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THE GAPS DIETNatural Digestive Healing

Welcome to GAPSdiet.com!

AVAILABLE NOW!!!

The first GAPS cookbook. Over 140 GAPS friendly recipes.

A MESSAGE FROM DR. NATASHA CAMPBELL-MCBRIDE:

HELP!

At the last WAPF conference I met dozens of wonderful people, who were tellingme how the GAPS Programme changed their lives and lives of their families.

These people gave me an idea: WE NEED TO PUBLISH ALL THESE STORIESAS A BOOK! There are millions of people and families out there in desperatesituations, who believe the mainstream establishment that there is nothing they

can do to help themselves. Your stories - stories written by real people, will showthose families that there is a way out and there is hope!

Please, write your story and send it to me, Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride, [email protected] It is your choice to publish your story under your real

name or just the initials.

YOUR STORY MAY SAVE MANY LIVES!

THANK YOU!

**********

This site supports digestive healing following the GAPS (Gut and PsychologySyndrome) diet created by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride.

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Our goal is to spread Dr. Campbell-McBride's message and introduce you tothe natural path of digestive healing.

For detailed information on the GAPS diet please refer to:

Gut & Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Campbell-McBride

A Very Brief History

The Gut and Psychology Syndrome Diet has its foundation on the SpecificCarbohydrate Diet (SCD) created by Dr. Sidney Valentine Haas to heal digestive

disorders. SCD gained great popularity after a mother, Elaine Gottschall, healed herown child and became an advocate for SCD. Elaine Gottschall is also the author of

the popular book Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Intestinal Health Through Diet.

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride has taken SCD and evolved it further to create a fullprotocol for healing digestive disorders and subsequent issues.

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride holds a degree in Medicine and Postgraduatedegrees in both Neurology and Human Nutrition. In her clinic in Cambridge she

specializes in nutrition for children and adults with behavioral and learningdisabilities, and adults with digestive and immune system disorders.

Dr. Campbell-McBride set up The Cambridge Nutrition Clinic in 1998. As a parentof a child diagnosed with learning disabilities, she was acutely aware of the

difficulties facing other parents like her, and she has devoted much of her time tohelping these families. She realized that nutrition played a critical role in helping

children and adults to overcome their disabilities, and has pioneered the use of


*The statements on this site have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Nothing on this site is intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

GAPS™ and Gut and Psychology Syndrome™ are the trademark and copyright of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. The right of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by

her in accordance with the Copyright, Patent and Designs Act 1988.

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probiotics in this field.

She believes that the link between learning disabilities, the food and drink that wetake, and the condition of our digestive system is absolute, and the results of her

work have supported her position on this subject. In her clinic, parents discuss allaspects of their child's condition, confident in the knowledge that they are not onlytalking to a professional but to a parent who has lived their experience. Her deep

understanding of the challenges they face puts her advice in a class of its own.

**This site should be used as a complement to Dr. Campbell-McBride's book Gutand Psychology Syndrome and is in no way a substitute for all the information

provided within it.**

GAPS™ and Gut and Psychology Syndrome™ are the trademark andcopyright of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. The right of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in

accordance with the Copyright, Patent and Designs Act 1988.

Published by:International Nutrition, Inc.

11615 Crossroads Circle, Suite DMiddle River, MD 21220

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[email protected]

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Here is a simplified outline of the GAPS Nutritional Program. Pleaserefer to Gut and Psychology Syndrome for more detailed information.

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THE NUTRITIONAL PROGRAM

1. Diet2. Supplementation3. Detoxification and Life-style Changes

1. Diet

The recommended diet for GAPS patients is largely based on theSpecific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD). The main difference pertains to dairyproducts.

SCD permits lactose-free dairy products. Lactose is a milk sugar. GAPS and people with digestive problems are unable to digest it andmust avoid it.

Fermented dairy products such as yogurt are largely lactose free as aresult of the fermentation process where by the fermenting bacteriaconsume lactose. Apart from lactose, milk contains casein which willabsorb through the damaged gut lining and act as a toxin in the body.

Another problem with dairy is how it relates to food allergies andintolerances. A milk allergy is one of the most common allergies. Evenin breast-fed babies where the mother consumes dairy products the childmay develop colic due to sensitivity to dairy antigens being passedthrough the mother's milk.

For all of these reasons, GAPS children and adults should not consumedairy products until their digestive system is well enough to handlethem. The diet's only exception to this is milk fat (ghee or clarifiedbutter) because it contains virtually no milk proteins or lactose and isgenerally well tolerated.





Please refer to "The Diet" section for a list of recommended foods.

2. Supplementation

The essential supplements for GAPS patients:

A. An effective therapeutic strength probioticB. Essential Fatty AcidsC. Vitamin AD. Digestive enzymesE. Vitamin and mineral supplements.

A. An effective therapeutic strength probiotic

Probiotics are most commonly used in the treatment of gastro-intestinal disorders:

viral infections of the digestive tractnecrotising enterocolitis in infantsintractable pediatric diarrheapseudomembranous colitistraveler's diarrheaClostridium Difficile enterocolitisenterocolitisHelicobacter infectionenteropathogenic E. coli infectioninflammatory bowel disorders: Crohn's disease,ulcerative colitis and chronic pouchitisirritable bowel syndromelactose intoleranceprevention of colonic cancer in laboratory studied

In addition to digestive issues many other health problems have been shown to respond to treatment with probiotics:

allergies including food allergyautismchronic viral infectionsurogenital infectionshepatitis, liver cirrhosis and biliary diseasetuberculosismeningitismalignancyarthritisdiabetes

burns of various degreeperioperative care and intensive care in surgicalpatients and patients with massive blood lossclinical infectionsautoimmune disorders

While many conditions may benefit from the use of probiotics, the above list has had scientific papers published on the benefit of probiotics with the specific condition.

General Guidelines for choosing a good probiotic:

a. A good probiotic should have as many different species of beneficial bacteria as possible.

b. A mixture of strains from different groups of probiotic bacteria is more beneficial than just one group.

c. A good probiotic should have a concentrated amount of bacteria: at least 8 billion of bacterial cells per gram.

d. The manufacturer of the probiotic should test every batch for strength and bacterial composition and should be prepared to publish the results. (Bio-kult is the recommended probiotic and Dr. Campbell-McBride is one of the inventors)

B. Essential Fatty Acids

GAPS children and adults should have a group of essential oils supplemented:

a. A good seed/nut oil blend in the ratio of 2:1 of omega-3:omega-6 fatty acids.

b. Cod liver oil to supply EPA, DHA, vitamin A and vitamin D.

c. Fish oil with higher ratio of EPA to DHA, as more EPA seems to be

beneficial for GAPS patients. There are no toxic levels for these oils.

C. Vitamin A

As listed previously, vitamin A is recommended in the form of Cod Liver Oil (CLO). Vitamin A deficiency can cause digestive problems.

Leaky gut and malabsorption are the typical results of vitamin A deficiency. Unfortunately, due to digestive problems, GAPS children and adults usually cannot absorb or use many forms of vitamin A, commonly found in supplements.

A natural form of vitamin A found in CLO appears to be the best form for these patients.

D. Digestive Enzymes

People with abnormal gut flora almost without exception have low stomach acid production. Toxins produced from bacteria such as Candida and Clostridia have a strong ability to reduce secretion of stomach acid.

Stomach acid is the first barrier for huge numbers of microbes arriving with every bite of food or drink we consume. If the stomach is not acid enough, these bad microbes may have a chance of colonizing in the stomach itself.

Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends that GAPS patients supplement with stomach acid. The most physiological preparation available is Betaine HCl with Pepsin.

Pancreatic Enzymes

These are the enzymes people generally think of when hearing the words "digestive enzymes". These enzymes are usually combinations of proteases, peptidases, lipases, amylase, lactase and cellulase.

In a healthy digestive tract, these enzymes are naturally produced by the pancreas. If normal stomach acidity can be returned, these enzymes should work efficiently.

Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends supplementation with stomach acid. If you feel benefit from the use of these supplements, make sure they do not contain fillers or binders which may interfere with the healing process in the gut.

E. Vitamin and Mineral Supplements

Dr. Campbell-McBride does not generally recommend any vitamin or mineral supplementation at the beginning of the program.

Some patients may require targeted supplementation but this is a matter for a qualified practitioner to decide.

If you are going to use supplements:

a. Choose supplements without any ingredients which may aggravate the gut condition. b. Choose supplements with a high absorption rate.

c. Keep supplements to an absolute minimum.

3. DETOXIFICATION AND LIFE-STYLE CHANGES

The first and most important thing is to remove the main source oftoxicity, which means cleaning up and healing the gut.

Since this alone will not rid the body of years worth of toxic build up inthe system, juicing is recommended. Juicing provides very concentratedfruit and vegetable nutrients to the body in an easily absorbed form.

Black Elderberry is also beneficial and has strong immune-stimulatingproperties and it is one of the most powerful anti-viral remedies knownto man.

The General Toxic Load




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An important part of the treatment is reduction of the general toxic load. Keep your house chemical free and avoid bringing anything into the home which will let off chemicals such as new carpet, furniture, and paints. Also remember that your skin absorbs just about everything it comes in contact with so be very cautious with the products you put on your skin.

Household plants are great at reducing the toxic air in our houses. They consume the toxic gases and replace them with oxygen and other beneficial substances.

This is a brief summary of important points addressed in Gut andPsychology Syndrome. It is very important to read the sections devotedto these areas in the book for a clear understanding of each.



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Gut and Psychology Syndrome Introduction Diet

The Introduction Diet will not be found in the book Gut andPsychology Syndrome. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride hasprovided this information free of charge to all families interested instarting the GAPS diet. It is essential to have the book Gut andPsychology Syndrome to implement the GAPS diet effectively.

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride recommends that GAPS patientsfollow the Introduction Diet before going into the Full GAPS Diet. Depending on the severity of the condition, you can move throughthe Introduction Diet as fast or as slow as the condition will permit.

Following the Introduction Diet fully is essential forpeople with serious digestive symptoms: diarrhea,abdominal pain, bloating, some cases of constipation, etc. TheIntroduction Diet will reduce the symptoms quickly and initiate thehealing process in the digestive system. Even for healthy people,following the Introduction Diet when experiencing a "tummy bug"or diarrhea will clear the symptoms quickly and permanentlyusually without needing medication.

Constipation In cases of stubborn constipation, introduce freshly pressed juicesearlier in the diet, from stage 2: start from carrot juice first thing inthe morning and take your cod liver oil at the same time. The juicewill stimulate bile production as many cases of persistentconstipation are due to poor bile production. When there is notenough bile, the fats in the food do not digest well; instead theyreact with salts and form soap in the gut, causing constipation. Removing dairy may also help.

Food Allergies and IntolerancesPeople with food allergies and intolerances should go through theIntroduction Diet in order to heal and seal their gut lining. Thereason for allergies and food intolerances is so-called "leaky gut"





when the gut lining is damaged by abnormal micro flora. Foods donot get the chance to be digested properly before they getabsorbed through this damaged wall and cause the immunesystem to react to them. Many people try to identify which foodsthey react to. However, with damaged gut wall they are likely toabsorb most of their foods partially digested, which may cause animmediate reaction or a delayed reaction (a day, a few days oreven a couple of weeks later). As these reactions overlap witheach other, you can never be sure what exactly you are reacting toon any given day. Testing for food allergies in notoriouslyunreliable: if one had enough resources to test twice a day for twoweeks, they would find that they are "allergic" to everything theyeat. As long as the gut wall is damaged and stays damaged, youcan be juggling your diet forever removing different foods andnever get anywhere. From my clinical experience it is best toconcentrate on healing the gut wall with the Introduction Diet. Once the gut wall is healed, the foods will be digested properlybefore being absorbed, which will remove most food intolerancesand allergies.

Those without serious digestive problems and food intolerancescan move through the Introduction Diet quite quickly. However,please do not be tempted to skip the IntroductionDiet and go straight into the Full GAPS Diet, becausethe Introduction Diet will give your patient the best chance tooptimise the healing process in the gut and the rest of thebody. Skipping the Introduction Diet may lead to long-termlingering problems, difficult to deal with.

If you have decided to go straight into the Full GAPSDiet, keep in mind that about 85% of everything your patient eatsdaily should be made out of meats, fish, eggs, fermented dairy andvegetables (some well-cooked, some fermented and some raw). Baking and fruit should be kept out of the diet for a few weeks, andthen be limited to snacks between meals and should not replacethe main meals. Homemade meat stock, soups, stews and naturalfats are not optional - they should be your patient's staples.

*Note: Those who start with the Introduction Diet will introducedairy earlier than those who go right into the full GAPS diet. Always do a sensitivity test prior to introducing dairy.

GAPS Introduction Diet - IMPLEMENTING THEDIETProvided by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

1. Introduction Diet2. The Full GAPS Diet with the typical menu

INTRODUCTION DIET

EVERY MORNING

Start the day with a cup of still mineral or filtered water. Give yourpatient the probiotic. Make sure that the water is warm or roomtemperature, not cold, as cold will aggravate his or her condition.

Only foods listed are allowed: your patient must not have anythingelse. On the First Stage the most drastic symptoms of abdominalpain, diarrhea and constipation will quickly subside. If, when youintroduce a new food, your patient gets back diarrhea, pain or anyother digestive symptoms then he/she is not ready for that food tobe introduced. Wait for a week and try again.

If you suspect an allergy to any particular food, before introducingit do the Sensitivity Test.

SENSITIVITY TEST

Take a drop of the food in question (if the food is solid, mash andmix with a bit of water) and place it on the inside of the wrist of thepatient. Do it at bedtime. Let the drop dry on the skin, then letyour patient go to sleep. In the morning check the spot: if there isan angry red reaction, then avoid that food for a few weeks, andthen try again. If there is no reaction, then go ahead and introduceit gradually starting from a small amount.

STAGE 1

Homemade meat or fish stock. Meat and fish stocks provide building blocks for the rapidlygrowing cells of the gut lining and they have a soothing effect onany areas of inflammation in the gut. That is why they aiddigestion and have been known for centuries as healing folkremedies for the digestive tract. Do not use commerciallyavailable soup stock granules or bullion cubes, they are highlyprocessed and are full of detrimental ingredients. Chicken stock isparticularly gentle on the stomach and is very good to start from. To make good meat stock you need joints, bones, a piece of meaton the bone, a whole chicken, giblets from chicken, goose or duck,whole pigeons, pheasants or other inexpensive meats. It isessential to use bones and joints, as they provide the healingsubstances, not so much the muscle meats. Ask the butcher tocut in half the large tubular bones, so you can get the bone marrowout of them after cooking. Put the bones, joints and meats into alarge pan and fill it with water, add natural unprocessed salt to yourtaste at the beginning of cooking and about a teaspoon of blackpeppercorns, roughly crushed. Bring to boil, cover and simmer ona low heat for 2.5-3 hours. You can make fish stock the same wayusing a whole fish or fish fins, bones and heads. After cookingtake the bones and meats out and sieve the stock to remove small

bones and peppercorns. Strip off all the soft tissues from thebones as best as you can to later add to soups or encourage yourpatient to eat all the soft tissues on the bones. Extract the bonemarrow out of large tubular bones while they are still warm: to dothat bang the bone on a thick wooden chopping board. Thegelatinous soft tissues around the bones and the bone marrowprovide some of the best healing remedies for the gut lining andthe immune system; your patient needs to consume them withevery meal. Take off all the soft tissues from fish bones and headsand reserve for adding to soups later. The meat or fish stock willkeep well in the fridge for at least 7 days or it can be frozen. Keepgiving your patient warm meat stock as a drink all day with hismeals and between meals. Do not use microwaves for warmingup the stock, use conventional stove (microwaves destroy food). Itis very important for your patient to consume all the fat in the stockand off the bones as these fats are essential for the healingprocess. Add some probiotic food into every cup of stock (thedetails about introducing probiotic food follow).

Homemade soup with your homemade meat or fishstock.Please look for some recipe ideas in the recipe section of thebook. Here we will go through some details, specific for theIntroduction Diet. Bring some of the meat stock to boil, addchopped or sliced vegetables: onions, carrots, broccoli, leeks,cauliflower, courgettes, marrow, squash, pumpkin, etc. and simmerfor 25-35 minutes. You can choose any combination of availablevegetables avoiding very fibrous ones, such as all varieties ofcabbage and celery. All particularly fibrous parts of vegetablesneed to be removed, such as skin and seeds on pumpkins,marrows and squashes, stalk of broccoli and cauliflower and anyother parts that look too fibrous. Cook the vegetables well, so theyare really soft. When vegetables are well cooked, add 1-2tablespoons of chopped garlic, bring to boil and turn the heat off. Give your patient this soup with the bone marrow and meats andother soft tissues, which you cut off the bones. You can blend thesoup using a soup blender or serve it as it is. Add some probioticfood into every bowl of soup (the details about introducingprobiotic foods follow). Your patient should eat these soups withboiled meat and other soft tissues off the bones as often as he/shewants to all day.

Probiotic foods are essential to introduce right fromthe beginning.These can be dairy based or vegetable based. To avoid anyreactions introduce probiotic foods gradually, starting from 1-2teaspoons a day for 2-5 days, then 3-4 teaspoons a day for 2-5days and so on until you can add a few teaspoons of the probioticfood into every cup of meat stock and every bowl of soup. If yourpatient is ready to introduce dairy, then use your homemadeyogurt or kefir. If dairy is still out [by results of sensitivity test or

negative reaction when introducing it], then into every cup of meatstock or soup add juice from your homemade sauerkraut,fermented vegetables or vegetable medley (please look in therecipe section of the book). Make sure that the food is not too hotwhen adding the probiotic foods, as the heat would destroy thebeneficial probiotic bacteria.

Ginger tea with a little honey between meals.To make ginger tea, grate some fresh ginger root (about ateaspoonful) into your teapot and pour some boiling water over it,cover and leave for 3-5 minutes. Pour through a small sieve andadd honey to taste (optional).

STAGE 2

Continue with Stage 1.Keep giving your patient the soups with bone marrow, boiledmeats or fish and other soft tissues off the bones. He or sheshould keep drinking the meat stock and ginger tea. Keep addingsome probiotic food into every cup of meat stock and every bowl ofsoup: juices from sauerkraut, fermented vegetables or vegetablemedley, or homemade kefir/yogurt.

Add raw organic egg yolks.It is best to have egg yolks raw added to every bowl of soup andevery cup of meat stock. Start from 1 egg yolk a day and graduallyincrease until your patient has an egg yolk with every bowl ofsoup. When egg yolks are well tolerated add soft-boiled eggs tothe soups (the whites cooked and the yolks still runny). If you haveany concerns about egg allergy, do the sensitivity test first. Thereis no need to limit number of egg yolks per day, as they absorbquickly almost without needing any digestion and will provide yourpatient with wonderful and most needed nutrition. Get your eggsfrom a source you trust: fresh, free range and organic.

Add stews and casseroles made with meats andvegetables.Avoid spices at this stage; just make the stew with salt and freshherbs (look for a recipe of Italian Casserole in the recipe section ofthe book). The fat content of these meals must be quite high: themore fresh animal fats your patient consumes, the quicker he orshe will recover. Add some probiotic food into every serving.

Increase daily amount of homemade yogurt and kefir,if introduced. Increase the amount of juice fromsauerkraut, fermented vegetables or vegetablemedley.

Introduce fermented fish, starting from one piece aday and gradually increasing. Look for recipes in recipe

section.

Introduce homemade ghee, starting from 1 teaspoona day and gradually increasing. Look for recipe in recipesection.

STAGE 3

Carry on with all the previous foods.

Add ripe avocado mashed into soups, starting from 1-3 teaspoons and gradually increasing the amount.

Add pancakes, starting from one pancake a day andgradually increasing the amount.Make these pancakes with three ingredients: 1) organic nut butter(almond, walnut, peanut, etc); 2) eggs; 3) a piece of fresh wintersquash, marrow or courgette (peeled, de-seeded and well blendedin a food processor). Fry small thin pancakes using ghee, goosefat or duck fat. Make sure not to burn them.

Egg scrambled with plenty of ghee, goose fat or duckfat.Serve it with avocado (if well tolerated) and cooked vegetables. Cooked onion is particularly good for the digestive system and theimmune system: melt 3 tablespoons of duck fat or ghee in the pan,add sliced large white onion, cover and cook for 20-30 minutes onlow heat.

Introduce the sauerkraut and your fermentedvegetables (your patient has been drinking the juicesfrom them for a while now).Start from a small amount, gradually increasing to 1-2 tablespoonsof sauerkraut or fermented vegetables per every meal.

STAGE 4

Carry on with all previous foods.

Gradually add meats cooked by roasting and grilling(but not barbecued or fried yet).Avoid bits, which are burned or too brown. Let your patient eat themeat with cooked vegetables and sauerkraut (or other fermentedvegetables).

Start adding cold pressed olive oil to the meals,starting from a few drops per meal and graduallyincreasing the amount to 1-2 tablespoons per meal.

Introduce freshly pressed juices, starting from a few

spoonfuls of carrot juice.Make sure that the juice is clear, filter it well. Let your patient drinkit slowly or diluted with warm water or mixed with somehomemade yogurt. If well tolerated gradually increase to a full cuaa day. When a full cup of carrot juice is well tolerated try to add toit juice from celery, lettuce and fresh mint leaves. Your patientshould drink the juice on an empty stomach, so first thing in themorning and middle of afternoon are good times.

Try to bake bread with ground almonds or any othernut and seeds ground into flour.The recipe (please look in recipe section of the book) requires onlyfour ingredients: 1) nut flour; 2) eggs; 3) piece of fresh wintersquash, marrow or courgette (peeled, de-seeded and finelysliced); 4) some natural fat (ghee, butter, goose or duck fat) andsome salt to taste. Your patient should start from a small piece ofbread per day and gradually increase the amount.

STAGE 5

If all the previous foods are well tolerated try to addcooked apple as an apple pure.Peel and core ripe cooking apples and stew them with a bit ofwater until soft. When cooked add some shee to it and mash witha potato masher. If ghee has not bee introduced yet add duck orgoose fat. Start from a few spoonfuls a day. Watch for anyreaction. If there is none gradually increase the amount.

Add raw vegetables starting from softer parts oflettuce and peeled cucumber.Watch your patient's stool. Again start from a small amount andgradually increase if well tolerated. After those two vegetables arewell tolerated gradually add other raw vegetables: carrot, tomato,onion, cabbage, etc.

If the juice made from carrot, celery, lettuce and mintis well tolerated, start adding fruit to it: apple,pineapple and mango. Avoid citrus fruit at this stage.

STAGE 6

If all the introduced foods are well tolerated try somepeeled raw apple. Gradually introduce raw fruit andmore honey.

Gradually introduce baking cakes and other sweetthings allowed on the diet. Use dried fruit as asweetener in the baking.

As I mentioned before, your patient may be able to move throughthe Introduction Diet faster or slower depending on the stoolchanges: let the diarrhea start clearing before moving to the nextstage. You may have to introduce some foods later than in theprogram depending on his/her sensitivities. Make sure that youcarry on with the soups and meat stock after your patient hascompleted the Introduction Diet at least once a day.

After the Introduction Diet is completed and when your patient hasmore or less normal stools move into the Full GAPS Diet.

THE FULL GAPS DIET

A Typical Menu:

Start the day with a glass of still mineral water orfiltered water with a slice of lemon. It can be warm orcold to personal preference.

If you have a juicer your patient can start the daywith a glass of freshly pressed fruit/vegetable juicediluted with water.A good juice to start the day is 40% apple + 50% carrot + 10%beetroot (all raw of course). You can make all sorts of juice mixes,but generally try to have 50% of therapeutic ingredients: carrot,small amount of beetroot (no more than 5-10% of juice mixture),celery, cabbage, lettuce, greens (spinach, parsley, dill, basil, freshnettle leaves, beet tops, carrot tops), white and red cabbage, and50% of some tasty ingredients to disguise the taste of therapeuticingredients: pineapple, apple, orange, grapefruit, grapes, mango,etc. Your patient can have these juices as they are, with someyogurt or diluted with water.

Every day our bodies go through a 24 hour cycle of activity andrest, feeding and cleaning up (detoxifying). From about 4 am tilabout 10 am the body is in the cleaning up or detoxification mode. Drinking water and freshly pressed juices will assist in thisprocess. Loading the body with food at that time interferes withthe detoxification. That is why many of us do not feel hungry firstthing in the morning. It is better to have breakfast around 10 amwhen your body has completed the detox stage and is ready forfeeding. At that stage we usually start feeling hungry. Childrenmay be ready for their breakfast earlier than adults.

BREAKFAST CHOICES

A variation of English breakfast: eggs cooked to personal likingand served with sausages and vegetables, some cooked, some




fresh as a salad (tomato, cucumber, onions, celery, and freshsalad greens, etc.) and/or avocado and/or meat. The yolks arebest uncooked that the whites cooked. Use plenty of cold pressedolive oil as a dressing on the salad and eggs. Mix a tablespoon ofpre-soaked or sprouted sunflower and/or sesame and/or pumpkinseeds with the salad. Sausages (full fat) should be made of pureminced meat with only salt and pepper added. Make sure thatthere are no commercial seasonings or MSG (MonosodiumGlutamate) in the sausages. I recommend finding a local butcher,who would make pure meat sausages for you on order

Avocado with meat, fish or shellfish, vegetables raw and cooked,lemon and cold pressed olive oil. Serve a cup of warm meat stockas a drink with food.

Pancakes made with ground nuts. These pancakes are deliciouswith some butter with honey, or as a savory snack. If you blendsome fresh or defrosted berries with honey, it will make a deliciousjam to have with pancakes. Weak tea with lemon, ginger tea ormint tea.

Any of the home baked goods: muffins, fruit cake and bread.

LUNCH CHOICES

Homemade vegetable soup or stew in a homemade meat stock.

Avocado with meat, fish, shellfish and raw and/or cookedvegetables. Use olive oil with some lemon squeezed over it as adressing. Serve a cup of warm homemade meat stock as a drink.

Any meat/fish dish with vegetables.

DINNER CHOICES

One of the dishes from the lunch or breakfast choices.

There are many recipes found in the book. You can also take oldrecipes and give them your own GAPS diet update.

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The Diet

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THE FULL GAPS DIET

For many GAPS patients, the diet should be followed for two yearsat least. The book Gut & Psychology Syndrome will provide recipesand more explanation about the diet.

The best foods are eggs (if tolerated), fresh meats (not preserved),fish, shellfish, fresh vegetables and fruit, nuts and seeds, garlic andolive oil. Apart from eating vegetables cooked, it is important tohave some raw vegetables with meals, as they contain vital enzymesto assist digestion of the meats. Fruit should be eaten on their own,not with meals, as they have a very different digestion pattern andcan make the work harder for the stomach. Fruit should be given asa snack between meals.

It is very important to have plenty of natural fats in every meal frommeats, butter, ghee, coconut (if tolerated) and cold pressed olive oil. Animal fats on meats are particularly valuable. Fermented foods(sauerkraut, yogurt, and kefir) are also a very important part of thisdiet in addition to homemade meat or fish stock. It is recommendedto take a cup of warm meat or fish stock with every meal as a drinkas well as soups and stews made with the meat or fish stock. Thestock, kefir and fermented vegetables will over time restore thestomach acid production, which will improve digestion.

It is best to avoid processed foods (any packet or tinned foods). They are stripped from most nutrients that were present in the freshingredients used for making these foods. They are a hard work forthe digestive system and they damage the healthy gut flora balance. On top of that they usually contain a lot of artificial chemicals,detrimental to health, like preservatives, colorants, etc. Try to buyfoods in the form that nature made them, as fresh as possible.

RECOMMENDED FOODS

Almonds, including almond butter and oilApplesApricots, fresh or driedArtichoke, French





Asiago cheeseAsparagusAubergine (eggplant)Avocados, including avocado oilBananas (ripe only with brown spots on the skin)Beans, dried white (navy), string beans and lima beans properly preparedBeef, fresh or frozenBeets or beetrootBerries, all kindsBlack, white and red pepper: ground and pepper cornsBlack radishBlue cheeseBok ChoyBrazil nutsBrick cheeseBrie cheeseBroccoliBrussels sproutsButter CabbageCamembert cheeseCanned fish in oil or water onlyCapersCarrotsCashew nuts, fresh onlyCauliflowerCayenne pepperCeleriacCeleryCellulose in supplementsCheddar cheeseCherimoya (custard apple or sharifa)CherriesChicken, fresh or frozenCinnamonCitric acidCoconut, fresh or dried (shredded) without any additivesCoconut milkCoconut oilCoffee, weak and freshly made, not instantCollard greensColby cheeseCourgette (zucchini)Coriander, fresh or driedCucumberDates, fresh or dried without any additives (not soaked in syrup)Dill, fresh or driedDuck, fresh or frozenEdam cheeseEggplant (aubergine)

Eggs, freshFilbertsFish, fresh or frozen, canned in its juice or oilGame, fresh or frozenGarlicGhee, homemade (many store varieties contain non-allowed ingredients)Gin, occasionallyGinger root, freshGoose, fresh or frozenGorgonzola cheeseGouda cheeseGrapefruitGrapesHaricot beans, properly preparedHavarti cheeseHazelnutsHerbal teasHerbs, fresh or dried without additivesHoney, naturalJuices freshly pressed from permitted fruit and vegetablesKaleKiwi fruitKumquatsLamb, fresh or frozenLemonsLentilsLettuce, all kindsLima beans (dried and fresh)Limburger cheeseLimesMangoesMeats, fresh or frozen MelonsMonterey (Jack) cheeseMuenster cheeseMushroomsMustard seeds, pure powder and gourmet types without any non-allowed ingredientsNectarinesNut flour or ground nuts (usually ground blanched almonds)NutmegNuts, all kinds freshly shelled, not roasted, salted or coated (any roasting must be done at home)Olive oil, virgin cold-pressedOlives preserved without sugar or any other non- allowed ingredientsOnionsOrangesPapayasParmesan cheeseParsleyPeaches

Peanut butter, without additivesPeanuts, fresh or roasted in their shellsPearsPeas, dried split and fresh greenPecansPeppers (green, yellow, red, and orange)Pheasant, fresh or frozenPickles, without sugar or any other non-allowed ingredientsPigeon, fresh or frozenPineapples, freshPork, fresh or frozenPort du Salut cheesePoultry, fresh or frozenPrunes, dried without any additives or in their own juicePumpkinQuail, fresh or frozenRaisinsRhubarbRoquefort cheeseRomano cheeseSatsumasScotch, occasionallySeaweed fresh and dried, once the Introduction Diet has been completed Shellfish, fresh or frozenSpices, single and pure without any additivesSpinachSquash (summer and winter)Stilton cheeseString beansSwedesSwiss cheeseTangerinesTea, weak, freshly made, not instantTomato puree, pure without any additives apart from saltTomato juice, without any additives apart from saltTomatoesTurkey, fresh or frozenTurnipsUgly fruitUncreamed cottage cheese (dry curd)Vinegar (cider or white); make sure there is no allergyVodka, very occasionallyWalnutsWatercressWhite navy beans, properly preparedWine dry: red or whiteYogurt, homemadeZucchini (courgette)

FOODS TO AVOID

AcesulphameAcidophilus milkAgar-agarAgave syrup - main carbohydrate is a complex form of fructoseAlgae - can aggravate an already disturbed immune systemAloe Vera - please go to "FAQs" for additional information on when it can be introducedAmaranth - is a grain substitute, contains starchesApple juice - usually has sugar added during processingArrowroot - is a mucilaginous herb and loaded with starchAspartameAstragalus - contains polysaccharidesBaked beansBaker's yeast - contains saccharamyces cerevisaeBaking powder and raising agents of all kind - baking soda can be used for specific medical issues, please view the "FAQs" section Balsamic vinegar - most found in stores have added sugarBarleyBean flour and sproutsBee pollen - irritating to a damaged gutBeerBhindi or okraBicarbonate of sodaBitter GourdBlack-eye beansBolognaBouillon cubes or granulesBrandyBuckwheatBulgurBurdock root - contains FOS and mucilageButter beansButtermilkCanellini beansCanned vegetables and fruitCarobCarrageenan - is seaweed and high in polysaccharidesCellulose gumCereals, including all breakfast cerealsCheeses, processed and cheese spreadsChestnuts and chestnut flourChevre cheeseChewing gum - contain sugars or sugar substitutesChick peasChickory root - contains high amounts of FOSChocolateCocoa powder - please see "FAQs" for more informationCoffee, instant and coffee substitutes

Cooking oilsCordialsCornCornstarchCorn syrupCottage cheeseCottonseedCous-cousCream - contains lactoseCream of TartarCream cheeseDextrose - in commercial products it is not the pure form Drinks, softFaba beansFeta cheeseFish, preserved, smoked, salted, breaded and canned with saucesFlour, made out of grainsFOS (fructooligosaccharides)Fructose - extracted from corn and has a mixture of other trisaccharidesFruit, canned or preservedGarbanzo beansGjetost cheeseGrains, allGruyere cheeseHam Hot dogsIce-cream, commercialJamsJelliesJerusalem artichokeKetchup, commercially availableLactoseLiqueursMargarines and butter replacementsMeats, processed, preserved, smoked and saltedMilletMilk from any animal, soy, rice, canned coconut milkMilk, driedMolassesMozzarella cheeseMungbeansNeufchatel cheeseNutra-sweet (aspartame)Nuts, salted, roasted and coatedOatsOkra - mucilaginous foodParsnipsPasta, of any kindPectinPostumPotato white




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Potato sweetPrimost cheeseQuinoa - 60% starchRiceRicotta cheeseRyeSaccharinSagoSausages, commercially availableSemolinaSherry Soda soft drinksSour cream, commercialSoySpeltStarchSugar or sucrose of any kindTapioca - starchTea, instantTriticaleTurkey loafVegetables, canned or preservedWheatWheat germWhey, powder or liquidYamsYogurt, commercial

While this diet is very close to the SCD, there are a few changes. Oneimportant difference is that the GAPS diet removes casein in addition tolactose in the beginning stages of the diet.

Baking soda is also not recommended for use in cooking. Please readthe chapter "Digestive Enzymes" in the Gut and Psychology Syndromebook for additional information on baking soda.



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Starting a new diet can seem very overwhelming. When youhave digestive issues it is even worse. Here we provide somerecommendations on getting started.

Essential Beginning Supplies

Gut and Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBrideTherapeutic strength probiotic (Bio-kult is recommended)Organic meats and vegetables including meat bones forstockSafer household and personal care productsCooking supplies for making meat stocks and fermentedvegetables

(If finances are an issue, finish the products you have andreplace them with more natural products. There are also somevery inexpensive natural solutions you can find for householdcleaners using vinegar, baking soda, and lemon. Search onlinefor some fast and easy recipes that are just as effective and costonly pennies.)

Helpful (Non-essential) Beginning Supplies

Food processorJuicerGrinder (for making nut flours and nut butters)Freezer containers

WHERE TO BEGIN

Read Gut and Psychology Syndrome by Dr. NatashaCampbell-McBride. It is very important to fully understandthe GAPS Diet before you start. Starting the diet incorrectly








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may lead to unnecessary diarrhea, constipation, severe die-offsymptoms, and hunger pains.

Be Patient! Please remember that this is going to be a slowprocess. You should not do the GAPS Diet unless you arewilling to fully commit to doing it properly and are willing tostick it out for 2 years if necessary. While some people noticeimmediate improvements, all progress will be very individual.

Start Slow. Depending on your current diet and digestivehealth, transitioning to the GAPS Diet may be a dramaticchange. The Introduction Diet will be a necessary first step forthose with serious digestive problems and food intolerances.

Be Prepared. It may be beneficial to do a few trial runs beforegoing into the Full GAPS Diet or Introduction Diet. Trymaking sauerkraut or fermented vegetables and meat or fishstocks. Once you have a good handle on these recipes, all otherGAPS foods should seem relatively easy.

Once you are ready to start, we recommend starting with theIntroduction Diet to allow your body to adjust to thechanges gradually. If you do not have serious digestiveproblems or food intolerances, you should be able to movethrough the Introduction Diet in a matter of days.



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Bio-Kult is a unique probiotic with a high concentration of14 strains of beneficial bacteria. Bio-Kult is therecommended probiotic for those following the Gut andPsychology Syndrome Diet and was formulated by ateam of doctors including Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride.

View the Bio-Kult Brochure here.

View the Bio-Kult Label here.

It is recommended to build your dose of probiotic slowly. Start with a very small amout (example 1/4 capsule for 3-5 days) and see how your body responds.

Observe the patient for any "die-off" symptoms (including,but not limited to fatigue, nausea, bloating, diarrhea,constipation, low grade fever, headache, and flu likesymptoms). If there are none then, increase the doseslowly. When you see a reaction, let your patient settle onthis dose until the "die-off" symptoms disappear. Thenincrease the dose again and let the patient settle on it. Keep increasing the dose until a therapeutic level isreached (p. 171 in GAPS book for therapeutic dosagebased on age). This period of building up the dose cantake from a few weeks to a few months in differentpatients.

Once the patient has reached the therapeutic dose level itshould be maintained for approximately six months onaverage. It takes at least this length of time to remove thepathogenic flora and start re-establishing normal gut flora. Adhering to the diet is absolutely essential in this period.








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If you continue the feeding of your pathogens in the gutwith sugar and processed carbohydrates then the probioticwill not have much chance of helping you.

Order Bio-Kult here.




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Introducing dairy seems to be one of the more confusingareas in the GAPS diet. The Gut and PsychologySyndorme book recommends introducing dairy very slowon pg. 95, but the Introduction Diet recommendshomemade yogurt from the beginning. This is becausesome GAPS people are able to tolerate well-fermentedhomemade whey and yogurt from the beginning. This isnot true for everyone so it is important to do a sensitivitytest before introducing any dairy product.

For all GAPS patients with serious digestive disorders andfood intolerances, it is highly recommended to start withthe Introduction Diet. If you have decided to go right intothe Full GAPS Diet, please find below basic dairyintroduction steps. You should expect a minimum of 18months for all dairy to be successfully introduced.

When introducing dairy, it is recommended to first performa sensitivity test as outlined in the Introduction Diet. Alldairy products should be gradually introduced starting with1 tsp for a few days and slowly increasing. If anynegative response is observed, the patient is not ready forthat particular dairy product and it should be avoided untiladditional healing has taken place.

Please remember, these recommendations are for thosewho plan to skip the Introduction Diet.

INTRODUCING DAIRY

Avoid all dairy products for a minimum of 4








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weeks.

Step 1 - Introduce organic unsalted ghee (recipeavailable in Gut and Psychology Syndrome)

Step 2 - Introduce organic unsalted butter

Step 3 - Introduce homemade kefir, yogurt andfermented cream

Step 4 - Introduce homemade cheese

Step 5 - Introduce mature traditional cheese

Step 6 - Introduce double cream and clotted cream

Avoid all milk and milk substitutes.



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The Bristol Stool Form Scale

The Bristol Stool Scale or Bristol Stool Chart is a medical aiddesigned to classify the form of human feces into seven groups. Itwas developed by Heaton and Lewis at the University of Bristol andwas first published in the Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterologyin 1997. The form of the stool depends on the time it spends in thecolon.





Type 1 has spent the longest time in the colon and type 7 has spentthe least. Stools at the lumpy end of the scale are hard to pass andoften require a lot of straining. Stools at the loose or liquid end ofthe spectrum can be too easy to pass - the need to pass them isurgent and accidents can happen. The ideal stools are types 3 and 4,especially type 4, as they are most likely to glide out without anyfuss.

What type of stools are best?

