Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAPS) Support thread

[tigerlilly905]

I just wish the almond flour was okay because it opens up some other baking options.  But I guess too many baked goods aren't necessarily as good.

Have you been experimenting w. coconut flour? It can be a little tricky at first, but I'm really enjoying baking with it. I've been using it over almond flour b/c Charles can digest the coconut flour no problem.  A plus side on the coconut flour is that it's also cheaper then the almond flour (at least here anyways) A little bit goes a long way. You can make a basic "bread" w/ 1/2 cup coconut flour, 6 eggs and 1/4 cup of coconut oil (or other suitable fat)... To make it a little sweeter, add some cinnamon/ginger/tich of salt and some mashed bananas and you have a pretty nice "treat".

Yay!! Sauerkraut can be a little intimidating at first, but I love making it now! I almost always have a batch fermenting on the counter (assuming DH can find the organic cabbages when he goes to the city)

[Mom to M&M]

I probably should start soaking nuts cause DS loves to eat them and I'd prefer he get the full benefits of them as he's a picky eater. How does that work? Do I soak them and then toast and store them? He mainly eats cashews and pistachios...

[tigerlilly905]

Karen - http://www.wellnesstips.ca/grain%20preparation.htm  An excerpt:  "With whole grains, nuts, seeds and legumes, soak them in filtered water with a bit of unpasteurized apple cidre vinegar (Omega Nutrition is a good brand) or organic lemon juice for 7 or 8 hours, pour off the soak water, rinse and cook.  Usually this will reduce the cooking time considerably.  With steel cut or rolled oats, soak as before, but cook in the soak water.  With nuts and seeds such as walnuts, sunflower or sesame, spread them on a cookie sheet after soaking, and put them in the oven under the very LOWEST bake setting, and dry them.  Baking at high temperatures will cause the rancidity of the polyunsaturated oils in the nuts so keep the temperature low.  When you store the nuts or seeds, I suggest you do not put a lid on the jar, because if all the moisture has not been removed they will go moldy very quickly.  I wasted a few batches before figuring this out!  Then they should probably be stored in the fridge, as those polyunsaturated fats are delicate. " 

HtH

Oh, and Megan, forgot to comment about your treatment with Milo... that's frustrating, eh? I can't remember if I told you about this, but a friend of mine's DD is also having these same issues and they tried going to an osteopath.  Within a minute of the osteopath working on her she pooped! (after she was constipated for a week!!) This osteopath believed that she was positioned in an odd way in the womb which made her right side underdeveloped, causing blockages. Even her right tear duct doesn't function properly and gets all gooped up.  They are still working with her but it's pretty interesting to hear about the progress.  I do think you have to find the right practitioner though. I mean, heck, I went through 3 ND's to find this 4th one that I feel we can work with.  Depending on how it goes with the dietary changes/supplements ect, maybe you could save up to see the uber expensive one down the line?  It does seem like you're on the right track though working with the diet. Has Milo's probiotics arrived yet?

Jenn, are you still reading along? How's little Emily's tummy doing?

[deb]

That's how we do our nuts, more or less, although I also add salt to them when I spread them on the cookie sheet (and sometimes garlic - YUM!). You can also use a food dehydrator. I do put them in containers with lids after I know they are VERY dry, but they don't last long here. I mix them with raisins, pumpkin seeds, and sometimes chocolate or carob chips to make a trail mix, and the girls love the sweet and salty together. I know some folks also use a sprinkle of sugar to make sweeter nuts.

I can't eat almonds w/o a mild allergic reaction, BTW, but all other nuts so far seem to be fine, so ITA that some nuts can be problematic while others aren't so much. It does make the whole almond flour thing pretty impractical. I could always make flour from other nuts, but I already have plenty of things going on in the kitchen and really don't want to add something else.

[Mom to M&M]

Would that work with pistachios too if I shell them first?

[deb]

Wouldn't see why not.

When I put the nuts or seeds in the oven on low, I often leave it on overnight, or I'll put them in in the morning all day and have a warm oven already if i want to bake some chicken or fish for supper.

[Mom to M&M]

Great maybe I'll pick some nuts up today (I assume organic raw ones are best?), soak them this morning and leave them in oven overnight, thanks

[kim&savannah]

I have done some coconut flour baking--I make pumpkin waffles our of just coconut flour, and the brownies were just coconut flour.  I haven't tried any breads and the muffins I've made have been a little dissappointing.  But I guess I should experiment more.

