Top 10 Things to Kick-Start the Healing Process in your Body by Terry Wahls
This article was originally published in Holistic Health Living
Dr. Terry Wahls is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. She is the author of The Wahls Protocol: How I Beat Progressive MS Using Paleo Principles and Functional Medicine and the cookbook The Wahls Protocol Cooking for Life: The Revolutionary Modern Paleo Plan to Treat All Chronic Autoimmune Conditions . You can learn more about her work from her website, www.terrywahls.com . She hosts the Wahls Protocol Seminar every August where anyone can learn how to implement the Protocol with ease and success.
Many of you are ready to begin making changes to your diet and eating for optimal health, but you may be asking, “Where do I start?” In order to begin correcting the biochemistry of your cells, follow these 10 guidelines to help kick-start the healing process in your body.
1. Go gluten free
Gluten is the most common unrecognized food sensitivity in western society and is associated with a wide variety of problems, including but not limited to fibromyalgia, chronic headaches, mental health problems, neurological problems, and autoimmune problems. If you have a chronic health problem, try going gluten free for a month to see if it helps.
2. Eat and live organic.
Organic means free of synthetic chemicals. Choose organic foods and personal care products to reduce the number of chemical toxins that your liver and kidney have to process each day.
3. Eat a plate of greens each day.
Leafy greens are high in Vitamins B, A, C, and K, which are necessary for a healthy immune system, intestines, and brain. These can be cooked or raw.
4. Eat a plate of sulfur-rich vegetables each day.
Vegetables rich in sulfur help you more efficiently eliminate toxins in the body. They also help make proteins that support your bones and joints. Sulfur-rich vegetables include members of the cabbage, onion, and mushroom families.
5. Eat a rainbow each day (red, yellow, orange, and purple).
Eat deeply colored fruits, berries, and vegetables. The colored pigments indicate antioxidants that help rid the body of harmful free radicals.
6. Eat grass-fed meat and wild fish.
Animals that consume chemically treated foods store those chemicals in their bodies, passing them on to us. Grass-fed meat and wild fish have a healthier ratio of omega-3 and omega-6 fats than grain-fed meats or farm-raised fish.
7. Eat seaweed once a week.
Seaweed contains a rich supply of vitamins and minerals, especially iodine. Iodine is important for thyroid and immune function. It also naturally detoxifies the body.
8. Eat organ meat once a week.
Organ meats are highly nutritious and contain high levels of both fat and water-soluble vitamins that are needed for mitochondrial function.
9. Meditate.
Meditation is helpful for stress management. Taking a moment to calm the mind allows the brain to signal to the body that it can relax again. This helps reduce chronic stress and inflammation.
10. Exercise.
Movement stimulates nerve growth factor in the brain, encouraging brain cell growth and improved communication between cells. Exercise also helps maintain physical and mental health, strengthening your heart, lungs, and muscles and improving overall mood.
To learn more about the diet and lifestyle interventions that I use in my clinical practice and research to help people reclaim their energy, banish brain fog, have more joy, and reduce their dependence on prescription medications, visit my website, www.terrywahls.com, and order my book The Wahls Protocol: How I Beat Progressive MS Using Paleo Principles and Functional Medicine.