Health

On December 31st, 2010, I announced that my word for 2011 was Health. It’s the first word that came to mind when I thought of the year ahead. Little did I know how quickly it would make itself heard...

One week ago, I was sitting at my desk after lunch feeling bloated and uncomforatble. I had just had a bowl of rice with tofu and vegetables and my mind told me I should be feeling great, but I wasn’t. I have had a sensitive tummy from the time I was a little girl, so I’m used to the feeling; but it’s been growing worse lately. It got a whole lot better when I cut out gluten nine years ago, but over the last couple years, with all the new gluten-free baked goods, gluten-free flours, and gluten-free cookbooks out there, I have been eating a lot more starch and grains than I did when I first stopped eating gluten. And over the years, my stomach has gotten worse. Lately, it feels like my intestines twist and turn and yell at me every time I eat anything. So a week ago, I decided I had to do something about it. My body was trying hard to tell me something and it was time I listened.

I set to work trying to find possible solutions and after much research, I stumbled upon the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle: Intestinal Health Through Diet. Something in me said this was it: the path that might lead to some answers.

The diet in this book - referred to as the Specific Carbohydrate Diet - is one that aims to restore intestinal health by eating a natural diet of mostly fruits and vegetables (some nuts, aged cheese, eggs, and all-natural fish and meat are also allowed), and by eliminating complex carbohydrates that are hard for the body to digest. It pretty much boils down to no grains, no starches, no sugar, and no processed foods. This diet, however, is neither a low carbohydrate one (just low on hard-to-digest carbohydrates) nor a low-calorie one. In other words, it's simply a return to the earth, to whole foods and to basics. It's about listening to your body and feeling what's right for you.

My hope is that over time my stomach will return to a healthy state and I can then try to reintroduce certain foods to see which ones work or don't work for me.

So I am off to a journey of recovery and renewed health!

I, in no way, see this as taking away from fun in the kitchen. I have a feeling that with some creativity and a willingness to tread the unfamiliar, it will be a ton of fun. So I look forward to posting new and exciting recipes that will (hopefully!) make tummies all over feel like dancing a happy dance.

Here's to Health and listening to these precious bodies of ours!