Why I chose to be a gluten-free vegan

Hi! This post may seem slightly unconventional and I know that this isn't a recipe, but I wanted to share with you all my story and how diet has affected my life and energy. Please note that I am in no way a nutrition or health specialist, this is simply a recounting of the events that have shaped my choices of lifestyle, and my current views concerning health. 







A few years ago, I fell very ill and after a long series of hospital visits, blood tests and needle biopsies, it was discovered that I suffered from a rare condition called Castleman's disease

This condition is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to essentially overreact to everything it encounters, causing small illness such as colds or flues to have a much greater impact and cause much more damage. This also led to me being susceptible to a large number of allergic reactions to different pollen and foods. From this point on, pretty much everything I ate was on a trial basis, my mum holding the Epi-pen in case I had an allergic reaction. 

After discovering my condition, I was still continually ill and suffering from extreme stomach cramps, which in some instances made eating close to impossible. I would eat a meal and 30 minutes later I would be writhing in pain on my couch, unable to move because the pain was so terrible. Following these episodes, I would go to the hospital, meet up with a number of doctors, explain my pain and try to find a reason for it. The main response was that the pain was psychosomatic. However, my blood work revealed that I was highly allergic to gluten, a protein found in most cereals, such as wheat, rye, and barley.

This blood test was the beginning of a series of life-changing choices. At the time, I was 14 years old and although I was interested in doing whatever was best to make myself feel better, I had not really considered diet as an option. However, after being diagnosed as coeliac, I had to eliminate all forms of gluten from my diet.

Although my friends and family seemed to find the task impossible, I realized that changing your diet was simply a matter of choice, and to me, it was the easiest choice I ever made. My immediate family was extremely supportive, and we ended up changing the diet of our whole family to accommodate our health needs.

However, the story does not end here. After eliminating gluten from my life, the doctors had high hopes that I would feel much better and be able to live a normal life without crippling pain. The opposite happened. My pain intensified, my cramps were even more frequent and I felt so frustrated that the changes I had implemented were not benefitting me as I had hoped. After working on an elimination diet for a few weeks, I discovered that dairy products were making extremely ill.

After eliminating dairy from my diet, I felt so much better. I had also become slightly food-obsessed. When going through so much pain and doctors appointments and finally realizing that all the medicine I needed was a diet change, my interest in food and nutrition had never been higher as ultimately my health and well-being were at stake. 

This was the beginning of my path to a complete lifestyle change, and a new-found appreciation for all whole plant-based foods. After watching some documentaries and reading a few books, I decided to eliminate all animal foods from my diet, as the research done on the impact of a plant-based vs. an animal-based diet are truly astonishing. 

It is found that animal protein, including casein found in milk, is responsible for promoting and developing a number of diseases which are currently top three causes of death in most Western countries, such as cancer, heart disease, MS, and diabetes. By applying and replenishing your body with a plant-based diet, the research shows that most patients were able to reverse their conditions and even lower their medication doses. If this type of research interests you, I recommend you read THE CHINA STUDY, which I found absolutely eye-opening.

I am now a very healthy gluten-free vegan. Even though my doctors were dubious at first, the blood work done has confirmed that I have no vitamin or mineral deficiencies and that my diet works very well for my body. I am so very grateful for the opportunities my condition has given me to work on my health and be able to inspire others to do the same. There were times in my journey, where I could not have imagined doing what I am now doing: going to university, traveling freely, and sharing my story in hopes to positively impact the way we think about health and nutrition.

I sincerely recommend you to do your own research and make your own dietary choices. I encourage all of you to find out the most you can about nutrition and to make your own ideas because after all you're the one choosing what to eat and no one else can make that choice for you. If you want more information on nutrition and food in relation to health, I recommend the following books and documentaries: 
- The China Study, Colin Campbell
- Food: What the heck should we eat? , Mark Hyman
- Supersize me
- What the health? (there is some misinformation in this one, but most observations are extremely interesting)
- Food Inc

I hope you enjoyed this post, and please let me know if you want more posts concerning nutrition and health.

Comments

Popular Posts