The feeling you need to go is definite but not irresistibleOnce you sit down on the toilet there is no delayNo conscious effort or straining is neededThe stool glides out smoothly and comfortablyAfterwards there is only a pleasant feeling of reliefAll this is most likely if the stool is Bristol Stool Form Scale, type4

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Bristol_Stool_Chart.png




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*When it comes to defining the "ideal" stool, there is some debate. For anotherinterpretation, please view Fiber Menace.



http://www.fibermenace.com/gutsense/transition.html

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Please find below GAPS questions that are not addressed in the GAPSbook. Each month new questions are answered by Dr. NatashaCampbell-McBride and posted below. Questions may be submitted [email protected]. Only general GAPS questions, not specific toindividual medical concerns/conditions will be considered. Please do notask any question where the answer is addressed in the GAPS book.

MOST RECENTLY ADDED FAQS (May 2011)

New Article by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride "One Man's Meat is Another Man's Poison!"

How do we best make the transition from enemas (used every night formonths) to unassisted daily relief?

I recommend leaving it without an enema for 2-4 days: your bowelshould start producing stools. In the meantime start your day with afreshly pressed juice of oranges or grapefruit. Eat cooked beetrootregularly. Avoid sweet vegetables, such as winter squashes for a fewweeks. Take HCl&Pepsin 1-2 capsules at the beginning of yourmeals. Try to take supplements of spirulina, blue-green algae,chlorella or dunaliella; many patients find them very useful inresolving constipation. Please, see other questions on constipation,which will help you with dietary changes. If there is no stool afterfour days of waiting, do an enema with 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate ofsoda + 1 teaspoon of sea salt per litre of water: do just 1 litre toempty the lower parts of the bowel without getting higher. It willtake time for your bowel to start functioning normally again afterlong-term enemas, so be patient and give yourself plenty of time foropening your bowel. It helps to distract your mind from opening ourbowel while on the toilet, so read a book or occupy your mind withsomething else. Leave it to your bowel to do the job, it knows what itis doing and your mind can actually interfere with the process.

Are shirataki noodles (from konjac root) ok on GAPS and if so, whatstage would they be allowed on?

I have no experience with shirataki. They contain complex






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carbohydrates, so I would not try them until your digestivesymptoms are gone. When you tried them once and there are noreactions, then perhaps you can introduce them.

I understand that GAPS patients have a lot of foodsensitivities/allergies and some of them are identified during the Introdiet and eventually resolved as the gut lining heals. What about thepatients that have so called environmental allergies, i.e. reactions topollen, dust mites, etc? Should they expect their issues to be resolvedonly after their gut completely heals?

GAPS Nutritional Protocol re-balances immunity, so its major arms(Th1 and Th2) get back into balance. It is an imbalance betweenthese parts of the immune system that lead to allergies. I see allergiesto dust mites, pollen, animals and other environmental influencesdisappear in my patients all the time. But if a patient goes back toeating junk food and sugar, these allergies can come back.

What do you suggest for people who have high amounts of klebsiellaand clostridium bacteria in their body? Cut out all foods containingFOS?

These microbes are best fought with probiotics. Usually the diet andgood quality therapeutic probiotics take them under control. If aftersix months on the GAPS programme they still cause trouble, then acourse of appropriate antibiotic can be administered. Make sure tocontinue with the GAPS diet and high doses of probiotics throughthe antibiotic treatment and afterwards.

What do you recommend for bacterial vaginosis that came back afteran antibiotic cream given to me by my obstetrician / gynaecologist?

You need to restore your normal vaginal flora. To do that insert 1-2capsules of a good quality probiotic into your vagina at bedtime fora few nights; and apply homemade kefir all over your groin areadaily after a shower or a bath.

I have read that people are healing on a zero carb diet (meat, fat,eggs). Some even claim they saw no healing on GAPS but are healingon a zero carb diet. What is your thought on this type of diet,particularly how it relates to gut flora?

I do prescribe a no-plant diet for some patients, where they do theIntroduction diet without any vegetables or fruit at all for a fewweeks. It helps children with hyperactivity and diarrhoea, andpeople with severe digestive problems with diarrhoea and bloodsugar problems. Everybody is different and it is important to finetune the GAPS diet for your individual situation.

In addition to juicing, elderberry and plants (all mentioned in thebook), are there other detoxing methods recommended for GAPSpatients? If one wanted to undergo an intense detox, is there arecommended procedure? Do you recommend using detox protocols inaddition to juicing to remove problem heavy metals?

I do not recommend any other detox procedures for the first two

years of the programme, as the GAPS Nutritional Protocol willrestore your own detoxification system in the body, so it startsfunctioning again and removing toxins naturally. However, in somecases the toxic load can be too high and still producing symptomsafter two years; in these cases I recommend natural chelatingsubstances such as HumetR and HMD™ (Heavy Metal Detox).Seaweed and probiotics are also strong chelators of toxins.

Many people find fasting very helpful. Fasting is best done in adedicated clinic under supervision, and people who do best with itare those who are fairly well nourished (not underweight). There aremany other powerful detox protocols available around the worldand it is best to do them in dedicated clinics. I know quite a fewpeople who have attempted various protocols with different results,ranging from none to spectacular. The outcome depends very muchon your own detoxification system in the body working well, andthat is what GAPS programme can do for you – it will restore yourdetox system.

Do you recommend the removal of silver fillings if there is a high levelof mercury or other heavy metals?

Absolutely! However, it is very important to work with a holisticdentist, as conventional dentists are not trained in safe removal ofamalgam fillings. Metals in the mouth create electric currents anddifferent fillings acquire a positive or a negative charge. Theseelectric charges need to be measured and fillings need to be removedin a certain order, starting from the largest negatively charged one.After the first one is removed, the currents in the mouth need to bemeasured again, as the charges will change. Please, read an excellentbook by Dr. Hal A Huggins It’s all in your head; it will explain to youall the important considerations in safe removal of amalgam fillings.

What is your opinion on using Dr Brownstein’s iodine protocol todetox fluoride, chlorine and bromides?

I have no experience with this protocol and cannot comment.

I recommend iodine paint as a form of testing and supplementingiodine in the initial stages of the GAPS Programme (please see otherquestions under THYROID). Later on, when seaweed is introduced itwill supply iodine in a natural form. In order to use iodine properlythe body needs many other nutrients, such as vitamins A, D, K, Bgroup and other. The GAPS diet will remove nutritional deficienciesnaturally through food, so iodine can be used by the body efficiently.At the same time under GAPS Nutritional Protocol thedetoxification system in the body starts working again, so toxinssuch as fluoride, chlorine and bromides can be removed naturallyand safely by your own body (without you having to figure out allthe immense chemical complexities of how to do it).

After doing the diet for a year and seeing a lot of healing, just beforemy last menstrual cycle I got very severe fatigue, brain fog, radiatingpain, stiff neck and headache. I never had these symptoms before and Iam at a loss as to what could have caused it. Any suggestions onmanaging this new symptom?

It is possible that you got a viral infection. Try to take L-lysine 3-4grams per day as a supplement and remove citrus fruit, nuts andgreens from the diet for a while; try to go back to rich soups andstews with sour cream and kefir. Another thing to do is to find agood homeopath and see if that can help.

Does the GAPS diet heal fructose malabsorption, or would the GAPSdiet need to be modified?

This condition is part of GAP Syndrome as well as lactoseintolerance and most-sugars-intolerance. Why? Because in peoplewith abnormal gut flora enterocytes (the cells which line the gut) aredamaged and unable to fulfil their main function: digestion ofsugars. The fructose malabsorption became prominent since high-fructose corn syrup came on the market: this is a processedsweetener which is extremely harmful to health. But as it is cheep toproduce and very profitable for the manufacturers many processedfoods and drinks are sweetened with it nowadays. GAPS dietremoves double sugars and there is no need to modify it. If you havebeen specifically diagnosed with fructose malabsorption, you maywant to avoid fruit and honey initially. As you go through the GAPSIntroduction Diet, your enterocytes will start recovering and you willbe able to re-introduce honey and fruit.

I know that you warn against taking calcium as it can cause thedepletion of other minerals in the body as it chelates. What cansomeone do to make sure they get enough calcium when they cannottolerate any of the calcium rich foods like leafy greens, nuts orfermented dairy?

Please look at other questions under SUPPLEMENTS. There is noneed to worry about calcium, it is present in most foods and meatcan be a very good source of calcium in a good balance withmagnesium. Bone broth and vegetables will add more.

My son’s fingernails have quit growing since we started GAPS over ayear ago. I cannot remember the last time I cut them. Is this cause forconcern?

No! I would not worry about it as long as your son is generallyhealthy and doing well. It is possible that his body is using nutrientsfor more important functions at the moment rather than buildingnails. As he gets well nourished and the body has plenty of nutrientsto spare, his nails should start growing again.

Are homeopathic meds allowed on GAPS?

Homeopathy combines with GAPS very well and I recommend it.Homeopathic remedies can help you to get through die-off easierand to overcome many stubborn problems.

Is plain carbonated water (seltzer) allowed on GAPS?

Yes!

What is the typical time frame for giving HCl&Pepsin? I have given it

to my two young sons and it seemed to help, but it would be difficultfor my youngest to express whether or not it is causing stomachdistress. What would be the minimum amount of time I should tryusing it with them? How will I know when it is OK to stop?

Long-term consumption of HCl&Pepsin can cause stomachirritation. Generally for children I recommend to use cabbage as astomach acidity stimulator: give them cabbage juice, fresh cabbagesalad or a small helping of sauerkraut 5-10 minutes before the meal,and their stomachs will be ready and full of acid. If this measure isnot enough, then use a little of HCl&Pepsin with large meals only.

What is there difference between algae and seaweed that seaweeds areallowed and algae are not?

Actually seaweed is a form of algae, strictly speaking. This is a goodpoint which slipped my attention, thank you for pointing it out. Asnutritional supplements algae are commercially cultivated and canbe sold under names of spirulina, algae, chlorella and dunaliella.Both seaweed and algae can be introduced when the IntroductionDiet has been completed and there are no more digestive problems.Keep in mind that supplements of algae can cause diarrhoea and canbe very helpful in resolving constipation.

Chicken bones that have been simmered for 24 hours are very soft andcan be eaten, and it’s easier to eat them than to try to get the marrowout of them. Is there any harm to a GAPS patient to eating the bonesas well as the marrow if they have been cooked for the 24 hours?

Yes, you can eat soft bones, they will do you a lot of good.

I still don’t understand if the GAPS diet and SCD actually heal celiac,Crohn’s disease and gluten intolerance or whether they just manage it.For example, would a person with celiac, who successfully did theGAPS diet for 2 years, then be able to eat gluten? Or would they beless sensitive to gluten of they had it in limited quantities? Or wouldthey need to continue to not eat gluten but have overcome thesymptoms of celiac?

GAPS diet may cure celiac disease and other inflammatory bowelcondition, not only manage them. Of course, everybody is differentand would take different time to heal. When your digestivesymptoms are gone completely and have not been present for sixmonths at least try to make some homemade sourdough pancakes:mix white wheat flour with your homemade kefir or whey to a thickpancake-batter consistency and ferment in a warm place for 2-3days; then add a few eggs, salt and some melted animal fat to themixture and make thin pancakes (crepes). Eat one or two of thesepancakes and then observe your digestive system for 4-5 days: ifnothing has happened then you are ready to have sourdough. Tomake sourdough bread mix white wheat flour with salt and yourhomemade kefir or whey; kneed the mixture well until it does notstick to your hands anymore; press the dough into a loaf tin, applysome fat to the top (so the dough does not dry on the top), and putinto a warm place for 2-3 days for fermenting (it will rise naturallyin that time); bake at 200C (390F) for 20-35 minutes (test if ready

with a dry knife). Initially only have homemade sourdough bread orpancakes (for a few months). When those are well tolerated, you cantry to eat a small piece of commercial sourdough bread.

My two year old son passes nearly all vegetables, well cooked, blendedor otherwise undigested in his stools. Does this mean that we should beavoiding vegetables altogether for now? Is this due to a lack ofmicrobes and something that will improve in time? It seems to me likeit would not be healthy to exclude all vegetables form his diet.

If the stool is normal then don’t worry about it, he will startdigesting vegetables in time. If he has a propensity for diarrhoeathen it may be a good idea to remove all vegetables and just followthe Introduction Diet without any plant foods at all for a while.When stools became consistently normal, you can start introducingvegetables.

Could you please discuss migraines; what causes them? Can they beprevented? Is there anything that can be done to stop the pain? Is therea difference between ones that happen randomly and ones that happenwith menstruation or ovulation?

Migraines are vascular headaches which usually happen in one sideof the head. First a spasm happens in the wall of a meningeal artery;the spasm does not last long (a few minutes) and is followed by aparalysis of the wall of the artery, which can last for days. Theparalysis leads to swelling and inflammation of tissues around theartery wall, causing a headache. What cause the spasm in the firstplace? Many factors can do that and we do not have all the pieces ofthe puzzle yet. In GAPS patients it is toxicity from the gut that playsa major role. One mechanism is overproduction of histamine in thegut (which is produced by pathogenic microbes), which drop theblood pressure too low and initiate the spasm. Around menstruationand ovulation a rapid change in hormones in the body can initiate amigraine. In the second half of the menstrual cycle our immunity issuppressed by progesterone, so any overgrowth of pathogens in thegut and elsewhere in the body gets more active, producing moretoxins than usual and initiating the migraine. GAPS NutritionalProtocol over time will help to reduce amounts of toxicity in thebody, re-balance hormones and as a result help with migraines. Asan emergency procedure many people find coffee enemas veryhelpful. Coffee enemas are one of the best ways of cleansing your liver andspeeding up detoxification process in your body. It gives a good painrelief as well.To prepare the coffee bring to boil 1 litre of water, add 3 tablespoons of organic ground coffee, boil for 2 min, then reduce the heatto a minimum, cover with a tight lid and simmer for another 10-15min. Cool down and strain.Before doing the coffee enema, it is a good idea to have a goodcleansing enema with warm water (dissolve ½ a teaspoon of sea saltin the water and ½ a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda). To clear yourbowel completely let some water into your bowel (about one litre),empty. Then let more water into the bowel and empty again. Do it 2-

4 times until the water starts coming out looking fairly clean toindicate that your bowel is empty. After your bowel is empty, slowlyget the coffee into your rectum. Remove the tube and lie down onyour right side or any other comfortable position. Try to keepyourself comfortable and warm. It is desirable to keep the coffeeinside for 15 min before emptying your bowel. Initially you mightnot be able to hold it for that long. Don’t worry about it. With timeand experience you will be able to do it. To hold the coffee longer, Irecommend keeping the pipe in your rectum for a while (after thecoffee has gone in) to allow gases to escape: accumulating gasstretches the bowel and causes an urge to empty too quickly.Coffee enemas help in majority of migraine headaches, but not in allcases. Sometimes painkillers have to be taken as well. But clearingthe bowel helps long term, as it reduces the amount of toxicitycoming into the body.

In an earlier question you said that if a person is stuck in the introstage, then perhaps a natural anti-parasitic/anti-bacterial remedy maybe helpful. Could you give a suggestion about how a person couldbegin doing this? Are any of these remedies safe for young children?

There are many anti-parasitic natural supplements on the marketwhich can help: garlic extract, olive leaf extract, oregano oil andgrapefruit seed extract. The first supplement, which I find useful, isgarlic extract. Always start from a small dose and graduallyincreasing it. The dose can be increased to quite large amounts:some adults take 5-10 grams every day, for a child 500mg – 1 gramwith food is usually enough. Once garlic is well tolerated, olive leafextract can be added, starting from a small dose and graduallyincreasing to 1-2 grams twice a day for adults; for children 500mgtwice a day is usually enough. Once garlic and olive leaf extracts arewell tolerated, oregano oil can be added, starting from a small dose(1-5 drops) per day and gradually increasing to 30-40 drops foradults and 5-10 drops for children. The last supplement to add isgrapefruit seed extract, starting from 1-2 drops a day and graduallyincreasing to a dose that is tolerated: adults manage to get up to 10drops 2-3 times per day, for children 4-5 drops may be enough.There are many brands of these supplements on the market, try tofind good quality.

Some herbal preparations include MSM (Methyl SulphonylMethane), which is a good source of sulphur, essential fordetoxification and controlling parasites in the body. If the herbalpreparation does not include MSM, you may want to add it to themix. Start from a low dose and gradually increase to the level of 1-2grams per day for children and 4-5 grams per day for adults.

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ADRENALS What recommendations are there for GAPS patients for boosting theiradrenals?

Adrenals love fat and cholesterol. So, as far as the diet is concerned,eat lots of animal fats with every meal and cholesterol-rich foods,such as egg yolks, sour cream, butter and fatty fish. Anotheressential for the adrenals is sleep! Sleep is really not optional, soorganise your life in such a way that you can have a nap everyafternoon and a good long sleep at night. Another essential is tolower your stress, which is easier done than you may think. Stress isnot the event itself; it is your attitude to this event. Research shows,that people react to stress very differently depending on theirattitude to life. The one, who generally has a negative personalityand tends to worry a lot, has all the stress hormones and destructivechemicals racing around their bodies. But the person, who has aphilosophical and positive attitude to life, will have much less stresschemicals in their blood and will cope much better. It is the firsttype of people that “burn” their adrenals out. There are excellentbooks on this subject: you can start from Dale Carnegie’s book“How to stop worrying and start living”, for example. AUTOIMMUNE I have heard rumours that a book for autoimmune conditions will becoming out. Will the recommendations differ greatly from those in theGAPS book? What should I do now while I am waiting for the newbook? Yes, I am working on the new book, called GUT AND PHYSIOLOGYSYNDROME, which will cover autoimmunity amongst otherconditions. You do not have to wait for that book, as the treatmentfor those conditions will essentially be the same: the existing GAPSNutritional Protocol. Would the GAPS diet do anything to help heal someone withParkinson’s disease? I have no experience in treating Parkinson’s disease with GAPSNutritional Protocol. However, there are many indications to showthat Parkinson’s disease is autoimmune in its origin. GAPSNutritional Protocol heals the gut and re-balances immunity; so itshould lay the foundation for recovery. I would try it. BACTERIA I have been reading conflicting information regarding bacteria andwhere they reside. Some sources say the small intestine should besterile and have not bacteria in it and that both lactobacillus andbifidobacterium live in the large intestine only. Other sources indicatethat bifidobacteria live in the large intestine while lactobacillus resideonly in the small intestine. What is your thoughts on this? The whole digestive system is populated, from your mouth to theend; there are no sterile areas in the digestive tract. Bifidobacteriaare strict anaerobes; the best conditions for them exist in the large

bowel, that is why they are very numerous there. Lactobacilli canuse oxygen and also can live in anaerobic conditions, so they arepresent everywhere, including the small intestine.

Why does it take so long to change the bacterial profile in the gut? It can be quick to get ill, while healing always takes time. It can takea long time to normalise gut flora in a person with gut dysbiosisbecause the gut is occupied by thousands of pathogenic species ofmicrobes. They dig themselves in very well in the gut lining, and todrive them out is not easy: the probiotic microbes have quite a fighton their hands. Another problem is that, whether we use fermentedfoods or commercial probiotic supplements, the numbers of activemicrobes we introduce are very small. There is no way at themoment (which means we don’t know any way) to flood the gut withprobiotics safely, because we don’t know enough about them. Recentscientific data shows that there are hundreds of thousands of variousspecies of microbes in a healthy gut! With our current knowledge wecan only introduce a few at a time – those that we know, such aslactobacilli, bifidobacteria and few others. There are a few doctors inthe worlds who are trying to copy Nature: they use a procedurecalled faecal transplant: a stool from a healthy donor is mixed withwater and introduced into the gut of the patient (through the tubeinto the stomach, or into the bowel as an enema). In many patientsthis fixes the problem, though it does not work for everybody.Faecal transplant introduces the whole immensely complex flora of ahealthy gut, without us knowing what species of microbes are thereand what other factors we are introducing. I am sure that many ofyou watched films about animals, where a baby elephant wouldconsume mother’s stool with relish. For us, humans, this looksrepulsive and unacceptable, but obviously these animals knowsomething we don’t. Faecal transplant does what these babyelephants do, and maybe this will be the way in the future to restorethe gut flora quickly. How does GAPS diet deal with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth(SIBO)? Because fermented foods and probiotic can actually feedSIBO, what is your recommendation on how to address this situation? Majority of GAPS people have this problem. Just follow the GAPSprogramme, it will feed the gut and re-balance immunity and thenervous system in the gut wall. The body knows how to heal itself,just give it the tools. BIOFILMS How do we know if the pathogens in our gut have created biofilms? Ifthere are biofilms, do we need to do or take anything to remove thosebiofilms in addition to the GAPS protocol and diet or will it get rid ofthose biofilms? Most (if not all) microbes form biofilms. Biofilm is simply a

community of microbes which grow together or a surface and areimbedded in various substances they produce (proteins,carbohydrates, etc). Biofilms are not necessarily something bad thatshould be “got rid off”, as beneficial flora in the gut forms them too.We don’t know enough about this subject yet to start taking action,particularly destructive action. Just work on improving your gutflora; as the beneficial microbes win, they will deal with thepathogens in their own way, including removing their biofilms. CALCIUM & MAGNESIUM Will my child get enough calcium on the GAPS diet? Do we need tosupplement calcium?

There is plenty of calcium in nuts, particularly almonds, meat brothand vegetables. When fermented dairy are introduced there will beeven more calcium in the diet. Calcium has to be balanced withother minerals, particularly with magnesium. Supplemental calciumusually causes deficiencies in many other minerals, as it chelatesthem and does not allow them to be absorbed. That is why I do notrecommend calcium supplements. When you get calcium fromnatural foods you get it in combination with many other mineralsand other nutrients, which allow the body to use them allappropriately.

Calcium works in opposition to magnesium in the body. GAPSpatients are usually deficient in magnesium. Supplementing calciumwill make that deficiency worse with serious consequences. What causes leg cramps in GAPS patients and what should be done ifthis is a common issue? Magnesium deficiency causes leg cramps. What causes magnesiumdeficiency? Many factors: toxins from the gut, mercury, lead, anyother toxic chemical accumulating in the body, nutritionaldeficiencies, infections, etc. But the number one cause of widespreadmagnesium deficiency in the population is consumption of processedcarbohydrates, sugar in particular. GAPS diet removes processedcarbohydrates and includes foods rich in magnesium. Many peopleuse supplements of magnesium, which may or may not work, asthere are many factors involved in magnesium metabolism in thebody. Fat soluble vitamins A, D, K and E are one of the mostessential nutrients for the body to be able to absorb and usemagnesium from food or supplements. To supply these vitamins weneed animal fats: fats on meats, butter and sour cream. In order formagnesium to work it needs other vitamins, minerals and aminoacids, as they all work as a team. So, diet as a whole is the mosteffective treatment. CANDIDA / YEAST Is there anything you can do to reduce Candida in the mouth (thrush)?

It is important to populate the mouth and throat with beneficialbacteria. To do this, take a mouthful of yogurt, kefir or 2 openedBio-Kult capsules on the tongue after everything you eat. Do thesame thing at bedtime after you have cleaned your teeth and do notplan on eating or drinking anything else.

Can a patient with candida use fruit-based vitamin C products such asacerola and amla? Or will it exacerbate the Candida? Candida will feed on any sugar, including your own gut lining (thecells there are covered by a sugar layer, called glycocalyx). So, it is abalancing act: if natural products such as dried acerola and amlaare helping you in other ways, don’t worry about candida andcontinue using them. If they are not making much difference, thendon’t use them. What specific recommendations are there for GAPS patients strugglingwith Candida?

It is impossible to completely eliminate Candida. We can onlycontrol it by strengthening the immune system and using some anti-candida remedies. The GAPS diet builds up the immunity over timevery well. There are many good natural remedies on the market,such as oregano, olive leaf extract, grapefruit seed extract, garlic andherbal mixes to bring candida down a bit. It is important tointroduce natural remedies gradually, controlling the die-offreaction; start with one remedy, then add others one by one. Somepeople find relief with mainstream anti-fungal medications. Troubleis that drugs cannot be taken for long periods of time (apart fromNystatin), as they are toxic and have side effects. If the drugs work,they may provide an immediate relief, but when they are stopped,the problem may come back fairly soon. Natural remedies can betaken for long periods of time without harm, that is why it is a goodidea to start with natural remedies, continue taking them throughthe drug treatment and to follow with the natural remedies when thedrug has been stopped. Another measure is alkalizing: candidathrives in acid environment and hates alkaline environment. Themost effective and inexpensive remedy is pure bicarbonate of soda, It is quite effective when used as a topical application on athletes'foot (put some powder into your socks and shoes), mouth candida(brush your teeth with bicarbonate of soda instead of toothpaste),any other fungal skin problems and as baths (add about a cup ofbicarbonate of soda to the bath water). Taking bicarbonate of sodainternally can be effective in reflux, indigestion and other internalcandida problems. For internal use dissolve 1/2 a teaspoon ofaluminum-free bicarbonate of soda in a glass of water and drink onan EMPTY stomach. It is not recommended th have more than 2-3glasses of this solution per day, as it may affect the kidney function. Start with 1/2 a glass first thing in the morning and gradually buildup to 2-3 glasses per day. A more expensive alternative is buying agood water ionizers (there are a few on the market), which producesalkaline drinking water. There are health centers and pharmaciesaround the world, which purchase these ionizers and sell the alkalinewater in bottles. Introduce alkaline water gradually.

How should S boulardii be dosed when used for candida? Always start from a small dose and gradually increase it to atherapeutic level, stay on this level for 3-4 months, then graduallyreduce to none. For an adult the therapeutic dose is usually 4-5billion live cells per day. For a child use smaller doses depending onthe age of the child: 3-5 years of age the dose is 1 billion live cellsper day, for 6-11 years of age 2 billion per day, for older children 3-4 billion per day. I would not use S boulardii with children youngerthan 3, it is better to use homemade kefir for these children. It isimportant to always combine S boulardii with other probiotics, as itshould not be allowed to dominate in the gut. Based on myexperience, I would not use S boulardii permanently, only as acourse. On a long term basis it is better to use kefir, which contains agroup of beneficial yeasts as well as bacteria. I would like to know how GAPS eradicates systemic yeast versus yeastovergrowth in the colon. It is impossible to eradicate yeast from the body, systemic or in thecolon, as yeasts are a natural part of our bodily flora. They fulfilmany useful roles in the body, one of which is dealing with toxins:the body “employs” yeast as a sponge to absorb heavy metals andother toxins, so these poisons do less damage. That is why yeastovergrowth always comes with toxicity. You may attack yeast withanti-fungal medication, which may work temporarily, but as long asthere are toxins in the body to deal with, yeast will come back.GAPS programme works on many levels: it removes the main sourceof toxicity in the body by improving gut flora and gut function; it re-balances and nourishes immune system, so it deals with pathogens inits own unique ways; and it restores normal microbial balance in thebody. And the normal microbial balance includes yeasts - manyvarieties of them living side-by-side with bacteria, viruses, protozoaand other microbes. You have to understand that about 90% of yourbody are microbes; you are only 10% - a shell and a habitat forthese microbes. Work with them rather than against them, restorenormal balance amongst them, and they will serve you well. If one is hypoglycaemic with candida issues, where can carbs beobtained from? The legal carbs all seem to have too high a GI such assquash, cooked carrots, etc, fruits will also be tricky and of coursegrains and beans are difficult to digest despite some being low GI.Throw in the possibility of nightshade/sulphur sensitivity as well and itis seemingly impossible to get any carbs in at all. Carbohydrates are one macro-nutrient, which is not essential,strictly speaking. Protein and fats are essential for us to consume,but not carbs. People with candida do best on high-fat and high-protein diet, rather than on carbs. Meats contain some carbohydratein the form of glycogen, so a piece of meat (with fat on it of course)will provide you not only with protein and fat, but with some carbs.

CHILDREN My child got strep throat with high temperature, and my doctor hasprescribed antibiotics. What should we do? Will the antibiotics destroyall our efforts with GAPS? There are situations when antibiotics are necessary, and Strep throatis usually one of those situations. It is important to take streptococciunder control, as they can trigger an autoimmune reaction in thebody leading to damage of heart valves. Just make sure to give yourchild plenty of probiotics and immune-boosting foods during theillness and after it.Probiotics: open a capsule of a probiotic and pour the powder onyour child’s tongue after every meal and at bedtime. This will helpto populate your child’s throat with beneficial bacteria, so they willtake streptococci under control now and prevent any new infectionsin the future.Food: during the infection feed you child lots of hot chicken stockand chicken soup with kefir, yoghurt or sour cream added. Do notgive your child anything cold until the throat is much better. So, noraw fruit or vegetables, no salads, no baking and no cold drinks;only hot soup, hot camomile tea with raw honey, well-cooked fattygelatinous meat (cooked in water) and eggs with onion. Here is animmune boosting recipe to use during any infection, particularly inthe throat: fry 2-3 eggs in generous amounts of goose or duck fat (orany other animal fat) so the whites are gently cooked and the yolksare left runny; slice large white onion and cook in generous amountsof animal fat under a lid for about 20 minutes, until the onion is softand sweet; serve the eggs and the onion together with all the fat,which they were cooked in, and pour some cold-pressed olive oil ontop. This dish is very gentle and soothing on the throat, the fat andthe egg yolks will dissolve any damaged tissues and help to removethem; the eggs, fat and cooked onion feed the immune system locallyin the throat, and boost systemic immunity as well. Give this dish toyour child twice a day, and the sore throat will melt away quitequickly. This is food that should be given to patients in hospitals,whose tonsils have just been removed. What do you recommend for children who grind teeth? Is this a sign ofanything? Teeth grinding or bruxism is caused by contractions in jaw musclesduring sleep. Just as with many other muscle-tone abnormalities,which we see in GAPS patients, I believe it is caused by acombination of toxins, coming out of the gut, and nutritionaldeficiencies. Bruxism is a common symptom of digestive disordersand GAPS conditions, such as anxiety, bi-polar disorder, autism,ADHD, etc. Severe teeth grinding can damage the teeth and lead toheadaches and pain in the facial muscles in the morning. GAPSprogramme will remove this symptom over time. In the meantimetry to use a mouth guard to protect your child’s teeth during sleep(the one rugby players use works well). To relax the muscles beforesleep it may be helpful to take two supplements at bedtime:magnesium (amino acid chelate) and a supplement, which increases

serotonine production (the usual ingredients are 5HTP, niacin, B6,folic acid, biotin and zinc). With both supplements start from a smalldose (about half the recommended dose for the age of your child) fora few nights, and then gradually increase the dose. Increase theamounts of fat in the diet of your child, particularly raw fat, such asraw butter and homemade sour cream (made out of raw cream).Another thing to consider is taking common worms under control, astheir activity can lead to teeth grinding. Please look at questions onworms and parasites and their treatment with Vermox(mebendazole 100mg). Enuresis (bed-wetting) and polyuria (excessive urination) are commonconcerns of parents before GAPS and seem to increase during theearly stages of GAPS. Please comment. Please, read my article on Food Allergy, which explains this issue indetail. Urine is one of the venues for toxins to leave the body.Abnormal gut flora produces a lot of toxins, which are excreted inurine. This toxic urine irritates the lining of the bladder and causesa low grade inflammation there, so the person gets symptoms ofchronic cystitis. The bladder does not want to hold toxic urine, sothe person has to empty it frequently. If a child (or an adult) withthis condition is fast asleep, then the bladder may empty withoutwaking up the person, hence bed-wetting. Die-off increases levels oftoxins in the body, so the urine will become more toxic, exacerbatingthe problem. It is always important to control die-off by slowintroduction of probiotics and various foods.GAPS Programme will eliminate this problem long term, as it willremove its cause. In the meantime do what works to help thesituation: drink plenty of water, supplements of cranberry help toreduce inflammation in the bladder, use various mechanical alarmsand devises developed for enuresis, wake your child up a few timesduring the night and take him/her to the bathroom. Foods high insalicylates and oxalates can make the problem worse, so try to avoidthese foods for a while until things get better.When the natural defences of the mucous membranes of the bladderare damaged by toxins in the urine, then any infection can join ineasily. So people with this problem get urinary infections frequentlywhich have to be treated with antibiotics. Populating that area withbeneficial flora will prevent urinary infections. So, I recommendapplying homemade kefir or yoghurt all over the groin after showersand baths. Probiotic microbes will slowly travel up the urethra intothe bladder, protect it and help it heal. Should we be concerned with consuming foods high in manganese?Could children with autism have a similar condition to manganesemadness? I heard that some cases of autism were greatly worsened byexcess manganese being in the brain and a diet avoiding foods high inmanganese was advised. Manganese is an essential trace element involved in many functionsin the body. Toxicity from manganese is known in industrial steelworkers, particularly welders, who are exposed to concentratedmanganese fumes and dust; some pesticides and pharmaceuticals

have large amounts of manganese and can lead to an overdose.Infant soy formula has recently emerged as the new source ofmanganese toxicity, amongst many other harmful influences it hason a baby’s body. Toxicity from food is generally not known, as inthe food this element comes in a complex with hundreds of othernutrients, which balance each other out. Foods rich in manganeseare soy, various greens (mustard greens, chard, kale, lettuce, collard,etc), pineapples, beans, maple syrup and raspberries grown onmanganese-rich soil. Manganese deficiency can look very similar toexcess: problems with balance and motor co-ordination, mood,behaviour, skin problems, reproductive problems, etc. In autisticchildren an excess in manganese is usually not due to high intake(unless the child was brought up on soy formula), but due toabnormalities in metabolism and general toxicity. These childrenshow abnormalities in most elements we test for: copper, zinc,magnesium, calcium, molybdenum, etc. To handle metals the bodyneeds fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, K and E), protein and many othernutrients. As the child goes through the Introduction diet, thesenutritional deficiencies will be slowly eliminated, so the child’s bodystarts handling manganese and other metals appropriately. Soy,maple syrup and many varieties of beans are not allowed on theGAPS diet. While on the Introduction GAPS diet the person is notlikely to consume pineapples, raspberries or greens to any degree. Ifa case of manganese toxicity has been diagnosed, then it is a goodidea to avoid all greens and other manganese-rich foods until thetests are better. The same goes for infants who were fed soy formula.But, for majority of people following GAPS this issue should not beof concern. Do you agree with current medical recommendations for delayinghigh-allergen foods such as peanuts and tree nuts? At what ageshould these foods be introduced to young children? Please look at the New Baby diet on in the 2010 version of the GAPSbook . About 2-3 months after the beginning of the diet I recommendintroducing pancakes made with nut butter (hazelnut or almond). Itis always a good idea to do the Sensitivity Test prior to introducingany new food, including nut pancakes. In my experience majority ofbabies tolerate these pancakes perfectly well, once they have beenthrough all the previous stages of their GAPS New Baby diet. My 18 month old has an extremely bloated belly. I know this iscommon during healing, but is there anything I can do to alleviate it?He seems uncomfortable, especially after eating. The bloating does notgo down even after a bowel movement. There is an excessive gas production in your child’s tummy. Try togo back to the second stage of the Introduction Diet and keep yourchild on it for a while. Dill seed tea helps: put a teaspoon of dry dillseeds into a pan, add a cup of cold water and bring up to boil. Takeoff the heat and let it cool down slowly. Give your child 2-3teaspoons with water or meat stock a few times per day. A smalldaily enema after passing stool will release old matter from thebowel quicker and speed up the healing process. For a child of this

age it is best to use a bulb syringe enema kit; use warm water with apinch of Celtic salt dissolved in it. Since starting the diet my son’s stools have consistently floated. Is thiscause for concern? Not at all. Whether the stool floats or sinks depends on its density,which in turn depends on the mixture of foods eaten. In your book you mention that GAPS people often have an overgrowthof sulphate-reducing bacteria. If I suspect this to be the case in mychild, should I avoid feeding him foods that contain high amount ofsulphur? No, do not remove sulphur-containing foods! Sulphur is essential tore-build you child’s gut, immunity and liver function. GAPS peopleare already deficient in sulphur; they cannot get enough of it. As thegut flora starts changing the beneficial microbes will take care of thepathogens and normalise your child’s sulphur metabolism. Many parents who show the GAPS diet to their paediatricians are toldthat the diet is too low in carbohydrates and this can be harmful to thechild? There is no training in nutrition in medical schools, so generallyyour doctor knows no more than any lay person, who derives theirknowledge about food from food industry advertisements in themainstream media. The nutritional dogma, dominated by “science”funded by food industry, has pronounced proteins and fats as evil, sothere was nothing else left to replace them but carbohydrates. So,the population has been subjected to decades of propaganda that weall need lots of carbohydrates, and doctors were brainwashed just asmuch as everybody else. Strictly speaking carbohydrates are theonly macro-nutrient, without which humans can live perfectly wellin good health. But we cannot live without proteins and fats, whichhave been vilified by the nutritional establishment. If parents intend to vaccinate do you have a recommended vaccineschedule they should follow? What age to start, how often to receive,which order, etc?

Please, read the chapter on vaccinations in my GAPS book. In myopinion babies in GAPS families should not be vaccinated until theage of 4 - 5 years. Strictly speaking the only two vaccinations thatcan be considered important are tetanus and polio. Othervaccinations are not essential; in fact it is better to let your child gothrough those childhood infections. Just make sure that your child iswell nourished and he or she will sail through those infections andcome out stronger with a more robust immune system. It has beenrecorded that those people who went through measles, mumps andother childhood infections, virtually never succumb to auto-immunedisease or allergies. And it is a fact that complications of theseinfections arise only in children, who are malnourished, particularlywith deficiencies in vitamins A and D. If you decide to vaccinate, the

order of the vaccines is not so important. What is very important isto have every vaccine separately; I do not recommend combinedvaccines. It is also important to space the vaccinations at least 3months apart. Make sure that your child is well nourished and hasno colds, coughs or any other problems at the time of thevaccination. If any of the vaccines caused a reaction, let your childrecover fully before considering the next vaccine: I wouldrecommend waiting for about 6 months. The latest stool analysis of my child has shown growth ofStreptococcus in it. My doctor recommended an antibiotic, which mademy child worse. What should we do? I have to tell most of my patients not to rely on testing too much.Every test can only identify what it knows; it cannot find what it hasnot been designed to find. It is a fact that little knowledge can bemore dangerous than no knowledge at all. There are manypotentially pathogenic microbes in human stool and in the gut flora.The fact that the laboratory identified one of them does not meanthat we must go chasing after it. Trying to kill streptococci withantibiotics we would kill many beneficial bacteria and activate otherpathogens, which could have been dormant, and which may be farmore dangerous than the streptococci. So, in the big picture in thegut the antibiotic would do more harm than good. We are dealingwith an immensely complex microbial world in the gut, which weonly just started learning about. We know very little yet, ourmodern science is in its infancy on this subject. That is why it is bestto rely on centuries old wisdom of treating the gut holistically withdiet and probiotics, giving it time and patience.

CONSTIPATION, DIARRHEA, STOOL ISSUES If constipation persists for several months, does it mean you are doingsomething wrong? Is there anything you recommend in addition toenemas and juicing to help this? Try to replace high-protein dairy with high-fat dairy. In myexperience adding high-protein dairy: whey, yoghurt and kefir, doesmiracles for those who are prone to diarrhoea. Constipation,however, is a different matter. If your patient is prone to chronicconstipation introduce high-fat dairy: ghee, butter and sour cream,but not high-protein dairy, such as yoghurt, whey, kefir and cheese:high protein dairy can aggravate constipation. High fat content ofsour cream will lubricate the gut wall and soften the stool. How is it that flax seeds can be used for constipation? Won’t theydamage the gut lining like other fibrous foods? I do not recommend taking flax seeds, particularly in the initialstages of the programme. When soaked overnight, flax seeds absorba lot of water and turn into a jelly. It is thought that this water-absorbing quality of flax seeds helps with constipation. However, itdoes not help everybody, and yes, flax seeds are very fibrous and

have other anti-nutrients. After 2 years on GAPS I still have undigested vegetables in my stooland they take about 3 days to go through my digestive tract. I keepreading that any undigested food feeds pathogens and fungi. Is thistrue and if so, should I just cook the veggies in my broth and thenstrain them out? I assume after cooking the veggies for 35-40 minutesall the nutrients are in the broth anyhow? It is normal to see some undigested vegetables in your stool,particularly if they were eaten raw and not chewed very well. It isalso quite normal for them to take three days to get through yourdigestive tract. They do not feed microbes any more than any otherfood would do. Raw vegetables are important to eat, as they provideactive enzymes and other nutrients, which are destroyed by cooking.Providing that you have no diarrhoea, you do not have to cook allyour vegetables. Indeed, when you boil vegetables, a lot of nutrientsfrom them finish up in the water. That is why it is best to eat boiledvegetables as a soup with the broth you cooked them in, so nonutrients are wasted. I have recently begun juicing – just green veggies. I have severecandida overgrowth. My question has to do with the colour of mystools. They are very green. Does that mean I am not digesting themwell and should I stop? Or do I push through and it will eventuallyresolve itself? Yes, it should resolve itself in time. It is the same as when peoplestart drinking lots of carrot juice, their skin turns yellow. Try towhisk some raw eggs and raw sour cream into your juices: this willturn them into delicious smoothies, which will balance your bloodsugar and boost your immunity. It will also assist the absorption ofchlorophyll from your green juices, so it does not escape in yourstool. If a food causes a minor upset, such as gas, phlegm, slight change instool, etc., will healing be prevented if this food is continued to beconsumed?

