well and the stress affects my digestive system, directly. I can be eating all the right foods. But the moment something happens that gets my adrenalin up, the pain hits. It's crazy, and frustrating.

I've tried yoga but, honestly, it didn't help in the long term, only in that moment that I was doing it. Even holidays don't really do it unless it's the kind of holiday where I don't have to prepare, and pack food for a week or so. Preferably I need a holiday where all I need to pack is my costume and the rest is taken care of. I'm a perfectionist which means, whatever I do, it has to be done PERFECTLY, or not at all. I create my own stress, I know. It's a constant battle to try and remind myself that no-one can be perfect. Lord knows, I am fully aware of my shortcomings! But that doesn't stop me from always trying to do things perfectly. I push myself hard, putting my body through huge stress, and, when I fail, which you inevitably do, my body goes through huge stress again. The result? Bedridden with stomach problems and MORE stress because I am annoyed with myself for getting into this position! Can anyone say, "vicious cycle;)"

So! I can't help you out with the stress, clearly;) But, for most people, it's a food thing and that CAN be controlled quite easily these days. If your life is a rollercoaster of diarrhea, constipation, intense pains in your colon, bloatedness, heartburn, indigestion and acid reflux, there is a very good chance that you have IBS.

In the last 2 years I can honestly say that my IBS is pretty much gone. So what changed for me? I had a COMPLETE overhaul of my diet and lifestyle. I went organic, free-range and chemical-free. Over the years I have cut out several things, and they helped for a time, but my IBS symptoms would eventually come back. Why? Because, as I said, wheat, gluten and sugar are in pretty much everything that is processed. Until I understood that that stuff wasn't actually food, and cut out EVERYTHING that wasn't real food, my body would continue to get a build up of all the toxins that it didn't know how to handle, and my symptoms would return.

When I met GLM, I was PERMANENTLY on de-activated charcoal. In case you don't know what that is, it's something often given to people who overdose, or eat something they shouldn't have, like poison. It's really good at trapping chemicals and preventing their absorption. It does wonders for someone with IBS who is trying to avoid chemicals and foods that cause problems when they are absorbed. Can you imagine the downside of it? I was eating food that I wasn't supposed to, and then I'd just take a charcoal capsule, and, as a result, my body wasn't getting ANY nutrients at all. My immune system suffered and I got sick, often.

It took me about a year to realise how stupid I was being and I began to research in earnest to figure out the next step. Hence the real food, organic, chemical-free lifestyle we now live. GLM ended up on it by default but, the more I've learnt, the more I see how much it will benefit her as well, to keep her life chemical-free. Why only keep myself healthy and not my wife, whom I adore and plan to spend the rest of my life with?! She has always suffered from an under-active thyroid and that is a direct result of chemicals and GMO's in her diet. She's been fixing it through a homeopath, and diet, and her thyroid is pretty much corrected I'm happy to announce:)

More recently, since January in fact, GLM has started banting. So, naturally, I joined her because cooking is just so much easier if we both eat the same. Cutting out all grains, starches and sugar has done WONDERS for my IBS. I can't even begin to describe it. I feel like a new person! I think I have finally found the lifestyle that suits us both perfectly. She is losing weight and I am feeling normal again!

Now, the ONLY time I suffer with my IBS, is if I veer off the path a bit. It happens. Sometimes we go to someone for dinner and they've unknowingly cooked with garlic or onion. And then, once or twice a year we have a big night.  GLM's birthday was one occasion. Shooters were flowing, (hate those things!!) and I suffered for a week afterwards trying to get my colon back in order. I do these things knowing it will make me suffer, but I take every step to fix things as soon as possible afterwards. Sometimes you have to let go and have some fun;) Given that it happens about twice a year, and that I live a clean life 100% of the time aside from that, it doesn't take me long to get back on track, and I CAN do it knowing it's not a regular thing.

These days I often forget that I have IBS. I've even reintroduced some other meats into my diet like lamb and pork. I've realised, as long as meat comes from animals that are free-range, pasture-fed and healthy, it doesn't affect me. I have a bit of a mental block with beef because it's made me very ill at times. At this stage we only eat other meats at home because there are very few restaurants that offer free-range, organic food and most people don't cook with it. If the meat contains chemicals, and if the animals are fed with grains, it hits me hard, so I don't do it. At those time I'll stick with fish and chicken.