I forgot to mention--I got a dehydrator for CHristmas!  My mom totally spoils us at CHristmas time and got me the Excalibur one I was looking at, so I'm really excited to try some things in it.  I may try doing some nuts in there.  And I want to dry veggies--zuchini with a little seasoning makes a really fun snack.  My brother had made me some a couple months ago, but now I can do my own!  And its a nice change because all I can find in the stores are fruits, which I really shouldn't eat so much of.

[deb]

We use our dehydrator to make fruit leather, too. Still haven't tried jerky on it, but definitely on the "to-attempt" list!

[Khalam's Mama]

I have been following along since my last post and learning heaps ladies thanks.

Not sure if you managed to get the samples in the end Rebecca, but we have been doing elimination communication and getting 90% of poops in the potty. I find if I do the butt wipe it stimulates the poop and then the sitting on the potty position helps him to go. Worth a try  maybe.

I am looking to replace the probiotics we have been using . I am looking at the Klaire labs ones. Do you guys do capsules? At the moment we have powders.
Also do the klaire labs come refridgerated?


I tried to make some bone broth for B with the turkey too and DH did a really annoying thing. He got in at 3am from work and saw the oven on and thought it was an accident and turned it off!!! I got a new slow cooker for xmas and was cooking it slow for 24hrs. That meant the turkey was sat on the kitchen side for 5hrs befor I noticed so I figured it wouldn't be any good. I will have to get some more chciken and try again. This time I will have to warn DH not to touch it.

[Jenn+Ethan+Emily]

Still reading along yes! Im in the middle of reading the GAPS book right now trying to learn all this!

Emiy has been doing much better but there are clearly still some issues My hope is that we can 100% be on the GAPS diet for the month of January and then I can see what differences I notice in Emily, myself and Ethan also! Then if her tummy tolerates it, venture into some solids starting in February

I am always reading along, just never seem to be able to actually sit down and post!

((((((hugs))))))

[bug_blues70]

Rebecca - yes, we just got his probiotics but I haven't given them to him yet b/c it was time to switch to the grapefruit seed extract (we got them at the same time) and I wanted to make sure that if he reacts I know what he is reacting to. So after much dragging my heels, I've decided that once again, you are probably right... I stopped all solids today, except at dinner he was practically begging for food so I spoon fed him some broth (something he's never taken before!!) I also have decided to try 3 days of zantac to see if it helps his nights and today was the first day. I know that's adding more medication rather than less, but if he's screaming at night b/c of acid pain (which is what I think it is), I have to do something. I am hopeful (yet again ) for a good night now that he's not digesting any solids and he shouldn't have any pain. If it doesn't improve within 3 days though I'm going to stop the zantac b/c I HATE him even more medication

Have you tried giving Arthur any more solids without the probiotics at the same time? Does he still throw up?


Deb - I could be wrong, but I think I read on some post somewhere (might even have been here) that you are pretty well-versed in intestinal candida overgrowth? What are the symptoms that someone might feel - does it cause stomach pain or anything? Milo has it, but I always feel his pain is more the reflux than lower down, but I would be very interested to know how someone that knows that's the problem would describe what it feels like... do you know? TIA

[tigerlilly905]

KM - Yes, I managed to get the samples. After a funny morning of chasing a bare bum Arthur around with a wet cloth and a container to catch the poops! LOL! That's great the EC is working so well for B!  I've read great things about it.  

The Klaire labs infant probiotics we use for the boys only comes in a powder I  believe. I mix it with a bit of expressed BM, but you can mix it in water as well.  The ones in pill form are moreso for Adults, but it depends on the exact ones you order.  I believe the Vital Immune I just ordered comes in a capsule and that specific probiotic is supposed to help with allergy like responses as well as building the immune system. That I plan on breaking the capsule and mixing the powder in w/ bm or water as well. Any time I have ordered the Klaire labs I've sent a separate message to the seller requesting they ship w/ extra ice packs. They still arrive cool.  They don't *need* to be refrigerated, but for maximum potency it's best to keep them refrigerated/cool so the bacterial cultures remain intact.

Funny about your DH and the soup stock!! If you like learning about healing foods, check out Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. It's an amazing cookbook with tonnes of info on healing foods.  It complements the GAPS program perfectly.

Jenn - Great to see you! I'm glad Emily is doing a bit better. Is her reflux still around? How's her poops?  Fx you start to see more progress in January.

Kim - I posted a link on the Paleo Recipe thread w/ tips for baking with coconut flour. It might be helpful.  I honestly used to hate coconut flour b/c I had such a tough time getting the moisture content right.  Now that I've had some practice, I love using it.  An ideal ratio for me is 1/2 c coconut flour to 6 eggs - that usually gives me good results.   How exciting you got a dehydrator! I'm jealous!!