These reactions tell you that your digestive system is not ready forthat food to be introduced. Remove it for a couple of weeks, then tryagain as a part of your meal; not on its own, and not on an emptystomach. Please read Food Allergy to learn more. Since starting the diet my son’s stools have consistently floated. Is thiscause for concern? Not at all. Whether the stool floats or sinks depends on its density,which in turn depends on the mixture of foods eaten. If GAPS patients see undigested food in their stool, should theundigested food be avoided?

Not necessarily. There are many foods which go through most of us

undigested, such as sweet corn, for example. If there are symptoms,such as abdominal pain, flatulence, etc, as well as undigested food inthe stool, then it may be sensible to remove it for a while and see ifthat helps. Since going on GAPS I have not had a bowel movement. When havingenemas the water is expelled and then a bowel movement is stimulated,but it is not a formed stool - it is only mush or water mush. Is this tobe expected or does it indicate something? Should I somehow betreating for diarrhoea as well as constipation? Of course the stool expelled during an enema is not formed: thewater you put into your bowel dilutes it and turns it into a mush. Ifconstipation is consistent, then there are several things you can do:· Have more cooked vegetables and gelatinous meats, and reducemuscle meats in your diet. Increase animal fat consumption withyour meals.· Replace yoghurt and kefir (high-protein dairy) with sour cream(high-fat dairy). Make the sour cream at home, preferably from rawcream, using yoghurt culture initially, then start using kefir culture.This measure along helps many people to resolve constipation.· Introduce juicing earlier: make a juice from a mixture of fruitand vegetables, and then whisk 1-2 raw eggs into it and a generousdollop of homemade sour cream. This will make a delicious“milkshake”, which will provide you with magnesium and othersubstances. Drink your GAPS milkshake first thing in the morning,about 20-30 minutes before breakfast. When making juice use high-magnesium fruit and vegetables, such as oranges, celery, apples,carrots, cabbage, beetroot and greens.· Supplementing magnesium may help: use amino acid chelates ofmagnesium as a daily supplement. As a laxative you can usemagnesium oxide occasionally.

When reading your recommendations for constipation it seems to methat dairy plays a key role. What if you cannot tolerate dairy? Constipation is not about dairy, it is due to lack of beneficialmicrobes in the gut and an imbalance of the intestinal nervoussystem: the sympathetic nervous system is too active, whileparasympathetic is suppressed. By restoring gut flora withprobiotics and diet, we resolve constipation long-term. Short-termwe need to re-balance the nervous system with diet. In order toactivate the parasympathetic nervous system and to calm down thesympathetic one we need raw juices, rich in magnesium, potassiumand other substances; we need more animal fat with meals, and weneed to change the ratio of vegetables to meats in our meals (lessmuscle meats and more vegetables with gelatinous meats). Please,look at the previous question. COOKING, PREPARATION, INGREDIENTS & MISC FOOD Why is bicarbonate of soda for baking not recommended in the GAPS

diet?

GAPS patients almost invariably have low stomach acid production. Bicarbonate of soda is a strong alkali and will reduce the stomachacid even further. Please, read the chapter 'Digestive Enzymes' inorder to fully understand this issue.

When making broth, is there any nutritional difference betweenshorter cooking times as described in the GAPS book and extendedcooking times as recommended by WAPF? What about adding vinegarwhile cooking? In the GAPS book I have described how to make meat stock. Thereis a difference between meat stock and bone broth. Meat stock ismade with raw meat on a bone and it needs to be cooked just longenough to cook the meat thoroughly (2-3 hours), so it can be eaten,and so the bone marrow can be taken out of the bone and consumed.The meat stock made this way is usually clear and delicious, with anexcellent nutritional value: it is particularly rich in amino acids.Bone broth is made out of bones which can be raw or cooked or amixture (many people collect cooked bones from their meals, keepthem in the freezer and use them for making the broth). In order toleach minerals out of the bones we add vinegar to the water. It is notnecessary to add vinegar to the meat stock unless you need it for aparticular taste. Bone broth may have quite a different nutritionalcomposition from the meat stock and a different taste. Both arebeneficial and should be used in GAPS diet. Is baking with honey safe?

Dried fruit as a sweetener in baking would be a betteroption. Natural good quality honey is "alive", which is why it isrecommended to buy unpasteurized, untreated honey, straight fromthe bees and collected in ecologically clean areas. However, in somerecipes honey works quite well. From my clinical experience and theexperience of Elaine Gottschall there have never been any "toxic"reactions to baking with honey. What are the requirements for fruit as it relates to the GAPS diet?How should GAPS patients evaluate fruits not listed in the book(durian and lychees, for example)? Fruit is not essential to eat, strictly speaking; we can live without itperfectly well. But, of course, it is delicious and nice to include intothe diet, particularly for children. It is important to make sure thatyour gut is ready for fruit before introducing it. Fruit must be ripe!It is best if it was ripened on the tree, so look for locally grown fruit.When several fruits are introduced and there are no problems withdigesting them, then you can experiment with fruits which are notlisted, such as lychees and durian: your body will let you know if youare ready for them or not. Is there a limit to the amount of nuts and nut products one shouldconsume on the GAPS diet?

All foods should be consumed in sensible amounts, including nuts. I have met many families who 'started the SCD'. The trouble wasthat their version of SCD was lots of baking with ground almonds,because so many GAPS children are fussy with food and would onlyaccept sweet things. Naturally these families did not see theexpected improvements, because no child or adult can live on groundalmonds and honey most of the time. Nuts are very fibrous andhard work for the digestive system, that is why they are introducedin later stages of the GAPS Diet, and only when the severe digestivesymptoms are gone. I recommend that many patients ferment nutsin the initial stages, as it makes them more digestible. If the GAPSIntroduction Diet is followed correctly and nuts are introduced atthe right time, the majority of patients find no trouble with eatingsensible amounts of nuts. In the GAPS book it says to use raw nuts only, not roasted. I wonderwhy? I can eat raw nuts instead, but pecans, for example, have aricher flavour if gently roasted. Is home roasting of nutsrecommended? I recommend buying raw nuts, not roasted, salted or processed inany other way, because we cannot trust the industry to process nutsfor us. At home we use them for baking, which cooks them. So, youcan roast them gently at home, making sure not to burn them.

Is parchment paper safe to use in baking? The short answer is yes. I am sure there are things in the paperwhich in theory may be problematic, but I have never met anybodywho reacted to baking paper. Could you tell me why some cheeses are allowed on the diet while someothers are not? What is the criteria that makes a cheese allowed? Howcan I be sure if it is OK to eat a cheese as many are not listed in theGAPS book? The list of allowed cheeses has been provided by Elaine Gottschall,who researched this subject, measuring lactose levels in cheeses.However, that was many years ago; cheese production methodschange all the time and new varieties of cheese come to the market.So, if the cheese is not listed, find out how the cheese has been made.You want to know if it was fermented in a traditional way and noother ingredients have been added after fermentation. It is best toget mature cheeses, which have been fermented long enough toremove all lactose and to pre-digest protein. You have to be surethat your body is ready for this cheese, so try a tiny piece first andsee what happens; you body will let you know if you are ready for it. When can cocoa or cocao be introduced?

Cocoa is SCD illegal. However, I find that many people can starthaving it occasionally on the Full GAPS Diet, once the digestivesymptoms are gone. Find pure organic cocoa powder. Mixing the

powder with some honey and sour cream makes a delicious dessert,and you can add it to your homemade ice cream or cakes. Aftertrying it for the first time, observe your patient for any reactions. Cocoa is very rich in magnesium and some essential amino acidsand, unless your digestive system is not ready for it, there is no needto avoid it. I have seen a lot of controversy regarding flax and chia seeds and theirmucilaginous properties. Are either of these seeds GAPS-legal, and ifnot why? What about flax oil? It is mentioned in the GAPS book that itshould not be taken alone. How/when should it be taken? Flax and chia seeds and oils are allowed on the Full GAPS diet. As awhole seed they are very fibrous and should not be consumed untildiarrhoea has cleared completely. People who are prone toconstipation find it useful to take a teaspoonful of these seeds everymorning, after the seeds have been soaking in water over night (theybecome jelly-like). The oils from these seeds must be cold pressedwithout application of chemicals or high pressure. The oil of flax istoo high in omega-3 fatty acids - that is why I do not recommendsupplementing it on its own. It is better to take it in a mixture withother cold pressed oils, such as evening primrose oil or starfloweroil. Chia oil is new on the market; it appears to have a more balancefatty acid composition, so it may be OK to take it on its own.However, it is a good idea to alternate oils in your diet, not stickingto one particular oil for long periods of time, as all of these oils havetheir own pluses and minuses. Also, it needs to be remembered thatthe bulk of fats in the GAPS diet comes from animal foods; these oilsare just a supplement, taken in a complex with animal fats, olive oiland coconut oil. Is there any specific ratio of meat to vegetables that GAPS patientsshould adhere to?

There are no exact ratios, as it depends on the weather and yourphysical state. In cold weather you may want less vegetables andmore meat and hot meat stock. In hot weather you may want moresalad and lighter meals with less meat. Listen to your body, it willtell you what it wants on any particular day. Is it necessary to consume both cooked and raw food? Can one followthe Primal diet and GAPS diet simultaneously? When we talk about raw and cooked we have to separate the animalproducts from the plant foods.Plant foods: in a raw state they contribute live enzymes and otherundamaged active substances, which clean and detoxify the body,but they do not feed us too well, as raw plants are largelyindigestible. Cooking plants makes them more digestible, so theyfeed us better, but the live enzymes will be gone. Fermentationmakes plants more digestible and full of enzymes, as well asprobiotic microbes; and there is no cooking involved. So fermentedplants are often better than raw or cooked, and indeed in alltraditional diets plant foods were largely consumed fermented. Some

seasonal plants, such as soft berries, should be eaten straight fromthe bush to the mouth. They haven’t got much in them to feed us,but they are full of detoxifying substances. The best way to preserveberries is fermentation, for example making vinegar.Animal products: dairy should be consumed either raw orfermented. Egg yolks should be consumed raw. Whites can beconsumed raw as well, but their slimy consistency and taste are aproblem for many people, so I recommend gently cooking thewhites, leaving yolks raw or minimally cooked. Raw meats are agood source of parasites and infections, particularly in our modernworld where food travels long distances. Yes, raw meat is full ofactive enzymes and other good things, but we can add enzymes to themeal by eating cooked meat with fermented and raw vegetables. Ifyou had a chance to get organic meat fresh from your local farmer,then you can preserve some cuts of it yourself without cooking bysalting it in a traditional way, fermenting or making meat jerky.Softer cuts, such as fillet steak you can eat raw making traditionaldishes, such as steak tartar. Many lean muscle meats can be cookedrare or medium rare, particularly lamb (which is considered to bethe cleanest meat). Most of other places on the animal will have meattoo chewy to eat raw, so it is best to cook it. If you were lucky to gethold of a fresh wild salmon, I have some recipes in my book on howto marinate it without cooking. Most other fish needs to be cookedvery lightly, as overcooked fish and shellfish become tough andchewy. Apart from wild salmon I do not recommend to eat raw fish,as it is easy to pick up parasites from it, as indeed is a commonproblem in Japanese who eat raw fish regularly. You cannot eatbones and joints of animal or fish raw, so we make meat and bonebroth from them. That way nothing gets wasted.So, as you can see it is possible to combine Primal diet and GAPS. Itis a matter of balancing your meals to include cooked foods and rawfoods, which you feel comfortable and safe eating, and find tasty andappealing. It is important to enjoy your food, not only focus on itsnutritional value! When getting around to introducing buckwheat, quinoa and millet areall of these supposed to be fermented, or just the buckwheat? Please, read the chapter Coming off the GAPS diet, p.155 in the newedition of my book. The recipe section provides a recipe forfermenting grains (p.195). I recommend that all grains getfermented, not just buckwheat. Is raw coconut sap vinegar OK on GAPS?

Yes! Can you tell me if nettle tea is allowed on the GAPS diet? I see thatnettle is not on SCD, but I don’t know about the tea. Nettle tea is sofull of nutrients and minerals; it would be a shame to give it upnutrient-wise. Yes, nettle tea is allowed. Nettles are very nutritious. I have a recipeof nettle soup in my book, and I recommend using fresh nettle leaves

in juicing. Do not use nettles in pregnancy because it can initiatecontractions. For this reason nettle infusion has been traditionallyused in the third stage of childbirth, when the baby is out, butplacenta is still in and needs some encouragement to come out. Is mead in small amounts GAPS allowed? Yes, as long as it is made with honey and not with sugar (as sugar isoften not completely removed by fermentation). Are the following allowed: ginseng, kava, valerian root, Irish moss tea,plant fibre in supplements? Yes, herbs are generally allowed as a tea or an extract. When thediarrhoea has cleared, you can start consuming them raw and dried,as by then your gut should be able to handle fibre (herbs are usuallyfibrous). Is soured milk GAPS legal? Tequila? Only homemade fermented milk products are allowed. Tequila is adistilled product like vodka, and if nothing else has been added, itshould be OK occasionally and in small amounts. Are the following GAPS foods legal: adzuki beans, coconut aminos,hemp seeds? Adzuki beans are not allowed, as more than 60% of them arecomplex carbohydrates. Coconut aminos is a supplement; from whatI can see on the manufacturer’s information it should be OK. Hempseed is very fibrous and low in useful nutrition, apart from the oil.So, if you want to try hemp seeds I would only try them when alldigestive symptoms are completely gone. Is liquorice root tea GAPS legal?

Yes, liquorice tea is allowed. Can sweet potatoes be consumed fermented, for instance in the Africanbeverage mentioned in Nourishing Traditions, or perhaps some otherform? We’re not certain whether the fermentation would beneficiallychange the problematic starches. If not at first, would this possibly bean advanced food (fermented organic sweet potatoes)? While on the GAPS diet sweet potato is not allowed. And there is noreal need for it as we can have butternut squash, which has a similartaste and texture. I am not aware of any research into how muchstarch is left in fermented sweet potato recipes. So, it is better tokeep on the safe side until the person is able to tolerate fermentedgrains and new potatoes. When the programme has been completed,you can gradually introduce all sorts of wholesome foods, includingsweet potato, fermented or not. Are certain legumes, prohibited on the GAPS diet, allowed if they are

sprouted? Specifically: sprouted garbanzo, adzuki, mung and snowpea. Also if they are, would they have to be cooked to introduce thesesprouts? Legumes are generally hard to digest, so I do not recommendrushing with their introduction. When your digestion is much betterand you have been on the Full GAPS Diet for a while, try to have atiny amount of sprouted legumes of your choice and see how yourbody reacts to them. The longer they are sprouted, the less starchwill be left in them, so you can try them raw or cooked to yourliking. Raw will have active enzymes to help you to digest them,while cooked they are gentler on your gut lining. But first make surethat your digestive system is ready for them.

CYSTITIS Please comment on interstitial cystitis and how GAPS can help? Please read the article Food Allergy, it will explain this issue to youin detail. DETOXING, DIE-OFF, & OTHER SYMPTOMS What are "die-off" symptoms?

As you introduce a probiotic into the digestive system, thepathogenic bacteria, viruses and fungi there will be dying, whichreleases more toxins. This increase in toxicity may produce a so-called "die-off" reaction, when you may feel more tired or generally"off color". It is a temporary reaction and usually lasts from a fewdays to a few weeks in different people. To make this reaction asmild as possible, build the dose of Bio-Kult slowly. The quickest youcan go is adding 1 capsule to the daily dose every 4-7 days. You canbuild the dose much slower, depending on your reaction. If you geta severe reaction, cut the daily dose down to the previous level andsettle on it. Then carry on increasing the dose.

Why do my symptoms seem to be getting worse on the GAPS diet andBio-Kult? Die-off releases more toxins than usual. Your symptoms may getworse initially but this is a temporary reaction and will pass. Buildup the Bio-Kult very slowly to decrease this response. If the FullGAPS Diet is causing your symptoms to get worse with no gradualimprovements, it is recommended to go back and follow theIntroduction Diet.

If a food causes a minor upset, such as gas, phlegm, slight change instool, etc., will healing be prevented if this food is continued to beconsumed?

These reactions tell you that your digestive system is not ready forthat food to be introduced. Remove it for a couple of weeks, then tryagain as a part of your meal; not on its own, and not on an emptystomach. Please read Food Allergy to learn more. How can you tell the difference between die-off and food intolerance? For example, how do you know if flatulence is caused by the meal youjust ate or from the meal prior to that one?

The die-off symptoms can be new symptoms or can be your usualsymptoms getting worse, when you introduce new diet, probiotics oranti-parasitic, anti-fungal/anti-bacterial remedies. Food intolerancesymptoms appear when you introduce new foods into your diet. Ifyou have been eating a particular food routinely, which you suspectas causing food intolerances, remove it for 3-4 weeks, then try to eatit again. Your body will let you know if you are intolerant to it. Production of gas takes time; it is the pathogens in the gut (usuallyfungi) that convert food into gas. So, it is your previous meals thatproduced the gas. Every meal sends a propulsion reflex down thedigestive system, so that gas in the bowel may be released when youare eating your next meal. Is die-off dangerous? What symptoms are warnings that you shouldslow down? Should the GAPS diet be done under the supervision of ahealthcare professional? It is always a good idea to work with a good healthcare professional.However, thousands of people around the world have implementedGAPS diet on their own with very good results. Die-off is veryindividual and depends on the severity of the condition. If we aredealing with a severe condition, then die-off can be very serious andshould be controlled by slow introduction of foods and probiotics.

Is insomnia a common die-off response? Do you have anyrecommendations for overcoming insomnia? Many toxins coming from the activity of unhealthy gut flora disruptour neurotransmitters in the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemicalswhich brain cells use to communicate with each other, such asserotonine, adrenalin, dopamine, melatonin, endorphins, etc. – thereare about a hundred neurotransmitters discovered so far. Die-offreleases more toxins than usual and, if a person has a problem withneurotransmitter disruption already, then it will get worse. One ofthe functions of neurotransmitters is regulation of sleep. Serotonine,GABA and melatonin are the three neurotransmitters connectedwith sleep and relaxation in particular, and it is a good idea to boosttheir production with supplements, if insomnia is a problem. Toboost serotonine production we need an amino acid 5HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan), for GABA we need taurine and glutamine.These amino acids need co-factors to be converted intoneurotransmitters: niacin, vitamin B6, folic acid, biotic, zinc,magnesium, vitamin B1, vitamin B12 and pantothenic acid. Thereare supplements on the market, which contain all these ingredientswith about 100mg of 5HTP, 500mg of glutamine and 500mg of

taurine. Always start with a low dose and build gradually; theoptimal dose is very individual. In many people just boostingproduction of serotonine and GABA is enough to remedy insomnia.If it is not enough, then try to add melatonin. Melatonin is producedin the brain at night, however in order to produce it in the dark weneed a good dose of light during the day. Spending some time inbright sunlight every day will boost your melatonin production (nosunglasses, as the light needs to reach the brain through the eyes).Supplements of melatonin are available ready made; start from alow dose at bedtime (1-3 mg) and, if it is not making any difference,slowly increase the dose. Which symptoms should you push through and which symptoms are asign that you should remove the food?

If the symptoms are due to die-off, initiated by the introduction ofprobiotics, the diet or natural anti-parasitic remedies, then continuegradual increase of the remedies and gradual progression throughthe diet, keeping the die-off at a manageable level. If new symptomsappear after introducing new food, then you are not ready for thatfood (your gut lining is not ready). Remove the food, work onhealing your gut lining with the diet and probiotics for a few weeks,and then try the new food again. Do you recommend or support the use of activated charcoal, clay orvitamin C for detox use during die-off? Yes, many people try these remedies and find that they help. Will toxins and lead and mercury toxicity cause tight muscles? If so,will certain muscles be more prone to tightness, i.e. muscles that havebeen problematic during die-off? Yes, toxins can cause muscle pain, spasms and tightness. Any musclecan be affected, it is individual. If a particular group of muscles wasproblematic during die-off, then it is likely that they will be targetedby toxicity. Even the smallest amount of any probiotic food or supplement causesme severe bloating, fatigue and pain. How do I do the diet if I can’ttake probiotics? Are there any conditions where probiotic are notrecommended? People suffering from ME, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgiaand some other debilitating conditions often have difficultiesintroducing probiotics. The reason for that is the die-off effect: it isso severe in this group of patients that they find it very difficult tocope with. Just start from a tiny amount and go up very slowly. Ihave patients who start from 1/18th of a capsule of the Bio-Kult (oras much powder as would fit on the end of a sharp knife), and ittakes them months to get up to one capsule per day. The same withfermented foods, start from a tiny amount per 5-7 days; as yourbody gets used to that amount, start taking it a bit more frequently.

When you can take that tiny amount every day, start increasing thedose. Proceed in this very slow manner. It is important for you tointroduce probiotics in the form of food or supplement. You justhave to go slowly.

If symptoms from introducing a food are mainly non-digestive, such asincreased salivating and brain fog, might this be a reaction to workthrough? Or does it still signal a faulty immune system and thus oneshould back off that food? These symptoms look like food allergy or intolerance. Always do thesensitivity test with any suspicious food before introducing it. If thetest is negative, then just introduce it at a pace that is manageablefor you: start with tiny amounts as a part of the whole meal, not onits own. If, even in tiny amounts the reaction is too much, then stop,give yourself a few months to heal and then try again. As the gutgets healthier, you will be more able to digest that food properlyrather than absorbing it partially digested. DIABETES, INSULIN & LEPTIN Do any modifications need to be made to the GAPS diet for patientswith insulin resistance? GAPS diet is very beneficial for people with type-two diabetes,obesity, and other forms of insulin resistance, as it cuts out complexcarbohydrates. People with this problem need to limit theircarbohydrate consumption; so don’t go heavy on honey or SCDdesserts. It is essential to have plenty of animal fats for these peoplein order to keep their blood sugar at the right level. In order to dothat I recommend having a few tablespoons of coconut oil, rawbutter or homemade sour cream every half an hour throughout theday. Freshly pressed juices have many sugars in them: in order tobalance these sugars with fat and protein, blend into the juice 1-2raw eggs and 1-2 tablespoons of homemade sour cream or rawbutter or coconut oil (per person). Once your juice is mixed witheggs and fat, you do not need to worry about how sweet the juicemay be: you can juice carrots, beetroot, apples and pineapples. Forpeople with sugar cravings and other difficulties in blood sugarcontrol, it is a good idea to mix raw butter or coconut oil with a littleraw honey to taste; make the mixture in advance and keep eating itthroughout the day. This mixture will help you to come through theinitial stages of treatment. When sugar cravings are gone, you will beable to maintain your blood sugar normal between meals withouthaving to eat anything. Does GAPS help with leptin resistance and if so, how?

Leptin resistance is similar to insulin resistance and is usually foundin overweight people. GAPS diet is a low carbohydrate diet; it helpswith weight loss and insulin resistance, so it should help with leptinresistance too.

Will the GAPS diet help cure and prevent diabetes? There are two forms of diabetes: type one and type two. Type one isan auto immune disorder, where the body attacks and destroys theinsulin-producing cells in the pancreas. All auto immunity is born inthe gut. Following the GAPS Programme will heal the gut and re-structure the immune system. In my experience, as the patientprogresses through the treatment, he or she is able to slowly reducethe dose of insulin and in many cases to stop the injectionsaltogether. Type two diabetes is caused by the body becoming insulinresistant because of continuous consumption of processedcarbohydrates. GAPS diet removes all processed carbohydrates, sothe body can heal the damage and remove diabetes. Once better, aslong as the person continues to stick to low-carbohydrate nourishingdiet for the rest of his or her life, the diabetes should never return. EMFs (ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS) Is our gut flora sensitive to the electromagnetic fields in ourenvironment? Is the influence of these fields good or bad? If theinfluence is bad, what can we do about it? EMF (electromagnetic field) is a growing concern in the modernworld, and many GAPS people are sensitive to it. Research showsthat it is damaging to humans, animals and microbes. I have notseen any studies on gut flora specifically, but I would imagine thatthe EMF influence is not good. On the whole it is a good idea toavoid exposure to EMF by staying away from high-power electricitylines, mobile phone masts and other sources. Make sure that youdon’t live close to any powerful source of EMF, switch off yourcomputers and TV screens when you are not using them, and do notbecome attached to your mobile phone too much. Babies andchildren can be very sensitive to EMF; I had families in my clinicwhere the baby would not sleep until all electrical devices in thehouse are unplugged from the sources of electricity. FERMENTED FOODS & DRINK How long should kefir be fermented? Is there some lactose left in it? Kefir should be fermented for 24 hours minimum. Fermentation is anatural process: that is why it cannot be 100% predictable. Somebatches of kefir may taste more sour than others, and every batchwill have different amounts of lactose left in it. There is some lactoseleft in all fermented dairy products, even in aged cheese. It is theprobiotic microbes in your gut flora, which we are providing in kefirand other fermented dairy, which break the lactose up in your gut.Indeed, vast majority of people have no problem with tiny amountsof lactose left in their homemade fermented dairy. In particularlysensitive individuals I recommend fermenting yoghurt or kefirlonger (36 hours or even more), which will make it taste very sourbut will reduce the lactose content. As you progress through the

GAPS Programme and your gut starts healing, you may find thatyou can tolerate more and more lactose to the point of eventuallytrying raw milk and cream without fermenting them. I bought some sauerkraut from a holistic company, and it gave me alot of gas and fermentation in my bowel. The company told me thatsauerkraut was completely natural and organic. When I make my ownsauerkraut I do not have these symptoms. Why? The sauerkraut you bought has not been fermented long enough. Ithas not completed the fermentation process, where enough lacticacid accumulates in the cabbage to suppress microbial activity andstop the fermentation. If the cabbage and other vegetables are stillfermenting, they will continue fermenting inside your digestivesystem, producing gas and giving you unpleasant symptoms. Thisapplies to sauerkraut, kimchi and all other fermented vegetables.Sauerkraut takes about 2-3 weeks at a room temperature tocomplete fermentation, kimchi and other vegetable mixtures maytake longer. How do we know if the fermentation is complete? Itstops producing gas, the vegetables taste sour and do not spoil at allat room temperature or in the fridge, even if they get dry. Are there any health conditions that would require fermented foods tobe limited or avoided? Fermented foods are teaming with beneficial microbes, which causea die-off reaction. At the same time they are full of active enzymesand active nutrients, which can initiate “detox” and healingrestructuring of the tissues in the body. All three can causediscomfort and unpleasant symptoms. That is why it is important tointroduce fermented foods slowly and gradually, starting from juiceof a plain sauerkraut or vegetable medley. Avoid mixtures whichcontain chilli peppers or other spices initially, start from plainmixtures of just cabbage and carrot in sauerkraut, and cabbage,beetroot and garlic in the vegetable medley. Make sure that thefermentation process is completed: the gas production stops and theproduct is quite sour- tasting. To complete the fermentation maytake a few weeks longer than the recipe states, because of variousdifferences in the vegetables, the temperature and other factors. I find it easier to drink fermented veggie juice instead of the veggies. Isit beneficial to eat fermented coconut or apple cider vinegar with eachmeal? Can they be eaten in replacement of fermented solid veggies orare thy less beneficial? Will the consumption of these vinegars orlemon juice lower my stomach acid too much? It is absolutely fine to have fermented vegetable juices or juicespressed from fermented vegetables, as long as they have not beenpasteurised. The same for vinegars: they are very beneficial to addto your water and to have between and with meals, as long as theyare raw, not pasteurised. Many GAPS people find fibre a problem;and it may remain a problem for quite a long time, for some peoplefor years. So drinking juices, rather than eating the vegetables is agood option for these people. The juice will provide probiotic

microbes, enzymes and all the other benefits of the fermentedvegetables, but without the fibre. Consumption of raw vinegar orlemon juice will not reduce your stomach acid, just the opposite:they will stimulate its production and help your body restore normalstomach acidity over time. How long after making yoghurt do the beneficial bacteria stay viable?Is there a window of time in which a batch of yoghurt should beeaten? Should yoghurt be frozen? No, it is best not to freeze yoghurt, as it will kill a lot of the probioticbacteria in it. Yoghurt stays alive for a very long time, in the fridgefor a few months; it may continue fermenting very slowly andbecoming more and more sour-tasting, but it will still be good foryou, and it will still be good to use as a starter for making moreyoghurt. So, if you are going away on holiday, for example, it is fineto leave your yoghurt in the fridge; when you come back it will tastevery sour, but you can make new fresh yoghurt from it in 24 hours. Is Kombucha allowed on Gaps? How do you know when all the sugarhas fermented out? Yes, kombucha is allowed, but I would not introduce it until youmove to the Full GAPS diet. At that stage, if a little sugar is left inyour kombucha, it will not do you any harm, as your gut will bestrong enough to handle it. Just ferment it the usual way, so it tastessour. What would be the optimal amount of kefir and or yoghurt to consumedaily? Can over-consumption be a problem? The optimal amount is individual and should be found by gradualintroduction of yoghurt and kefir, which is done as part of theIntroduction Diet. Many people find two cups of yoghurt or/andkefir per day as a good amount; other people find that too much, yetmany of my patients happily have much more than that per day.Over-consumption can swing a person, who used to be prone todiarrhoea to becoming prone to constipation. So, it is a matter ofbalance. If constipation has become an issue, then I recommendswitching to fermenting cream, rather than milk: in many peoplethat solves the constipation problem. Do fermented foods help fight parasites?

Fermented food introduce beneficial microbes into the body, whichwill play their part in a very complex interaction of various micro-creatures, who already live there. We do not know what exactly theydo, but in a clinical setting regular consumption of fermented foodshelps to eliminate digestive symptoms, caused by parasites. FOOD INTOLERANCE & SENSITIVITIES How can you tell the difference between die-off and food intolerance?

For example, how do you know if flatulence is caused by the meal youjust ate or from the meal prior to that one?

The die-off symptoms can be new symptoms or can be your usualsymptoms getting worse, when you introduce new diet, probiotics oranti-parasitic, anti-fungal/anti-bacterial remedies. Food intolerancesymptoms appear when you introduce new foods into your diet. Ifyou have been eating a particular food routinely, which you suspectas causing food intolerances, remove it for 3-4 weeks, then try to eatit again. Your body will let you know if you are intolerant to it. Production of gas takes time; it is the pathogens in the gut (usuallyfungi) that convert food into gas. So, it is your previous meals thatproduced the gas. Every meal sends a propulsion reflex down thedigestive system, so that gas in the bowel may be released when youare eating your next meal. Is it possible to be sensitive to bone broth? What should you do if youare reacting to bone broth? It is possible to be sensitive to any food, though sensitivity to bonebroth is quite rare. Try to make different meat stocks and see if youcan find one that you can tolerate: from a whole chicken, from a legof lamb, from a joint of beef, from a whole fish (gutted, but with thehead and tail), from pigeons, pheasants, a joint of venison, a joint ofpork, etc. Make sure that not only bones are used but a good pieceof meat on the bone. Make sure that you start with uncooked meatand bone and don’t mix meats from different animals: just make achicken stock or a lamb stock, etc. Once a food has been successfully introduced without any negativereaction, can the sensitivity to that food come back in the future? It can, unfortunately. It all depends on how “leaky” your gut wall isat the time. Many factors can damage your gut wall: stress,parasites, cheating on the diet, getting run down, travelling, etc. Ifthat happens, try to go back to the Introduction Diet and heal yourgut again. How do you go about implementing GAPS for someone with severemeat allergies (except fish) – to the point that they get very illimmediately after ingesting them? What would be your plan of action? It is very rare to be allergic to all meats. Try wild game, such aspheasant, pigeon, quail, deer, wild boar, or whatever other wildmeat you can get locally. We start from meat stock, made with thesemeats. Regardless of your experiments with wild meats, also makefish stock from heads, bones, fins and meat of large fish or wholesmall fish (about a kilo per a five-litre pan). Please, look for recipesin my book on how to make fish stock. Fresh water fish is very good,if it comes form clean lakes and rivers. Deep-water sea fish ispreferable (such as herring, sprats and anchovies) to the coastal ones(such as cod and mackerel). Also avoid large carnivorous fish, suchas tuna, shark or sword fish. Make sure to alternate varieties of fish;do not fall into a routine of eating the same species all the time.

Which symptoms should you push through and which symptoms are asign that you should remove the food?

If the symptoms are due to die-off, initiated by the introduction ofprobiotics, the diet or natural anti-parasitic remedies, then continuegradual increase of the remedies and gradual progression throughthe diet, keeping the die-off at a manageable level. If new symptomsappear after introducing new food, then you are not ready for thatfood (your gut lining is not ready). Remove the food, work onhealing your gut lining with the diet and probiotics for a few weeks,and then try the new food again. What about phytates and other anti-nutrients in food?

All foods contain substances, which can be damaging to the humangut and the rest of the body. Plants contain phytates, lectins,oxalates, salicylates, phenols and who knows, what else. Animalfoods are largely made of proteins, every one of which can causeallergies. So, should we stop eating at all? It is a matter of what youcan digest and assimilate at any particular point in your life. Evenpeople, who consider themselves healthy, have periods in their liveswhen they are run down or under stress. These are times to be kindto your digestive system and not eat things, which are hard todigest. Following the GAPS Introduction Diet allows people to healtheir gut by eating easily digestible foods, so later they can safelyintroduce foods, which are harder to digest.

In your book you mention that GAPS people often have an overgrowthof sulphate-reducing bacteria. If I suspect this to be the case in mychild, should I avoid feeding him foods that contain high amount ofsulphur? No, do not remove sulphur-containing foods! Sulphur is essential tore-build you child’s gut, immunity and liver function. GAPS peopleare already deficient in sulphur; they cannot get enough of it. As thegut flora starts changing the beneficial microbes will take care of thepathogens and normalise your child’s sulphur metabolism. Even the smallest amount of any probiotic food or supplement causesme severe bloating, fatigue and pain. How do I do the diet if I can’ttake probiotics? Are there any conditions where probiotic are notrecommended? People suffering from ME, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgiaand some other debilitating conditions often have difficultiesintroducing probiotics. The reason for that is the die-off effect: it isso severe in this group of patients that they find it very difficult tocope with. Just start from a tiny amount and go up very slowly. Ihave patients who start from 1/18th of a capsule of the Bio-Kult (oras much powder as would fit on the end of a sharp knife), and ittakes them months to get up to one capsule per day. The same withfermented foods, start from a tiny amount per 5-7 days; as your

body gets used to that amount, start taking it a bit more frequently.When you can take that tiny amount every day, start increasing thedose. Proceed in this very slow manner. It is important for you tointroduce probiotics in the form of food or supplement. You justhave to go slowly.

GAS/FLATULENCE As far as I understand, gas is a sign of fungi presence in the gut.Should one go back to the second stage of Intro and stay on it untilthere is absolutely no gas? Does one have to eliminate gas completelyin order to heal his gut or will it just heal over the course of time? Yes, gas is produced largely by fungi in the gut. Some amount of gasis normal, but not too much. You do not have to go back to the Introdiet, but just remove foods for a while which may be feeding fungi:fruit, nuts and baking. HAIR Why do some GAPS patients experience tooth discoloration and hairloss?

Tooth discoloration and hair loss are very rare in GAPS patients,and usually happen in very toxic people, particularly people withmetal toxicity. Hair and teeth are those places where the body oftenstores toxins in. Many things happen in the body, as the GAPSprogram is initiated. We don't know what happens exactly, but it ispossible that the hair, full of toxins, get dropped by the body toallow new "clean" hair to grow. With teeth: I have seen autisticchildren who had their permanent teeth growing with black spotsimbedded in them. One particular boy displayed noticeableimprovements in his autism in the weeks following the removal ofthe black spot by the dentist. It is possible that his body had storedmercury from vaccinations or some other toxins in the growingtooth. We don't know what happens exactly, but it is likely that thedetoxification initiated by the GAPS Nutritional Protocol startsshifting the toxins around, which may be the cause of toothdiscoloration in the initial stages. In the long run, however, yourchild is likely to grow beautiful whit teeth, as I have seen in so manyGAPS children. Can the GAPS diet help with alopecia? Alopecia can be caused by many things: nutritional deficiencies,allergy, hormonal imbalance, toxicity, auto immunity, diabetes,vascular abnormalities, etc. No matter what the cause, followingGAPS will help to balance your hormones, remove nutritionaldeficiencies and toxicity, re-balance immunity and improvecirculation. So, give it a try.

HEADACHES Chronic headaches - is this a sign of GAPS?

There are many different forms of headaches. Migraines oftenrespond to GAPS treatment well. Headaches due to high bloodpressure will respond well, as most cases of hypertension are due tomagnesium deficiency, which GAPS programme will eliminate.Many headaches are due to food allergy and intolerance. Healing thegut will eliminate the allergy and the headaches. Many headachesare hormonal: abnormal gut flora upsets the hormonal balance inthe body, leading to headaches. GAPS programme will allow yourbody to bring the hormones into balance. Most headaches, no matterwhat origin, have a toxic component to them. Most toxins in the bodycome from the gut, so healing the gut and cleaning it up will reducethe toxic load in the body and help with headaches. Many headacheshave a tension component to them due to our fast-paced stressfullives. The GAPS diet will nourish the adrenals and allow the body tocope with tension and stress much better. But good sleep, enoughsleep, and giving yourself some time every day to do somethingrelaxing and pleasant just for you, will help with all forms ofheadaches. HEART DISEASE Dr. Campbell-McBride advocates eating animal fats and cholesterol-rich foods. What about heart disease?

To understand fully how and why heart disease develops pleaseread my book, "Put your heart in your mouth! What really is heartdisease and what we can do to prevent and even reverse it." Theidea of fats and cholesterol-rich foods "causing" heart disease andother manifestations of atherosclerosis stems from an infamous Diet-Heart Hypothesis, first proposed in 1953. Since then the science andclinical experience has proven this hypothesis to be completelywrong. However, since 1953 a large political and commercialmachine has been built based on this hypothesis: these powers dotheir best to keep the mistaken diet-heart hypothesis alive for aslong as possible. It has been proven that natural animal fats, dairyfats, eggs, fresh fish and other natural sources of cholesterol havenothing to do with heart disease and are essential to health. It hasalso been proven that all artificial fats vigorously promoted to thepopulation, such as all cooking and vegetable oils, margarines,butter replacements and other processed fats cause heart disease,cancer, diabetes, psychiatric and neurological disease and manyother health problems. GAPS patients require a lot of natural fatsand natural cholesterol in their diet in order to restore their brainfunction and immune function. ILLNESS & MEDICATIONSWhat should I do if I get a "tummy bug" while on the diet?

