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Janelle's log
Hello all,
I'm a long time lurker, recently decided I needed to revisit the vitamin A toxicity thing. I suffer from orthorexia easily so it has been essential for me not to get too sucked in to 'toxic this toxic that' because that can destroy my life if I'm not careful. I am a chronic undereater, but I also realize that maybe I undereat because my liver is not so good therefore food sits around for too long making me think I can't even handle eating more. I started taking betaine hcl with my meat dinners. It helped my reflux A LOT! But didn't fix anything.
I have always had sensitive digestion since a child. I tend towards constipation and nausea. I developed IBS-C at about 12 yrs old, it got worse as I'm getting older. I can't eat any whole grains or whole nuts. I even react to fiber additives like acacia gum (which they tout as an IBS supplement!), and it can even happen just randomly on my period. Or when I do coffee enemas. I get severe cramping, sometimes worse than child birth until all the stool gets pushed along and out. It's not even hard stool, it's soft and sticky. Actually it only happens when my stool is soft and sticky like a bile dump. But how do I get the sticky bile out if I'm on the toilet for 2 hours every 5 days? I tried that, it never goes away. Every 5-6 days like clock work I'd be messed up, I decided to stop torturing myself and eliminate everything I knew that causes it.
So this is my main question to all you smart people, how can I get my bile working better if it causes tortuous cramping to do so?
Coffee enemas seem to work the best and when I was tolerating coffee a few years ago that made my stool near perfect, but coffee can cause panic attacks. With coffee enemas it causes the cramping for the first few times and then it gets better. With fiber it never gets better. I can tolerate well cooked vegetables and fruit just fine, but I don't know how much that even helps the bile problem. I really hate veggies! I was trying to force cruciferous veggies because of dr. wilson's hair mineral analysis site, he claims everyone needs cups of them a day. I don't know who to believe anymore.
@janelle525, have you considered trying a low vitamin A bean protocol a la Karen Hurd? That is awesome for liver and gallbladder issues. Its hard as you have to give up every stimulant, even perfumed anything, but it really helps. You might want to look into it. For some people they have to start with 1 bean 3 times a day and work up from there. If they cant tolerate more. After 10 months on the program my liver and gallbladder is already so much better!
Unique Hammond, the other Bean Queen, she is also so awesome. She healed herself from Chrons disease with the bean protocol. She was very ill when she found Karen.
Hi @janelle525! I was thinking about your post last night.
First of all, I wonder if you could ramp up slowly on coffee if it makes you poop good. Interesting that things get worse around your period, I think lots of women here would say the same. All the detox pathways are overloaded at that time, I think.
I wonder if your panic attacks could be the same thing as what I call my asthma. It might be down to needing molybdenum, and maybe that nutrient is run down by detox. I'd rather eat molybdenum foods rather than take supps (as I now think of supps as often problematic). There are lists on the web, (for me, yogurt, peanuts and meat).
Second of all, I wonder if you might be interested in my post about Dr. O'mara's ideas about losing visceral fat and how that can improve your over-all health. I think that visceral fat might be caused (among other things) by VA toxicity, and it might slow down all the processes that need to happen in the gut, sort of like an over-stuffed sausage effect, LOL.
To my new son-in-law's chagrin, we talk about pooping here in this family. I suppose that is because there are some people here in this family who have troubles like yours (although not as severe). You know what we realized? We have this concept of "the vacation poop". Vacation poops are the best poop eva. This kind of movement is so good you have to write home about it. What causes vacation poops?
I've found (in the last few weeks) that applying Dr O'mara ideas has led to vacation poops right here at home! Personally, I think the "sprint-like exercise" might be the magic key of the vacation poop. (Although also fresh air, sunshine, de-stressing, happiness, walking, eating well) might play in too. https://ggenereux.blog/discussion/topic/sarcopenia-visceral-fat/?part=1.
Under-eating is not what happens on one of our vacations. You know, when I first came here to this site I had two old cats with kidney failure and they seemed to have less and less appetite. The vet told me to feed them anything they would eat because keeping food moving though was important. On vacation, we eat delicious food with a good appetite brought on by bouts of activity and fresh air.