The Digestive Enzymes we ordered just arrived this afternoon. I plan on starting both boys on them in the morning. I"ll probably give Arthur 1/2 capsule at first just to make sure it doesn't bug him too much and then build up to the 1 capsule 3x/day.  Megan, how do you find Milo on the enzymes you're giving him? Was there any sort of a reaction when you first started him on them?

FedEx picked up the OAT and stool tests today. Our next appt with the ND is Feb 15th to discuss the results since it can take up to 6 weeks for everything to be processed. That seems like SOOOO far away! Hopefully with the enzymes, vital immune and continuing the infant probiotics/diet over the next 6 weeks we'll see more progress.

Posting as you posted Megan, ((hugs))  poor Milo and poor Mama!!  You guys have had a rough 10+ months.  I really hope his tummy settles some more.

No, I really haven't been giving him solids. He wants them, so it's hard. I gave him some roast xmas and the day before which he was fine with, but it was a huge chunk that be basically sucked on, so I really don't know how much that can be considered a "solid" since I'm pretty sure it was mostly the juices.  I tried a little bit of egg yolk the other day again and he threw up, so I decided that was enough.  I think I want to wait until he's on the enzymes and increased probiotics for a bit and then I'll try again.  I find too many things at once really messes with him, so I have to keep reminding myself "small steps".

I'm sure Deb will have more to say about the Candida, but what our ND said about it is that it can actually travel up the intestinal track, through the stomach, up the esophagus and even into the mouth (hence thrush).  He believes Candida can be one of the major causes of reflux (in conjunction w/ the low zinc/low digestive enzymes) I think you told me Milo's gut has over 50% Candida overgrowth, right?  If that's the case it really could be traveling through his whole system causing imbalances I'm just theorizing, but it could definitely be playing a factor.

ETA - oh, and part of the problem with these kiddos is that they already have low stomach acid to begin with (contrary to mainstream thought of high acid causing reflux). Because of the low acid, these nasty bacterias are able to thrive and they are what's causing all of the issues.  For sure give the meds another try if you think they might help, but I know that might make his stomach even less acidic... and he needs whatever acids he can produce to aid his digestion/fight the candida off...

[tigerlilly905]

Just did a google Megan, this article was pretty decent: http://www.drlwilson.com/articles/candida.htm Read what he says about the link between candida, copper and thyroid function... (I think you mentioned Milo has low thyroid as well?? )  It's all connected to the bacterial imbalance.

[deb]

Hi there - I don't know if I'm "well-versed" in candida as much as I suffered from it, but what we did learn about it was that it lives in the whole body and as long as it's kept in balance and not overfed, things are usually OK. When it's out of balance, for whatever reason, it overgrows and interferes with digestion. And since it feeds off sugars, including those in starchy veg and grains and milk (so not just fruit and actual sugar and honey and so on), when you consume those foods, the yeast feed and produce CO2 in the gut, hence lots of gas and tummy pain. (Made the mistake of having a cookie and a bottle of ginger "beer" (really soda ) yesterday and OW OW OW!) So for me it's just one more reason to stay off the grains as much as possible.

Another problem is that too much candida can actually affect blood and brain chemistry, which is why there are behavioral and emotional symptoms along with physical symptoms of yeast in the body.

Oh, for digestion, Rebecca, you would be into this: http://www.bellatrixnutrition.com/. Yesterday on FB she was doing a slew of posts from a book she's reading about HCl and its role in helping digestion for those with low stomach acid. Here's one of her posts from yesterday: "Should you take Hydrochloric Acid supplementation? "Take the HCl challenge! Before the next meal you eat, take a hydrochloric acid supplement that contains at least 500 to 550 milligrams of betaine hydrochloride and about 150 milligrams of pepsin. After you’ve taken your first HCl tablet, notice how you feel. If you’re producing enough stomach acid, taking this supplement will cause you to feel a ...bit of pain or warmth in your stomach. You can relax—your stomach acid is sufficient to digest the food you’re eating. If you don’t notice any symptoms or any worsening of the symptoms you already have, increase your dose to two HCl tablets at the next meal. If you’re still symptom-free, or if the symptoms you’ve already experienced haven’t gotten any worse, continue upping your dose a tablet at a time. As soon as you feel a burning sensation or warmth, you know you’ve gone too far. Drop back to the previous dosage and continue taking the supplement as needed. You can work up to eight pills a day. After four months, you might experiment with reducing your HCl dosage. If you get good results, continue to reduce your intake of HCl until you are no longer taking it. If your symptoms return, go back to your previous dosage."