If you or your child gets a "tummy bug" or any other kind ofdiarrhea remove all nuts, raw vegetables and raw fruit out of thediet. Stay on a low fiber diet: meat stock, meats, fish, eggs,fermented dairy and cooked vegetables (skinned, de-seeded and wellcooked with meats as soups and stews) and cooked fruit untildiarrhea completely clears. After stools stay normal for a week atleast, re-introduce raw fruit and vegetables slowly, one at a time andstarting from small amounts. Do OTC (Over the Counter) medications for cough, cold, flu and feverhave a negative effect on the digestive system? What do yourecommend parents give their children for these conditions? Over the counter drugs for colds do have a negative effect on thedigestive system and the immune system. Apart from the drug itselfthey contain sweeteners, flavours, fillers, binders and otheringredients, which will do you or your child no good. What do Irecommend instead? I cover this subject in the chapter on earinfections in the GAPS book - I recommend plain aspirin. Aspirin isone the safest medications known to man. However, in the last fewdecades the pharmaceutical patent has run out on aspirin, so itbecame unprofitable for the manufacturers. So, they needed toreplace it with new drugs which have fresh patent (paracetamol,ibuprofen, etc.). In order to convince the public and the medicalprofession to replace aspirin (one of the most trusted and provenmedications on Earth) with their new drugs, they had to vilifyaspirin. So aspirin was attached to a very rare condition with ascary list of symptoms, called Reye’s syndrome: the symptoms rangefrom vomiting and neurological impairment to liver damage. Reye’ssyndrome was first described as a consequence of a severe viralinfection in malnourished children. Apart from viruses a long list ofchemicals can cause this condition: pesticides and insecticides,aflatoxin, alcohol, emulsifiers, tetracyclines, valproate, warfarin,isopropyl alcohol, pteridines, hypoglycine and other chemicals,widely present in our personal care products, domestic cleaningproducts, pharmaceutical drugs and food. The association of Reye’ssyndrome with aspirin is dubious to say the least and has beencriticised by many experts at the time. But because aspirin hasbecome unprofitable, the pharmaceutical industry used whateverlittle evidence they had to withdraw aspirin from use in children,while in adults the use of it now comes with dire warnings in largeprint; and every pharmacist selling aspirin has been instructed toquestion the buyer about how much they buy and for what use. Thedrugs which replaced aspirin are far more dangerous than aspirincan ever be. For example, paracetamol is the most common drug insuicide, as an overdose of it can irrevocably destroy the liver;ibuprofen is known to cause heart attacks and other heart trouble.Aspirin should not be taken on an empty stomach, so I recommendto have some hot meat stock with fermented dairy (sour cream is thebest) prior to taking aspirin or with it. For children I recommendgetting soluble aspirin (the usual dose is a tiny tablet of 75mg);dissolve one tablet in some camomile tea with a bit of honey. Givesome of this tea to your child fairly hot from a teaspoon; in smallchildren a few teaspoons can be enough to reduce high temperature

and make the child feel better. Alternatively, you can dissolve aspirinin a cup of hot chicken stock and give it to your child the same wayas the chamomile tea. Keep your child wrapped up warm, let him orher sleep as much as possible, and the cold will vanish quickly.If you are working with an experienced homeopath, you can getsome remedies for colds, which can also be quite effective.

INSOMNIA Is insomnia a common die-off response? Do you have anyrecommendations for overcoming insomnia? Many toxins coming from the activity of unhealthy gut flora disruptour neurotransmitters in the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemicalswhich brain cells use to communicate with each other, such asserotonine, adrenalin, dopamine, melatonin, endorphins, etc. – thereare about a hundred neurotransmitters discovered so far. Die-offreleases more toxins than usual and, if a person has a problem withneurotransmitter disruption already, then it will get worse. One ofthe functions of neurotransmitters is regulation of sleep. Serotonine,GABA and melatonin are the three neurotransmitters connectedwith sleep and relaxation in particular, and it is a good idea to boosttheir production with supplements, if insomnia is a problem. Toboost serotonine production we need an amino acid 5HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan), for GABA we need taurine and glutamine.These amino acids need co-factors to be converted intoneurotransmitters: niacin, vitamin B6, folic acid, biotic, zinc,magnesium, vitamin B1, vitamin B12 and pantothenic acid. Thereare supplements on the market, which contain all these ingredientswith about 100mg of 5HTP, 500mg of glutamine and 500mg oftaurine. Always start with a low dose and build gradually; theoptimal dose is very individual. In many people just boostingproduction of serotonine and GABA is enough to remedy insomnia.If it is not enough, then try to add melatonin. Melatonin is producedin the brain at night, however in order to produce it in the dark weneed a good dose of light during the day. Spending some time inbright sunlight every day will boost your melatonin production (nosunglasses, as the light needs to reach the brain through the eyes).Supplements of melatonin are available ready made; start from alow dose at bedtime (1-3 mg) and, if it is not making any difference,slowly increase the dose. INTRODUCTION DIET Once the Introduction Diet is completed, is there a scenario where oneshould go back on the GAPS Intro Diet?

Yes, there is, and not just one. People get tummy bugs, traveldiarrhea and other infections, which can damage the gut. Peoplehave to take antibiotics or other drugs for various reasons, whichcan throw you back quite a bit. Stressful situations in the family orwork can weaken the whole system and bring symptoms back.

Going back through the Introduction Diet helps to eliminate thoseproblems quickly and without any complications. How long should you expect to be on the Introduction Diet? Is itharmful to be on it for too long? What should individuals do who findthemselves stuck on a particular stage for an extended period of time?

It is very individual how long to stay on the Introduction Diet andhow quickly to move through it. Some people get through ina matter of a few weeks, others take months. It depends on theseverity of the condition. Some people get through it and feel wellon the Full GAPS Diet, then something happens (an infection, astressful situation or an accident), and the person finds it necessaryto go back to the Introduction Diet for a while. As long as plenty ofgood quality animal protein and fats are consumed and freshlypressed juices, there is no harm in adhering to the Introduction Dietlong term. If you find yourself "stuck" on a particular stage, itmeans that the pathogens in your gut need more than the diet andprobiotics. So, it makes sense to explore natural anti-parasitic andanti-fungal/anti-bacterial remedies to bring the pathogens undercontrol. There are many good remedies on the market, such asoregano, olive leaf extract, grapefruit seed extract and herbal mixes. It is important to introduce natural remedies gradually, controllingthe die-off reaction; start with one remedy, then add others one byone. Many people find that taking under control worms and otherparasites with natural remedies allows them to move on through theIntroduction Diet. Some people find relief with mainstream anti-fungal, anti-parasitic and anti-bacterial medications. The trouble isthat drugs cannot be taken for long periods of time, as they are toxicand have side effects. If they work, they may provide an immediaterelief but, when they are stopped, the problem may come back fairlysoon. Natural remedies can be taken for long periods of timewithout harm, that is why it is a good idea to start with naturalremedies, continue taking them through the drug treatment and tofollow with the natural remedies when the drug has been stopped. When should supplements be introduced during the Introduction Diet?Which should be introduced first: probiotics, cod liver oil, fish oil,nut/seed oils? In the first two stages of the Introduction Diet I recommend not tointroduce any supplements, just introduce fermented foods. In asmall number of patients no fermented food can be tolerated, so forthese patients I recommend introducing a probiotic graduallystarting from a tiny dose. From the third stage, if fermented foodshave been successfully introduced, you can start introducing theprobiotic and the cod liver oil in tiny amounts, gradually increasingthe daily dose. When cod liver oil has been introduced (the full doseis taken daily), introduce fish oils. When olive oil is being introduced,you can introduce cold pressed nut/seed oils gradually with meals.For those who started from the Full GAPS Diet, probiotics and codliver oil can be introduced from the beginning, starting from a tinyamount and gradually increasing the dose. When cod liver oil hasbeen successfully introduced, start the fish oils and the nut/seed oils.

Some families report vomiting during the Introduction Diet as a die-offreaction. Can you please address this issue and how families shouldproceed?

Vomiting can be a sign of hypoglycaemia: as we cut out manycarbohydrates in a person with an overgrowth of yeast, it is easy forthe blood sugar to drop too low. In that case give your child someapple or orange juice and see if it helps. Freshly pressed juice fromapple or orange with carrot is best, but if the situation is urgent usea commercial juice. If this measure helps, then use this juice in assmall an amount as possible to remedy the nausea and vomiting,when it happens (ice lollies or ice cubes, made in advance fromfreshly pressed juice, may provide immediate help). In the long runstick to the diet and make sure that your child has plenty of animalfats: they will regulate the blood sugar level. Allow your child to eatoften and in small amounts (to graze) to keep the blood sugar steady,rather than insisting on set meal times. As the die-off subsides, sowill the nausea and vomiting. Ginger tea is a known remedy fornausea; use it as a drink between meals. Since starting GAPS Intro 2 weeks ago I have noticed what looks like afine white powdery substance in my urine. There is not a largequantity, but enough that it’s noticeable to me. A few of us on themessage board have had this symptom and I’d like to know if it issomething I should be concerned about or see my medical doctor for? It would be a good idea to test your urine, when you notice thispowder in it, as it may be a number of things: calcium salts,oxalates, protein complexes or something else. The important thingto observe is how you are filling: if you feel well then probably thereis no need to worry. GAPS Introduction Diet initiates a clearout oftoxins from the body; these toxins can precipitate various salts inurine and fall out as a white-looking powder. How do patients progress if they only tolerate a very limited diet?

Food intolerances are due to damaged gut lining. If you cannotintroduce a particular food, it means that your gut lining is notready for it. Please read Food Allergy to learn more. It makes senseto look at taking pathogens under control (please look at other FAQson this), because these pathogens may be interfering with the healingprocess in the gut. Why is carrot juice the first juice we need to tolerate before movingforward with juicing? When can one introduce citrus juices? Carrot juice is the basis of all juices - it is very therapeutic, gentle onthe gut lining and tasty. That is why it is introduced first. Orange orgrapefruit juice is quite acid and has other irritating substances in it,that is why I recommend to introduce it on the Full GAPS Diet,when quite a bit of healing has happened in the gut. A bit of freshlemon squeezed into a glass of water is usually tolerated well and can

be introduced earlier, as well as a little of raw cider vinegar added towater. Just make sure that diarrhoea has cleared first. Ketosis and GAPS. Is it induced via GAPS Introduction diet? Is it adanger in doing GAPS Intro? Is it one and the same as die-off? Howto prevent it? There is a popular myth that sugar is the main source of energy inthe body; this myth has been created by commercial companiesselling sugary foods and drinks, and by funded by them “research”. Mainstream nutritional institutions are funded by food industry, sothey are the main propagators of this myth. Here is the truth: vastmajority of all cells in the body use fats as a source of energy: yourheart, your muscles, your inner organs, etc. Whenever fat is used asa source of energy ketone bodies are created. There is no need tofear ketosis, as we all have it now and then almost every day (it isvery different from diabetic ketosis, induced by non-functioningpancreas). It is possible that during the Introduction diet there willbe periods of ketosis, but don’t worry about it as normally youwould not feel it at all. Eating vegetables will prevent ketosis. Ketosisis not the same as die-off. How long should it take on the GAPS diet for under eye darkness todisappear? If one has completed the Introduction diet and darkness isstill there is this a sign that something was not done correctly? Dark circles around eyes is a sign of toxicity and allergy. GAPSprogramme is a journey, some people find that they get betterquickly, others need more time and other interventions, such aschelation of heavy metals, neutralisation of allergies, etc. ConsiderGAPS programme as a basis for your recovery, a foundation of yourhealth. For many people GAPS is all it takes to get well. For others,after building the foundation, they have to build other structures ontop of it to get completely well. How long should you expect to be on the diet before you noticeimprovements? I know this can be very individual but is there anamount of time where if you have not seen any improvements the dietmight not be right for you? This is very individual and your choice. Give the diet 6 months, ifyou do not see anything happening, try to stop it. Some of mypatients found that when they stopped the diet, they realised that itwas working! JUICING In the GAPS book you recommend juicing greens such as kale,spinach and cabbage among other vegetables. However, it is myunderstanding that some vegetables contain anti-nutrients, and shouldthus be primarily consumed cooked (for example cooking spinachreduces oxalate content). How is juicing such vegetables beneficial?

All foods contain anti-nutrients, plant and animal. The beautifulthing is that spinach is not made from oxalates only: it containshundreds of other substances in a natural balance. Some of thesesubstances are known to prevent cancer and to clean the liver; if youcook spinach these substances will be destroyed. We don’t makejuice just from spinach either, we add other fruit and vegetables, andwe can also add raw eggs and sour cream to the juice to balance itfurther. It is all a matter of balance and personal sensitivity. If aperson has particular sensitivity to oxalates (burning urination forexample), then oxalate-containing foods need to be avoided until thegut heals enough to be able to handle them. But if there is no suchsensitivity then there is no need to be afraid of spinach or cabbage orbroccoli or any other food just because some anti-nutrient has beenfound there. I find it too expensive at this point to be juicing for six people on thediet. Is there any benefit in using non-organic veggies for juicing orwould it be better to skip the juicing because of the pesticides, etc? Iknow organics are preferable, but until the summer, we can’t affordthe expense. Organic produce in our supermarkets is expensive! But that is notthe only problem with it: most of this produce comes from largeindustrial farms, which use exhausted soils. As a result their organicfruit and vegetables may not contain pesticides, but they do notcontain much useful nutrition either. Non-organic fruit andvegetables in the supermarkets are not as expensive as the organicones, but they are devoid of nutrition and full of pesticides, which inreality makes them really expensive for your body. Supermarketsare not a good place to buy fruit and vegetables. It is best to findlocal produce, grown in people’s private gardens, allotments andsmall farms. They may not be organic (though these producers donot use much in a way of chemicals), but they will be rich inminerals and other nutrients; and the price will be much lower.Don’t worry if you are not juicing at the moment. Perhaps, nextsummer you can find good local producers and stock up withinexpensive, but nutrient-dense local fruit and vegetables.

KETOSIS Ketosis and GAPS. Is it induced via GAPS Introduction diet? Is it adanger in doing GAPS Intro? Is it one and the same as die-off? Howto prevent it? There is a popular myth that sugar is the main source of energy inthe body; this myth has been created by commercial companiesselling sugary foods and drinks, and by funded by them “research”. Mainstream nutritional institutions are funded by food industry, sothey are the main propagators of this myth. Here is the truth: vastmajority of all cells in the body use fats as a source of energy: yourheart, your muscles, your inner organs, etc. Whenever fat is used asa source of energy ketone bodies are created. There is no need tofear ketosis, as we all have it now and then almost every day (it is

very different from diabetic ketosis, induced by non-functioningpancreas). It is possible that during the Introduction diet there willbe periods of ketosis, but don’t worry about it as normally youwould not feel it at all. Eating vegetables will prevent ketosis. Ketosisis not the same as die-off. LIVER & GALLBLADDER What liver support would you recommend for GAPS patients? Manypatients report struggling with congested / toxic livers adding todigestive problems such as constipation and fat digestion. Please look at the question on gallstones. GAPS people usually havelots of gallstones blocking the bile ducts. Without good flow of thebile we cannot digest fats. Three measures over time will remove thestones and restore normal bile flow. Juicing is one, particularlyapple, celery and green juices. Adding some herbs to your juices willsupport the liver: fresh dandelion leaves, roots and flowers, burdockleaves and a little ginger root. Coffee enemas are the number two:this procedure makes the liver cleanse itself and flush the toxins outthrough the bile, removing the stones at the same time. Third - goodamounts of fat in every meal: the fat stimulates the bile flow andremoves the bile stones on a daily basis. If initially you are unable todigest fat, start from a small amount with every meal and graduallyincrease: use both animal fats and cold pressed oils. In the initialstages supplementing Ox Bile with every meal will help you to digestfats (you should be able to find supplements of ox bile with someadditional digestive enzymes from most multi-supplementcompanies). There are herbal supplements for liver support on themarket containing milk thistle, dandelion, phyllanthus, liquorice,burdock and other herbs. It is important to complete theIntroduction Diet first before trying these supplements; it is alsovery important to find a supplier of good quality organic herbs tomake sure that the herbs have not been grown in areascontaminated with lead or other industrial pollution. What effect does caustic bile have on inflammation in the gut? Howdoes one manage a situation whereby one cannot tolerate any die-offor foods or supplements that have an impact on detox pathways(sulphur, amines, salicylates, glutamate, etc), when their liver isjammed and thus struggle to do any gut healing? Conversely if theliver and gallbladder are supported, such that bile flow is improved,how can one avoid or reduce the abrasive nature on the gut of toxicbile? Please, view FAQs on liver support, these will explain to you whyyour liver may not be functioning well, and what to do in thissituation. If the person is eating enough fats with meals, the bile willbe handled properly by the gut, even if toxins are present in the bile. LYME DISEASE

Many people are coming to the GAPS diet with or after having beentreated for Lyme disease. What are your recommendations for theseindividuals? I recommend that you follow the Introduction Diet. If you find it toodifficult, then implement the Full GAPS Diet first; you may be ableto do the Intro diet later. The standard treatment for Lyme diseaseis antibiotics, lots of them. So, the gut flora in these people isdamaged and needs restoring. NAUSEA & VOMITTING What is your advice for those of us who suffer from nausea aftereating moderate amounts of fat with meals? What causes this and whatare the immediate and long-term remedies? Please, read the sections on gallstones and liver. When you areunable to release bile for fat digestion, you may feel nauseous andfind it difficult to digest fats. Take ox bile with your meals for awhile and introduce fats gradually. Eating fermented vegetables withyour meals, particularly at the beginning of your meals will alsohelp.

NUTRITION Will the GAPS diet provide all the necessary minerals needed, even forthose with proven or suspected mineral deficiencies?

Mineral metabolism is complicated: it is not just a matter of intakeof minerals. To be absorbed, minerals require acids, which areproduced by healthy gut flora. To be utilised appropriately by thebody, minerals require fat soluble vitamins A, D and K. If a personis deficient in those vitamins and suffers from gut dysbiosis, then nomatter how many mineral supplements he or she takes, and nomatter how rich in minerals the diet is, those minerals will not beutilised appropriately. Another big issue is that the body acceptsorganic minerals only in complex with protein and amino acids. Many mineral supplements supply inorganic minerals, which thebody cannot utilise. Mineral water is not a good source of mineralseither, as it contains inorganic minerals and in tiny amounts. Thebest source of minerals is natural good quality food: meats, organmeats in particular, fish, eggs, fermented dairy, fermented or cookedvegetables and fruit. Fresh food provides minerals in an organicform packaged with amino acids and, in the case of animal foods, fatsoluble vitamins. Just make sure to buy good quality foods:organically grown and from free-range animals, raised on naturalpasture. The GAPS program works at normalizing the gut flora, soit can assist in absorption of minerals, and the GAPS diet providesample amounts of fat soluble vitamins to process them properly. Some people find it helpful to supplement particular minerals for awhile, following testing. An excellent natural balanced source of all

minerals and trace elements is seaweed. It is illegal on SCD, onGAPS I allow it to be introduced once severe digestive symptoms aregone. [Seagreens seaweed products are the only certified organicseaweed products available. Please go to the GAPSdiet online storefor more information.]

PARASITES & WORMS Is the GAPS diet beneficial to someone who has the Blastocystisparasite? The parasites like carbohydrates, so it seems that this is anideal diet to get rid of them. However, I hear that the blastocystis eatand live on probiotics, so the fermented vegetables and probioticsupplements could make the parasites thrive? What are yourrecommendations for getting rid of blastocystis? Blastocystis hominis is a protozoan, which we can get from food anddrink, other people or animals. In majority of people it causes noproblems, but in people with weakened immunity and abnormal gutflora, it can cause diarrhoea, bloating, nausea, abdominal pain andanal itching. Many other symptoms have been attributed to thisparasite as well. Mainstream treatment involves various antibiotics,often combinations of them; but unfortunately there is no unifiedeffective treatment to eradicate it. I have stated my opinion onparasites in other questions or worms and parasites: we all haveparasites in our digestive systems. They are a part of our gut flora,so there is no need to fear them or to attack them without goodcause. Work on your gut flora using GAPS Programme, get it inbalance and all the micro-creatures there will control each other. Ifyou got an acute infestation with this parasite, then a short antibiotictreatment may be helpful. In chronic cases antibiotics are usually ofno help; they will only damage your gut flora further. You recommend Ovex for worms. Here in the USA it is available asVermox by Rx only. Can we use herbal preparations for worms? Whatabout tapeworms? I recommend Mebendazole, 100mg (available in Europe as Ovex orPripsen) as an easy and quick option for common worms, likehookworms, pinworms and some round worms. Take 2 tablets perday (chew one in the morning and one in the evening) for 3 days,repeat this course after 10-14 days to kill remaining eggs. Wormsgenerally are nearly impossible to eradicate, they almost alwayscome back. Herbal preparations work while you take them, but assoon as you stop, these kinds of worms usually re-surface, as they doafter Ovex as well. The advantage of Ovex is that it works in 1-3days, where herbal treatment takes months. Ovex does not addresstapeworms. Those are more difficult to remove and for those Iwould recommend a medication to start with, then followed byherbals. Generally speaking, we all have worms. The importantquestion is: are they affecting your health? If yes, then it is a goodidea to fight them. But if they do not bring any symptoms, then thereis no need to attack them, as they are a part your inner eco-systemand may fulfil some useful roles, such as regulating immunity and

preventing autoimmune disease. The typical symptoms of commonworms getting out of control are crampy pain in the middle of yourabdomen, particularly after food in the mornings, difficulty puttingweight on, persistent anaemia (usually hookworms) and bouts ofirritating dry cough (the larvae travel up the breathing passages intothe throat to be swallowed again). Many GAPS patients are struggling to fight various forms ofparasites. What foods should be avoided to help starve the parasites,such as a roundworm?

Processed carbohydrates, sugar and other processed foods feedparasites. These foods are not allowed on the GAPS diet. However,parasites are adaptable, if you deprive them of one food source, theywill use another. Generally speaking, worms and other parasites arean inevitable part of life, everybody has them. In the majority ofpeople they cause no symptoms and, unless they cause problems,there is no need to attack them. Worms may fulfill some usefulfunctions in the body by controlling other microbes and stimulatingimmunity. For example, it has been discovered that some wormshave a balancing effect on the immune system and may preventautoimmunity.

For those with a history of worms, can Vermox be used preventatively?Is it harmful to do 2-3 treatments a year? Yes, it can be used preventatively 2-3 times a year. Do fermented foods help fight parasites?

Fermented food introduce beneficial microbes into the body, whichwill play their part in a very complex interaction of various micro-creatures, who already live there. We do not know what exactly theydo, but in a clinical setting regular consumption of fermented foodshelps to eliminate digestive symptoms, caused by parasites.

For pet owners, while there are many benefits, should there be anyconcerns about picking up parasites? Should any precautions be madewhen living with pets? Pets are wonderful: they provide an unconditional love for the wholefamily, and they provide stimulation for the immune system. Theimportant thing is to have healthy pets, and in order to do that theymust be fed properly. Dogs and cats have not been designed to eatgrains or soy. Commercial pet foods are largely made out of grainsand soy; that is why, thanks to the commercial foods, our dogs andcats get arthritis, autoimmune disease and cancer. On top of thatthey get skin problems, such as dermatitis and eczema, sheddingallergy-causing dandruff. Feed your pets the way Nature hasdesigned them to eat, and you will never need to worry about yourpet’s health. Cats do best on raw meat with fat on it, raw milk, rawfish and raw liver. An occasional leftover of cooked meat and fishwill do them no harm. Dogs do very well if you mix raw minced meat(with good amounts of fat) with some finely chopped raw carrot and

live yoghurt. Raw eggs, raw milk and raw fish should also be aregular part of their diet. Cod liver oil and fish oil are very good fordogs, particularly in winter. Occasional cooked vegetables and meat,left over from your dinner, will also do your dog no harm. You willfind that feeding your dog and cat that way will cost you less, thanbuying commercial pet food, and you will save a fortune on vet’sfees. Worm your dog or cat once every 6-8 months, and don’t worryabout parasites: we all have them and no less than our dogs or cats. PREGNANCY & NURSING Any special recommendations for pregnant women? For pregnancy, the diet is very important. The birth canal also needs tobe prepared for birth by populating it with beneficial bacteria. To dothat, apply live yogurt or kefir on your genital area after you bathe,particularly in the last trimester. Also apply kefir or yogurt on yourbreasts and armpits. Every 2-3 weeks, insert 1-2 capsules of Bio-Kult inthe vagina at bedtime, particularly if there are any unpleasant symptomsin that area. The introduction diet is not recommended for pregnant andbreastfeeding mothers. For those women starting the diet at this stage,should fermented dairy be avoided? Should these women follow thelong dairy introduction? If you have been eating good quality dairy products before yourpregnancy, when starting the diet you do not have to go through theDairy Introduction Structure (p.121 in the new edition of the GAPSbook), just continue consuming fermented dairy products. If youwere not eating dairy products before, then it is a good idea to followthe Dairy Introduction Structure, but introduce ghee and butterstraight away, as they will provide you and your baby with veryvaluable nutrients. When ghee and butter are well tolerated,gradually introduce homemade sour cream. After the sour creamyou can try to introduce full-fat cheese. It is the dairy fats you needthe most during pregnancy, so go for the high-fat dairy foods. Should juicing be done by pregnant and nursing women? Yes! To avoid any reactions, start slowly from small amounts ofjuice per day and gradually increase. It is a good idea to balanceyour juice with fat and protein by making GAPS milkshake: make ajuice from a mixture of fruit and vegetables, then whisk 1-2 raweggs into it and a generous dollop of homemade sour cream. Do you recommend any special supplements during pregnancy? Whatabout a multivitamin? During pregnancy the most important supplement is good food,particularly natural animal fats, meats, fermented dairy, eggs andliver. These foods will provide fat-soluble vitamins, all B vitamins,lots of folic acid and all other essential nutrients. Add good quality

vegetables and fruit, a bit of seaweed, and you will have everythingyou need. Eating liver daily is particularly important in pregnancy;for example, it is still traditional in France and Belgium to givepregnant women liver pâté on a daily basis. It is best to eatfermented foods daily, but if you cannot eat them for whateverreason, take a commercial probiotic. If you are not eating enoughhigh-fat animal foods, take good quality cod liver oil. Spend at least3 hours per day in the fresh air in the sun. Sunbathe, if possible; thesun will provide you with plenty of vitamin D and many otherbenefits. We are all bombarded by marketing of varioussupplements; women produced healthy babies for millennia withoutany supplements, just by eating well, sleeping well and spendingmost of their days outdoors. I understand the dangers of doing Intro while nursing. Do you haveany advice on what to do if eating the full GAPS diet (nuts, dairy, eggs,coconut oil, etc) causes reactions in the Mother? Do these not getpassed on in the breast milk as well, and cause reactions in the baby, ifthe baby is also intolerant to them? Yes, this is a serious concern. That is why it is best to do theprogramme before conception. But of course life is not planned andpredictable, and some women have to start the diet while pregnantor nursing. Just do your best to keep your gut working well byeating homemade soups and stews made with meat stock every day.Make sure to eat plenty of animal fats. Avoid raw nuts, soak themovernight in salty water and use them in baking – this way they areeasier to digest. If you are reacting badly to certain foods, then avoidthem. Limiting fibre in your diet, which means limiting raw plantfoods, will reduce food intolerances and reactions. You can have allthe benefits of raw fruit and vegetables making juices from them.Eat your vegetables well-cooked as a soup or stew. Concentratelargely on eating animal foods (meat, fat, eggs, organ meats, fish,high-fat dairy), as they are easy to digest, and they provideconcentrated amounts of nutrition for you and your baby. If you areeating dairy, concentrate on having high-fat products, such as butterand ghee, sour cream and natural creamy cheese. RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME Can Restless Leg Syndrome be helped with GAPS? Yes! This unpleasant condition is due to lack or abnormalmetabolism of magnesium in the body; often both are involved. Justsupplementing magnesium may not help, as the toxins in the bodyinterfere in its functions. Nevertheless, try to supplement magnesiumand continue with the GAPS programme, which over time willremove toxins from your body and improve magnesium functions.Another thing to consider is dentistry: though your legs seem to befar away from your teeth, the restless leg syndrome is often causedby metals in your mouth (in dental fillings, bridges and crowns).Nickel, gold, silver, titanium and of course amalgam can create acondition, called oral galvanism. Simply put, oral galvanism is like

having an active electric battery in your mouth, with currentsbetween different teeth. The electricity in your mouth is picked upby your nervous system, causing very unpleasant symptoms farremoved from the teeth, such as in your legs, arms and elsewhere. Agood environmental dentist will be able to measure electric currentsin your mouth. SCD (SPECIFIC CARBOHYDRATE DIET) SCD vs GAPS?

As I explain in my book Gut and Psychology Syndrome, GAPS hasevolved from SCD. When my book was first written, ElaineGottschall read it and was very complementary about it. We nevermet, but we corresponded regularly and I would say, that we had aprofessional friendship. It is up to every individual to decide what isright for him or her: SCD or GAPS. I have many patients who usedto be on SCD, and then switched on to GAPS with good results. Also GAPS is not just a diet, it is a Nutritional Programme.

SUPPLEMENTS & VITAMINS Can Bio-Kult be given to infants? Probiotics are safe at any age. New born children get their first doseas they emerge through the vaginal canal and further inoculationsfrom sticking dirty fingers into their mouth. The dose needed for aninfant is basically enough to get through the stomach - 1 or 2capsules daily is probably enough in most cases. You can't overdose- you just won't get any extra benefit from giving more than isneeded and it will cost more! [Please consult your healthcarepractitioner before giving any supplements to infants.] Who should take Betaine HCl with Pepsin?

Not everyone should take Betaine HCl right from the beginning,particularly children. In many GAPS people, stomach lining can betoo sensitive to tolerate it. Usually for children it is notrecommended at the beginning at all; later on if there is excessiveburping after food, which will indicate low stomach acid, it may beintroduced. In adults, it is recommended for people with excessiveburping. You may want to introduce the Betaine after the meal, (notat the beginning as it usually indicates on the label) to avoid burningthe stomach. When a good amount of healing has taken place, theperson can start taking it at the beginning of the meal. Is castor oil recommended?

Not routinely. An overnight application of castor oil on theabdomen of the person, covered with a hot towel and a hot waterbottle can be helpful in cases of chronic constipation. Somechronically constipated people find it helpful internally.

Is colloidal silver safe and do you recommend to use it? No, I do not. Silver accumulates in the body: people, who take it forlong periods of time get a grey skin colour. It is a very old antiseptic;it was proposed around the same time when mercury was used as anantiseptic. It is indiscriminate in attacking the microbes: it attacksthe good and the bad, just like antibiotics do. Are there any specific recommendations for a good seed/nut oil blend?

You do not have to find an exact ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 in theoil, just make sure that it is pure and good quality and has moreomega-3 fatty acids in it, than omega-6 (we get quite a lot of omega-6 from nuts). Aloe Vera and Seaweed?

These products should be avoided by those with severe digestiveissues. Once your digestive system is fairly healed through theGAPS protocol, Aloe Vera and Seaweed can be slowly introduced ifdesired.

Is nutritional yeast GAPS legal?

Yes, some species of yeast are allowed, providing that the person isnot allergic to it, as some people with yeast overgrowth can be. Kefir contains yeast species (which are recommended for themajority of patients) and in many patients S. boulardiiis recommended as a supplement, which is also yeast. If an individual seems to be sensitive to one of the recommendedsupplements, how should you proceed? Many people report havingdifficulties with cod liver oil. There are several reasons for why a supplement may disagree withyou (providing that the supplement is of good quality and works atall). It may cause a detox / healing reaction, which in the long runmay be better for you, but at the moment is too severe. In the case ofprobiotics it may be a die-off reaction. Or it may be just unsuitablefor your health condition or constitution. Strictly speakingsupplements are not 100% essential; it is the GAPS diet that will dothe work for you. So, if a supplement is causing a serious reaction,just stop it and give all your attention to the diet for a few months.Then, when your digestion is considerably better and you feel that aparticular supplement may be of help now, try it again, startingfrom a tiny dose. Cod liver oil, other fish oils and evening primroseoil may be problematic for people with seizures, tics, Tourette andother involuntary movements. We don’t know why: whether somehealing restructuring of the brain gets initiated by these oils or someother mechanism is at work, but the seizures can get worse; so, it isa good idea to avoid these oils in people with involuntarymovements. With probiotics: control the die-off by starting from avery small dose and increasing the dose very gradually. If no

amount of probiotic can be tolerated, then work on fermented foodsfirst as part of the diet. It is a good idea with all supplements to startfrom a small dose and build the dose up gradually, observing yourbody. We are all different, we all have unique physiology; asupplement that worked for your friend is not necessarily going towork for you the same way. Is Bentonite Clay GAPS legal and is it recommended?

No, it is not recommended to use bentonite clay, particularly whendigestive symptoms are present. When you have been on the FullGAPS Diet for a while and your digestive symptoms are gone, thenyou can experiment with nutritional supplements and remedies (suchas bentonite clay), if you feel that they may be helpful to you. How should S boulardii be dosed when used for candida? Always start from a small dose and gradually increase it to atherapeutic level, stay on this level for 3-4 months, then graduallyreduce to none. For an adult the therapeutic dose is usually 4-5billion live cells per day. For a child use smaller doses depending onthe age of the child: 3-5 years of age the dose is 1 billion live cellsper day, for 6-11 years of age 2 billion per day, for older children 3-4 billion per day. I would not use S boulardii with children youngerthan 3, it is better to use homemade kefir for these children. It isimportant to always combine S boulardii with other probiotics, as itshould not be allowed to dominate in the gut. Based on myexperience, I would not use S boulardii permanently, only as acourse. On a long term basis it is better to use kefir, which contains agroup of beneficial yeasts as well as bacteria. I was able to get to the therapeutic probiotic dose in a matter of daysand have not seen any sign of die-off. What does this mean? It may mean that your body compensates well for various toxins andyour liver is processing them well. Or it may mean that you are notprocessing your sensory input well. We are all different: some of us haveacute senses and react to the smallest pain quite dramatically; others areable to tolerate quite a lot of discomfort without much reaction. ManyGAPS people have a high threshold of pain, which is particularlypronounced in some autistic children: they can hurt themselves quitebadly and show no reaction, as they do not feel the pain the way theyshould. I have read that prolonged use of magnesium citrate tablets/capsulescan cause the body to become lazy and that peristalsis will stop? Doyou agree with this theory? I was taking roughly 1,000mg at night tohelp me sleep and so I would have a bowel movement in the morning.After reading about peristalsis I quit taking magnesium citrate. I amfinally having daily bowel movements without it, but now I wake up 4to 5 times during the night and my blood sugar seems higher. I wouldlike to add this supplement back in but I am hesitant? I would not recommend taking any supplement on a permanent

basis. It is better to have magnesium in food form in fruit andvegetables: oranges and other citrus fruit, greens, natural localapples, etc or juices made from them (drinking a green juice firstthing in the morning will regulate your bowel). Nuts are usually richin magnesium. If you are not eating sugar or any other processedcarbohydrates, then your body will handle magnesium well withoutloosing it. To sleep better you may try other approaches, for exampletry to boost your serotonin production by taking 5HTP supplementfor a while. Try to take melatonin for a while. Try some herbs, suchas valerian and hops. Spirulina will help with both bowel movementsand sleep. Some people advise the use of hydrogen peroxide to get rid of the badgut flora. Would that be a good idea? Could it help GAPS patients? The short answer is yes. However, due to taste and immediate die-offit is far from easy to take hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and in myexperience vast majority of people, having tried it, simply cannot doit. You need 35% food grade H2O2, which you can get in somehealth food stores. It is recommended that you start from a fewdrops per glass of water on an empty stomach once or twice daily,and gradually increase the concentration by adding one more dropat a time. Once consumed H2O2 breaks into water and free oxygen,which is considered to be the most deadly agent on this planet forany microbe. People with GERD, reflux and other stomach problemsmay find it helpful to take H2O2 on an empty stomach, because theirproblems are largely due to yeast overgrowth in the stomach. Afterinitial die-off, as the stomach becomes more sterile, the symptomsmay clear. It is essential to use only food grade H2O2, as otherpreparations may have chemicals added to stabilise it. I don’troutinely recommend hydrogen peroxide, as it is quite harsh and cancause a very serious die-off reaction.

Does diatomaceous earth help the digestive system? I have no experience with this substance and cannot comment. Do you recommend or support the use of activated charcoal, clay orvitamin C for detox use during die-off? Yes, many people try these remedies and find that they help. What is your opinion on EMs (Effective Micro-organisms)? EM concept is very similar to what we understand about gut flora: itis a complex world of various microbes living side-by-side andaffecting each other, as well as the host. The original development ofthe concept is attributed to a Japanese Professor Teruo Higa. TheEM formulas are mixtures of various bacteria and fungi; originallythey were used in silage preparation in farming. Now there aremany various proprietary formulas on the market under the nameof EM. Professor Higa classified the microbes in any natural eco-system into three groups: beneficial, negative and opportunistic.Exactly the same classification exists for human gut flora. EMs aim

at boosting the beneficial microbes in order to keep the systemhealthy. So, any multi-strain probiotic can be considered an EM, asit is a mixture of beneficial microbes. Even the smallest amount of any probiotic food or supplement causesme severe bloating, fatigue and pain. How do I do the diet if I can’ttake probiotics? Are there any conditions where probiotic are notrecommended? People suffering from ME, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgiaand some other debilitating conditions often have difficultiesintroducing probiotics. The reason for that is the die-off effect: it isso severe in this group of patients that they find it very difficult tocope with. Just start from a tiny amount and go up very slowly. Ihave patients who start from 1/18th of a capsule of the Bio-Kult (oras much powder as would fit on the end of a sharp knife), and ittakes them months to get up to one capsule per day. The same withfermented foods, start from a tiny amount per 5-7 days; as yourbody gets used to that amount, start taking it a bit more frequently.When you can take that tiny amount every day, start increasing thedose. Proceed in this very slow manner. It is important for you tointroduce probiotics in the form of food or supplement. You justhave to go slowly.

Does the acidity of certain supplements, for example Betaine HCl orvitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid cause any irritation to the gut? Yes, it does! That is why these supplements need to be takencarefully and only when they are needed. Take Betaine HCl onlywith main meals when fats and meats in the meal will bind it. Don’ttake Betaine HCl permanently, it is a temporary measure. In thelong run restore your normal stomach acid production with cabbagejuice, sauerkraut and other fermented cabbage recipes. I generallydo not recommend ascorbic acid as it is an irritant to the gut lining.GAPS diet provides plenty of vitamin C in the food form(particularly when juicing is introduced). If you wish to take asupplement, it is better to have vitamin C in a whole natural form,such as acerola cherry powder. Will natural remedies such as grapefruit seed extract and oregano oilkill the good bacteria like antibiotics do? Yes, they will. That is why they need to be used only in certain cases,when the overgrowth of a particular pathogen, such as candida,warrants its use. While attacking candida with these remedies, keepadding beneficial bacteria to the gut in the form of both fermentedfoods and a good quality probiotics. Are tinctures of digestive aids such as ginger or mugwort GAPSallowed? Yes, as long as they do not contain sugar or any other non-allowedingredients. Alcohol is commonly used as a preservative in tinctures,

which is OK: as tinctures are taken in minute amounts the dose ofalcohol is insignificant. I have been recommended to try bitters. Are they GAPS legal? Many bitters contain sugar and other ingredients added. So, readthe ingredients list carefully: if it contains only herbs then try it. It isa strong alcoholic beverage and should be consumed in very smallamounts after food.

TEETH

Why do some GAPS patients experience tooth discoloration and hairloss?

