Food as medicine

Hi @barefoothorseman I'm glad you found something that is helping you. I did take a look at The Plant Paradox but haven't followed it myself but then I don't have psoriasis. I've been focusing on eliminating all processed foods and trying to eat organic when possible to help with autoimmune health issues. For those not familiar with The Plant Paradox here is a list of the Do's and Don'ts for foods - or the food shopping list:

-- https://gundrymd.com/wp-content/pdf/Plant-Paradox-Shopping-LIst.pdf

John

Thanks John, removing GMO foods was one of the last things that I did and it could well have been the most important. Its incredible how different GMO foods are, they have so many more plant toxins, plus chemicals like glyphosate, and 2-24D. You are probably doing something similar as most all processed foods contain GMOs. Corporations add thousands of chemicals to processed food, and even more in the form of solvents, emulsifiers, and preservatives. Something like 10,000 chemicals are added or used in food processing according to the FDA. Once you read all the scientific data, it is absolutely criminal that the government allows this to continue. Many countries around the world have already began banning all GMO crops. My autoimmune issues began to become a problem once I moved to the US from Australia. Now Australia is not squeaky clean either, but it is much better. The grocery stores look totally different, and for me and others that I know, it was really hard to find the foods that we would eat in Australia in US grocery stores. Most of the food I remember looked and tasted artificial.

Hi @barefoothorseman,

This is a great topic – I appreciate you starting this discussion.
I thought you might be interested in viewing this video, "Know Your Lectins" https://connect.mayoclinic.org/newsfeed-post/know-your-lectins-1/ on the Gastroenterology & GI Surgery Page on Connect. Here, Mayo Clinic dietitian in Gastroenterology, Jacalyn See debunks recent media that suggest that lectins, found in legumes and grains, can be toxic to one’s gut, and explains why we shouldn’t eliminate this nutritious carbohydrate-binding protein from our diet.
She explains that lectins are found in all foods, but are most concentrated in legumes and grains. They can be toxic, but only if eaten raw! Cooking completely denatures lectins; boiling eliminates almost all lectin activity, and canning is just as effective. The benefits of these healthy nutrients seem to far outweigh the negative effects of trace amounts of lectins.

Dr. Gundry's distinguished career in medicine, including his research experience, definitely offers some validity to his book, but we've been living with so much "fake news" that I feel it would have been much more beneficial to see some peer-reviewed research or studies that support his claims. It is a bit worrisome that his findings lie in opposition to well established facts about diet and health.

@barefoothorseman, I sincerely hope this message does not come across in a negative light, but I'm confident that, like so many of us, you just want good health and therefore deserve good information.
I'd like to invite Connect members @saucy @duvie @travelgirl @jmmb @april12mayo @gemmax @lioness and others, who've shared their diet experiences, what has helped or not, to join us here – I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Thanks for your patience and understanding, @barefoothorseman

Having read many books lIke this on various topics I'll leave it at it depends. My personal opinion is that yes some plant lectin cause problems. Some cause problems with some people more than others. Cooking soaking pressure cooking as Dr Gundry and several others explain can break down most lectins but not all types. Most all of the foods with suspect lectins can be replaced with other foods to provide all the nutrition for a healthy diet.

Now here's what my gut tells me and my psoriasis. Many of those really bad lectin demon foods are mostly GMO foods in the US. Those GMO foods not only have new more potent lectins but are also laced with glycosate gluphosinate and many others. Monsanto Bayer Syngenta have already been charged with livestock deaths around the world and many countries have banned their products but in the US theses same GMO products are in 100,000's of foods that stock or grocery stores.

Since going organic and avoiding the main gmo grains and fruits my health and fitness have improved and my psoriasis is very hard to see and I'm sure will totally go away. I've also used essential oils in the healing process, but believe the cause for me was mostly GMO foods, then lectins sugar processed foods. But most lectin sugar and processed foods are also GMO foods in the US.

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/07/19/gmo-corn-resulting-livestock-deaths.aspx
https://www.organicconsumers.org/essays/gmos-are-killing-bees-butterflies-birds-and
As I searched there were lots of these type articles, but Dr Mercola's and the organic consumers sites appear to cover the subject pretty well.

If they are doing this to animals, then what are they doing to humans. Roundup has been around 1972, but before Roundup other more dangerous(apparently) chemicals were used and since banned. If your living in a rural community your drinking water probably has glyphosate atrazine or some other chemical in it. I have installed RO water treatment in my home in the US since 2010. Atrazine was invented in 1958. So how long have these auto-immune diseases been so prevalent. Atrazine is the most commonly detected chemical of this type in drinking water.

Hmmm, Definition
See also: List of autoimmune diseases
For a disease to be regarded as an autoimmune disease it needs to answer to Witebsky's postulates (first formulated by Ernest Witebsky and colleagues in 1957 and modified in 1994):[6][7]

Direct evidence from transfer of disease-causing antibody or disease-causing T lymphocyte white blood cells
Indirect evidence based on reproduction of the autoimmune disease in experimental animals
Circumstantial evidence from clinical clues
Genetic evidence suggesting "clustering" with other autoimmune diseases

Now we have evidence that it goes back to the early 1900's, I wonder what chemicals we had then.

Just saw this interesting article that I thought I would share.

Nutrition Experts Call on Congress to Advance 'Food Is Medicine' Movement
— Produce prescriptions, medically tailored meals improve quality of life, cut costs, they say:
https://www.medpagetoday.com/primarycare/dietnutrition/110282