Grant's lifestyle fits right in with Dr. O'maras, IMO. (he bikes for instance)
Quote from Inger on December 12, 2023, 6:39 am@janelle525, have you considered trying a low vitamin A bean protocol a la Karen Hurd? That is awesome for liver and gallbladder issues. Its hard as you have to give up every stimulant, even perfumed anything, but it really helps. You might want to look into it. For some people they have to start with 1 bean 3 times a day and work up from there. If they cant tolerate more. After 10 months on the program my liver and gallbladder is already so much better!
Unique Hammond, the other Bean Queen, she is also so awesome. She healed herself from Chrons disease with the bean protocol. She was very ill when she found Karen.
Yes! I should have mentioned that I also can't tolerate beans! I was obsessed with Karen Hurd's protocol for a while, I didn't trial it properly though, she claims she never had problems with anyone tolerating beans within several days, I was like uhhhh then you haven't met me! I tend to go all in too quickly. I kept telling myself I can trial the one bean a day then two beans a day and so on... but I was like that is ridiculous if I can't tolerate a handful how I am ever going to?! So I never did it. I think I will try it. I definitely have SIBO, anything that isn't well digested by the time it reaches the end of my small intestine causes IBS. I am not sure why fructose doesn't though as that is a FODMAP, but fruit and sugar is absorbed towards the beginning of digestion so thankfully that works good for me. I guess my gut microbiota are whole grains, beans and nut lovers!!! I used to be able to have some of all of that. Now I can't even have one granola bar.
I come from the WAPF and Ray Peat camp. LOTS of vitamin A mainly from butter, and dairy. I did eat liver sometimes too, and forced down fermented cod liver oil every once in a while, though it was so nasty I avoided doing it THANKFULLY! But during Ray Peat when I developed psoriasis in my butt crack I was taking retinol palmitate every now and then like 10,000 IUs. Again by the grace of God the one all the Ray Peat fans liked to take stopped being made and I never bought it again.
I've been avoiding all major sources of vitamin A since 2018 and it has never cleared up. I still ate dairy and ice cream though and recently I was drinking orange juice everyday. Unable to give up my favorite foods. I just switched to apple juice instead, I'm so used to sweet drinks thanks to Ray Peat it's hard to give up. I do think my body can handle fructose better than a lot of people. My fasting glucose is always perfect. My blood pressure tends to be too low.
Thanks @lil-chick!!
"First of all, I wonder if you could ramp up slowly on coffee if it makes you poop good. Interesting that things get worse around your period, I think lots of women here would say the same. All the detox pathways are overloaded at that time, I think."
Yeah I have thought of using coffee many times, but I don't think I can handle it right now. My brain loves caffeine, but it doesn't love me lol.
"I wonder if your panic attacks could be the same thing as what I call my asthma. It might be down to needing molybdenum, and maybe that nutrient is run down by detox. I'd rather eat molybdenum foods rather than take supps (as I now think of supps as often problematic). There are lists on the web, (for me, yogurt, peanuts and meat)."
I think the panic can be hyperventilation from anxiety, I haven't had any in 1.5 yrs thankfully. Yes I sometimes crave peanut butter, maybe it's the molybdenum.
"Second of all, I wonder if you might be interested in my post about Dr. O'mara's ideas about losing visceral fat and how that can improve your over-all health. I think that visceral fat might be caused (among other things) by VA toxicity, and it might slow down all the processes that need to happen in the gut, sort of like an over-stuffed sausage effect, LOL."
Haha over-stuffed sausage effect! I am 5'2 122 lbs, so yes I do have a bit more fat than I should mostly in the belly not surprisingly. Your post about sarcopenia was interesting. I have definitely struggled with my posture, rounded shoulders since I was a teenager. I am 38 now.
" I think the "sprint-like exercise" might be the magic key of the vacation poop. (Although also fresh air, sunshine, de-stressing, happiness, walking, eating well) might play in too."