Tooth discoloration and hair loss are very rare in GAPS patients,and usually happen in very toxic people, particularly people withmetal toxicity. Hair and teeth are those places where the body oftenstores toxins in. Many things happen in the body, as the GAPSprogram is initiated. We don't know what happens exactly, but it ispossible that the hair, full of toxins, get dropped by the body toallow new "clean" hair to grow. With teeth: I have seen autisticchildren who had their permanent teeth growing with black spotsimbedded in them. One particular boy displayed noticeableimprovements in his autism in the weeks following the removal ofthe black spot by the dentist. It is possible that his body had storedmercury from vaccinations or some other toxins in the growingtooth. We don't know what happens exactly, but it is likely that thedetoxification initiated by the GAPS Nutritional Protocol startsshifting the toxins around, which may be the cause of toothdiscoloration in the initial stages. In the long run, however, yourchild is likely to grow beautiful whit teeth, as I have seen in so manyGAPS children. Does over-consumption of nuts and seeds cause tooth decay?

The GAPS diet does not equate to eating nuts only, it is a variedbalanced diet. I have not seen any tooth decay with GAPS diet, justthe opposite. I have children in my clinic, who had terrible problemswith milk teeth, but once on GAPS Nutritional Programme theygrow beautiful healthy permanent teeth. I remember one child, whohad 11 filling put into his milk teeth at the age of four, as his toothdecay was terrible. He went on GAPS Programme at the age of fiveand now, at the age of 12, he has the most beautiful smile with white,perfectly shaped, healthy teeth.

Should any precautions be taken when dental work is needed? Is itpossible for cavities to resolve on their own with the GAPS diet? Whatif a root canal is recommended? Please, look inside your mouth and consider a question: how manyfunctional teeth you would have left if it wasn’t for the moderndentistry? For many people the answer is going to be: not many!

Yes, root canals are not ideal, but I am sure you know many peoplewith quite a few root canals in their teeth, who are functioningperfectly well and can be considered healthy. It all depends on thebalance of things in the body: if your immunity is strong and wellnourished, it will keep your root canals and other places of chronicinfection under control. So, keep your immune system well nourishedwith animal fats, probiotics and good quality homemade food.I would recommend working with your dentist to use the least toxicalternatives, but if the root canal is recommended then you willprobably have to have it. I do not know anybody whose root canalsresolved on their own. Try to find a holistic dentist, there aren’tmany of them, but if we all start demanding it, more dentists willhave to get trained to become holistic. Eat well prior to thetreatment and sleep well, avoid late nights or alcohol. Do the sameafter the treatment. Taking some natural vitamin C (such as acerolacherry) for a few days prior to treatment and after it is helpful. THYROID If one has hypothyroidism, should they be concerned about thegoitrogenic properties of cabbage when it comes to eating sauerkraut?If so, how much would be an acceptable amount? I havehypothyroidism and generally drink three tablespoons of sauerkrautjuice prior to each meal. I take medication for hypothyroidism; willsauerkraut juice suppress my thyroid function? Three tablespoons of sauerkraut juice will not suppress your thyroidfunction; I have never seen such effect in my patients. I have notfound any studies on this subject, but during fermentation manysubstances in the cabbage change, so it is possible that thegoitrogenic substances may have been destroyed. In addition to the GAPS diet, to support a weak thyroid (hypothyroid),is careful supplementation with Lugol solution acceptable or wouldthis be discourages? Many people are deficient in iodine, which is essential for thyroidfunction. Every one of us has a unique individual need for iodine, sothe standard daily recommended allowances are usually not helpful.To test if your body needs iodine (and to supplement it) paint apatch the size of your hand on your skin using Lugol solution or aniodine tincture. The solution will colour that patch of your skinbrown. If in 24 hours the brown colour has disappeared (whichmeans that iodine got absorbed through the skin), then your body isdeficient in iodine. If you are on the GAPS introduction diet, you cansupplement iodine by taking the Lugol solution or by painting thebrown patch on your skin every day (choose a different patch of theskin every time). If you are on the Full GAPS diet and your digestionis OK, introduce seaweed: there are many supplements of kelp onthe market or other high-iodine varieties of seaweed (such asknotten wrack seaweed or askophyllum nodosum) [Please view theSeagreens products at our online store]. Eating seaweed (or taking itas a supplement) is the best way to supply your body with iodine

long-term. To work out what dose of seaweed you need, keep usingthe skin test while gradually increasing your daily dose of seaweed.

VERTIGO Is vertigo common in GAPS patients? Will it improve on the GAPSprogramme? Yes! Vertigo happens in many GAPS people because of toxicity inthe brain altering the sensory perception. Another problem for thesepeople is overproduction of histamine (many pathogenic species ofmicrobes in the gut produce histamine). Excessive release ofhistamine drops the blood pressure down and causes vertigo,dizziness and fainting episodes. GAPS programme will change thegut flora, reduce histamine production and reduce the toxinsreaching the brain. WARTS After over a year of being gone, my warts have come back on theGAPS diet. How do you suggest handling these? In my experience it is due to the general pH shift in the body: whenwe get too alkaline, warts and other viral infections thrive; when weget too acid, yeast thrives. To shift your pH try to avoid fruit,particularly citrus, nuts and chocolate for a while and see if thatmakes a difference. When warts appear, use a standard topicalsalicylic acid preparation (it is sold in pharmacies under differentbrands around the world). 35% food grade hydrogen peroxide alsoworks well of fresh warts (apply a drop and let it dry; keep applyingtwice a day until the wart is gone). Old protruding warts are besttied-off: use a strong cotton or silk thread, make a loop and tie ittightly on the neck of the wart; the thread will stop the blood supplyto the wart, so it will dry and fall off in a few days (to speed theprocess up you can apply 35% hydrogen peroxide to this wart aswell). WATER How much water should be consumed? Should anything be added tothe water?

Water should be drunk between meals, as too much water withmeals interferes with digestion. With meals I recommend to drinkmeat stock with some sauerkraut juice or homemade yogurt/kefir,adults can have a glass of dry red wine. The meat stock and the wineare good digestives. I do not believe in commonly publishedrecommendations, which state that everyone should drink 1.5-2.5liters of water every day. The water requirement changes from dayto day, depends on what the weather is like, how we feel on that

particular day and what activities we undertake. Your body will tellyou how much water you need on any given day by making you feelthirsty. If you are not thirsty, there is no need to force those litres ofwater down yourself, despite what popular books may say. A lot ofthirst is a sign of too much acidity in the body; many toxins areacids. Water will only dilute the acids; you may drink lots of waterand still feel thirsty. That is why it is important to take steps toalkalize your body: a 1/2 teaspoon of natural unprocessed salt addedto water, a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, a piece of lemonsqueezed into water, eating a fresh rip apple or a fresh juicy carrot,drinking freshly pressed vegetable/fruit juice will alkalize your bodyand quench the thirst more effectively, than just drinking water.

WEIGHT I seem to be gaining weight specifically in my hips, thighs and even mycalves. It seems like it may be fluid retention, especially in my calves.What could be causing this? Is there anything I should do? If it is notfluid, why would I be gaining so much fat in these certain areas? It is natural for women to lay fat on their thighs and hips. In ourmodern world it became fashionable for women to look like littleboys: with narrow hips and small bottoms. This is not normal. So, itis possible that your body is re-structuring itself into feminine shapeyou are meant to have. Swollen calves are a different matter: this islikely to be water retention, which is usually due to toxicity in thebody. Try to do a few coffee enemas to clear your liver, and startjuicing. Make sure to add plenty of greens to your juices: dandelion,dill, stingy nettles, coriander, parsley, ship sorrel and sage (add thesegreens to a nice sweet tasting juice from a mixture of carrots, apples,pineapples, a little celery and beetroot; then add 2 raw eggs andsome sour cream, whisk and enjoy). Apart from helping you todetoxify, the juices will boost your minerals to assist the kidneys inwater removal. After reading your book about dietary fat, cooking fats, and toxinsstored in body fats, I now am wondering what your understanding ofbelly fat on individuals is? Fat is the preferred source of energy for most of the cells and organsin the human body. Body fat is stored energy. There are two maindepots of energy in the body: under skin fat and visceral fat (bellyfat). Under skin fat is an endocrine organ producing certain hormonesessential for human physiology, such as leptin, resistin and cytokineTNF alpha. Women normally have more under skin fat than men, asfemale hormones lay the foundation for feminine fat storage on hips,breasts, buttocks and thighs, giving women their beautiful shape.Male hormones favour storage of under skin fat on the upper body,giving men their masculine shape. Regular consumption of sugar,flour and other processed carbohydrates alters hormonal balance inthe body: that is why nowadays we see many women with male-type

bodies and many men with feminine looking bodies. Belly fat is largely a storage space for quick energy: this energy isstored inside the abdomen around inner organs: intestines, bowel,stomach, liver, kidneys, etc. Normal amounts of visceral fat areessential to support and insulate our inner organs. Processedcarbohydrates in the body are quickly converted into fat. Some ofthis fat is stored under skin, which has a limited storage capacity.But if the carbohydrates keep coming, excessive fat is largely storedin the abdomen. Alcohol is a form of energy, which is quicklyconverted into fat and stored almost exclusively in the abdomen,giving the person a “pregnant” look. Fat attracts water: almost aquarter of belly fat tissue can be stored water. Men (and women)who drink too much alcohol regularly without consuming too muchcarbohydrates have large, hard-to-touch bellies with very littleunder skin fat – a “pregnant” belly; a belly full of fat and water.Men and women who indulge in both (too much alcohol andprocessed carbohydrates) will have large hard bellies and too muchfat stored under skin as well. The obesity epidemic is caused by processed carbohydrates whichcame to dominate our modern diets. Natural animal fats (butter andfats in eggs, meat and fish) balance our hormones and go into ourbodily structure. Unfortunately, our modern diet is very low in thesenourishing fats. Eating lots of carbohydrates while depriving yourbody of essential-to-life animal fats lead to obesity, diabetes, heartdisease, cancer, auto immunity and most other modern plagues. Am I going to lose weight on the GAPS diet? I am already underweightand find it very difficult to gain weight. Regular consumption of grains and processed carbohydrates causeswater retention in the body. As you stop consuming these foods, youwill loose that excess water and hence loose some weight, whichusually happens in the first few weeks. Without the water retentionyou will get to your real weight and size, which will show you thereal extend of your malnutrition. As you follow the GAPS nutritionalprotocol your digestive system will start absorbing foods properlyand nourishing you; you will start building dense bones, healthymuscles and other tissues and organs and gaining weight as a result.You may remain fairly slim for the rest of your life (as it may beyour constitution), but you will become strong, vibrant and full ofenergy. I have been steadily losing weight for many months and I feel like I donot look healthy. What suggestions do you have for patients losing toomuch weight? Please view the answer above to "Am I going to loose weight on theGAPS diet? I am already underweight and find it very difficult togain weight." WOMEN ISSUES & HORMONES

Is PMS a sign of digestive issues? Can the GAPS diet help withcommon infertility issues such as endometriosis and PCOS? Somewomen report irregularities and loss of menstruation during die-off. Isthis cause for any concern? Digestive system is always involved in PMS, PCOS, endometriosisand other hormonal abnormalities: toxins produced by unhealthygut flora interfere in the delicate balance of hormones in the body -some hormones become low or insufficient, other hormones becomeexcessive. When the die-off is initiated, more toxins are released intothe bloodstream, so your typical hormonal symptoms these toxinscause, become more acute. Indeed the menstruations may becomeirregular and PMS may get worse. Die-off is temporary, so thesesymptoms will pass. Just keep them under control by gradualintroduction of probiotics, fermented foods and food items, whichyou may be sensitive to. I do not specialise in infertility or otherfemale reproductive problems, but I have many patients, whostarted the GAPS Programme, and their first symptoms to go weresymptoms of PMS. More chronic conditions such as endometriosisand PCOS take longer to remedy, but GAPS Programme works wellfor many women with these conditions as well. In order to makesteroid hormones (and all sex hormones are steroids) we need plentyof cholesterol and animal fats. So, for all these conditions it isessential to have high-fat and high-cholesterol diet, where mainsources of fat are animal products: meats, eggs, fish, butter andcream. Women, who are trying to conceive, should consume 2 cupsof homemade sour cream per day, as well as 4 fresh eggs and plentyof fatty meats and fish. As the gut flora becomes more normal andthe gut wall heals, the toxins will disappear, and your hormonalsystem will come back to normal balance. Is it realistic for me to think that GAPS could help my body naturallyincrease its progesterone level? Yes, GAPS programme will re-balance your hormones to normalproduction. Progesterone has to be balance by other hormones, andonly your body knows how to do that and in what proportions. Trynot to interfere in this process by taking any hormonal preparations:drugs or natural. Can your spouse pass bad bacteria to you? Should any precautions betaken? My husband will not follow the diet and I know he has gutissues and I am trying to heal my own issues. We all pass microbes to each other on contact. But, if we live in fearof that, then our lives will be very difficult. Mother Nature gave usimmune systems in order to deal with microbes. As long as we keepour immunity strong there is no need to worry about who we are incontact with. I would not want you to banish your husband out ofthe house in order for you to heal. Just work on boosting yourimmunity and his: maybe he will agree to take probiotics and codliver oil capsules? If both of you increase animal fat consumptionwith your meals, then your immunity will be stronger and more able

to deal with invaders.

Should any precautions be taken when choosing feminine careproducts? We need to be very careful with all personal care products! Please,read about it in the Detoxification chapter in my book. It isparticularly dangerous to use any personal products in the groin. Irecommend that women wash themselves with water only withoutusing any soap, and never put any chemicals in that area. Applyyour homemade yoghurt or kefir all over your groin after a bath ora shower to populate that area with beneficial flora. Once the goodmicrobes are there, they will not allow any pathogens in. It isparticularly important for pregnant women to do this, as they willpass their vaginal flora to their babies at birth. The best thing to puton your child’s nappy area is your homemade sour cream. If there isallergy to dairy, then use any cold pressed oil (olive oil, coconut oil,etc) or animal fat (lamb fat, pork fat, goose fat, etc). My doctor recommends that I avoid meat and dairy to helpendometriosis, because meat and dairy contain oestrogens. Whatshould I do? Just like us, all animals produce natural hormones, these hormonesare present in all animal foods (meats, fish, eggs and dairy) and areof no concern to human physiology. We have been exposed to thesehormones for millions of years in our diet and our bodies know howto deal with them: they just get digested and assimilated like anyother protein. The mainstream recommendation to avoid meats anddairy is misguided and is not based on any reliable scientificevidence. In order to have healthy reproductive systems women mustavoid xenoestrogens (synthetic oestrogens), which come frompersonal care products, contraceptive pill, HRT, many other drugs,many man-made chemicals in the environment, and processedfoods; they disrupt our normal hormonal balance and can causeinfertility, endometriosis, PMS and other reproductive problems. Itis unfortunate that doctors give women no advice on avoidingxenoestrogens, instead they recommend to replace meat with soya,which is full of xenoestrogens. Is henna safe as a hair die?

I am not aware of any research to why natural henna without anyadditives should not be safe. It is an herb, which has been used formillennia by people in India and other countries as a natural remedyfor scalp problems, dermatitis and dandruff. The fact that it alsodies your hair is a mere side effect and can be used as a bonus.

MISCELLANEOUS/OTHER Is there any validity to metabolic typing? There is no doubt that we are all different genetically. Some of uscome from northern stock, where for millennia meat and fish were

the staples. Some come from southern stock, where more fruit andgrains were consumed. Some come from areas where dairy havebeen a staple for thousands of years, some have no tolerance of dairyand their predecessors never consumed milk. No matter what dietyou are trying to follow, you have to find your own personal comfortzone in terms of ratio of different foods. The important point is toeat foods freshly prepared at home, as none of us on this planet hasevolved to eat modern processed foods.In the Metabolic Typing you have to identify, what type you belongto: “protein type”, “carbo type” or a “mixed type”. What doesn’tseem to have been taken into account is the fact that apart fromgenetics our state of health is important to take into consideration.Many people in this world are addicted to sugar and other processedcarbohydrates and have many health problems due to that. Theirpersonality reflects their poor health and sugar addiction, so theymay mistakenly identify themselves as “the carbo type” in MetabolicTyping. Regardless of what type you decided you belong to, you haveto start from a low carbohydrate diet and then slowly proceed fromthat introducing carbohydrates. If you are addicted to sugar andhave candida overgrowth, in this initial stage you will suffer fromdie-off and hypoglycaemia, which will make you feel very unwell. Somany people with these problems just decide that they are the“carbo type” and revert back to their high carbohydrate diet withall the processed foods and sugar. Get yourself well first with theGAPS type diet, then your healthy instincts will come back and youwill be able to find your comfort zone. Can broth / soups worsen digestion by diluting gastric juices duringmeals? If liquids worsen bloating during meals what would youadvise? Meat stock with some sauerkraut juice added (or freshly pressedcabbage juice) stimulate stomach acid production and generally area good digestive. Drinking it 10-15 minutes before your meal, ratherthan with the meal, will help you to produce stomach acid andprepare for the coming meal. Do you recommend kinesiology for testing the suitability ofsupplements? Energy testing, such as kinesiology, relies heavily on the skill of thepractitioner and may not be 100% accurate. The reaction your bodymay produce on testing can reflect the die-off or detox. So, testingmay confuse you. To succeed in the programme you needcommitment and determination, so anything that plants doubt inyour mind may not be too helpful. Which method of eating is least stressful to the body, small mealsregularly or three or less square meals? Small regular meals are better for people with blood sugarproblems, such as GAPS people. If you include plenty of animal fatinto every meal, then your blood sugar level will by steady throughthe day. If you work and cannot eat all the time, then snack on raw

butter mixed with a little of raw honey to taste (take a jar with youto work or have it in the car). You can also snack on coconut oil andfresh nuts (when your gut is ready for nuts). For healthy peoplewithout blood sugar problems, it is a good idea to get hungry beforetheir main meals, so snacking is not recommended for them. I’ve heard from a recent talk you did that we should have a minimumof 40% of our diet as fat. Is this 40% calories, or volume? This was probably said in a particular context. It is simply wrong totry and calculate composition of your meals, or calculate when youshould eat and how much. These things need to be done instinctively,from the signals your body’s biology gives you, as your body hasinfinitely more wisdom about what it needs, than our mind andintelligence will ever calculate. Nobody in this world can tell howmuch protein your body needs at any particular moment of your life,or how much fat, or how much magnesium, or calcium, or zinc, orhow much sleep, or how much sunshine! Only your body knows that,so listen to your body. Your bodily requirements change all the time,depending on what you are doing, what the weather is like and whatstate of health you are in. If it is cold and damp, and you feel rundown, your body will need lots of fat and protein, so eat a hot richmeal (a stew or a roast). If the weather is hot and you feel hot anddry, a stew is the last thing you may want to eat; you may want asalad with some light meat or fish. Food needs to be enjoyable andappropriate for your body’s requirements at every meal; and theway your body tells you what it needs is by creating desires. Everytime ask yourself: what do I really fancy to eat now? And your bodywill come up with an answer immediately, including how fatty thisfood should be.

You talk about the path that GAPS children often follow leading todrug use. Do you have any advice for a GAPS-child-now-adult tryingto heal from extensive drug use? The basis for addictive behaviour is blood sugar abnormalities. It isthe swinging blood sugar levels that create lack of neurotransmittersin the brain (dopamine in particular) and desire to boost them withan addictive substance or behaviour. It is imperative for these peopleto keep their blood sugar at a normal level all the time. The way todo it is by consuming fat at frequent regular intervals! The best fatsare raw butter, coconut oil or any animal fat. They need to beconsumed every 20-30 minutes throughout the day. In the initialstages, when sugar cravings are strong, here is what I recommend:mix raw butter with some raw honey to taste (not much, just enoughto please your taste buds), put this mixture into a glass jar and carryit with you everywhere. Eat 2-3 tablespoons every 20-30 minutes,even more often if the sugar cravings are bad. Raw honey in thebutter will help to restore low blood sugar instantly, improve thetaste of butter and add enzymes which help to digest the fat. Inparallel carry another jar with you with coconut oil and eat that aswell at regular intervals. With meals and snacks eat plenty of animalfats. Follow the GAPS diet strictly; it will restore your normal




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production of neurotransmitters naturally, and remove addictivebehaviour for good. Since going on the GAPS diet I have an acid taste in the back of mythroat. What do you recommend to help with this? Have fermented vegetables with your meals and fresh vegetables too(salads made with juicy vegetables, such as lettuce, tomato,cucumber, onion and greens). They will add enzymes and help yourstomach to handle food. The reason for this acid taste is likely to bereflux, as your stomach may not be producing enough acid andenzymes at this stage.



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GAPS Families

Parents who have a child with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxiaor any other GAPS condition are quite rightly concerned whenplanning for a new baby. In order to give yourself the best chanceto produce a healthy baby it is important to start thinking about itbefore conception. If you are already expecting a baby, it is best tostart making changes straight away.

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Babies

Congratulations on the new addition to your family. Start your newbaby off right by getting his/her digestive system off to a goodstart.

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Resources

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Below is a list of articles and links to information that may behelpful in your GAPS journey.

One man’s meat is another man’s poison! MostRecent Article by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride 2011 (Discussesadapting the GAPS diet to meet your individual needs - A Must Read)

Probiotics: Healing the Mind CAM Magazine 2003

Gut & Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

More Gut & Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

GAPS in Medical Knowledge Wise Traditions Winter 2007 (for moreon Wise Traditions visit www.westonaprice.org)

My Son by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

Autism & Probiotics by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

Does MMR Cause Autism? by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

Food Allergies by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride





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Bacillus Subtilis: From Probiotic to Modern Medicine by Dr.Andrew Barnes

Probiotics - Dispelling the Acid Myth by Dr. John A Jones

Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Probiotics by Dr. NatashaCampbell-McBride

YouTube interview with Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride and Donna Gates

Video 1 of 6 Video 2 of 6 Video 3 of 6 Video 4 of 6 Video 5 of 6 Video 6 of 6

Wise Traditions Conference DVDs and CDs on Gut &Psychology Syndrome Order Now



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AVAILABLE NOW!

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The first cookbook created exclusively for the GAPSdiet.

Internal Bliss is a cookbook designed for individualsand families pursuing the difficult journey towards

digestive healing. With the GAPS principles in mind,Internal Bliss provides recipes that will satisfy all

palates.

**Now containing a chapter on fermented vegetables withinformation, directions, and 9 new recipes.**

Featuring a wide variety of GAPS friendly meal ideasand treats for the entire family, including:

Yogurt CheeseDeviled Eggs

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Turkey Pecan Waldorf SaladCauliflower "Potato" SaladPeanut Butter Pancakes

Banana Caramel Sticky BunsChicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Chinese Lemon Chicken with BroccoliScallops with Shiitake Mushrooms in Ginger Sauce

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Key Lime PieStrawberry Shortcakes

Mixed Melon Sorbet

Over 150 GAPS friendly recipes! Spiral bound for easy use while cooking.

Send your comments, suggestions, and testimonialsto [email protected].




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Website: www.gaps.meBlog: www.doctor-natasha.com

Starting in Fall 2011, Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride will beginGAPS Practitioner Certification Courses. We will offer a list ofcertified GAPS Practitioners for you to contact once available.

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Contact InformationPlease complete the fields below and we will respond to your inquiry within 48hours. Please check our "FAQs" section first if you have a question about theGAPS diet.

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We would love to hear your progress with the GAPSdiet. Please contact us so we can share your storywith others. Your testimonial could make thedifference in a life. No personal information isrequired. Please help other families in need ofencouragement.

I just wanted to tell all the families who have come to this crossroad of GAPS totake the plunge! As a mother of 2 children on the spectrum, I have been whereyou are. I have been desperate, alone, and overwhelmed. I have cried a lifetimeof tears and every moment of despair is worth the joy I feel now.

Three months ago I didn’t know what I was going to do with my son. He wasregressing and angry. I knew I had to get my little boy back! I would rock him tosleep in tears whispering," come back to me my sweet Trent." I promised myselfthat if I ever had the answer that I would do it no matter how hard! GAPS isgiving me my son back! That is worth fighting for!

Trent is now categorizing cubes, cones, spheres, and cylinders! Every time Ithink about it, I cry! He can choose a sight word and turn it into a sentence! The point is, reach for the stars! My sweet Trent is coming back to me!

My oldest son is on his way. His healing needs a little more time. His onlyissue is focus, other than that he is quite a character! He used to have to beon medication for anxiety. GAPS has taken anxiety away! He really is doingphenomenal!

You owe it to yourself and your children to strive for better! When the goinggets tough, you have your new friends here to lean on!

Reaching for the stars, Cathy Carr

* * * * * * * * * *

3.5 Yr Old BoyFrom birth, my son had many challenges: he was premature andstruggled both to breathe and to coordinate the reflexes involved ineating. Later, if not held 24/7 he would scream. People suggested he was“manipulative”, “spoiled”, etc. But to me it was clear that something waswrong and that he was simply expressing that.He was unable to eat anything except breastmilk for over two years. If





other food came even near his lips, he would vomit profusely. He wasiron deficient.. Despite proper brushing, his brand new teeth rapidlydisintegrated. His language was severely delayed. He would snakebackward across the floor on his belly, screaming, finally pressing hisforehead against a wall, terror in his eyes. Day and night, he woke fullyat least every 2-4 hours. He could not tolerate baths, haircuts ortoothbrushing. Incontinent, he was unable to potty train.

Finally, just after his third birthday, he developed chronic diarrhea. Onthat count alone, my doctor suggested he might have Celiac Disease.When I researched CD, I learned that all of my son’s symptoms wereaddressed by that single diagnosis! There were two dietary optionsproposed for Celiac: The first, gluten-free, would be relatively easy toachieve, but require lifelong adherence to maintain even its limitedresults. The other, a diet temporarily permitting only monosaccarides,would be more challenging to implement, but would actually heal thegut, ultimately allowing for a wide range of healthy foods to be eaten.One website claimed that both Celiac and autistic symptoms could berelieved by the second one. The promise of addressing the full range ofmy son’s issues was the clincher.

On Day One, my son had a normal stool for the first time in six weeksand, for the first time in his life, he slept through the night. On DayThree, he spoke his first sentence. That week, he potty trained himself.

Since early on in the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, his language, cognitionand physical development have continued to soar. He talks easily, histeeth have healed, and he eats everything we put in front of him. He isrelaxed, easygoing and tremendously happy. He is highly sociable. Hisearlier behaviors and stools return only when he tries a food that provestoo advanced for his system to handle.

Early June, I transitioned him to the full GAPS program. We have seenleaps even beyond those achieved by SCD alone. Temporary setbacksnotwithstanding, my boy has become a fully healthy child. It boggles mymind, every single day, that something so simple (so to speak) couldhave brought such tremendous changes.

While GAPS’ benefits are definitely worth the effort involved, there is alearning curve. I stumbled about a lot at the beginning. The mostimportant pieces for me have been information and support. The onlinecommunities provide these in abundance.

Baden BC, Canada

* * * * * * * * * *

Originally posted on yahoo Group GAPShelp:

Kevin lacked oxygen at birth, so in the first year of life, I already saw that hewas not developing like my other kids (he is our 5th). His motor skills laggedand he cried a lot, didn't sleep so well, etc. At two, his behavior was just not

right. He never responded right to correction, would throw things in anger orfrustration, cried all the time, esp when waking up, basically never happy. Hedidn't walk until two and then he would fall down constantly. He also began toalways be starving. When he was really hungry, his face would get distorted andfrozen in a strange way. I now think he was having seizures of sorts. We did notvaccinate at all and we figured out that if we fed him lots of protein type foodslike meats, he would relax his body and face and be able to go play for a bituntil it happened all over again in a short time.I do think that b/c we didn't vaccinate and figured out to keep feeding him thisway, we were able to "coast along" like this for years. He had learningdisabilities, lacked social skills and continued to have autistic traits like sensoryissues, hiding under blankets, reacting to sounds, not liking people around, rigidin routines, and spinning and going on his head along with head banging. Longstory shorter, we did get a diagnosis of Aspergers at one point. WE took him todoc after doc, specialist after specialist to no avail. He also strangely wasNEVER once sick (we later learned that his immune sys was not working a bit)At 9 yo, he got pneumonia, followed by asthma and allergies. His eating hadescalated to the point of feeding him every 20 - 30 minutes or he would havegigantic meltdowns. We eventually could not even have people over.

He was given an inhaler for the asthma and suddenly, without us making theconnection, he began to not respond when called, became extremelyhyperactive and began to run away at all hours of the day and night requiringpolice to find him and being very dangerous (we once lost him in the middle ofdowntown Chicago).

He would also try to jump out of moving vehicles, out of windows and requiredconstant restraining. The seizures got bad, he would fall down the stairs andlose consciousness several times per day. They tried psych drugs and he almostdied twice from his reaction to them (I am now grateful that we couldn't go thatroute). We became so desperate that we brought him home from hospital andgot deadbolts to keep him from running, did all our own restraining and calledalternative docs to help us. We began kefir and diet from nutritionist (basically aBED/GAPS version), took him off inhaler. His allergies were totally out of control,he could barely open his eyes from swelling, and his chin was deformed andswollen, his belly too, his whole body. He would only eat junk food and fast foodsand it was incredibly difficult to transition him to the diet. The DAN (DefeatAutism Now) protocols we followed, made him worse in lots of ways b/c thechelation made him extremely violent, the B12 shots kept him awake for nightson end without any sleep, the antifungals and all those other interventions werenightmarish for him.Eventually, I resolved to use only foods and do this without any kind of docs. Sofor this past year, I researched and researched and was determined to bring himback from this state. We have done a combo of GAPS and BED verysuccessfully along with lots of fermented foods and drinks. The allergies andasthma are 100% gone, the seizures we have had only one in 65 days and verymild (compared to 5-10 per day). He sings every morning and has cried once inthe last 2.5 months (he used to cry for 1-3 hours at a time each day) and hecan go outside again without running away. He is in martial arts, actingappropriately at church, having eye contact, no autistic traits of late and learningacademics after two years of not being able to open a book. He reads beforebed at an 8th grade level. It is a total absolute miracle to which I give God allthe credit (there has been endless prayer at our house). I know He led us to thisdiet and this recovery. I am still fearful of regression (it's so hard to believe it'sfor real, you know) and I also fully realize that it will be possibly two more yearsbefore he is fully detoxed. The rashes he has had have been monumental andscary and he would have terrible seizures when the detox and die off was goingtoo quickly. I think we still have a lot to learn and a lot of work to do but thereseems to be a light at the end of our tunnel. I think this is a very powerful dietand detox protocol and it really does work. I feel that there is much hope andhealing and we are giving our kids an opportunity at a life and future.




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Sorry to be so long but I want to encourage others and I thank you all for thewonderful support.

Millie

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Gapsdiet.com,I have been following the GAPS diet for 5 months now with my son. I recentlyhad to go back and start over following the Introduction Diet as you haveoutlined on this site. I was unaware there was an introduction diet but I am veryhappy to have found it. The introduction diet has made all the difference for myson in determining the foods he is unable to handle. Since starting the diet over,we have seen a huge transformation in his behavior and BMs. We have feltcaptive in our house for the last 3 years as a result of Tim's behavior andconstant watery stools. Last Saturday we actually had a day out. It waswonderful. We still have a long way to go but we are very hopeful as we haveseen more improvement in 5 months than we had previously ever seen onanything else we have tried.

Sincerely,Mary San Diego, Ca

* * * * * * * * * *



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Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride will be conducting certificationprograms for physicians in fall 2011. A new listing of GAPSPhysicians will be available at that time.

In the meantime, the list below contains the contact information ofprofessionals willing to work with those following the GAPS diet. These professionals have not had approved GAPS trainingand have not been approved by Dr.Natasha Campbell-McBride.

Dr. Thomas Cowan661 Chenery StSan Francisco, CA415-334-1010(Recommended by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride)

Dr. Tim GerstmarNaturopathic DoctorAspire Natural Health16455 NE 85th St, Ste 102Redmond, WA [email protected]

Dr. Alkmini Anastasiadou1556 3rd Ave Ste 210New York, NY [email protected]

Jodi Barnett N.H.C.Harvested Health2157 US Hwy 41Schererville, IN 46375







219-227-8784http://www.harvestedhealth.com

Dr. John FeolaMetro Internal Medicine LLC6400 Arlington Blvd 940Falls Church, VA 22042703-241-1010http://www.metro-internalmedicine.com

Stephanie Belseth CPNPNewbridge Clinic8200 Humboldt Ave S, Ste 301Bloomington, MN 55431612-730-2237Fax 206-338-2186www.newbridgeclinic.com

Dr. Jennifer Weiss1212 Farmers Lane Suite 3Santa Rosa, CA 95405707-829-9788www.osteopathicphysician.net

Julie Soteriou, CCN1610 14th Street NW, Suite 102Rochester, MN [email protected]

Dr. Tony Boggess1310 S. Main StAnn Arbor, MI 48104734-929-2696 Fax:[email protected]

Rosann Volmert, DO

http://www.harvestedhealth.com/

http://www.metro-internalmedicine.com/

http://www.newbridgeclinic.com/

http://www.osteopathicphysician.net/



http://www.nbwellness.com/




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Osteopathic Family Physician3527 Ocean View BlvdMontrose, CA 91208626-796-3413www.DrVolmert.com



http://www.drvolmert.com/

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Wholesale pricing is available for all healthcare practitioners, retailstores, and Co-ops. Please call or email for pricing.

To all customers, we offer a 10% discount on all Bio-Kultpurchases of 10 or more.

If ordering 24 or more bottles, please email [email protected] foravailable discounts.

We will match any competitors price.






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Home Page

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Welcome to GAPSdiet.com!

AVAILABLE NOW!!!

The first GAPS cookbook. Over 140 GAPS friendly recipes.

A MESSAGE FROM DR. NATASHA CAMPBELL-MCBRIDE:

HELP!

At the last WAPF conference I met dozens of wonderful people, who were tellingme how the GAPS Programme changed their lives and lives of their families.

These people gave me an idea: WE NEED TO PUBLISH ALL THESE STORIESAS A BOOK! There are millions of people and families out there in desperatesituations, who believe the mainstream establishment that there is nothing they

can do to help themselves. Your stories - stories written by real people, will showthose families that there is a way out and there is hope!

Please, write your story and send it to me, Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride, [email protected] It is your choice to publish your story under your real

name or just the initials.

YOUR STORY MAY SAVE MANY LIVES!

THANK YOU!

**********

This site supports digestive healing following the GAPS (Gut and PsychologySyndrome) diet created by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride.







Our goal is to spread Dr. Campbell-McBride's message and introduce you tothe natural path of digestive healing.

For detailed information on the GAPS diet please refer to:

Gut & Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Campbell-McBride

A Very Brief History

The Gut and Psychology Syndrome Diet has its foundation on the SpecificCarbohydrate Diet (SCD) created by Dr. Sidney Valentine Haas to heal digestive

disorders. SCD gained great popularity after a mother, Elaine Gottschall, healed herown child and became an advocate for SCD. Elaine Gottschall is also the author of

the popular book Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Intestinal Health Through Diet.

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride has taken SCD and evolved it further to create a fullprotocol for healing digestive disorders and subsequent issues.


Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride holds a degree in Medicine and Postgraduatedegrees in both Neurology and Human Nutrition. In her clinic in Cambridge she

specializes in nutrition for children and adults with behavioral and learningdisabilities, and adults with digestive and immune system disorders.

Dr. Campbell-McBride set up The Cambridge Nutrition Clinic in 1998. As a parentof a child diagnosed with learning disabilities, she was acutely aware of the

difficulties facing other parents like her, and she has devoted much of her time tohelping these families. She realized that nutrition played a critical role in helping

children and adults to overcome their disabilities, and has pioneered the use of





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probiotics in this field.

She believes that the link between learning disabilities, the food and drink that wetake, and the condition of our digestive system is absolute, and the results of her

work have supported her position on this subject. In her clinic, parents discuss allaspects of their child's condition, confident in the knowledge that they are not onlytalking to a professional but to a parent who has lived their experience. Her deep

understanding of the challenges they face puts her advice in a class of its own.

**This site should be used as a complement to Dr. Campbell-McBride's book Gutand Psychology Syndrome and is in no way a substitute for all the information

provided within it.**

GAPS™ and Gut and Psychology Syndrome™ are the trademark andcopyright of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. The right of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in

accordance with the Copyright, Patent and Designs Act 1988.

Published by:International Nutrition, Inc.

11615 Crossroads Circle, Suite DMiddle River, MD 21220

(800) 899-3413

[email protected]




GAPSdiet.com Simplified GAPS Outline Here is a simplified outline of the GAPS Nutritional Program. Please refer to Gut and Psychology Syndrome for more detailed information. THE NUTRITIONAL PROGRAM 1. Diet 2. Supplementation 3. Detoxification and Life-style Changes 1. Diet The recommended diet for GAPS patients is largely based on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD). The main difference pertains to dairy products. SCD permits lactose-free dairy products. Lactose is a milk sugar. GAPS and people with digestive problems are unable to digest it and must avoid it. Fermented dairy products such as yogurt are largely lactose free as a result of the fermentation process where by the fermenting bacteria consume lactose. Apart from lactose, milk contains casein which will absorb through the damaged gut lining and act as a toxin in the body. Another problem with dairy is how it relates to food allergies and intolerances. A milk allergy is one of the most common allergies. Even in breast-fed babies where the mother consumes dairy products the child may develop colic due to sensitivity to dairy antigens being passed through the mother's milk. For all of these reasons, GAPS children and adults should not consume dairy products until their digestive system is well enough to handle them. The diet's only exception to this is milk fat (ghee or clarified butter) because it contains virtually no milk proteins or lactose and is generally well tolerated. Please refer to "The Diet" section for a list of recommended foods. 2. Supplementation The essential supplements for GAPS patients: A. An effective therapeutic strength probiotic B. Essential Fatty Acids C. Vitamin A D. Digestive enzymes E. Vitamin and mineral supplements.

A. An effective therapeutic strength probiotic Probiotics are most commonly used in the treatment of gastro-intestinal disorders:

! viral infections of the digestive tract ! necrotizing enterocolitis in infants ! intractable pediatric diarrhea ! pseudomembranous colitis ! traveler's diarrhea ! Clostridium Difficile enterocolitisenterocolitis ! Helicobacter infection ! enteropathogenic E. coli infection ! inflammatory bowel disorders: Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and chronic pouchitis ! irritable bowel syndrome ! lactose intolerance ! prevention of colonic cancer in laboratory studied

In addition to digestive issues many other health problems have been shown to respond to treatment with probiotics:

! allergies including food allergy ! autism ! chronic viral infections ! urogenital infections ! hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and biliary disease ! tuberculosis ! meningitis ! malignancy ! arthritis ! diabetes ! burns of various degree ! perioperative care and intensive care in surgical patients and patients with massive blood

loss ! clinical infections ! autoimmune disorders

While many conditions may benefit from the use of probiotics, the above list has had scientific papers published on the benefit of probiotics with the specific condition. General Guidelines for choosing a good probiotic: a. A good probiotic should have as many different species of beneficial bacteria as possible.

b. A mixture of strains from different groups of probiotic bacteria is more beneficial than just one group.

c. A good probiotic should have a concentrated amount of bacteria: at least 8 billion of bacterial cells per gram.

d. The manufacturer of the probiotic should test every batch for strength and bacterial composition and should be prepared to publish the results.

(Bio-kult is the recommended probiotic and Dr. Campbell-McBride is one of the inventors)

B. Essential Fatty Acids

GAPS children and adults should have a group of essential oils supplemented:

a. A good seed/nut oil blend in the ratio of 2:1 of omega-3:omega-6 fatty acids.

b. Cod liver oil to supply EPA, DHA, vitamin A and vitamin D.

c. Fish oil with higher ratio of EPA to DHA, as more EPA seems to be beneficial for GAPS patients. There are no toxic levels for these oils.

C. Vitamin A As listed previously, vitamin A is recommended in the form of Cod Liver Oil (CLO). Vitamin A deficiency can cause digestive problems. Leaky gut and malabsorption are the typical results of vitamin A deficiency. Unfortunately, due to digestive problems, GAPS children and adults usually cannot absorb or use many forms of vitamin A, commonly found in supplements. A natural form of vitamin A found in CLO appears to be the best form for these patients.