If you suffer from any of the symptoms I listed earlier, those being diarrhea, constipation, intense pains in your colon, bloatedness, heartburn, indigestion and acid reflux, and you want to know how to get rid of them, I CAN tell you that you won't get rid of them through medication. Painkillers will just kill the pain, the cause will remain. You've heard me describe what the pain did to me. It had me screaming. And yet I don't TOUCH a painkiller anymore because I don't need it. Gaviscon will stop heartburn and indigestion, but it won't prevent it from coming back. So if you want to know how I do it, I'll tell you, but you HAVE to be strict with yourself.

• Cut out ALL processed foods. NO exceptions.
• Cut out ALL sugar except things like stevia and raw honey. Don't use xylitol. It totally aggravates IBS.
• Cut out ALL wheat and gluten, preferably all grains.  (A lot of grains contain gluten. Check this list to find out which ones are gluten free if you must eat grains. Make sure they are properly soaked before eating them.)
• Cut out ALL conventional foods and stick ONLY to free-range meat and organic fruit and veggies.
• Cut out cow's dairy (most people with IBS can't digest lactose, which is abundant in cow's dairy) I drink goat's milk which doesn't affect me at all.
• Some things that aggravate IBS symptoms are onions, garlic, peppers, seeds and nuts that aren't soaked properly, and coffee. Swap normal potatoes for sweet potatoes.
• Stop taking antibiotics and conventional medication

Things you should be eating:

• ONLY organic and free range food
• Bone broth:
• Fermented foods
• Raw food with every meal. However, avoid raw carrots and raw spinach and other leaf veggies. Always steam those slightly to aid digestion.
• Lots of organic veggies and limited fruit.
• Good, saturated fats from free-range meat and dairy
• If you enjoy dairy, acquire a taste for goat's dairy. It's easy to find at woolworths and at markets these days. It's got practically no lactose and doesn't affect me at all. If you can find it, buy raw milk. It is so good for you and raw cow's milk doesn't aggravate my IBS at all.

That's how you will cure your IBS. I've actually found it so easy. I have replaced all gluten filled flours with things like coconut flour and almond flour so I still get to eat desserts and breads, but they are healthy and don't affect my IBS at all.  I can honestly say that sacrificing certain foods has been so worth it. I feel normal again simply because I can go to a dinner with friends and not end up being Miss Anti-Social when my stomach gives me grief. It's such a novelty that I can't complain about being deprived of anything. I eat delicious, healthy food and I eat WELL.

Let me know how it goes!

Real Food Friday Feast - Breakfast Smoothie

Doctors, dieticians and nutritionists have always maintained that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. While I think all meals are pretty important, I do agree that skipping breakfast leads to a lot more weight problems. I can't survive without breakfast. I open my eyes and my stomach literally yells for food;) But I struggled a bit with what to have for breakfast when I made a decision to cut out processed foods.

If you walk down the cereal aisle you are literally bombarded with every kind of cereal under the sun. The problem with those cereals is that 99% of them are loaded with sugar (usually GMO corn syrup), and ALL of them are grains with NO exceptions. They are rice-based, or maize-based or oat-based and the rest of the ingredients are sugar, sugar and more sugar, and then add a few of those nice coded foods that no-one understands like E61 and E500. I don't think that starting your day off with a carbo load of GMO grains and a whole bunch of other scientifically generated "foods", is a great way to start it.

I've cut most grains out of my life since I discovered they were largely responsible for my IBS flaring up. If I have them now, I'll make sure they're properly soaked and they must be organic obviously;) If you cut grains out of your life, that leaves very little for the "normal" breakfast options. I don't need to eat "normal" food so that doesn't bother me, but GLM is my little creature of habit and is not a fan of change;) There are some things she will go along with, but some things are just a no-go!

One breakfast meal that has always been a winner for her, however, is the breakfast smoothie. I have been making breakfast smoothies for years but, in the last year, the recipe has changed quite drastically. It used to be a very boring combination of banana, apple, almonds, protein shake and soya milk (Can't believe I bought into the propaganda and drank that poison! I'll blog on that at some point too but, take my word for it, avoid it. Especially if you are trying to have a baby. It's loaded with GMO and hormones.) So anyway, that smoothie was pretty average nutrition-wise but it didn't taste too bad.

Enter the organic, super, real food era and how things have changed;) GLM sometimes asks what happened to our "normal" smoothie? (Creature of habit;) You see, what I have realised is that a breakfast smoothie is the EASIEST and TASTIEST way to get most of your fruit and vegetable daily requirements into your body, in one go. Our breakfast smoothie has replaced our multivitamin because it is loaded with all the natural vitamins we need. It is a powerhouse of goodness all in one glass and it's so easy to make, and eat on the run. There are a lot of websites out there by people who have cured cancer with diet and most of them talk about smoothies and juicing. But these are not just any smoothies and juices, they are supercharged, power nutrition in a glass.

