Welcome to the next “case study” blog post, where I’m going to share the exact protocol & plan I coached my client through.
You can see the other ones here:
I hope that if you’re struggling with similar concerns, it helps you realize that there is an answer! Remember, being told “it’s just something you have to live with” is not a solution.
The very first thing we did was run a food sensitivity (IgG) test for the top 95 most commonly eaten foods. Why? Because he wasn’t able to pinpoint what was triggering the symptoms he was experiencing. With IgG food sensitivities, symptoms (like migraines) can occur up to 4 days after exposure to the food, which can make it REALLY hard to diagnose by trial & error.
The only item that was of real concern was cane sugar, which you can see below from the excerpt! Gluten was fine and there was a mild dairy sensitivity, but not high enough to be of concern. So, the big change meant that Murray had to eliminate cane sugar from his diet. This is relatively easy if you’re eating whole foods and next to impossible if you’re eating packaged foods as cane sugar is in EVERYTHING. Murray’s diet was already quite clean, so he just wanted a substitution for the occasional baked good he or his wife made. You can substitute coconut sugar 1:1 with regular sugar, or use maple syrup or honey. (Note: this is still sugar and from a weight perspective, will still act as sugar in the body, but it is an improvement over cane sugar!)
Murray then started a very good quality probiotic (not all are created equal!) that had lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacterium to help reinoculate the good bacteria in his digestive system.
He was taking Metamucil for fiber, and while I’m not sure which flavour he was on, a quick Google search shows the following ingredients on the sugar free one:
Metamucil Smooth Texture, berry burst flavour, sugar-free
Each g of powder contains psyllium hydrophilic mucilloid 0.6 g. Nonmedicinal ingredients: aspartame, citric acid, malic acid, maltodextrin, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Blue No. 1, and natural and artificial flavour.
Yikes! Those ingredients, especially the food colours and artificial sweeteners certainly won’t do you any favours, and in some may even trigger headaches. **Note: Murray was not taking this one – but I’m making a point about some of the Metamucil products.
We switched him to Fibermend. For many people (Murray included) the recommended dosage was too much, so we started very small. He still doesn’t need to take the full dosage, but is now off his metamucil and laxatives.
The final component we added was magnesium. A large percentage of the population is magnesium deficient now (more than 50%) and signs of magnesium deficiency include sluggish bowels (or constipation), leg cramping or jumping legs.
On our final call together, Murray said he “feels awesome!”.
Since removing cane sugar, Murray is completely migraine free. I can’t enough the amazing impact removing food sensitivities can have on pesky symptoms you have – like migraines.
His digestion has normalized with the addition of fiber and a probiotic, and his diverticulitis symptoms, acid reflux and constipation are gone, pending his following this protocol.
The best part? It was just some simple tweaks to clear up some serious symptoms. Nothing crazy at all.
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