D. Digestive Enzymes

People with abnormal gut flora almost without exception have low stomach acid production. Toxins produced from bacteria such as Candida and Clostridia have a strong ability to reduce secretion of stomach acid.

Stomach acid is the first barrier for huge numbers of microbes arriving with every bite of food or drink we consume. If the stomach is not acid enough, these bad microbes may have a chance of colonizing in the stomach itself.

Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends that GAPS patients supplement with stomach acid. The most physiological preparation available is Betaine HCl with Pepsin.

Pancreatic Enzymes

These are the enzymes people generally think of when hearing the words "digestive enzymes". These enzymes are usually combinations of proteases, peptidases, lipases, amylase, lactase and cellulase.

In a healthy digestive tract, these enzymes are naturally produced by the pancreas. If normal stomach acidity can be returned, these enzymes should work efficiently.

Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends supplementation with stomach acid. If you feel benefit from the use of these supplements, make sure they do not contain fillers or binders which may interfere with the healing process in the gut.

E. Vitamin and Mineral Supplements Dr. Campbell-McBride does not generally recommend any vitamin or mineral supplementation at the beginning of the program.

Some patients may require targeted supplementation but this is a matter for a qualified practitioner to decide. If you are going to use supplements: a. Choose supplements without any ingredients which may aggravate the gut condition. b. Choose supplements with a high absorption rate. c. Keep supplements to an absolute minimum.

3. DETOXIFICATION AND LIFE-STYLE CHANGES The first and most important thing is to remove the main source of toxicity, which means cleaning up and healing the gut. Since this alone will not rid the body of years worth of toxic build up in the system, juicing is recommended. Juicing provides very concentrated fruit and vegetable nutrients to the body in an easily absorbed form. Black Elderberry is also beneficial and has strong immune-stimulating properties and it is one of the most powerful anti-vital remedies known to man.

The General Toxic Load

An important part of the treatment is reduction of the general toxic load. Keep your house chemical free and avoid bringing anything into the home which will let off chemicals such as new carpet, furniture, and paints. Also remember that your skin absorbs just about everything it comes in contact with so be very cautious with the products you put on your skin.

Household plants are great at reducing the toxic air in our houses. They consume the toxic gases and replace them with oxygen and other beneficial substances. This is a brief summary of important points addressed in Gut and Psychology Syndrome. It is very important to read the sections devoted to these areas in the book for a clear understanding of each.

Contact details: Protexin Matts Lane Stoke Sub Hamdon Somerset TA14 6QE

Telephone: +44 (0) 8707 665108

E-Mail: [email protected]

[email protected]

Website: www.bio-kult.com

Available in the USA from: International Nutrition, Inc 11615 Crossroads Circle, Suite D MIddle River, MD 21220, USA

Telephone/Fax: 800-899-3413

Website: www.nutrivene.com

Discover the health benefits of a multi-strain

probiotic

Usage guidelinesTo help maintain a healthy digestive and immune system we recommend that you take 1-2 capsules twice daily with food.

If you are taking Bio-Kult with antibiotics we recommend a double dose taken separately from the antibiotic, preferably at opposite ends of the day, or at least 3 hours after the antibiotic. After finishing the course of antibiotics, continue taking Bio-Kult for at least 2 weeks.

Digestive disorders can vary enormously, from a mild upset caused by food poisoning to chronic disorders, such as Ulcerative Colitis. If you are taking Bio-Kult with these conditions we recommend that you seek advice from your Doctor or Health Care Practitioner for specific dosages suitable for your condition. For further advice, or to find your nearest Health Care Practitioner, please contact us on:+44 (0)8707 665108.

Bio-Kult capsules can be pulled apart and the contents sprinkled on to food, mixed in a drink or swallowed whole.

Bio-Kult is completely safe, has no contraindications and carries no risk of overdose.

Guidelines for general use 1 - 2 capsules twice daily with food.

If taking 2 or more capsules daily, divide daily dose in 2

If you are taking antibiotics Take four capsules daily, ideally at a different time of day from the antibiotics.

If possible begin no later than taking the first antibiotic.

Continue taking for at least 2 weeks after completion of the antibiotic course.

For under 12s take half the adult dose.

For travellers Take two capsules daily for one week before travel.

Increase to four capsules daily during travel.

Continue to take for at least 2 weeks following end of travel. If taking anti-malarials continue for at least 2 weeks after completion of the course.

Bio-Kult is a unique 14 strain probiotic, expertly formulated to help the digestive and immune systems, which are closely linked to our optimum health.

Whether you are a Health Care Practitioner or someone who wants to know more about Bio-Kult, probiotics and gut conditions, you will find lots of useful information on this site.

Plus you can order Bio-Kult and have it delivered direct to your door.

Visit our informative website

If you are interested in the world of probiotics and wish to learn more, please make use of the Bio-Kult website. It contains everything you need to know, from technical information to research data, references and an online Q&A forum.

It will also provide details of certification, telling you, for example, that every batch of Bio-Kult is tested by an independent laboratory for bacterial count, certified

by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), and that Certificates of Analysis are kept for every batch.

www.bio-kult.com

Science and nature in balance

Science and nature in balance

Which gut conditions can Bio-Kult help?*DysbiosisDysbiosis is a condition in which the normal bacteria in the gut are disturbed and the levels of the essential bacteria are reduced. Evidence shows that dysbiosis is the underlying cause of many illnesses, not just those associated with the intestine.

DiarrhoeaDiarrhoea causes an imbalance in the gut microflora, increased gut permeability and inflammation of the intestine. If probiotic bacteria are able to colonise the gut, then it has been suggested they can be used to help treat or prevent diarrhoea. There are many studies concluding that probiotics are effective for the treatment and prevention of different types of diarrhoea.

Antibiotic Associated Diarrhoea (AAD)After a course of antibiotics, the reduced levels of beneficial bacteria in the gut cause an imbalance in the microflora and can allow pathogenic (disease-causing) species to increase. The gastrointestinal microflora are less able to resist colonisation by these unfriendly species, leading

to clinical symptoms like diarrhoea. Probiotics

replace the beneficial bacteria killed by the antibiotics and may prevent the pathogens from taking hold.

Traveller’s Stomach (travel sickness)Any food or water from an infected source can cause traveller’s stomach. Symptoms are mainly diarrhoea, but can include stomach cramps and nausea, often lasting for 10 days after the traveller returns home. The most common cause is contaminated food or water. The use of probiotics as a preventative for diarrhoea during travel has been studied. Evidence suggests that diarrhoea occurs less often when Lactobacilli and Bifidobacterium (species of bacteria contained in Bio-Kult) are used as preventatives and also for treatment.

Candida (Candidiasis)The yeast Candida albicans naturally lives on or in most humans as a harmless organism, but it can become a major fungal pathogen. A study showed that the normal gut flora has a natural resistance to Candida albicans but this may be reduced when antibiotics are taken, leading to recurring yeast infections in women. These can be localised, e.g. in the mouth or vagina, and can spread to almost any organ system. Candidiasis can be associated with a number of conditions: chronic fatigue syndrome, arthritis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and allergies. Probiotic microbes suppress the growth of Candida in both the gastrointestinal tract and vagina. They also stop Candida adhering to mucous membrane.

Atopic DermatitisEczema, suffered by 10-20% of the world’s population, makes the skin red, itchy and flaky. This happens when the skin responds to physical

or environmental irritants. Episodes of eczema can be triggered by allergic reactions to foods, particularly milk products, animals, dust, cosmetics, and viruses; also by environmental factors, such as stress. It has been suggested that some people develop atopic diseases, such as allergic rhinitis, asthma and atopic eczema, due to alterations in their intestinal microflora.

Leaky Gut SyndromeLeaky gut, or intestinal permeability, refers to the gut lining, which allows bacteria and some undigested nutrients to enter the bloodstream instead of being digested and absorbed. Here, they cause the the immune system to react. The immune system cells have an inflammatory reaction that leads to autoantibody production and autoimmune disease development. Probiotics have been shown to improve intestinal permeability and reduce inflammation in Leaky Gut Syndrome patients.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)The three most usual symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) are: lower abdomen pain, diarrhoea or constipation and abdominal bloating. In IBS the intestine does not work properly. Patients may in fact have one or more of the following gastrointestinal complaints: leaky gut, dysbiosis, Candida overgrowth, parasitic infections, allergies and food intolerances. Probiotics, as well as increasing the numbers of beneficial bacteria in the intestine, may also reduce the amount of gas produced and help reduce the symptoms of IBS.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a term that embraces several conditions in which the intestine is persistently inflamed. Its two main forms are

Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (UC), long-term conditions whose main symptoms are diarrhoea, pain and blood in the stool. There is currently no cure. Drugs are used to reduce the inflammation. In severe cases, the damaged intestine is removed. It has only recently become clear that these diseases centre on the immune cells and tissues in the intestine that react incorrectly to normal gut microflora.

AutismFor reasons not yet understood, autistic children develop deficient gut flora. Lacking properly established “good” gut bacteria, essential for food digestion and absorption, autistic children can develop multiple nutritional deficiencies that drastically affect their development. In parallel, pathogenic and opportunistic microbes can develop, grow and become active, producing toxins that enter the bloodstream. Developing brains are particularly sensitive to these “toxins” and nutritional deficiencies. As a result there is no normal development of language, comprehension, behaviour etc. Over time, an efficient probiotic will re-establish the normal gut flora by clearing out the “bad” microbes and old putrefaction. The healing process then starts.

*Research data and references available from www.bio-kult.com

What is Bio-Kult?Bio-Kult is a unique probiotic

made up of 14 different strains. It is designed to help our

digestive and immune systems, both of which are important in

keeping us at the peak of health.

Evidence suggests that Bio-Kult’s broad spectrum of beneficial bacteria can reduce the symptoms and inflammation associated

with digestive disorders and other conditions.

Bio-Kult is suitable for vegetarians, is completely safe, has no

contraindications and carries no risk of overdose.

Bio-Kult was formulated by an expert team of doctors, nutritionists and scientists dedicated to advancing the

research and use of probiotic health supplements.

14

Bio-Kult capsules can be pulled apart and the contents sprinkled

on to food, mixed in a drink or swallowed whole.

Strains offriendly bacteria

Distributed by: International Nutrition Inc. 11615 Crossroads Circle, Suite D, Middle River, MD 21220, USA.

Made in the United Kingdom by: Probiotics International Limited.

Other ingredients: Maltodextrin, vegetable capsule (hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, water), magnesium stearate.

Allergen statement: Contains soy and milk ingredients in trace amounts. The levels of milk ingredients should not

affect those who are lactose intolerant.

Supplement FactsServing Size: 2 CapsulesServings per container: 30

Amount per serving

Bio-Kult® Probiotic Blend 54 mg**Lactobacillus spp. (L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, L. acidophilus, L. delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus, L. casei, L. helveticus, L. salivarius), Bacillus subtilis, Bifidobacterium spp. (B. bifidum, B. breve, B. infantis, B. longum), Lactococcus lactis ssp lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus

**Daily value not established

Probiotic MicroorganismsThe healthy body naturally hosts trillions of beneficial bacteria. Amongst other things, they help to support and maintain a strong immune system and a healthy digestive system.* Today’s lifestyle of stress and poor nutrition can challenge these essential functions.*

Why Bio-Kult®?The complete formula in Bio-Kult® helps balance and maintain these natural systems with the beneficial organisms necessary to keep you at your best. It is of fundamental importance that we have an adequate level of these probiotic bacteria in our bodies at all times. With fourteen strains of beneficial bacteria at a concentration of 10 billion CFU per gram, Bio-Kult® is one of the most powerful probiotic supplements available.

Recommended Daily IntakeOne to two capsules twice daily with food.Children under 12 - half dose. Or as directed by your health practitioner or doctor.Do not exceed the recommended daily dose.Keep out of reach of children.Probiotic supplements should not be used as a substitute for a healthy lifestyle or a varied, balanced diet.Each capsule provides 2x109 (2billion) CFU.Store in a cool dry place. No need to refrigerate.

*This statement has not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. The product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Strains offriendly bacteria

Other ingredients: Maltodextrin, vegetable capsule (hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, water), magnesium stearate.

Allergen statement: Contains soy and milk ingredients in trace amounts. The levels of milk ingredients should not

affect those who are lactose intolerant.

Supplement FactsServing Size: 2 CapsulesServings per container: 60

Amount per serving

Bio-Kult® Probiotic Blend 54 mg**Lactobacillus spp. (L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, L. acidophilus, L. delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus, L. casei, L. helveticus, L. salivarius), Bacillus subtilis, Bifidobacterium spp. (B. bifidum, B. breve, B. infantis, B. longum), Lactococcus lactis ssp lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus

**Daily value not established

Probiotic MicroorganismsThe healthy body naturally hosts trillions of beneficial bacteria. Amongst other things, they help to support and maintain a strong immune system and a healthy digestive system.* Today’s lifestyle of stress and poor nutrition can challenge these essential functions.*

Why Bio-Kult®?The complete formula in Bio-Kult® helps balance and maintain these natural systems with the beneficial organisms necessary to keep you at your best. It is of fundamental importance that we have an adequate level of these probiotic bacteria in our bodies at all times. With fourteen strains of beneficial bacteria at a concentration of 10 billion CFU per gram, Bio-Kult® is one of the most powerful probiotic supplements available.

Recommended Daily IntakeOne to two capsules twice daily with food.Children under 12 - half dose. Or as directed by your health practitioner or doctor.Do not exceed the recommended daily dose.Keep out of reach of children.Probiotic supplements should not be used as a substitute for a healthy lifestyle or a varied, balanced diet.Each capsule provides 2x109 (2billion) CFU.Store in a cool dry place. No need to refrigerate.

Distributed by: International Nutrition Inc. 11615 Crossroads Circle, Suite D, Middle River, MD 21220, USA.

Made in the United Kingdom by: Probiotics International Limited.

*This statement has not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. The product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

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Bio-Kult_USA_Master_60&120_Labels_V5_REPRO.pdf 3/11/08 15:21:12

Food Allergy

By Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride Published in: Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine, First Quarter, 2009, Vol 24, 1, pp.31-41 Food allergies have become very common, and the trend is up. 1 Most medical practitioners find that we have to face this problem more and more on a daily basis. A recent public survey in the UK has shown that almost half the population report that they have an �allergy� to some food or foods. 2 However, the official figures for a �true allergy to food� are around 1% of the population in most developed countries. 1 The reason for this confusion is that majority of food reactions/allergies/intolerances do not produce a typical allergy test profile (raised IgE or IgG with positive prick test and/or positive RAST test). There have been different attempts to classify this group: as type B food allergy, metabolic food intolerance or simply food intolerance, rather than a �true� allergy. 3 In this group a person may react to many different foods or combinations of foods. Quite often the person is not sure what food produces the reaction, because the reaction may be immediate or delayed (a day, a few days or even a week later). As these delayed reactions overlap with each other, the patients can never be sure what exactly they are reacting to on any given day. 1,3 On top of that there is a masking phenomenon, when reactions to a regularly consumed food run into each other (the new reaction begins when the previous has not finished yet), so the connection with that food and symptoms, it triggers, is not apparent. 4 Food allergy or intolerance can produce any symptom under the sun: from migraines, fatigue, PMS, painful joints, itchy skin to depression, hyperactivity, hallucinations, obsessions and other psychiatric and neurological manifestations. However, the most immediate and common symptoms in the vast majority of patients are digestive problems: pain, diarrhoea or constipation, urgency, bloating, indigestion, etc. 3,5,6 Naturally, many people try to identify, which foods they react to. As a result many forms of testing have appeared on the market: from blood tests to electronic skin tests. Many experienced practitioners get disillusioned with most of these tests, as they produce too many false-positives and false-negatives. 6 On top of that they lead to a simple conclusion, that if you remove the �positive� foods out of the diet, it will solve the problem. In some cases, indeed elimination of a trigger food helps. However, in majority the help in not permanent: the patients find, that as they eliminate some

foods, they start reacting to other foods, to which they did not seem to react before. The whole process leads to a situation where the person finishes up with virtually nothing left to eat, and every new test finds reactions to new foods. Majority of experienced practitioners come to the same conclusion: the simplistic idea of �just don�t eat foods, you are allergic to!� does not address the root of the problem. 3,6 We need to look deeper, at what causes these food intolerances. In order to understand it, I would like to share a case history of one of my patients. Stephanie S, 35 years old asked for my help in �sorting out her food allergies�. A very pale malnourished looking lady, (weight 45 kg with height 160cm) with low energy levels, chronic cystitis, abdominal pains, bloating and chronic constipation. She was consistently diagnosed anaemic all her life. Family background: she was born naturally from a mother with digestive problems and migraines, her sister suffered from severe eczema and her brother from GI problems. She did not have information on her father�s health. She was not breast fed as a baby and at the age of 3 months got her first urinary infection with the first course of antibiotics. Since then the urinary infections became a regular part of her life, usually treated by antibiotics; now she is suffering from chronic interstitial cystitis. Through the childhood she was very thin, always found it difficult to put any weight on, but otherwise she considered her health to be �OK� - she completed school and played sports. At 14 years of age her menstruations stopped, having started a year before. She was put on a contraceptive pill, which seemed to regulate her menstruations. Around 16 she was put on a long course of antibiotics for acne, after which developed lactose intolerance, severe constipation and bloating. Was advised to stop dairy at 18, which helped with constipation for a while, but other symptoms remained. She developed progressively low levels of energy, abdominal cramps, dizzy spells, very low body weight and very dry skin. Following numerous medical consultations and food allergy testing she started removing different foods out of her diet, but was never sure if it made much difference: some symptoms seemed to improve, others did not and new symptoms appeared. She became sensitive to loud sounds and local pollution, her shampoo and make up and some domestic cleaning chemicals. Her cystitis became chronic and was pronounced psychosomatic by her doctor. Her diet at the time of the consultation was very limited: she

seemed to tolerate (but was not entirely sure) breakfast cereals, sheep�s yoghurt, soy milk, some varieties of cheese, a few vegetables and rarely fish. Following several food allergy tests she has removed all meats, eggs, nuts, all fruit, whole grains and many vegetables. This example is very common and demonstrates clearly that just removing �offending� foods out of the diet does not solve the problem. We have to look deeper and find the course of the patient�s malady. In order to do that we have to examine Stephanie�s health history. Infancy Stephanie was born from a mother with digestive problems and was not breast fed. What does that tell us? We know that unborn babies have sterile gut. 7 At the time of birth the baby swallows mouthfuls of microbes, which live in the mother�s birth canal. 8 These microbes take about 20 days to establish themselves in the baby�s virgin digestive system and become the baby�s gut flora. 7,8 Where does the vaginal flora come from? The medical science shows that the flora in the vagina largely comes from the gut. What lives in the woman�s bowel will live in her vagina. 9,10 Stephanie�s mother suffered from digestive problems, which indicates that she had abnormal gut flora, which she passed to her daughter at birth. Baby Stephanie was not breast fed. Breast milk, particularly colostrum in the first days after birth, is vital for appropriate population of the baby�s digestive system with healthy microbial flora. 9,10,11 We know that bottle fed babies develop completely different gut flora to the breast fed babies. 11 That flora later on predisposes bottle-fed babies to asthma, eczema, different other allergies and other health problems. 12 But the most important abnormalities develop in the digestive system of course, as that is where these microbes make their home. Having acquired abnormal gut flora from her mother at birth, Stephanie had it compromised further by bottle feeding. Chronic cystitis Apart from the gut, in the first few weeks of life other mucous membranes and baby�s skin get populated by their own flora, playing a crucial role in

protecting those surfaces from pathogens and toxins. 13 As baby Stephanie acquired abnormal flora in her gut, her groin and vagina got abnormal flora too (as it normally comes from the gut). 10 At the same time the urethra and the urinary bladder would get similar to vagina flora: in a normal situation it should be predominated by Lactobacteria, largely L. crispatus and L. jensenii. 14 This flora produces hydrogen peroxide, reducing the Ph in the area, which does not allow pathogens to adhere. 15 Unprotected urethra and bladder fall pray to any pathogenic microbes, causing urinary tract infections. The most common pathogens, which cause UTIs, are E.coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus saprophyticus,coming from the bowel and the groin. 15 Urine is one of the venues of toxin elimination from the body. 16 In gut dysbiosis large amounts of various toxins are produced by pathogens in the gut and absorb into the bloodstream through the damaged gut wall. 16,17 Many of these toxins leave the body in urine: accumulating in the bladder, this toxic urine comes into contact with the bladder lining. The beneficial bacteria in the bladder and urethra maintain a GAG layer of the bladder: a protective mucous barrier, largely made from sulphated glucosaminoglycans, produced by the cells of the bladder lining. 17 As the GAG layer gets damaged, toxic substances in urine get through to the bladder wall causing inflammation and leading to chronic cystitis. 18 And that is what happened to Stephanie: at the age of 3 months she got her first urinary infection. As her gut flora, vaginal flora and the flora of urethra and the bladder were not corrected, she suffered from urinary infections all her life and eventually developed chronic cystitis. Further damage to gut flora Because of regular urinary tract infections Stephanie had to have regular courses of antibiotics through her entire life, starting from infancy. Every course of antibiotics damages beneficial species of bacteria in the gut, leaving it open to invasion by pathogens, resistant to antibiotics. 10,19 Even when the course of antibiotic is short and the dose is low, it takes different beneficial bacteria in the gut a long time to recover: physiological E.Coli takes 1-2 weeks, Bifidobacteria and Veillonelli take 2-3 weeks, Lactobacilli, Bacteroids, Peptostreptococci take a month. 10,20 If in this period the gut

flora is subjected to another damaging factor(s), then gut dysbiosis may well start in earnest. 21 After many short courses of antibiotics Stephanie had to take a long course for acne at the age of 16. That is when she got pronounced digestive problems: constipation, bloating, abdominal pain and lactose intolerance, indicating that her gut flora got seriously compromised. From the age of 14 Stephanie has been taking contraceptive pills for many years. Contraceptives have a serious damaging effect on the composition of gut flora,leading to allergy and other problems, related to gut dysbiosis . 22,23 Malnutrition- the consequence of abnormal gut flora Stephanie suffered from malnutrition all her life despite the fact that her family always cooked fresh wholesome meals and Stephanie ate well. She was always pale, very thin and small and could never put any weight on. This is not surprising taking into consideration the state of her gut right from birth. The microbial layer on the absorptive surface of the GI tract not only protects it from invaders and toxins, but maintains its integrity. 20,21 The epithelial cells called enterocytes, which coat the villi are the very cells, which complete the digestive process and absorb the nutrients from food. 24 These cells only live a few days as the cell turnover in the gut wall is very active. These enterocytes are constantly born in the depth of the crypts. Then they slowly travel to the top of the villi, doing their job of digestion and absorption and getting more and more mature on the way. As they reach the top of the villi, they get shed off. This way the epithelium of intestines gets constantly renewed to insure its good ability to do its work well. 24 Animal experiments with sterilisation of the gut found that when the beneficial bacteria, living on the intestinal epithelium are removed, this process of cell renewal gets completely out of order. 10 The time of cell travel from crypts to the top of the villi becomes a few times longer, which upsets the maturation process of absorptive cells and often turns them cancerous. The mitotic activity in the crypts gets significantly suppressed, which means that much less cells will be born there and much less of them will be born healthy and able to do their job properly. The state of the cells themselves becomes abnormal. 9,25 That is what happens in a laboratory animal with sterilised gut. In a human body the absence of good bacteria always comes with pathogenic bacteria getting out of control, which makes the whole situation much worse. Without the care of beneficial bacteria

while under attack from pathogenic flora, the gut epithelium degenerates and becomes unable to digest and absorb food properly, leading to malabsorption, nutritional deficiencies and food intolerances. 19.21,25 Apart from keeping the gut wall in good shape, the healthy gut flora populating this wall has been designed to take an active part in the very process of digestion and absorption. 19,21 So much so, that the normal digestion and absorption of food is probably impossible without well-balanced gut flora. It has an ability to digest proteins, ferment carbohydrates, break down lipids and fibre. By-products of bacterial activity in the gut are very important in transporting minerals, vitamins, water, gases and many other nutrients through the gut wall into the bloodstream. 10 If the gut flora is damaged, the best foods and supplements in the world may not have a good chance of being broken down and absorbed. A good example is dietary fibre, which is one of the natural habitats for beneficial bacteria in the gut. 25 They feed on it, producing a whole host of good nutrition for the gut wall and the whole body, they engage it in absorbing toxins, they activate it to take part in water and electrolytes metabolism, to recycle bile acids and cholesterol, etc., etc. It is the bacterial action on dietary fibre that allows it to fulfil all those good functions in the body. 20,21 And when these good bacteria are damaged and are not able to �work� the fibre, dietary fibre itself can become dangerous for the digestive system, providing a good habitat for the bad pathogenic bacteria and aggravating the inflammation in the gut wall.This is when gastroenterologists have to recommend a low-fibre diet. 19 Consequently, dietary fibre alone without the beneficial bacteria present in the gut can end up not being all that good for us. Stephanie also found that she became lactose intolerant after the long course of antibiotics prescribed for her acne. And indeed Lactose is one of those substances, which most of us would not be able to digest without well functioning gut flora. 25 The explanation offered by science so far is that after early childhood majority of us lack an enzyme called Lactase to digest Lactose. 26 If we are not meant to digest Lactose, then why do some people seem to manage it perfectly well? The answer is that these people have the right bacteria in their gut. One of the major Lactose digesting bacteria in the human gut is E.coli. 10 It comes as a surprise to many people that physiological strains of E.coli are essential inhabitants of a healthy digestive tract. They appear in the gut of a healthy baby in the first days after birth in huge numbers: 107 - 109 CFU/g and stay in these same numbers throughout life, providing that they do not get destroyed by antibiotics and other environmental influences. 9,19 Apart from digesting Lactose, physiological

strains of E.coli produce vitamin K and vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12, produce antibiotic-like substances, called colicins, and control other members of their own family which can cause disease. In fact having your gut populated by the physiological strains of E.coli is the best way to protect yourself from pathogenic species of E.coli. 21 Unfortunately, this group of beneficial bacteria are very vulnerable to broad spectrum antibiotics, particularly aminoglycosides (Gentamycin, Kanamycin) and macrolides (Erythromycin, etc.). 9,10 Apart from E.coli, other beneficial bacteria in the healthy gut flora (Bifidobacteria, Lactobacteria, beneficial yeastsand other) will not only ensure appropriate absorption of nutrients from food but also actively synthesise various nutrients: vitamin K, pantothenic acid, folic acid, thiamin (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin (vitamin B3), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12), various amino acids and other active substances. 9,10,25 In the process of evolution Nature made sure that when the food supply is sparse, we humans don't die from vitamin and amino acids deficiencies. Nature provided us with our own factory for making these substances - our healthy gut flora. And when this gut flora is damaged despite adequate nutrition we develop vitamin deficiencies. Every tested child or adult with gut dysbiosis shows deficiencies in those very vitamins, which their gut flora is supposed to produce. 25 Restoring the beneficial bacteria in their gut is the best way to deal with those deficiencies, particularly vitamin B deficiencies. 10,19,21 On testing over the years Stephanie consistently showed deficiencies in most B vitamins, fat soluble vitamins, magnesium, zinc, selenium, manganese, sulphur, iron and some fatty acids. Anaemia � another consequence of gut dysbiosis Stephanie suffered from anaemia all her life, unsuccessfully treated by courses of iron tablets. The majority of patients with gut dysbiosis look pale and pasty and their blood tests often show changes typical for anaemia. 21 It is not surprising. They not only cannot absorb essential for blood vitamins and minerals from food, but their own production of these vitamins is damaged. On top of that people with damaged gut flora often have a particular group of pathogenic bacteria growing in their gut, which are iron-loving bacteria (Actinomyces spp., Mycobacterium spp., pathogenic strains

of E.coli, Corynebacterium spp. and many others). 13,25 They consume dietary iron, leaving the person deficient. Unfortunately, supplementing iron makes these bacteria proliferate, bringing unpleasant digestive problems and does not remedy anaemia. To have healthy blood the body needs other minerals, a whole host of vitamins: B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, A, D, folic acid, pantothenic acid and some amino acids. 24,10 It has been shown in a large number of studies all over the world, that just supplementing iron does not do much for anaemia. 27 The pathogens in the gut The most studied pathogens, that overgrow after numerous antibiotic courses are clostridia and yeasts, which normally belong to the opportunistic group of gut microbes. 28 The opportunistic gut flora is a large group of various microbes, the number and combinations of which can be quite individual. There are so far around 400 different species of them found in the human gut. 25 These are the most common: Bacteroids, Peptococci, Staphylococci, Streptococci, Bacilli, Clostridia, Yeasts, Enterobacteria (Proteus, Clebsielli, Citrobacteria, etc.), Fuzobacteria, Eubacteria, Spirochaetaceae, Spirillaceae, Catenobacteria, different viruses and many others. 13

Interestingly, many of these opportunistic bacteria when in small numbers and under control actually fulfil some beneficial functions in the gut, like taking part in the digestion of food, breaking down lipids and bile acids. In a healthy gut their numbers are limited and tightly controlled by the beneficial flora. 20 But when this beneficial flora is weakened and damaged, they get out of control. Each of these microbes is capable of causing various health problems. 29 The best known is the fungus Candida albicans, which causes untold misery to millions of people. 31 There is an abundance of literature published about Candida infection. However, I have to say that a lot of what is described as Candida Syndrome is in effect a result of gut dysbiosis, which would include activity of lots of other opportunistic and pathogenic microbes. Candida albicans is never along in the human body. Its activity and ability to survive and cause disease depends on the state of trillions of its neighbours � different bacteria, viruses, protozoa, other yeasts and many other micro-creatures. 9,19,31 In a healthy body Candida and many other disease causing microbes are very well controlled by the beneficial flora. Unfortunately, the era of antibiotics gave Candida a special opportunity. The usual broad-spectrum antibiotics kill a lot of different microbes in the body � the bad and the good. But they have no effect on Candida. So, after every course of antibiotics, Candida is left without anybody to control it, so it

grows and thrives. 30,31 Stephanie had many symptoms of Candida overgrowth in her body: low energy level, dry skin, recurrent vaginal thrush and cystitis, bloating, constipation, foggy brain and lethargy. Clostridia family was given a special opportunity by the era of antibiotics too, because Clostridia are also resistant to them. 34 There are about 100 members of this family discovered so far and they all can cause serious disease. Many of them are found as opportunists in a healthy human gut flora. 25,33 As long as they are controlled by the beneficial microbes in the gut, they normally do us no harm. Unfortunately, every course of broad - spectrum antibiotics removes the good bacteria, which leaves Clostridia uncontrolled and allows it to grow. Different species of Clostridia cause severe inflammation of the digestive system and damage its integrity, leading to many digestive problems and food intolerances. 32,33 Food �allergies� and intolerances Normal gut flora maintains gut wall integrity through protecting it, feeding it and insuring normal cell turnover. When the beneficial bacteria in the gut are greatly reduced, the gut wall degenerates. 9,10,21,25 At the same time various opportunists, when not controlled by damaged good bacteria, get access to the gut wall and damage its integrity, making it porous and �leaky�. 6,28,29

For example, microbiologists have observed how common opportunistic gut bacteria from families Spirochaetaceae and Spirillaceae due to their spiral shape have an ability to push apart intestinal cells braking down the integrity of the intestinal wall and allowing through substances which normally should not get through. 13, 25 Candida albicans has this ability as well. Its cells attach themselves to the gut lining literally putting �roots� through it and making it �leaky�. 31 Many worms and parasites have that ability as well. 9,10,35 Partially digested foods gets through the damaged �leaky� gut wall into the blood stream, where the immune system recognises them as foreign and reacts to them. 36,37.38 This is how food allergies or intolerances develop. So, there is nothing wrong with the food. What is happening is that foods do not get a chance to be digested properly before they are absorbed through the damaged gut wall. So, in order to eliminate food allergies, it in not the foods we need to concentrate on, but the gut wall. In my clinical experience, when the gut wall is healed many food intolerances disappear. Healing the gut wall � the diet How do we heal the gut wall? We need to replace the pathogens in the gut with the beneficial bacteria, so effective probiotics are an essential part of

the treatment. However, the most important intervention is the appropriate diet. There is no need to re-invent a wheel when it comes to designing a diet for digestive disorders. There is a diet already invented, a very effective diet with more than 60 years of an excellent record of helping people with all sorts of digestive disorders, including such devastating ones as Crohn�s disease and ulcerative colitis. This diet is called Specific Carbohydrate Diet or SCD for short. SCD has been invented by a renowned American paediatrician Dr. Sidney Valentine Haas in the first half of the 20th century. 39 Those were the good old days, when doctors used to treat their patients with diet and natural means. Carrying on with the work of his colleagues Drs. L. Emmett Holt, Cristian Herter and John Howland, Dr. Haas has spent many yeas researching the effects of diet on celiac disease and other digestive disorders. He and his colleagues found that patients with digestive disorders could tolerate dietary proteins and fats fairly well. But complex carbohydrates from grains and starchy vegetables made the problem worse. Sucrose, lactose and other double sugars also had to be excluded from the diet. However, certain fruit and vegetables were not only well tolerated by his patients, but improved their physical status. Dr. Haas treated over 600 patients with excellent results: after following his dietary regimen for at least a year there was �complete recovery with no relapses, no deaths, no crisis, no pulmonary involvement and no stunting of growth�. The results of this research were published in a comprehensive medical textbook �The Management of Celiac Disease�, written by Dr. Sidney V. Haas and Merrill P. Haas in 1951. The diet, described in the book, was accepted by medical community all over the world as a cure for celiac disease and Dr. Sidney V. Haas was honoured for his pioneer work in the field of paediatrics. Unfortunately, �happy end� does not happen in human history too often. In those days celiac disease was not very clearly defined. A great number of various conditions of the gut were included into the diagnosis of celiac disease and all those conditions were treatable by the SCD very effectively. In decades that followed something terrible happened. Celiac disease was eventually defined as a gluten intolerance or gluten enteropathy, which excluded a great number of various other gut problems from this diagnosis. As the �gluten free diet� was pronounced to be effective for celiac disease, the SCD diet got forgotten as outdated information. And all those other gut diseases, which fell out of the realms of true celiac disease, got forgotten as

well. The true celiac disease is rare, so the �forgotten� gut conditions would constitute a very large group of patients, which used to be diagnosed as celiac and which do not respond to treatment with gluten free diet. Incidentally, a lot of �true� celiac patients do not get better on the gluten free diet either. All these conditions respond very well to SCD diet, developed by Dr. Haas. 39 Following the whole controversy about celiac disease, the Specific Carbohydrate Diet would have been completely forgotten if it wasn�t for, you guessed it, a parent! Elaine Gottschall, desperate to help her little daughter, who suffered from severe ulcerative colitis and neurological problems, went to see Dr. Haas in 1958. After 2 years on SCD her daughter was completely free of symptoms, an energetic and thriving little girl. Following the success of the SCD with her daughter Elaine Gottschall over the years has helped thousands of people, suffering from Crohn�s disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, diverticulitis and various types of chronic diarrhoea. Very dramatic and fast recoveries she has reported in young children, who apart of digestive problems had serious behavioural abnormalities, such as autism, hyperactivity and night terrors. She has devoted years of research into biochemical and biological basis of the diet and has published a book, called �Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Intestinal Health Trough Diet.� 39 This book has become a true saviour for thousands of children and adults across the world and has been reprinted many times. Many Web-sites and web-groups have been set up to share SCD recipes and experiences. I have been using SCD for many years in my clinic and have to say that it is the diet for food allergies. As I work largely with children with learning disabilities, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, etc, I have grouped these patients under the name Gut And Psychology Syndrome or GAPS. 40 I had to adopt some aspects of SCD for these patients and they have named their diet � the GAPS diet. Over the years I have developed a GAPS Introduction Diet for the more severe end of the spectrum (www.gapsdiet.com). I find that the Introduction Diet is particularly effective in food allergies, as it allows the gut wall heal quicker. The Introduction Diet is structured in stages. Unless there is a dangerous (anaphylactic type) allergy to a particular food, I recommend my patients to ignore the results of their food intolerance testing and follow the stages one by one. The Introduction Diet in its first stages serves the gut lining in three ways:

1. It removes fibre. With damaged gut wall fibre irritates the gut lining and

provides food for the pathogenic microbes in the gut. This means: no nuts, no beans, no fruit and no raw vegetables. Only well-cooked vegetables (soups and stews) are allowed with particularly fibrous parts of the vegetable removed. No starch is allowed on the GAPS diet, which means no grains and no starchy vegetables.

2. It provides nourishment for the gut lining: amino acids, minerals, gelatine,

glucosamines, collagens, fat soluble vitamins, etc. These substances come from homemade meat and fish stocks, gelatinous parts of meats well-cooked in water, organ meats, egg yolks and plenty of natural animal fats on meats.

3. It provides probiotic bacteria in the form of fermented foods. The patients are taught to ferment their own yoghurt, kefir, vegetables and other foods at home. These foods are introduced gradually in order to avoid a �die-off reaction�.

On the first two stages of the Introduction Diet most severe digestive symptoms, such as diarrhoea and abdominal pain disappear quite quickly. At that point the patient can move through the next stages, when other foods are gradually introduced. As the gut wall starts healing, the patients find that they can gradually introduce foods, which they could not tolerate before. When the Introduction GAPS Diet is completed, the patient moves to the Full GAPS Diet. I recommend adhering to the Full Diet for 2 year on average in order to restore normal gut flora and GI function. Depending on the severity of the condition, different people take different time to recover. Children usually recover quicker than adults. Stephanie had to follow the Introduction Diet for 7 months before she started putting weight on and feeling stronger. By the time she moved to the Full GAPS Diet she had normal stools, no bloating and no cystitis symptoms; her energy levels were much improved, though she still looked slightly pale. In about a year from the start of the treatment she disappeared for 18 months, then emailed me with an update: she was doing well, her energy level was good, she had no symptoms of cystitis and her GI function was good. She put weight on: though she was still quite slim, but within the normal range.

In the last two months she started eating some foods not allowed on the diet and found that she can tolerate them on an occasional basis, including pasta, chocolate and some goods from the local bakery. Healing the gut wall - probiotics In order to heal the gut wall apart from the appropriate diet we need to replace the pathogenic microbes in the gut with the beneficial ones. The fermented foods in the diet will provide some probiotic microbes. However, an effective probiotic supplement is essential in most cases. There is a plethora of studies accumulated about benefits of probiotic supplementation for most digestive disorders, as well as many other health problems. 41-47 The market is full of probiotics in the form of drinks, foods, powders, capsules and tablets. Majority of them are prophylactic, which means that they are designed for the fairly healthy people, they are not designed to make a real difference in a person with a digestive disorder and a �leaky gut�. These people need a therapeutic strength probiotic with well-chosen powerful species of probiotic bacteria. A therapeutic probiotic will produce a so-called �die-off reaction�: the probiotic bacteria kill the pathogens in the gut, when these pathogens die, they release toxins. As these are the toxins which give the patient his or her unique symptoms, their release makes these symptoms worse, which is called the �die-off reaction�. This reaction can be quite serious and must be controlled. That is why I recommend to start the therapeutic probiotic from a very small dose, then build the dose very gradually up to the therapeutic level. Once on that level, the patient needs to stay on it for a few months: how long - depends on the severity of the condition. Once the symptoms of the disease are largely gone, the patient can start gradually reducing the daily dose to the maintenance level or can stop altogether. Stephanie took a particular therapeutic probiotic. She took one capsule per day (2 billion live cells) for a week, then increased to 2 capsules per day. On this dose her skin became itchy, she got loose stool and her cystitis symptoms got slightly worse. She understood it to be a �die-off�, so stayed on this dose for as long as it took for these symptoms to subside � 2,5 weeks. Then she increased her dose to 3 capsules a day. This increase produced

another �die-off reaction�, so she had to stay on the 3 capsules per day for a month before she could move on. In this manner she gradually got up to 8 capsules a day � her therapeutic dose. I recommended her to stay on this dose for 6 months. In this period of time all her main symptoms subsided and some started going. After 6 months, she decided to stay on the therapeutic dose for longer, as she felt well on it. After another 4 months on 8 capsules per day, she felt strong enough to start reducing the dose. She gradually reduced it to 4 capsules a day � her maintenance dose. After about 2 years on this dose she found that she could discontinue the probiotic (as it is expensive) and only take it occasionally, when she was under particular stress.