I am actually the opposite on vacation! Because with two kids it's always more stressful than just hanging out at home! I don't poop at all on vacation. When people come visit us here in Florida, I always struggle too. I usually have an episode of IBS while they are here or literally within 15 minutes of them leaving! So yes it can be connected to stress for me. But my life as a stay at home Mom is not super stressful, so my stress would be self inflicted lol. I am good at self inflicted stress. Worrying too much. This summer was probably the best I've had in awhile I did more gardening and just generally being more active. I wasn't sleeping better though. Because I think I was still undereating.
I need to find low vitamin A foods I can gorge on! I've been eating ham for breakfast, but everyone says pork is nasty, but I don't really want anything else for breakfast. I tried eggs a couple yrs ago and that caused anxiety.
I've read before that sprint-type exercise gives you growth hormone, which is probably what helps with the sarcopenia.
In my case, I think I see a reduction in over-all aches and pains with the sprint-type exercise. You'd think it would be opposite. A sixty year old lady who sprints, LOL.
It’s nice to meet you, Janelle!! 😁
I've been eating ham for breakfast, but everyone says pork is nasty, but I don't really want anything else for breakfast.
It’s the meat highest in thiamine. 😁 Low thiamine can contribute to slowed gut motility, but so many things can...
Have you ever tried any of the following, and if so how did you react to each?
- activated charcoal
- psyllium
- freshly ground flaxseed
Hi, Janelle,
I ate beans 5 times a day for almost a year and then cut back to three times at meals. I never followed Karen Hurd specifically. I don't eat that many vegetables since many are high in beta carotene. Karen says it takes a person (or their gut bacteria) longer to adjust to beans the worse their digestion is but she says to stick with it and eventually you won't have any gas or discomfort. And she is right. I had SIBO for years and a low fodmap diet for awhile helped. Eating beans now, I don't get any SIBO type bloating.
As far as helping relieve my constipation, I use 2 Tablespoons of raw unmodified potato starch with a small amount of Greek yogurt each morning. It has made peristalsis more consistent. Psyllium never helped my peristalsis.
@lil-chick for some reason I just love the dry powdered peanut butter, PB2. I usually have a tablespoon every day at lunch. Perhaps the molybdenum is something I need.
Quote from puddleduck on December 12, 2023, 8:07 pmIt’s nice to meet you, Janelle!!
I've been eating ham for breakfast, but everyone says pork is nasty, but I don't really want anything else for breakfast.
It’s the meat highest in thiamine.
Low thiamine can contribute to slowed gut motility, but so many things can...
Have you ever tried any of the following, and if so how did you react to each?
- activated charcoal
- psyllium
- freshly ground flaxseed
Nice to meet you too! Yes it is high in thiamine! And I just read all the blue zones eat one thing in common! Pork!
I have used activated charcoal and it does cause constipation so maybe not the best idea at this point unless I need to. I tried psyllium once and had a really bad reaction. Within 5 minutes I felt like a wave of histamine or kinda like a niacin flush and it kinda felt like a panic attack. So I haven't tried since. I've never used flax thanks to my fear of omega 3s going rancid quicky.
Quote from Eio on December 13, 2023, 1:19 pmHi, Janelle,
I ate beans 5 times a day for almost a year and then cut back to three times at meals. I never followed Karen Hurd specifically. I don't eat that many vegetables since many are high in beta carotene. Karen says it takes a person (or their gut bacteria) longer to adjust to beans the worse their digestion is but she says to stick with it and eventually you won't have any gas or discomfort. And she is right. I had SIBO for years and a low fodmap diet for awhile helped. Eating beans now, I don't get any SIBO type bloating.
As far as helping relieve my constipation, I use 2 Tablespoons of raw unmodified potato starch with a small amount of Greek yogurt each morning. It has made peristalsis more consistent. Psyllium never helped my peristalsis.
@lil-chick for some reason I just love the dry powdered peanut butter, PB2. I usually have a tablespoon every day at lunch. Perhaps the molybdenum is something I need.
I always love hearing success stories! It gives me hope 🙂