So I am going to give you my recipe, but please bear in mind that this is just ONE way to make it. You can add as much variety as you like, depending on your tastes. Don't be put off by the colour. That will depend on the colour of the food you use but it'll still taste amazing. The more different colours you use, the more nutrition you will get out of it. 

You will need a decent blender (a hand blender will work well too.) 

Power Breakfast Smoothie (feeds 2)

1 raw Banana (medium size)
1 raw baby marrow (medium size)
1 raw patty pan
2 tsp peeled ginger root (or just a nice size chunk)

4 Tbs paw paw
2 Tbs soaked organic chia seeds
1/4 avocado pear
2 tsp organic cocoa powder
4 eggs OR 2 eggs and 125ml organic plain yoghurt
2 Tbs dehydrated coconut
2 slices pineapple
Add water to get a nice consistency

Method

• Throw all ingredients into blender EXCEPT chia seeds, adding liquid last.
• Blend till smooth
• Pour into 2 separate glasses
• Add a tablespoon of chia seeds to each glass and mix in
• Drink!

As I said, these ingredients are not carved in stone. You can replace the fruits with other fruits and the veggies with other veggies. I recommend keeping the coconut, ginger, cocoa powder, avocado (it gives the smoothie a lovely, creamy consistency) and chia seeds, but play around with the rest depending on availability and taste preference. You CAN use milk instead of yogurt. Both are a good source of protein. You can even JUST use milk instead of the eggs. As long as you have some protein in there. Bear in mind that eggs are a GREAT source of nutrition (provided they are free range) and are NOT public enemy number one for those with high cholesterol as some people keep insisting. If you are a vegetarian you can leave out the eggs and milk and just use water but you will need a bit more protein in there so I would add a handful of properly soaked nuts and perhaps a scoop of vegetarian protein powder. 

Some of you may be wondering about chia seeds. These little seeds are like magic seeds;) They are so good for you! They contain your daily dose of Omegas all in one little tablespoon. You can buy them at dischem and all health shops as well. They look like this when they are dry:

And like this when you make them into gel:

Why would you want to make them into gel? Well, they go so much further and they're easier to work with. They are mostly tasteless little seeds but they are good for so many things. 

• Omega 3's - Help reduce inflammation, enhance cognitive performance and reduce high cholesterol
• Fibre - Reduces inflammation, lowers cholesterol and regulates bowel function
• Antioxidants - Help protect the body from free radicals, ageing and cancer
• Minerals - Two tablespoons of chia seeds contain 18% of the daily recommended intake for calcium, 35% for phosphorus, 24% for magnesium and about 50% for manganese
• Satiety - They make you feel full for longer
• They are gluten free
• They make a good egg replacer when baking for those who can't eat eggs
• Blood sugar regulation - They play an important role in regulating insulin levels and can reduce insulin resistance and decrease abnormally high levels of insulin in the blood.
• Raise energy levels

See why you would want to eat these? Making them into gel is really easy. Get a clean glass jar and place 3 tablespoons of seeds in the jar. Fill the jar up with filtered water, all the way to the top and stir with a fork. Leave for a few minutes and then stir again. You'll notice they will clump up a bit. That's because they absorb the water and start to swell. Leave for a bit and then stir again to break up the clumps. Eventually the jar will be filled with chia seed gel and no more clumps and then you simply add a tablespoon of those to each smoothie. You can add them to anything really. You won't notice the taste at all, but you'll feel the health benefits! And that jar will last a week or two in your fridge.

That's it! I recommend eating at least one of these smoothies a day, but you are welcome to have more!

Food for thought

If you've read my profile you may be wondering why a singer/songwriter is blogging about health and nutrition. Well firstly, travelling a lot, and having to be energetic on a stage, as well as NOT getting laryngitis, means keeping myself fit and healthy! But honestly, the story starts much earlier than that.

I grew up with a condition called IBS. I just didn't know it was IBS until my early 20's. Before that my life consisted of constant, agonising stomach aches, feeling tired all the time, many sick days and visits to doctors and a very intimate relationship with toilets! I don't think I need to go into more detail there;)

When it was eventually diagnosed, by a homeopath, as IBS, I immediately set about figuring out how to make it go away. It turned out that one of the main aggravants was food, or rather, CERTAIN foods. This was pretty devastating for me to discover because I LOVE my food. The other main aggravant was stress. The fact that I always developed a terrible stomach ache right before a show, and invariably parted with my dinner right before said show, was not just a coincidence!