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probiotics:

cover story: PROBIOTICS

healing the mindThe idea that disease starts in the gut is not new, but a Cambridge practitioner has taken it a stage farther by showing how the restoration of gut flora plays a crucial part in the treatment of children with learning and behavioural disorders. CAM editor Simon Martin talks to Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride, MD, of the Cambridge Nutrition Clinic.

D r Natasha Campbell-McBride knows about children’s health from personal experience. Her son was diagnosed autistic when he was three. At three and a

half, he started a programme of treatment. Now 10, he attends a mainstream school.

“I remember that traumatic moment of the diagnosis ‘Autism’, being announced to us by our doctor followed by a statement 'There is nothing that can be done', says Natasha. “Well, being a doctor myself, I have to say ‘Your doctor is wrong! There is a lot that can be done’.“

Natasha and her partner Peter were founding members of PEACH (Parents for the Early intervention of Autism in Children). PEACH is a parent-led group helping parents of children with autism Intensive Behavioural Intervention Programmes. Also known as ABA, this approach is based on highly personalised, one-to-one coaching that teaches children language, play, academic, intellectual, self-help and social skills. An ABA programme can sometimes achieve miracles, but Natasha’s research and experience has shown her that it is still not enough.

“Looking back now, nobody could predict that a little boy without any language, constantly self stimulating, eating very little apart from milk from a baby bottle could undergo such a transformation. On the whole what happened to him can only be described as a miracle. However, his achievements are not due solely to the ABA programme“, says Natasha.

“A huge part of his transformation was in his nutritional management. Being trained as a medical doctor I knew that conventional medicine has nothing to offer children like my son. So I went back

to university and trained as a nutritionist. We have compromised gut flora.“ changed his diet and after trying various nutritional As a result, she says, we also have an epidemic supplements we have found the ones that work. An of poor health in children. “We hardly have any autistic child needs a very special nutritional healthy children nowadays. One survey showed that management, a major part of it being – putting his only 10% of school children did not have a gut flora right! Gut flora is a living organism very diagnosed condition. If you look at a typical school, sensitive to the diet, antibiotics, steroids and stress. you hardly see any healthy children. Some are

“Diet on its own is a very powerful tool in obese, some look malnourished, a lot of them are helping an autistic child. But it cannot solve all the very pale, a lot of them have eczema, a lot of them problems without nutritional supplements. In order have asthma. About 30% of them are on inhalers. to rebalance the gut flora it is essential to use a The situation is very sad.“ strong multi-strain probiotic. Recent international studies have suggested a

“He showed an excellent response to relatively strong causal relationship between probiotics. From about two to three months after increased risk of childhood asthma and exposure to starting it we saw dramatic improvements in our antibiotics during childhood, especially during the son – his eye contact became normal and stable, first year of life. the self-stimulation had almost disappeared, he Prof Julian Crane of Otago University has generally became more aware and with us. commented: “Our paper, together with a study Everybody comments on how healthy he looks. He published …in Thorax (Farooqi IS, et al. Thorax used to be on a milk-free diet. We introduced some 1998;53:927-32), raises the possibility that broad-milk products back into his diet and found that he spectrum antibiotics, particularly in the first year of tolerates it now without any symptoms.“ life, may be associated with an increased risk of

As a result of their experience, Peter heads up atopy and asthma. For reasons that have been Cambridge Bioceuticals, a UK company founded by pointed out in both papers, these results cannot be a team of doctors, nutritionists and scientists taken as definitive, but rather as hypothesis-raising. dedicated to advancing the research and use of “On the other hand, the results are plausible. probiotics. And he has become one of many Broad-spectrum antibiotics came into clinical usage children able to be helped by a combination of in the 1960s, and their increased use coincides treatments with one thing in common – the use of with the time trends for the increasing prevalence powerful, multi-strain therapeutic probiotics. of asthma. There is a plausible mechanism, namely

“More than 400 children have gone through my that broad-spectrum antibiotics may alter and clinic“, says Natasha. “Hyperactive children, reduce bowel flora and thus switch off the children with dyslexia and asthma and eczema and immunological signals that these gut bacteria send ADHD and other disabilities, and what I see is that to the developing immune system.“ (1) Crane has what we have in our society is an epidemic of also showed, with a study of 450 children at six

cover story: PROBIOTICS Steiner schools in New Zealand, that even with person has a fairly solid gut flora, then it usually environment stimuli in a normal, natural way, parents opposed to the routine use of antibiotics, a recovers. But if antibiotics are repeated quite often, people start reacting in an allergic type of way. staggering 75% of the children had used and particularly when people are prescribed long “The gut flora’s really a huge, huge agent. On antibiotics, 36% in the first year of life! courses – such as when people with acne are put on average everyone carries two kilograms of bacteria

Autism is also exploding. “In this country one tetracycline for 2 years or so – they invariably finish in their gut. There are more cells there than there child in 250 is diagnosed as autistic, when 10 years up with digestive disorders like IBS, because their are in an entire human body. We can’t live without ago we had one child in 10,000“, says Natasha. gut flora gets wiped up. When the beneficial this mass of bacteria and it’s a highly organised This is nothing to do with improvements or changes bacteria are not there, then all sorts of pathogens microbial world, dominated by beneficial bacteria. in diagnosis, she says. “The medical establishment and opportunists get a chance to grow to occupy the “What I am seeing now are generations of and the government are trying to present it that gut and to populate it. They start digesting food in people in this country with compromised gut flora – way. But what that would mean is that 10 years their own way, breaking it down into inappropriate because I don’t just examine the child, I get a full ago doctors were so bad at diagnosing our children substances. And they also damage the gut lining, medical history of the parents and the grandparents. that they were missing one child in 250. But autism making the gut leaky and allowing this maldigested “A grandmother, for example, perhaps has is not a disability that goes away as the child food to get absorbed. The immune system reacts to arthritis, which is another sign of toxicity in the body. grows up. If they had missed one child in 250 10 this maldigested food as foreign substances and When opportunists and pathogenic bacteria occupy years ago, then we would still only have one in 250 hence you get allergies.“ the gut, they produce a lot of toxic substances. These teenagers with autism now, which we don’t. Now maybe it’s just the fashion, but everybody toxic substances seep through into the bloodstream Everybody who knows and works with autism is you meet these days says they have some sort of and settle in different tissues of the body causing an convinced that there is an epidemic going on.“ allergy. It’s either hayfever or permanently runny auto-immune attack on those tissues as the immune

Although various causative factors have been nose or skin rashes or food intolerances. system tries to clean the body up. So someone with promoted, Natasha is convinced that disturbed gut Practitioners may distinguish between true allergies arthritis usually has some abnormalities with the gut flora is at the root of it. She has a well-worked out and “mere“ intolerances or sensitivities, but the flora; they are being poisoned by their own gut. There chain of events that even explains how a public doesn’t. To them, there’s not doubt is a certain level of toxicity in the body, which has compromised flora – and all that goes with it – has whatsoever that there’s an epidemic of allergies too. particular design to settle in the joints. So the been passed on through the generations. Unless it “Allergies usually happen when the immune grandmother will have arthritis, or rheumatoid is corrected, future generations are doomed to an system gets out of balance“, says Natasha. “The arthritis, or allergies or digestive disorders. ever-increasing level of ill-health, with potentially major balancing agent of the immune system in the “A baby is born with a sterile gut and as the no one safe from a cycle of infections, allergies, body is the gut with its gut flora. The flora can baby goes throughout the birth canal at birth, it arthritis, digestive disorders, atopy and, for some, literally be described as the right hand of our swallows its first batches of bacteria. So a major hyperactivity, ADHD and autism. I asked her to immune system. But when the beneficial gut flora part of the gut flora which would populate the explain this devastating theory; she started with is not there, the two major arms of immunity, TH1 virgin gut of the baby, comes from the mother. So the basics. immunity and TH2, get out of balance. [*types of this grandmother gives her compromised gut flora

“We really started prescribing antibiotics for helper cells: current wisdom is that TH2 cells to her daughter. So now the daughter will be prone everything and anything in the ‘70s and ‘80s“, she stimulate production of IgE, the master of allergic to PMS perhaps, to migraines, to digestive says. “That’s when we started to get generations of reactions, while Tl cells inhibit]. disorders – that’s what I see in mothers of autistic people with compromised gut flora. Antibiotics wipe The end result of abnormal gut flora is a children. Between 95-100% of mothers of children out the beneficial bacteria as well as the pathogenic weakening of the TH1 arm; the TH2 gets over- with autism, hyperactivity, asthma, eczema and bacteria. Remember, our beneficial bacteria are very active, and that’s the arm of the immunity that’s other problems, also have conditions that are vulnerable to antibiotics and get wiped out very responsible for allergic type reactions, atopic type related to abnormal gut flora. I hardly ever see quickly. If the course of antibiotics is short and the reactions. So instead of reacting to the healthy mothers.

Elaine Gottschall says: “Of all dietary components, carbohydrates have the greatest influence on intestinal microbes (yeast and bacteria) which are believed to be involved in intestinal disorders. Most intestinal microbes require carbohydrates for energy. The SC diet works by severely limiting the availability of carbohydrates to intestinal microbes.

When carbohydrates are not digested, they are not absorbed. They remain in the intestinal tract, thus encouraging microbes to multiply by providing food for them. This can lead to the formation of acids and toxins that can injure the small intestine.

Once bacteria multiply within the small intestine, they can destroy the enzymes on the intestinal cell surface, preventing carbohydrate digestion and absorption. At this point, production of excessive mucus may be triggered as the intestinal tract attempts to “lubricate” itself against the irritation caused by the toxins, acids, and the presence of incompletely digested and unabsorbed carbohydrates.

The SCD is based on the principle that specifically selected carbohydrates, requiring minimal digestion, are well absorbed, leaving virtually nothing for intestinal microbes to feed on. As the microbes decrease due to lack of food, their harmful by-products also diminish. No longer needing protection, the mucus producing cells stop producing excessive mucus and carbohydrate

digestion is improved. The SCD corrects malabsorption, allowing nutrients to enter the bloodstream and be made available to the cells of the body, thereby strengthening the immune system’s ability to fight. Further debilitation is prevented, weight can return to normal, and ultimately there is a return to health.”

Disallowed Foods: � Sugars: Do not eat sugar, molasses, sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, fructose, or any processed sugar. � Veggies: No canned vegetables are permitted. � Grains: All grains are not permitted, such as: corn, wheat, wheat germ, barley, oats, rye, rice, buckwheat, soy, spelt, amaranth, and others. Some legumes are not allowed: chick peas, bean sprouts, soybeans, mung beans, faba beans, and garbanzo beans. Starchy foods are not permitted, such as: potatoes, yams, and parsnips. Seaweed and seaweed by-products, such as agar and carrageenan, are not allowed. � Meats: All canned meats are forbidden. Most processed meats are not permitted. Make sure processed meat doesn't contain any harmful additive such as corn, corn products, starch, and sugars. � Dairy: All variations of milk are not allowed: whole, skim, 1%, 2%, chocolate, etc. Some cheeses are

high in lactose content and are restricted: ricotta, mozzarella, cottage cheese, cream cheese, feta, and processed cheeses and cheese spreads. Commercial yogurt contains a high amount of lactose and is not allowed. Heavy cream, buttermilk, and sour cream are not allowed. � Misc: Other foods that are not permitted include: bread, pasta, other starchy foods, canola oil, commercial mayonnaise (because of additives), ice cream, candy, chocolate, carob, whey powder, margarine, commercial ketchup, stevia, baking powder, commercial nut mixes, balsamic vinegar, and FOS (fructooligosaccharides) products.

Allowed Foods – quantities are not restricted if you eat a balanced diet � Sugars: Honey is the only allowed sugar product. Not everyone can tolerate it, so use with caution. � Veggies: Most vegetables, fresh or frozen and raw or cooked, are allowed including: asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, beets, Brussells sprouts, cabbage, carrots celery, cucumbers, eggplant, zucchini, summer squash, rhubarb, peppers, garlic, lettuce, spinach, mushrooms (unless you have candidiasis), onions, turnips, and watercress. Be careful of raw vegetables when diarrhoea is present.

Specific carbohydrate diet – no grains, no lactose, no sucrose

“What happens is that she initially inherited the compromised gut flora from her mum, but she grows up and at the age of 15 or 16, she goes on a contraceptive pill. Many mothers use an oral contraceptive for quite a few years before they’re ready to have children. The contraceptive pill is a steroid and that damages the gut flora even further. It has a devastating effect on the gut flora.

So by the time this woman is ready to have children her gut flora is seriously compromised and that’s what she passes to her child.

“Because the gut flora is the major part of the immune system, when children are born with compromised gut flora they are left immune-compromised as well. With autistic children and hyperactive children, we see that in the first year of life and second year of life they’re very prone to infections, to ear infections in particular, and a lot of chest infections as well. They quite often go through one ear infection after another and eventually they are put on permanent antibiotics, which would wipe out whatever precious little beneficial bacteria they got in there.“

If you thought that grandmother’s breast-feeding may have gone some way to repairing this damage, think again.

“Breast-feeding is the best thing to establish normal gut flora. But breast milk is a two-sided coin. On one hand it’s the best food for the baby, because children who are not breast-fed develop completely different gut flora from those who are. And that sort of gut flora predisposes them later to all sorts of health problems. So breast-feeding is best. On the other hand, a woman whose gut is populated by abnormal flora will have toxins from that gut flora in her blood. And whatever’s in her blood is likely to be in her breast-milk. So she will be passing toxins through her breast-milk to her baby.

“A lot of these children have low stomach acidity. So when they start solids at the age of six

� Legumes: Dried navy beans, lentils, peas, split peas, unroasted cashews, peanuts in a shell, all natural peanut butter, lima beans, and string beans. � Meats: All unprocessed meats such as: beef, pork, chicken, turkey, quail, ostrich, fish, shellfish, lamb, venison, rabbit, and eggs. Some processed meats are allowed, but many require writing letters to manufacturers to verify the absence of restricted foods. Many processed meats contain sugar, starch, corn products, and other disallowed foods. � Dairy: All natural cheeses except those listed above are allowed: cheddar, colby, swiss, havarti, dry curd cottage cheese, etc. Homemade yogurt that has been fermented for a minimum of 24 hours is allowed and encouraged. � Fruits: Most fruits are allowed such as: avocados, apples, tomatoes, olives, apricots, ripened bananas, coconuts, dates, berries, cherries, citrus fruits, peaches, pears, tropical fruits, and grapes. Nuts Almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts, chestnuts, filberts, and pecans. � Misc: The following foods are allowed: olive oil, coconut oil, soybean oil, corn oil, weak tea, weak coffee, unflavoured gelatin, mustard, vinegar, saccharin, and juices with no additives.

• Food lists from the SCD Web Library www.scdiet.org

The diagram above demonstrates some of the interrelationships between ADD/ADHD, the immune system and the workings of metabolism. (From The Great Plains Laboratory, www.greatplainslaboratory.com/adhdbreaking.html)

months, they usually can’t digest them – particularly dairy milk proteins. This results in toxicity coming from pathogens such as the clostridia and candida families, which grow in abnormal gut environment producing particular kind of toxins that reduce the ability of the stomach to produce acids.“

Vaccinations Then we have to stir in vaccinations – another assault on the immune system. “Vaccinations are designed for healthy immune systems. But children who are born to mothers with compromised gut flora are already immune-compromised. They can’t take these vaccines. They cannot react to them the way they are supposed to. Vaccines deepen the damage to the immune system in these children. Indeed in certain cases MMR just tips the scale. In some children it’s not MMR that tips the scale it’s DPT, the triple vaccine which is given to children at a very early age – at 1.5 months, 2.5 and 3.5 months. This vaccine alsocontains thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, which is in most DPT vaccinations.“

Because of all these factors, a baby is not going to develop normal gut flora. If the normal bacteria are not there, then the coast is clear for all sorts of pathogens to take hold. On top of that, says Natasha, because the normal gut flora plays a huge role in digestion and absorption of food, these children go on to develop multiple nutritional deficiencies. “In parallel, the pathogenic flora convert the food into a whole host of toxic substances. A lot of these toxins have been well-studied and you can test for them. They have been found routinely in autistic children and in hyperactive children.“

Some of these toxins are well-known to CAM practitioners, such as the acetaldehyde produced by yeasts acting on sugars, and the ethanol that results from that when candida species get going. Others are less familiar, but can be found in the medical literature. Clostridium, for example, one of the opportunistic pathogens unleashed by antibiotics is known to produce a potent tetanus neurotoxin, which has been identified as a possible cause of autism in some case. (2) The suggestion is that this

neurotoxin can be transported along the vagus nerve from the intestinal tract to the central nervous system and into the brain, disrupting the release of neurotransmitters. Another form of clostridium produces a botulinic neurotoxin, says Natasha.

Other researchers believe that sulphate-reducing bacteria in a disturbed gut flora may explain why around 95% of autistic children have low serum sulphate – about 15% of that found in controls (3). The resulting reduced sulphation not only increases gut permeability and inflammation but may also inactive neurotransmitters involved in the modulation of mood and behaviour. The sulphate research trail was kick-started by the observations of the UK self-help group Allergy Induced Autism. AIA encouraged Dr Rosemary Waring of Birmingham University, whose pioneering research proved that autistic children have problems with detoxification, so that certain foods and used neuro-transmitters are not processed effectively. (4)

One of the most significant findings is that opportunistic fungi in the gut can produce opiate-like substances. Dr Alan Friedman, PhD, a Johnson & Johnson researcher with an interest in autism, has found dermorphin and deltorphin in the urine of autistic children (5). As Reading university’s Dr Max Bingham, PhD, comments, these compounds are “many times more potent than morphine“ and had previously only been found on the skin of “poison dart frogs“ and traditionally used as arrow-tip poisons and hallucinogens.

There is already a well-established “opioid theory of autism“, in which researchers have confirmed that children with autism had many abnormal peptides (small pieces of partially broken down proteins) in their urine. These included casomorphine and gliadomorphin. These peptides are the breakdown products of casein and gluten, giving a sound biochemical basis for a successful dietary intervention first investigated in Norway and then replicated at the university of Sunderland’s Autism Research Unit by Dr Paul Shattock and colleagues (6).

Opiates and the gluten/casein sensitivity turn autism into a living nightmare for the afflicted children. “These opiates absorb very well, cross the blood-brain barrier and then block the brain in certain areas“, says Natasha. “These children have got normal eyes, normal ears, normal tactile sensitivity, but their brains cannot process the information. So the result is that children don’t hear, don’t see and don’t feel the same way we do. The whole sensory input gets jumbled up in their heads. They don’t develop speech because they don’t hear properly. The speech that is addressed to them from their parents, from their carers, is jumbled in their heads. They can’t make sense out of it. The highly functioning autistic individual they say that quite often they can see one half of the page and can’t see the other. They can hear certain vowels and they can’t hear others. They can hear certain frequencies but not others. One child, for example, could clearly hear his mother’s voice, but not his father’s. The same happens with children with dyslexia; that’s why they can’t read, because their visual areas of the brain are blocked with toxicity.“

And this all comes from the gut. Just like the nature cure pioneers always maintained: your gut can poison you. The good news is that the gut can

cover story: PROBIOTICS be helped back into balance and the research “Wakefield was the first gastroenterologist to clearly supports dietary intervention. – autism is seriously look at it; he found the same thing – an NOT all in the mind. autistic child’s gut is chock a block. He also found

“Diet is a huge part of the treatment for these inflammation, which in some features was similar children“, says Natasha. “They need the kind of diet to ulcerative colitis, in others was similar to Crohn’s that heals the digestive tract, stops it leaking and disease and others were unique to autistic children. establishes the normal gut flora.“ Natasha employs He found abscesses filled with pus. He found the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, a strict grain-free, ulcers, he found compaction, he found erosions, he lactose-free and sucrose-free meal plan that limits found the whole length was inflamed. And because the particular carbohydrates needed by harmful these children cannot communicate, they cannot tell yeasts and bacteria. (See panel.) Only mono sugars you that they’re in pain, cannot tell you that their are allowed: fructose, galactose and some others tummy is hurting, the parents don’t know about it. found in fresh vegetables, fresh fruit and honey. But many do go to doctors and say ‘My child has

The original diet was developed in the 1950s by diarrhoea’, ‘My child has constipation’. Some of Drs Sidney and Merrill Haas to cure patients with these children have horrendous constipation. They coeliac disease and was first published in the Haas’s don’t go to the toilet for a week to ten days and book The Management of Celiac Disease in 1951. It then they have an enormous, extremely painful hard has since been championed by biochemist and cell stool, which cracks their anus and the anus bleeds. biologist Elaine Gottschall, MS, author of Breaking This sort of experience is very painful for the child, the Vicious Cycle: Intestinal Health through Diet so they end up holding on for as long as they can, (first published in 1987 and still in print). Gottschall’s until they just can’t hold any longer – and they have eight-year-old daughter, diagnosed by specialists another hard stool.“ with incurable ulcerative colitis and with a Remember, these are children who are also deteriorating condition, was symptom-free in two unable to communicate to their parents and carers years after following the Haas instructions. With the pain they are in. more than 40 years experience of the diet, Gottschall Along with diet, Natasha says supplementation is says; “Some of the most dramatic and fastest very important. Probiotics are the absolute foundation recoveries have occurred in babies and young – but they must be the right sort. And that means a children with severe constipation and among multi-strain product containing soil bacteria, not just children who, along with intestinal problems, had lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. These are what she serious behaviour problems. These included autistic- calls “therapeutic“ probiotics as opposed to the type hyperactivity as well as hyperactivity, often milder, prophylactic products. “You need soil bacteria accompanied by severe and prolonged night terrors. to break down the putrefaction and clear out the Very often the behaviour problems and night terrors pathogenic flora because they are aggressive, they cleared up within ten days after initiation of the actually use them in industry because they have great Haas Specific Carbohydrate Diet.“ (7) ability to clear out putrefied waste. They work in a

Natasha says, “Autistic disorder is essentially a clinical setting far more effectively.“ digestive disorder. So once you put the digestive Even so, a child is typically kept on the strict diet tract right, you lay the ground for recovery.“ and taking probiotics for at least two years.

Dr Andrew Wakefield is the internationally “Nothing works that fast in nature“, she says. The respected gastroenterologist who was researching good news is that autisic children are born with Crohn’s and Ulcerative colitis when he found a type normal brains and recovery is possible. “The majority of inflammatory bowel disease in autistic children of them are developing normally until the scales are who had received the MMR vaccine. He was sacked tipped and toxicity starts affecting their brain when he published his findings in the Lancet. development. It usually happens in the second year Wakefield has written: “I sit across from you as the of life. If you catch them early and you teach them parent and you say: 'this is what happened to my appropriately, they become perfectly normal, they child, they were developing normally, they had finish up in mainstream schools. Obviously they’re speech, language, social skills, they received their all different, some of them would have some MMR vaccine and they developed bowel symptoms idiosyncracies, or they’ll be a little bit eccentric, but and their behaviour deteriorated, I lost them, the they’re within normal range.“ light went out'. You listen to that story, you don't Apart from fish oils, she doesn’t include many buy into it, but you say: 'is there anything I can do to other supplements. “I do believe in providing most substantiate this in my job as a physician?' You things through the diet with children. Once the diet investigate the symptoms and you find that there is is put right, the gut starts healing and the child an inflammatory bowel disease that has gone starts absorbing nutrients from food.“ unrecognised in these children . So the parents Similarly, she finds that once the gut flora is right were right“. (8) a lot of food intolerances disappear and the major

According to Natasha, before Wakefield started source of toxicity is removed, easing the load on the investigating, the medical profession didn’t want to liver and detoxification systems. However, some know about digestive abnormalities in autistic children will need to be actively detoxified using children. “How many autistic children that I see have combinations of juices. “We all have a so-called digestive abnormalities!“ she says. “All parents talk detoxification system. When the system is overloaded about it. They have diarrhoea, constipation, with toxicity, overloaded with work“, she explains, flatulence, pain, bloating, the whole picture. So the “then the more you store it in various tissues in order occasional child who actually made it to to deal with it later. But in children which are highly gastroenterologist and whose gut has been x-rayed, toxic, autistic children, the time never comes for the invariably showed faecal compaction. Old compacted toxins which are stored in tissues.“ They also tend to rotten faeces glued to the walls of their gut. store a lot of heavy metals – even so, she prefers the

gentle effectiveness of juices to chelation. “The child has a couple of 8oz glasses a day of

freshly pressed juice. Therapeutic kinds of juices are generally vegetable juices, particularly green juices, which taste ghastly! So I suggest 50% of something tasty, like pineapple or orange or apple or mango, to disguise the taste of the other 50%. Of that about 40% will be carrot juice, 10% beetroot. You have to be careful with beetroot because it is extremely powerful and can really make you sick. So other juices we use are celery, lettuce and then greens like spinach, parsley, dill, fresh nettles, dandelion leaves, those sort of things.“

The children use the juices while on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. The only other thing they drink is water – unchlorinated, bottled or filtered, and lots of it.

To check progress, Natasha may use a Great Smokies stool test. “It is useful when we have been through the intial stages of the programme and if we are struggling with something and what to know what’s going on. I don’t do the test before we have done the intial baseline treatment.“

The only other test she is liable to use is the organic acid test (OAT) developed by Dr William Shaw of the Great Plains Laboratory. A non-invasive urine test, it measures around 70 different biochemical compounds, picking up abnormal urinary metabolites that are the “signatures“ that can reveal what specific overgrowth a child has. It also reveals some nutritional deficiencies.

We’ll give Shaw the last word: “The last half of this century could be termed the era of antibiotics. The next century will be involved in developing new antimicrobial treatments (probiotics or beneficial bacteria) or other therapies that have less potential for harming young children. Pasteur and others found that lethal strains of bacteria could be rendered harmless if animals were given other benign bacteria simultaneously.“ (9) cam

• Dr Campbell-McBride holds a Degree in Medicine and aPostgraduate Degree in Neurology. She also holds a second Postgraduate Degree in Human Nutrition from Sheffield University. In her Cambridge Clinic she specialises in Nutrition for Children with Learning Disabilities, and Adults with Digestive and Immune System Disorders. She lectures at a BANT-accredited conference in London on October 9. • Cambridge Bioceuticals Probiotics site:www.bio-kult.comIncludes case histories and other articles by Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride. • Reprinted from CAM Magazine August 2003.

References 1. Wickens K, Pearce N, Crane J, Beasley R. Antibiotic use inearly childhood and the development of asthma. Clin Exp Allergy 1999;29:766-771. Crane quoted at www.chiroweb.com/archives/17/17/01.html 2. Bolte ER, (1998). Autism and Clostridium tetani. MedicalHypotheses 51(2): 133-144. 3. Waring (2001). Sulphate, sulphation and gut permeability: arecytokines involved? In: The Biology of Autism – Unravelled. Conference proceedings 11th May 2001, Institute of Electrical Engineers, Savoy Place, London. 4. Alberti A, Pirrone P, Elia M, Waring RH, Romano C.Sulphationdeficit in “low-functioning“ autistic children: a pilot study. Biol Psychiatry 1999 Aug 1;46(3):420-4 5. Unpublished research reported in Autism and the Human GutMicroflora, by Dr Max Bingham, PhD, Food Microbial Sciences Unit, University of Reading, accessed online at www.fst.rdg.ac.uk/research/fmsu/Autism.htm6. Shattock P and Whiteley P. (2001) How dietary intervention could ameliorate the symptoms of autism. Pharmaceutical Journal, July 7; 267(7155). 7. From chapter one of Breaking the Vicious Cycle, accessedonline at http://66.40.242.169/chap1.html 8. “Why I Owe It To Parents To Question Triple Vaccine”, AndrewWakefield explains why he first warned of a possible link between the MMR jab and autism, Sunday Herald (Scotland), 10 Feb 2002. Accessed online at http://www.sundayherald.com/22194 9. Interview with Dr William Shaw about microbial metabolites inautism and other developmental disorders, accessed online at www.autism.com/shaw-yeast/interv.html

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Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAP Syndrome or GAPS)

Dr. N. Campbell-McBride MD

We live in the world of unfolding epidemics. Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD/ADD), schizophrenia, dyslexia, dyspraxia, depression, obsessive –compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder and other neuro-psychological and psychiatric problems in children and adults are becoming more and more common. In clinical practice these conditions more often than not overlap with each other. A patient with autism often is hyperactive and dyspraxic. There is about 50% overlap between dyslexia and dyspraxia and 25-50% overlap between hyperactivity and dyslexia and dyspraxia. Children with these conditions are often diagnosed as being depressed and as they grow up they are more prone to drug abuse or alcoholism than their typically developing peers. A young person diagnosed with schizophrenia would often suffer from dyslexia, dyspraxia or/and ADHD/ADD in childhood. Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are often described as two sides of one coin. We have created different diagnostic boxes to fit our patients in, but a modern patient does not fit into any one of them neatly. The modern patient in most cases fits into a rather lumpy picture of overlapping neurological and psychiatric conditions. This picture leads us to the fact that these conditions are related to each other by similar underlying causes. Let us discuss what these causes may be. What is a typical scenario we see in clinical practice? Before examining the patient it is very important to look at the health history of the parents. Whenever the parents are mentioned people immediately think about genetics. However, apart from genetics there is something very important the parents, mother in particular, pass to their child: their unique gut micro-flora. Not many people know that an adult on average carries 2 kg of bacteria in the gut. There are more cells in that microbial mass than there are cells in an entire human body. It is a highly organised micro-world, where certain species of bacteria have to predominate to keep us healthy physically and mentally. Their role in our health is so monumental, that we simply cannot afford to ignore them. We will talk in detail about the child’s gut flora later. Now let us come back to the source of the child’s gut flora – the parents. After studying hundreds of cases of neurological and psychiatric conditions in children and adults, a typical health picture of these children’s mums has emerged.

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A typical modern mother was probably not breast fed when she was a baby, because she was born in 60s or 70s when breast-feeding went out of fashion. Why is it important? Because it is well known now that bottle fed babies develop completely different gut flora to the breast fed babies. This compromised gut flora in a bottle fed baby later on predisposes her to many health problems. Having acquired compromised gut flora from the start, a typical modern mum had quite a few courses of antibiotics in her childhood and youth for various infections. It is a well known fact that antibiotics have a serious damaging effect on gut flora, because they wipe out the beneficial strains of bacteria in the gut. At the age of 16 and sometimes even earlier the modern mum was put on a contraceptive pill, which she took for quite a few years before starting a family. Contraceptive pills have a devastating effect on the beneficial (good) bacteria in the gut. One of the major functions of the good bacteria in the gut flora is controlling about 500 different known to science species of pathogenic (bad) and opportunistic microbes. When the beneficial bacteria get destroyed the opportunists get a special opportunity to grow into large colonies and occupy large areas of the digestive tract. A modern diet of processed and fast foods provides perfect nourishment for these pathogens and that is a typical diet a modern mum had as a child and a young adult. As a result of all these factors a modern mum has seriously compromised gut flora by the time she is ready to have children. And indeed clinical signs of gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora) are present in almost 100% of mothers of children with neurological and psychiatric conditions. Why are we talking about mother’s gut flora? Because her baby is born with a sterile gut. In the first 20 or so days of life the baby’s virgin gut surface gets populated by a mixture of microbes. This is the child’s gut flora, which will have a tremendous effect on this child’s health for the rest of his/her life. Where does this gut flora come from? Mainly from the mother. So, whatever microbial flora the mother has she would pass to her new-born child. Gut flora is something we do not think much about. And yet the number of functions the gut flora fulfils is so vital for us that if some day our digestive tract got sterilised we probably would not survive. The first and very important function is appropriate digestion and absorption of food. If a child does not acquire normal balanced gut flora, then the child will not digest and absorb foods properly, developing multiple nutritional deficiencies. And that is what we commonly see in children and adults with learning disabilities, psychiatric problems and allergies. Many of these patients are malnourished. Even in the cases where the child may grow well, testing reveals some typical nutritional deficiencies in many important minerals, vitamins, essential fats, many amino-acids and other nutrients. The most common deficiencies, recorded in these children, are in magnesium, zinc, selenium, copper, calcium, manganese, sulphur, phosphorus, iron, potassium, vanadium, boron, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, A, D, folic acid, pantothenic acid, omega-

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3, 6, 9 fatty acids, taurine, alpha-ketoglutaric acid, glutathione and many other amino-acids. This usual list of nutritional deficiencies, commonly seen in these children, includes some most important nutrients for normal development of the child’s brain, immune system and the rest of the body. Apart from normal digestion and absorption of food healthy gut flora actively synthesises various nutrients: vitamin K, pantothenic acid, folic acid, thiamine (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin (vitamin B3), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), ciancobalamine (vitamin B12), various amino-acids and proteins. Indeed, when tested people with gut dysbiosis always present with deficiencies of these nutrients. Clinical experience shows that restoring the beneficial bacteria in their gut is the best way to deal with these deficiencies. The majority of children and adults with neurological and psychiatric conditions look pale and pasty. When tested they show various stages of anaemia, which is not surprising. To have healthy blood we require many different nutrients: vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, K, A, D, etc), minerals (Fe, Ca, Mg, Zn, Co, Se, boron, etc.), essential amino acids and fats. These patients not only can't absorb these nutrients from food, but their own production of many of them in the body is damaged. On top of that people with damaged gut flora often have particular groups of pathogenic bacteria growing in their gut, which are iron-loving bacteria (Actinomyces spp., Mycobacterium spp., pathogenic strains of E.Coli, Corynebacterium spp. and many others). They consume whatever iron the person gets from the diet, leaving that person deficient in iron. Unfortunately, supplementing iron only makes these bacteria grow stronger and does not remedy anaemia. To treat anaemia the person requires all the nutrients we have mentioned many of which healthy gut flora supplies. Apart from taking a vital part in nourishing the body, beneficial bacteria in the gut act as the housekeepers for the digestive tract. They coat the entire surface of the gut protecting it from invaders and toxins by providing a natural barrier and producing a lot of anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal substances. At the same time they provide the gut lining with nourishment. It is estimated that 60 – 70% of energy, the gut lining derives, is from the activity of bacteria, which live on it. So, it is no surprise that when the gut flora is abnormal the digestive tract itself can not be healthy. Indeed most patients with learning disabilities, psychiatric disorders and allergies present with digestive problems. In many cases these problems are severe enough for the patients or their parents to talk about them first. In some cases they may not be severe, but when asked direct questions the parents describe that their child never had normal stool, that their child suffered from colic as a baby and that tummy pains and flatulence are a common part of the picture. In those cases where these children have been examined by gastro-enterologists, inflammatory process in the gut was found along with faecal compaction and an over-spill syndrome.

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Schizophrenic patients were always known to have serious digestive problems. Dr. Curtis Dohan, MD has devoted many years to researching digestive abnormalities in schizophrenia. He found a lot of similarities between coeliac disease and the state of the digestive tract in schizophrenics. Indeed, long before these patients develop psychotic symptoms they usually suffer from digestive problems and all other typical symptoms of gut dysbiosis pretty much from the start of their lives. Children and adults with ADHD/ADD, OCD, depression, bipolar disorder and other neuro-psychological problems are very often reported to suffer from digestive abnormalities. What other symptoms of gut dysbiosis do we know? Well functioning gut flora is the right hand of our immune system. The beneficial bacteria in the gut ensure appropriate production of different immune cells, immunoglobulins and other parts of the immunity. But most importantly they keep the immune system in the right balance. What typically happens in a person with gut dysbiosis is that two major arms of their immune system Th1 and Th2 get out of balance with underactive Th1 and overactive Th2. As a result the immune system starts reacting to most environmental stimuli in an allergic or atopic kind of way. A baby is born with an immature immune system. Establishment of healthy balanced gut flora in the first few days of life plays a crucial role in appropriate maturation of the immune system. If the baby does not acquire appropriate gut flora then the baby is left immune compromised. The result is lots of infections followed by lots of courses of antibiotics, which damage the child’s gut flora and immune system even further. The most common infections in the first two years of life in the children with neurological, psychological and atopic disorders are ear infections, chest infections, sore throat and impetigo. At the same time in the first two years of life the child receives a lot of vaccinations. A child with compromised immune system does not react to vaccinations in a predicted way. In many cases vaccines deepen the damage to the immune system and provide a source of chronic persistent viral infections and autoimmune problems in these children. There has been a considerable amount of research published into the state of the immune system in children with learning disabilities and psychiatric problems. The research shows deep abnormalities in all major cell groups and immunoglobulins in these children. The most common autoantibodies found are to myelin basic protein (MBP) and neuron-axon filament protein (NAFP). These antibodies attack the child’s brain and the rest of the nervous system. So, the modern child who we are talking about, did not get normal gut flora from the start and then got it damaged even further by repeated courses of antibiotics and vaccinations. As a result these children commonly suffer from digestive problems, allergies, asthma and eczema. But apart from that in children and adults who then go on to develop neurological and psychiatric problems something even more terrible happens. Without control of the beneficial bacteria different opportunistic and pathogenic bacteria, viruses and fungi have a good

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chance to occupy large territories in the digestive tract and grow large colonies. Two particular groups which are most commonly found on testing are yeasts (including Candida species) and Clostridia family. These pathogenic microbes start digesting food in their own way producing large amounts of various toxic substances, which get absorbed into the blood stream, carried to the brain and cross the blood – brain barrier. The number and mixture of toxins can be very individual, causing different neurological and psychological symptoms. Due to the absence or greatly reduced numbers of beneficial bacteria in the gut flora, the person’s digestive system instead of being a source of nourishment becomes a major source of toxicity in the body. So, what kind of toxins are we talking about? There are many toxins, which we have not studied very well yet. But some toxins have received a considerable amount of research. Let us have a look at them. Acetaldehyde & Alcohol . What have these substances got to do with our patients? The most common pathogenic microbes shown to overgrow in the digestive systems of children and adults with neuro-psychological conditions and allergies are yeasts, particularly Candida species. Yeasts ferment dietary carbohydrates with production of alcohol and its by-product acetaldehyde. Let us see what does a constant exposure to alcohol and acetaldehyde do to the body. • Liver damage with reduced ability to detoxify drugs, pollutants and other

toxins. • Pancreas degeneration with reduced ability to produce pancreatic enzymes,

which would impair digestion. • Reduced ability of the stomach wall to produce stomach acid. • Damage to immune system. • Brain damage with lack of self-control, impaired co-ordination, impaired

speech development, aggression, mental retardation, loss of memory and stupor.

• Peripheral nerve damage with altered senses and muscle weakness. • Direct muscle tissue damage with altered ability to contract and relax and

muscle weakness. • Nutritional deficiencies from damaging effect on digestion and absorption of

most vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Deficiencies in B and A vitamins are particularly common.

• Alcohol has an ability to enhance toxicity of most common drugs, pollutants and other toxins.

• Alteration of metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates and lipids in the body.

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• Inability of the liver to dispose of old neurotransmitters, hormones and other by-products of normal metabolism. As a result these substances accumulate in the body, causing behavioural abnormalities and many other problems.

