Should I Change My Diet If I Have Lyme Disease?
Although Lyme disease is not caused by a poor diet, a change in your diet will be necessary if you get infected. The disease is actually caused by a tick bite. Living with this disease will require you to eliminate some foods from your diet, and focus more on including other types of foods.
The treatment for Lyme disease will involve the killing of the causative bacteria, the strengthening of the body, and the avoidance of other possible stressors to the body. Of course, adopting a Lyme disease diet will not cure your disease, but will hasten the treatment process.
Lyme disease affects every system of the human body. If you are infected with the disease, your body develops new requirements, reacts differently to the environment, and is intolerant to substances that previously did not matter. These new developments make the matter worse. Therefore, it is important to make necessary physiological changes to make things tolerable.
An optimal nutrition is crucial for people who have Lyme disease. Eating healthy is beneficial in many ways. The point of adjusting your diet is to first reduce inflammation. The foods you consume should also improve the functioning of your immune system, prevent the growth of Candida, promote the development of a healthy gut, support your hormonal system, and body detoxification.
Lyme is not a simple bacterial infection as it has a tremendous impact on your personal life: your family life is strained, goals are put on hold, and causes a great financial burden. Every person has various symptoms and is affected in a different manner. The treatment of Lyme focuses on supporting the body to fight the infection, overpower toxicity levels, hormonal imbalance, co-infections, food intolerance, and yeast overgrowth.
Are antibiotics really needed for the treatment of Lyme disease? Or is it possible to fully recover from Lyme disease without a medication? Unfortunately, it is not realistic to treat the disease without antibiotics since they are very much needed to cure the infection that has spread in various directions. Antibiotics along with other natural therapies such as eating a healthy diet can help you cope with the disease and maximize the impact and success of the treatment.
A few side effects will be experienced if you are under an antibiotic treatment. The changes in the diet that provide additional nutrition along with herbal medicine and other related therapies can optimize the health of any person with Lyme disease. Changing one's diet can also help an individual to respond well to the antibiotic treatment that is being prescribed by the doctor.
Foods You Need to Avoid
- Gluten - is contained in almost all of the foods that we eat. It is included in breadmaking and other foods that contain starch such as wheat, barley, and rye. However, for a Lyme disease patient, gluten tends to cause inflation, which leads to joint pains, edema, and headaches. Therefore, patients find that they do better if they avoid gluten. It is also important to note that avoiding gluten is neither easy nor cheap. It will, therefore, call for dedication from your end.
- Carbohydrates and Sugar - Sugar is food for yeast, and this, in turn, affects the gastrointestinal system. As we all know, the gastrointestinal system is a key part of the body’s immune system defense. If you eat too many carbohydrates and sugar, your body will be incapable of countering the Lyme disease bacteria.
- Red Meat and Dairy - Avoid red meat unless it is organic and avoid drinking pasteurized milk and switch to raw milk instead.
- Oxalate Products - Just like gluten, oxalates increase the inflammation in your gut, which can cause joint pains, edema, and headaches. As a Lyme disease patient, you will have a better experience if you avoid consuming oxalates. Oxalates are contained in a number of common foods. They include spinach, chard, tofu, peanuts, coffee, and citrus peels.
Foods You Need to Include in Your Diet
The foods you consume should promote the functioning of your digestive system, and also support your body’s immunity. Foods such as vitamin-enriched fruits should be eaten in plenty since they can help in strengthening your immune system. Your diet should also include coconut oil. Coconut oil has antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-fungal properties, which can be useful for all people, even those who are perfectly healthy. For a Lyme disease patient, coconut oil is also important since it helps speed up the process of recovery.
Supplements can also be useful for people who have Lyme disease. Lactobacillus supplements can particularly help the body to bind oxalic acid. Since oxalic acid is also hard to avoid, you can use this supplement to prevent the effects of the chemical. Similarly, calcium citrate and magnesium citrate can help bind oxalates and can work effectively as substitutes to Lactobacillus. Patients are also often advised to include omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B6, and the amino acid arginine. These three can also help bind oxalic acid. They can be taken as food or as supplements.
Vitamins are more effectively consumed as supplements because vegetables lose a lot of their nutrients during a long transportation period and cooking procedures.
Some Important Nutritional Tips
- Drink at least 2 liters of water to help flush out the toxic and waste materials in your body.
- Reduce the intake of food that causes inflammation.
- A daily diet should include vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats such as flaxseed oil, coconut, olives, avocado, as well as lean and organic protein.
- Ensure that you get enough fiber supplement.
- Have an adequate rest and sleep.
- Some gentle exercises such as stretches, swimming, walking, and Pilates should be included. Avoid doing exercises that cause pain and fatigue.
Before making any changes to your diet, it is important to first consult a doctor. Food is medicine. It has the power to heal and nourish the body so that you can fight diseases. Your body has also the power to self-heal. The foods that make your body weak should be taken away. It is important to listen to your body and take all the advice from the doctor in order to survive Lyme disease.