How could I manage the problem? Well, stress is harder to cut out of your life than food is, so I decided to start with food and work from there. By process of elimination I discovered that red meats, wheat, gluten and dairy seemed to be the main culprits. There were also odd things like potatoes, onion, peppers and garlic which I couldn't eat. I started cutting all these things out of my life as much as possible. But it's easier said than done! Wheat is in pretty much everything that is processed and packaged. That meant things like bread, pasta, all baked goods, a lot of sauces and anything in batter, were out. No dairy meant no more milk with my cereal, tea or coffee and it also cut out all baked goods and desserts, a lot of soups, stews and curries and most sauces as well. No onions cut out a lot of stews and curries. It's also added to pretty much all salads and garnish, as are peppers, so I had to get pretty specific when ordering a salad. Garlic is in pretty much everything that is cooked in a restaurant, and most people cook with it at home too. Annoyingly, garlic seems to hit me harder than just about everything else on this list! As if I wasn't a complicated enough guest already!

I should also just add that this was about 15 years ago. Food allergies and intolerances were very uncommon and it was frowned upon to be fussy about your food. I often ended up having to just eat what was in front of me and that ALWAYS meant all my symptoms came back with a vengeance. I soon realised that there wasn't a cure, as such, for IBS. I also couldn't do things in half measures. The only way to manage it, was to make permanent lifestyle changes.

Being on the road made it very difficult to control my food. I had to pack as much non-perishable foods as possible for every trip or make sure that the hotel I was staying at, stocked food I could eat. The small towns I was performing in had very limited products in the shops. There was no such thing as wheat-free anything! It also took me many years to really figure out what I could, and couldn't have. I made many mistakes on my journey of discovery and I have paid for them in stomach aches and many hours spent in public toilets.

Fortunately, things have progressed in leaps and bounds since those early days and now it's pretty easy to find wheat and gluten-free food. Restaurants are accustomed to modifying recipes to suit customers with allergies and intolerances. In fact, most restaurants will have a few options which mean not much modifying is required. It's becoming standard for people to ask if there's anything their guests don't eat, when planning a dinner party and it's common to see a few different options being made to allow for everyone's dietary needs. Life has certainly gotten easier for me and others like me.

But have you ever stopped to wonder why, 15 years ago, food intolerances were fairly uncommon and yet, today, it seems every second person can't eat SOMETHING. Some might say it's a fad and people have just jumped on the health bandwagon and are full of nonsense. Maybe that IS the case with SOME people but I don't think its coincidental that food intolerances and allergies have escalated in the last several years. I think the only reason I noticed it earlier than most is that I have IBS and it was pretty chronic growing up. I was forced to notice it.

I think there a lot of people who have food intolerances and aren't even aware that that's what is causing  their discomfort and I think it's becoming more common because the quality of our food has changed so drastically over the years. In fact, I'd go even further and say that, what we are eating these days, is so far removed from actual food, that our bodies simply don't know how to assimilate any of it. I think a lot of people are sick and they don't even know it until it manifests in the form of cancer, diabetes, heart disease or some other dread disease.

This blog is the start of what is going to be a lot of "food for thought" if you can excuse the pun;) I believe in prevention rather than cure. I believe in the power of food. I have seen, and experienced that power in my own life and I don't see why I should keep it to myself any longer. I get asked for advice from those close to me, A LOT. And I LOVE to help people start a journey towards a healthy life. In the past I have just sent an email with advice, helped make dietary suggestions or even gone shopping for some people to show them where to find stuff. I think it's time I consolidate all of that into one place that everyone can reference. And if I can reach a few more people in the process, and help spread the truth about food, and healthy living, it will be an added bonus.

I am not a doctor or a dietician. I am a person who is obsessed with health and nutrition and I love to research things that interest me. I have done a lot of research into this over the years and I have learnt a lot along the way. I have also spent the last year or so studying to be an exercise specialist which has given me the added advantage of knowledge of the body and how it works. I like to lead by example. If you want to sell something, you need to walk the talk. So, if you step into my world, you'll see a 37 year old woman, with a biological age of 32 ( according to my medical aid!) who is completely natural, organic and chemical free. A lot of people hear the words "natural" and "organic" and assume that means no more makeup or beauty products and hairy underarms and legs! I am a stage performer. You do the math there;) The days where being natural meant you had to let yourself go, are long gone. The main thing is to look after yourself, inside and out, and also look after your environment at the same time. It's actually really easy to do and this blog is going to show you how!

Watch this space...