Acetaldehyde is considered to be the most toxic of alcohol by-products. It is the chemical, which gives us the feeling of hangover. Anybody who experienced a hangover would tell you how dreadful he or she felt. Children, who acquire abnormal gut flora with a lot of yeast from the start, may never know any other feeling. Acetaldehyde has a large variety of toxic influences on the body. One of the most devastating influences of this chemical is its ability to alter the structure of proteins. Acetaldehyde – altered proteins are thought to be responsible for many autoimmune reactions. Patients with neuro-psychological problems are commonly found to have antibodies against their own tissues. Clostridia Neurotoxins. There are about 100 different Clostridia species known so far. They are present in the stools of people with autism, schizophrenia, psychosis, severe depression, muscle paralysis and muscle tonus abnormalities and some other neurological and psychiatric conditions. Many Clostridia species are normal inhabitants of the human gut. For example Clostridium tetani is routinely found in the gut of healthy humans and animals. Everybody knows that tetanus is a deadly disease, due to an extremely powerful neurotoxin Clostridium tetani produces. Clostridium tetani, which lives in the gut, is normally controlled by the beneficial bacteria and does us no harm, because its toxin cannot get through the healthy gut wall. Unfortunately, patients who we are talking about, do not have a healthy gut wall. In gut dysbiosis this powerful neurotoxin may well get absorbed through the damaged gut lining and then cross the blood-brain barrier affecting the patient’s mental functioning. Many other species of Clostridia (perfringens, novyi, septicum, histolyticum, sordelli, aerofoetidum, tertium, sporogenes, etc) produce toxins similar to tetanus toxin as well as many other toxins. Dr. William Shaw at Great Plains Laboratories describes in detail a number of autistic children, who showed serious improvements in their development and biochemical tests while on anti-Clostridia medication. Unfortunately, as soon as the medication was stopped the children slipped back into autism, because these children do not have healthy gut flora to control Clostridia and not to allow their toxins through the gut lining into the bloodstream. In many cases Clostridia were not identified in the stools of these children, because Clostridia are strict anaerobes and are very difficult to study. We need to come up with some better ways of testing for these potent pathogens. Yeasts and Clostridia have been given a special opportunity by the era of antibiotics. Broad-spectrum antibiotics do not touch them while killing the beneficial bacteria in the gut, which are supposed to control the yeasts and Clostridia. So, after every course of antibiotics these two pathogenic groups get out of control and overgrow. The children that we are talking about usually are

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exposed to numerous courses of antibiotics pretty much from the beginning of their lives. Gluteomorphins & Casomorphins or opiates from gluten and casein. Opiates are drugs, like opium, morphine and heroin, which are commonly used by drug addicts. What have they got to do with our patients? Gluten is a protein present in grains, mainly wheat, rye, oats, barley. Casein is a milk protein, present in cow, goat, sheep, human and all other animal milk and milk products. In gut dysbiosis these proteins do not have a chance to be digested properly before they get absorbed in the form of substances with similar chemical structure to opiates, like morphine and heroin. There has been quite a substantial amount of research done in this area by Dohan, Reichelt, Shattock, Cade and others, where gluten and casein peptides, called gluteomorphin and casomorphin , were detected in the urine of schizophrenic patients, autistic and ADHD children. Incidentally, these substances were also found in patients with depression and rheumatoid arthritis. These opiates from wheat and milk get through the blood-brain barrier and block certain areas of the brain, just like morphine or heroin would do, causing various neurological and psychological symptoms. We have mentioned a few toxins found in these patients. There are many other toxins, which are being studied. The mixture of toxicity in each child or adult can be quite individual and different. But what they all have in common is gut dysbiosis. The toxicity, which is produced by the abnormal microbial mass in these patients, establishes a link between the gut and the brain. That is why I grouped these disorders under one name: the Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAP Syndrome or GAPS ). The GAPS children and adults can present with symptoms of autism, ADHD, ADD, OCD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, sleep disorders, allergies, asthma and eczema in any possible combination. These are the patients who fall in the gap in our medical knowledge. Any child or adult with a learning disability, neurological or psychological problems and allergies should be thoroughly examined for gut dysbiosis. Re-establishing normal gut flora and treating the digestive system of the person has to be the number one treatment for these disorders, before considering any other treatments with drugs or otherwise. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD MMedSci (neurology) MMedSci (human nutrition)

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To learn more about Gut and Psychology Syndrome, how it develops and how to treat it please look at the book by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride “Gut and Psychology Syndrome”. Natural treatment fo r autism, ADHD/ADD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, depression and schiz ophrenia. References. 1. Absolon CM at al. Psychological disturbance in atopic eczema: the extent of

the problem in school-aged children. Br J Dematol, Vol 137(2), 1997, pp.24105.

2. Ashkenazi et al. Immunologic reaction in psychotic patients to fractions of

gluten. Am J Psychiatry 1979; 136:1306-1309. 3. Baruk H. 1978. Psychoses of digestive origins. In: Hemmings and Hemmings

(eds), Biological Basis of Schizophrenia. Lancaster MTP Press. 4. Bolte ER, (1998). Autism and Clostridium tetani. Medical Hypothesis 51(2):

133-144. 5. Cade R et al. Autism and schizophrenia: intestinal disorders. Nutritional

Neuroscience. March 2000. 6. Dohan CF. Cereals and schizophrenia: data and hypothesis. Acta Psychiat

Scand 1966; 42: 125-152. 7. Dohan CF et al. Relapsed schizophrenics: more rapid improvement on a milk

and cereal free diet. Brit J Psychiat 1969; 115: 595-596. 8. Dohan et al. Is schizophrenia rare if grain is rare? Biology and Psychiatry.

1984: 19(3): 385-399. 9. Dohan FC. Is celiac disease a clue to pathogenesis of schizophrenia? Mental

Hygiene. 1969; 53: 525-529. 10. Furlano RI, Anthony A, Day R et al. Colonic CD8 and gamma delta T-cell

infiltration with epithelial damage in children with autism. J Pediatr 2001;138: 366-72.

11. Ferrari P et al. Immune status in infantile autism: Correlation between the

immune status, autistic symptoms and levels of serotonin. Encephale 14:339-344, 1988.

12. Holford P. Optimum nutrition for the mind. 2003. ISBN 0 -7499 -2213 -3.

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13. Horrobin DF, Glen AM, Vaddadi K. 1994. The membrane hypothesis of schizophrenia. Schiz Res 18, 195-207.

14. Horvath K, Papadimitriou JC, Rabsztyn A et al. Gastrointestinal abnormalities

in children with autism. Journal of Pediatrics 1999; 135: 559-563. 15. Kawashima H, Takayuki M, Kashiwagi Y et al. Detection and sequencing of

measles virus from peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with inflammatory bowel disease and autism. Digestive Diseases and Sciences. 2000;45:723-729.

16. Kontstanareas M and Homatidis S, (1987). Ear infections in autistic and

normal children. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 17: 585. 17. Krasnogolovez VN. Colonic disbacteriosis. - M.: Medicina, 1989. 18. Kirjavainen PV, Apostolov E, Salminen SS, Isolauri E 1999.New aspects of

probiotics - a novel approach in the management of food allergy. (Review)(59refs).Allergy. 54(9):909-15, 1999 Sep.

19. Lewis SJ, Freedman AR (1998). Review article: the use of biotherapeutic

agents in the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal disease. (Review)(144 refs). Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 12(9):807-22, 1998 Sep.

20. Lykova EA, Bondarenko VM, Sidorenko SV, Grishina ME, Murashova AD,

Minaev VI, Rytikov FM, Korsunski AA (1999). Combined antibacterial and probiotic therapy of Helicobacter - associated disease in children (Russian).Zhurnal Microbiologii, Epidemiologii I Immunobiologii. 1999 Mar-Apr;(2):76-81.

21. Macfarlane GT, Cummings JH (1999). Probiotics and prebiotics: can

regulating the activities of intestinal bacteria benefit health? (Review) (48 refs).BMJ. 1999 April;318:999-1003.

22. McCandless J. Children with starving brains. 2003. ISBN 1-883647-10-X. 23. Mycroft et al. JIF-like sequences in milk and wheat proteins. NEJM 1982; 307:

895. 24. Papalos D, Papalos J. The bipolar child. Broadway Books, 2000. 25. Plioplys AV at al. Lymphocyte function in autism and Rett syndrome.

Neuropsychobiology 7:12-16, 1994.

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26. Reichelt K et al. Gluten, milk proteins and autism: dietary intervention effects on behaviour and peptide secretions. Journal of Applied Nutrition. 42:1-11, 1990.

27. Reichelt K et al. Biologically active peptide-containing fractions in

schizophrenia and childhood autism. Adv Biochem Psychopharmacol 28:627-47, 1981.

28. Rimland B. New hope for safe and effective treatments for autism. Autism

Research Review International 8:3, 1994. 29. Samonis G et al. (1994). Prospective evaluation of the impact of broad-

spectrum antibiotics on the yeast flora of the human gut. European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infections Diseases 13: 665-7.

30. Schoenthaler SJ et al. The effect of randomised vitamin-mineral

supplementation on violent and non-violent antisocial behaviour among incarcerated juveniles. J Nut Env Med, Vol 7, 1997, pp.343-352.

31. Singh V. Neuro-immunopathogenesis in autism. 2001. New Foundations of

Biology. Berczi I & Gorczynski RM (eds) Elsevier Science B.V. pp 447-458. 32. Singh V at al. Changes in soluble interleukin-2, interleukin-2 rector, T8

antigen, and interleukin-I in the serum of autistic children. Clin. Immunol. Immunopath. 61:448-455, 1991.

33. Singh V et al. Immunodiagnosis and immunotherapy in autistic children. Ann

NY Acad Sci 540:602-604, 1988. 34. Singh V et al. Serological association of measles virus and human

herpesvirus-6 with brain autoantibodies in autism. Clinical Immunology and Immunopathology. 1998:89; 105-108.

35. Singh & Kay. Wheat gluten as a pathogenic factor in schizophrenia. Science

1975: 191: 401-402. 36. Sioudrou et al. Opioid peptides derived from food proteins. The exorphins. J

Biol Chem. 1979; 254:2446-2449. 37. Shaw W. Biological Treatments for Autism and PDD. 2002. ISBN 0-9661238-

0-6 38. Tabolin VA, Belmer SV, Gasilina TV, Muhina UG, Korneva TI. Rational

therapy of intestinal dysbacteriosis in children. - M.:Medicina, 1998, 22p..

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39. Vorobiev AA, Pak SG et al. (1998). Dysbacteriosis in children. A textbook for doctors and medical students.(Russian). M.: “KMK Lt.”, 1998. 64p. ISBN 5-87317-049-5.

40. Ward NI. Assessment of clinical factors in relation to child hyperactivity. J Nutr

Environ Med, Vol 7, 1997, p.333-342. 41. Ward NI. Hyperactivity and a previous history of antibiotic usage. Nutrition

Practitioner, Vol 3(3), 2001, p.12. 42. Waring (2001). Sulphate, sulphation and gut permeability: are cytokines

involved? In: The Biology of Autism – Unravelled. Conference proceedings 11th May 2001, Institute of Electrical Engineers, London.

43. Wakefield AJ, Anthony A et al. Enterocolitis in children with developmental

disorders. AIA Journal, Autumn 2001. 44. Wakefield AJ, Murch SH, Anthony A, et al. Ileal-lymphoid-nodular

hyperplasia, non-specific colitis and pervasive developmental disorder in children. Lancet 1998; 351:637-41.

45. Wakefield AJ and Montgomery SM. Autism, viral infection and measles,

mumps, rubella vaccination. Israeli Medical Association Journal 1999;1:183-187.

46. Walker-Smith JA. Autism, inflammatory bowel disease and MMR vaccine.

Lancet 1998; 351: 1356-57. 47. Warren R et al. Immune abnormalities in patients with autism. J. Autism

Develop Dis. 16, 189-197, 1986. 48. Warren PP at al. Reduced natural killer cell activity in autism. J Am Acad

Child Phychol 26: 333-335, 1987. 49. Waizman A et al. Abnormal immune response to brain tissue antigen in the

syndrome of autism. Am J Psychiatry 139:1462-1465, 1982. 50. Wilson K, Moore L, Patel M, Permoad P. Suppression of potential pathogens

by a defined colonic microflora. Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease. 1988; 1:237-43.

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1990.

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Dr. N. Campbell-McBride, MD

Not many people would choose to become parents of an autistic child. Yet it is

happening to more and more of us in our modern world. There is an

unmistakable epidemic of autism going on across the globe. If this can possibly

be of any comfort for a parent, then I would say that you are certainly not alone!

Most parents of autistic children can clearly recall that traumatic moment of the

diagnosis of "Autism" being announced to them by a doctor followed by the

statement "There is nothing that can be done.” Well, being a doctor myself, I

have to say that your doctor is wrong, there is a lot that can be done! I would

even go further, depending on your commitment and certain circumstances, you

have a good chance of bringing your child as close as possible to normality!

Hundreds of autistic children across the globe, appropriately treated and

educated become almost indistinguishable from their typically developing

(normal) peers. My own son was diagnosed severely autistic at the age of three.

Now at the age of 12 he has fully recovered and is leading a normal life. In my

clinic in Cambridge in England I work with hundreds of autistic children and

adults. My personal and professional involvement with autism has been my best

education in how to treat this disorder effectively.

Treating autism is not an easy task. It takes years of continuous effort and

commitment. But, being a parent myself, I can tell you that it is one of the most

rewarding experiences on Earth! In my book “Gut and Psychology Syndrome.

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Natural Treatment for Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Depression and

Schizophrenia” I would like to share with you what I strongly believe to be the

appropriate treatment for an autistic child.

So, what is a typical scenario I see in clinical pr actice?

Before examining the patient it is very important to look at the health history of

the parents. Whenever the parents are mentioned people immediately think

about genetics. However, apart from genetics there is something very important

the parents, mother in particular, pass to their child: their unique gut micro-flora.

Not many people know that an adult on average carries 2 kg of bacteria in the

gut. There are more cells in that microbial mass than there are cells in an entire

human body. It is a highly organised micro-world, where certain species of

bacteria have to predominate to keep us healthy physically and mentally. Their

role in our health is so monumental, that we simply can not afford to ignore them.

We will talk in detail about the child’s gut flora later. Now let us come back to the

source of the child’s gut flora – the parents.

After studying hundreds of cases of autism in children and adults, a typical health

picture of these children’s mums has emerged.

A typical modern mother was probably not breast fed when she was a baby,

because she was born in 60s or 70s when breast-feeding went out of fashion.

Why is it important? Because it is well known now that bottle fed babies develop

completely different gut flora to the breast fed babies. This compromised gut flora

3

in a bottle fed baby later on predisposes her to many health problems. Having

acquired compromised gut flora from the start, a typical modern mum had quite a

few courses of antibiotics in her childhood and youth for various infections. It is a

well known fact that antibiotics have a serious damaging effect on gut flora,

because they wipe out the beneficial strains of bacteria in the gut. At the age of

16 and sometimes even earlier the modern mum was put on a contraceptive pill,

which she took for quite a few years before starting a family. Contraceptive pills

have a devastating effect on the beneficial (good) bacteria in the gut. One of the

major functions of the good bacteria in the gut flora is controlling about 500

different known to science species of pathogenic (bad) and opportunistic

microbes. When the beneficial bacteria get destroyed the opportunists get a

special opportunity to grow into large colonies and occupy large areas of the

digestive tract. A modern diet of processed and fast foods provides perfect

nourishment for these pathogens and that is a typical diet a modern mum had as

a child and a young adult. As a result of all these factors a modern mum has

seriously compromised gut flora by the time she is ready to have children. And

indeed clinical signs of gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora) are present in almost

100% of mothers of children with autism and other neurological and psychiatric

conditions.

But why are we talking about mother’s gut flora? Because her baby is born with a

sterile gut. In the first 20 or so days of life the baby’s virgin gut surface gets

populated by a mixture of microbes. This is the child’s gut flora, which will have a

4

tremendous effect on this child’s health for the rest of his/her life. Where does

this gut flora come from? Mainly from the mother.

So, whatever microbial flora the mother has she would pass to her new-born

child.

Gut flora is something we do not think much about. And yet the number of

functions the gut flora fulfils is so vital for us that if some day our digestive tract

got sterilised we probably would not survive.

The first and very important function is appropriate digestion and absorption of

food. If a child does not acquire normal balanced gut flora, then the child will not

digest and absorb foods properly, developing multiple nutritional deficiencies.

Apart from taking a vital part in nourishing the body, beneficial bacteria in the gut

act as the housekeepers for the digestive tract. They coat the entire surface of

the gut protecting it from invaders and toxins by providing a natural barrier and

producing a lot of anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal substances. At the

same time they provide the gut lining with nourishment. So, it is no surprise that

when the gut flora is abnormal the digestive tract itself can not be healthy. Indeed

most patients with autistic spectrum disorders present with digestive problems. In

many cases these problems are severe enough for the parents to talk about

them first. In some cases they may not be severe, but when asked direct

questions the parents describe that their child never had normal stool, that their

5

child suffered from colic as a baby and that tummy pains and flatulence are a

common part of the picture. In those cases where these children have been

examined by gastroenterologists, inflammatory process in the gut was found

along with faecal compaction and an over-spill syndrome. The most recent

research was performed at the Royal Free Hospital in London by Dr. Andrew

Wakefield and his team. They found an inflammatory condition in the bowel of

autistic children, which they have named Autistic Enterocolitis.

Well functioning gut flora is the right hand of our immune system. A baby is born

with an immature immune system. Establishment of healthy balanced gut flora in

the first few days of life plays a crucial role in appropriate maturation of the

immune system. If the baby does not acquire appropriate gut flora then the baby

is left immune compromised. The result is lots of infections followed by lots of

courses of antibiotics, which damage the child’s gut flora and immune system

even further. At the same time in the first two years of life the child receives a lot

of vaccinations. A child with compromised immune system does not react to

vaccinations in a predicted way. In many cases vaccines deepen the damage to

the immune system and provide a source of chronic persistent viral infections

and autoimmune problems in these children.

So, the autistic child who we are talking about, did not get normal gut flora from

the start and then got it damaged even further by repeated courses of antibiotics

and vaccinations. As a result these children commonly suffer from digestive

6

problems, allergies, asthma and eczema. But apart from that in autistic children

and adults something even more terrible happens. Without control of the

beneficial bacteria different opportunistic and pathogenic bacteria, viruses and

fungi have a good chance to occupy large territories in the digestive tract and

grow large colonies. These pathogenic microbes start digesting food in their own

way producing large amounts of various toxic substances, which get absorbed

into the blood stream, carried to the brain and cross the blood – brain barrier.

Due to the absence or greatly reduced numbers of beneficial bacteria in the gut

flora, the child’s digestive system instead of being a source of nourishment

becomes a major source of toxicity in the body.

In my book “Gut and Psychology Syndrome. Natural Treatment for Autism,

ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Depression and Schizophrenia” we will look in great

detail at what particular toxins have been found in autistic children and adults and

how they make these children and adults autistic. The toxicity, which is produced

by the abnormal microbial mass in the digestive tract of the child, establishes a

link between the gut and the brain. That is why I named this condition: the Gut

and Psychology Syndrome (GAP Syndrome ). Patients with GAP Syndrome

fall in the gap – the gap in our medical knowledge. As a result they do not receive

an appropriate treatment.

The book on GAP Syndrome explains how and why autism develops and how to

treat it using a sound nutritional protocol. The treatment is completely natural and

7

can be implemented at home. It is a self-help book with a comprehensive recipe

section and is written in easy to understand language. Knowledge is power! This

book gives the parents the power to help their child !

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, MD

MmedSci (neurology)

MmedSci (human nutrition)

Cambridge, England

To learn more about Gut and Psychology Syndrome, how it develops and how to

treat it with a sound nutritional protocol please look at the book by Dr.

Natasha Campbell-McBride “ Gut and Psychology Syndrome.

Natural treatment for autism, ADHD/ADD, dyslexia, d yspraxia,

depression and schizophrenia.” You can get the book on

www.mindd.org or Tel: (61) (2)9388 7383

My SonBy Natasha Campbell-McBride, M.D.

Dr. Campbell-McBride, a neurologist who also holds a Master's degree in nutrition, lives in Cambridge, UK, with her husband and her autistic son, who was born in the autumn of 1992. Her clinic treats autistic children from around the world, and she is currently working on a book on effective autism treatments. This story was written in February 2003.

My son is 10 years old. He is in a mainstream school, doing well. His academic achievements are within normal range for 10-year-olds, although math is not his strong point. He can be clumsy as far as social skills are concerned, but he has friends, and children generally like him. He can be naïve and hyperactive at times, but amazingly mature at other times. His language is excellent with a wider-than-usual vocabulary, and he likes to write poetry and short stories. He is learning to play piano and is doing very well, particularly at composing his own music. No one would suspect what this child and his parents have been through. Nobody who meets him now would ever think of autism in connection with this boy. All this is now. I have been asked to look into the past and describe how we got here.

It is always painful for a mother to recall those years of desperation and hard work with an autistic child. It is particularly painful to realize all the things you were doing wrong. If only we knew then what we know now! If only we had done this and that, when he was smaller, he may have developed very differently.

However, I do not regret for a moment the mind-blowing educational journey my son took me through. When he was born, I was an M.D. trained in neurology with seven years' working experience. But as they say, doctors make the worst patients. When it comes to your own child, you are just as prone to denial and blindness as any other parent. Apart from that, as all the parents of autistic children discover, doctors know very little about autism. They are taught how to diagnose it, but when it comes to treatment, official medicine has nothing to offer. On the contrary, it is hell bent on convincing you that there is nothing you can do and that any other opinion is quackery. So, being a doctor has given me no advantage at all.

Our son was diagnosed autistic at the age of three. After the initial shock and grieving my husband and I started to learn as much as we could about autism. In those days there wasn't as much information available on the subject as there is now, but at least there was something offering our son hope. I remember that somebody gave us a phone number for Dr. Rimland in California. We had a long conversation with him and as a result our son was on an ABA program by the age of 3 1/2. At the same time he started taking DMG. This conversation with Dr. Rimland was like a ray of sunshine in our lives. Here was a person who knew so much about autism and who was prepared to share his knowledge with us and help us. Here was a parent who did not accept the official position on autism and who had devoted his life to changing that position. I am sure that there are thousands of families around the world forever grateful to this man. I want to add my family to that list.

From the very beginning the ABA program was performing absolute miracles with our boy. I will never forget our first workshop with our excellent ABA consultant, who had flown to us from the U.S. At the end of an exhausting two days of training, she said that in three months' time she expected our son to speak in small sentences. All of us, including our five therapists, thought that she was dreaming, because our boy had no speech and his understanding of language was very questionable. But to our huge surprise, she was right! We have meticulously recorded that period in our son's life on video. In three months' time we were able to have quite a sensible conversation with him.

As our son was moving through his ABA program I devoted my time to learning as much as possible about biology, biochemistry, and nutrition in autism. It was clear to me that our son's extreme fussiness with food—and as a result, very poor diet—had a lot to do with his autism. I went back to university and took a master of sciences degree in human nutrition. I devoted particular attention to studying the digestive system's pathology and how to treat it by natural means. The reason for my interest was the fact that our son's digestive system almost never functioned normally. Beginning the day we introduced solids into his diet, he went through a period of severe constipation, which eventually turned into constant diarrhea. Again, consulting with official medicine was a complete disappointment. Apart from symptomatic drugs with lots of side effects, it could offer our boy nothing to help with his digestive problems, constant fungal nappy rash or tremendous feeding difficulties. At the same time it was clear to me that his immune system was in disarray due to his poor nutrition. Like many autistic children he went through ear infections, chest infections, impetigo, and fungal thrush. And of course, all my medical colleagues offered were antibiotics and more antibiotics.

Based on my newly acquired knowledge I changed his diet dramatically. Our ABA consultant helped us work out a system of introducing foods into our son's diet. Without that system it would have been impossible to change his diet, as he was so finicky with food. Having examined diets that have been successful for children with severe digestive problems, such as ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, and chronic malnutrition, I realized that just introducing a gluten- and casein-free (GFCF) diet would not be enough for my son. So I have worked on a far more natural and focused approach, which also excludes gluten and casein. The result was amazing, as if somebody had lifted a toxic fog off his brain. He was much calmer, much more able to learn. His eye contact improved on its own and a lot of self-stimulation disappeared.

At the same time we introduced a strong therapeutic probiotic. There was no doubt that his gut flora was abnormal. From early on I have tried to give him various probiotics, available on the market, with no particular results, until I found a formula that worked. It was powerful enough to heal his digestive system to such an extent that we could cheat on the diet on an occasional basis without any problems. At the same time it gave his immune system such a boost that I don't remember now when he last had a cold. Now he looks a picture of health with rosy cheeks and bright eyes and he is full of energy. Since then I have developed my own probiotic formula, which works very well for autistic children and people with digestive and immune disorders.

It is impossible to overestimate the role of the family in the struggle against autism. I have seen quite a few very sad situations, where one parent is trying to help a child without the support of the other parent. Treating an autistic child is a huge undertaking and united families usually succeed much better. I would like to say that what we have achieved with our son, my husband and I have achieved together. Without my husband's constant support, intellect, and organizational skills I would not have been able to do half of what I have done in these years. Our son is very lucky to have an excellent dad, of whom he is very fond.

A great part of the successful treatment of autism is the fact that parents of autistic children all talk to each other. This is where we get our strength and inspiration to carry on. Our success became an inspiration for many other families, who were calling me and who were willing to try what we did. That is how my clinic for autistic children started. Having seen hundreds of families from many different countries, I never cease to admire their determination and strength in trying to help their children. I have learned a lot from them and their experiences.

A few months ago at the end of a consultation, one of the parents looked at me and asked in a stern voice, “Why haven't you written a book yet?!” That was followed by a number of other parents telling me that I must write a book on autism. I am working on it now. I feel that it is my duty to share the knowledge and clinical experience that I have accumulated over the years thanks to my son and the many families of autistic children I have met. I hope, too, that my experience will help others to avoid the mistakes that we have made. We all eventually learn by our mistakes, but time is precious for our children. The earlier we start helping them in the right way, the better chance they get to recover from autism. I believe that every autistic child has a chance, given appropriate help.

And do not let anybody tell you that autism is incurable!

Update for Second Edition (November 2005):

It is hard to believe that more than two and a half years have passed since our story was published in 2003. My son just turned 13. He is tall and handsome and he is a delight.

In my previous story I mentioned that I was writing a book. Well, the book has been out for a year now and is very successful; a third print was done a month ago. It is called “Gut And Psychology Syndrome. Natural treatment for autism, ADHD, ADD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, depression and schizophrenia” (www.MedInform.co.uk). The book describes in detail how these conditions develop and how to treat them using a solid nutritional protocol. It has a large recipe section to help people start on the diet, as well as chapters on how to deal naturally with ear infections, constipation, toxicity, fussy feeding habits, and other issues.

My son was very proud to contribute to my book—he has written a beautiful poem, which is published at the beginning of the book. We still have not told him about what happened to him in his younger years; we decided to wait until he is older. There are no traces of autism in him now and he is leading a normal life. He is doing well at school and started playing rugby on his school team. His digestive system works like a clock now, though we still adhere to the diet, which I have described in detail in my book. The good news is that my son can have anything now on an occasional basis without it causing problems. However, the whole family is on this diet as it is very healthy and can prevent many health problems (such as weight gain, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, autoimmune problems, osteoporosis, and allergies) in all members of the family. When we go on holiday we eat what is available, but when we come back home we go back to our diet because it is good for us. Both our children have a considerable knowledge of nutrition now and we often hear them lecturing their friends on what is good for them to eat and what is not.

I hope that our story can be an inspiration for parents of autistic children. Never give up on your child, and your child will reward you!

http://www.autism.com/treatable/recovered/campbellmcbride.htm

Chapter from the bookRecovering Autistic ChildrenEdited Stephen M. Edelson, Ph.D. and Bernard Rimland, Ph.D.

http://autismstore.dyndns.org/Books-Recovering_Autistic_Children.html

http://www.autism.com/treatable/recovered/campbellmcbride.htm

Does MMR cause autism?

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD

Talking about autism it is impossible to avoid the issue of the MMR vaccine and vaccination in general. I my practice I see some parents of autistic children who would link their child's disorder with MMR vaccine where many can not make this connection. Following research by Dr. Wakefield there has been a lot of publicity on this subject. The government has put a lot of effort and money into convincing the public that MMR vaccine is safe. While the MMR vaccine was in the lime light, other vaccines got questioned as well, due to the fact that many of them contain Thimerosal, a Mercury compound. Others are new and have not been tested long enough, yet apparently the number of unreported complications from these vaccines is much higher than anybody would expect. On top of all this we have to remember that vaccines are commercial products made with profit in mind. Is it true that the 3 million pounds which the government recently spent on MMR promotion were paid for by the companies who have a commercial interest in this vaccine?

So, does MMR cause autism?

I do not believe that things are so simple. Here we have to look at autism as a whole picture and vaccination as a whole.

Let us have a look at what is happening to children in our modern society. If you look around, how many healthy children would you see? Childhood asthma, eczema, diabetes, allergies, hay fever, digestive disorders, ADHD and autistic spectrum disorders have all gained epidemic proportions! The majority of siblings of autistic children have eczema, asthma or another one of those disorders. And though all these health problems appear to be different, they have one thing in common. A very big thing - a compromised immune system with suppressed Th1 and overactive Th2 parts of the immunity. These two opposing arms of the immune system normally should be in balance. But in these children they are out of balance reducing the body's ability to fight infections and predisposing the child to allergies and autoimmune reactions. A compromised immune system is not going to react to environmental insults in the normal way! Vaccination is a huge insult for the immune system. The manufacturers of vaccines produce them for children with normal immune systems which will react to these vaccines in a normal way. And perhaps 50 or even less years ago the majority of children had normal immune systems, so vaccination was producing the expected results of protection against infections without any harm for the body. However, in our modern society with our modern way of life we are rapidly moving to a situation where a growing proportion of children do not have a normal immune system and will not produce an expected reaction to the vaccine. In some of these children vaccination, putting an enormous strain on an already compromised immune system, becomes that "last straw which breaks the camel's back" and brings on the beginning of autism, asthma, eczema, diabetes, etc.. In other children, whose immune system is compromised to a lesser degree, vaccination will not start the disorder, but it will deepen the damage and move the child closer to it.

But what makes the immune system compromised? What is it in our modern life styles that does this damage?

There are a number of factors which play their part in damaging the delicate balance of the immune system, but some major factors deserve particular attention:

1. Gut Dysbiosis.

2. Use of antibiotics, steroids and other drugs.

3. Consumption of sugar and processed foods.

4. Consumption of trans-fatty acids.

5. Food additives.

Let's look at some of these factors in detail.

1. Gut Dysbiosis.

Not everybody is aware that our bodies are a home to huge numbers of bacteria, viruses, fungi and other microbes. In a healthy body this micro-world is properly balanced and fulfils a whole host of beneficial functions, without which we would not be healthy. The largest population of microbes, called gut flora, live in our digestive systems. The gut wall with its microbial flora has been described as "the right hand" of the immune system. If the bacterial layer is damaged or worse than that, abnormal, then your immune system is trying to function with its right hand chopped off.

Let us have a look at some details.

• The epithelial surface of the colon is inhabited by huge numbers of bacteria, and can be truly described as a "cradle" of the immune system, both systemic and mucosal. The beneficial bacteria in the colon, engage lymphoid tissue of the gut wall and take part in the production of huge numbers of immunoglobulins. For example, in the cell wall of Bifidobacteria, one of the major inhabitant groups of a healthy gut flora, there is a substance called Muramil Dipeptide, which activates synthesis of B and T-Lymphocytes. As a result, a healthy gut wall is literally infiltrated, jam packed with B and T Lymphocytes, ready to protect the body from any invader. Your digestive system is a major gate into the body and needs good guarding.

• The beneficial flora of the gut has got a pronounced anti-viral activity. They take part in the synthesis of such anti-viral substances as interferon, lizocym and surfactins, which dissolve the membranes of lipid envelope viruses. The food and drink which we consume are full of disease causing viruses, but the healthy gut flora would not allow them to take hold in your body.

• Immunoglobulin A is a substance which is secreted by the gut wall into the gut lumen in response to new food arriving from the stomach. It is the immune

system's way of dealing with the unwelcome invaders coming with food and drink. Fairly soon after being excreted the Immunoglobulin A naturally degrades. The beneficial bacteria in the gut slow down this degradation, allowing the Immunoglobulin A more time to do its work.

• Healthy gut flora absorb considerable amounts of heavy metals, phenols, formaldehyde and other toxic substances, acting as natural chelators and protecting the immune system from them. It is known that the immune system is particularly vulnerable to these substances.

As a result of all this activity your healthy gut flora keeps the two major arms of the immune system, the Th1 and Th2 immunity, in proper balance. The condition, when the gut flora is not healthy, is called - Gut Dysbiosis. In this condition the beneficial bacteria in the gut are damaged or eradicated. As a result the gut wall gets taken over by a large number of pathogenic and opportunistic bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, all producing very toxic substances. The digestion and absorption of food becomes abnormal, the gut wall becomes damaged and "leaky". But most importantly, as we are concentrating on the immune system here, the person with gut Dysbiosis becomes immune-compromised.

A number of factors in our modern life styles can damage the delicate balance of the gut flora. Antibiotics and steroids are major contributors, consumption of processed foods, a toxic environment, prolonged stress, etc.

Here we are talking about vaccination, so we need to look at babies' and children's gut flora. Babies get their gut flora from the mother. So, if the mother does not have healthy bodily flora, then the baby will not have it either. Widespread use of the contraceptive pill (steroids) in young girls damages the gut flora. When it is combined with regular consumption of processed sugary foods and antibiotics, then the damage gets deeper. The majority of mothers of immune-compromised children with eczema, asthma, learning disabilities, etc. show symptoms of Gut Dysbiosis, such as digestive problems, allergies, skin problems, PMS, migraines, thrush, or simply chronic lack of energy. After the baby is born the breast milk promotes the process of populating the gut wall with appropriate bacteria. Formula milk does not fulfil this function. So, breast again is the best. However, in cases when the mother has a considerable Gut Dysbiosis with an overgrowth of abnormal bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites in her gut, she will be excreting their toxins in her milk. A lot of these toxins have an opioid structure and act on the brain as real opioids would do. In these cases the mothers report that their baby would fall asleep on the breast after a couple of mouthfuls of this opioid rich milk. In other cases the baby refuses the breast or develops an allergic reaction. The recent research shows that the toxins, produced by abnormal gut flora, play a major role in development of autism.

The population of the gut wall with normal gut flora plays a major part in the appropriate development of the baby's immature immune system. If the gut flora is not normal then we can not expect a normal immune system. The breast milk provides a ready immune protection for the baby. So, while exclusively breast fed our babies can do quite well without properly developing gut flora, but when the breast feeding stops, it takes a few months for pathological symptoms to start appearing. This is

exactly when the vaccination, and I mean any vaccination, may prove to be too much of an attack on an already compromised immune system.

2. Antibiotics and steroids, including contraceptive pills, and many other drugs apart from damaging the gut flora have a direct immune suppressing effect. Their wide spread use in mothers before and during pregnancy have a damaging effect on the immune system of the future baby. Antibiotics, taken by the mother during breast feeding, will pass to the baby through the milk and add to the damage of it's gut flora and developing immune system.

3. 4. 5. Consumption of sugar and processed foods have a direct damaging effect on the immune system. On top of that these foods feed abnormal flora in the gut contributing to Gut Dysbiosis and hence to immune imbalance. Processed foods are a very poor source of nutrition and a very rich source of various toxic substances, like preservatives, colours, flavouring, aspartame, MSG, and all those E-numbers. Food additives have been shown in a vast number of studies to have a detrimental effect on the immune system, brain chemistry, liver function, etc.. On top of that processed foods are a rich source of very harmful trans-fatty acids. Trans-fatty acids are unsaturated fatty acids with changed chemical structure. They have been shown to have a direct damaging effect on immune system. Children who are routinely fed on crisps, sugary foods, soft drinks and meals out of tins and packets run a great risk of being immune-compromised.

Consumption of processed convenience foods, antibiotics, steroids, and the toxic environment are all features of our modern life style. Our children are paying the price for it. It is a fact that we can not afford to ignore!

So, my conclusion is that while MMR and other vaccines may not be the cause of autism, in immune compromised children they can do a lot of harm and in some children may well provide the trigger which starts the disorder.

Vaccination, which saved the lives of millions of children world-wide in the last century, is becoming dangerous thanks to changes in our lifestyles. The number of immune compromised children in developed countries is enormous and growing every day. It is time for the medical profession to review its attitude to vaccination. The cry "Vaccinate everybody!" has to change. Here is what I propose: a comprehensive immunological test has to be done with every baby before a decision about vaccination would be made. There are a number of very good tests already in existence to assess the state of one's immune system. These tests have to be put into an appropriate pre-vaccination panel for all babies and results of these tests have to be an essential part in the process for deciding which of the following steps to take:

• The standard vaccination protocol.

• Single vaccines only.

• Delayed vaccination until the results of the tests are better.

• No vaccination at all. A child presenting with eczema, asthma, digestive problems or any other disorder, which would indicate compromised immunity, should be a red flag not to vaccinate!

Those 3 million pounds which the government spent on promoting MMR might have been just enough to develop such a test panel, and in my opinion, a much more worthwhile investment in the future health of our nation.

Published in Issue 9 of The Autism File. February 2002

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd

Probiotic News

I first came across Bacillus subtilis when I was invited over to Vietnam, to give a series of

lectures on the treatment and spread of HIV/AIDS, at the main hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. The

Vietnamese took the approach that when a person became ill, they simply took one of every

known antibiotic available (all of which were available from corner shops) and one would

hopefully affect a cure. That way, there was no need to spend time and money on seeking

professional medical help when suffering from illness. As a consequence, people regularly

killed off their entire gut flora and so took B. subtilis to help repopulate themselves. This

summarises in a nutshell, the dilemma that faced the scientific community back then, with

regard to B. subtilis. It was taken to help repopulate the gut, yet B. subtilis is a soil organism that

cannot colonize the gastro-intestinal (GI) tract.

B. subtilis needs to breathe air that contains oxygen (an obligate aerobe). B. subtilis is of course

very small, so does not require lungs, but it requires oxygen just as much, and for much the

same reasons, as humans do. The gut, however, contains very little oxygen, testified to by the

methane generated in the hind gut (flatulence). The low oxygen levels make the gut a very bad

environment for B. subtilis to grow. If the environment is not good for growth, B. subtilis

'sporulates' (changes into its 'spore' form, which is dormant and very hardy). Spores can remain

dormant for many years and then germinate when the conditions are favourable. Because of the

low oxygen (anaerobic) environment of the bowel, the majority of spores do not germinate and

pass straight out again - at about the same rate as small polystyrene balls, if eaten, might be

expected to do. It is therefore not at all obvious why someone who has killed the bacteria in their

gut through the misuse of antibiotics would benefit from eating B. subtilis

The following article is written by Dr Andrew BarnesFor seven years, a researcher into new vaccine development and the

immunology of Bacillus subtilis spores (at Guy's Hospital, King's College London). Currently a freelance scientific consultant.

Bacillus subtilis: From probiotic to modern medicine

Article by Dr Andew Barnes

Issue 3

However, far from being antiquated and useless, the innate cells are critical for telling the

immune system how to respond in any given circumstance. Innate cells have been combating

infections since before mankind and have become extremely effective at recognising the tell-

tale structures found on pathogens. Because these structures are fundamental to how bacteria

are made, all bacteria contain them, not just the pathogens. Furthermore, the body needs the

stimulation provided by these structures to develop, coordinate and maintain a healthy immune

system.

Stimulation provided by recognised bacterial structures, tells the body which parts are

potentially exposed to attack and require special immunological protection. The gut lining acts

as a barrier to bacterial invasion. However, this barrier would soon be breached, if it weren't for

antibodies made by the immune system. Antibodies bind to bacteria and viruses to prevent them

from being able to infect cells. Pathogens can provide the stimulation to make antibodies, along

with the other aspects of host immunity, but will do so too late to prevent the infection from

occurring. However, if 'friendly' bacteria, such as B. subtilis provide the stimulation, the same

benefits are achieved, but without disease. Once stimulated, the immune system prevents

bacteria and viruses from crossing the gut lining and regulates bacterial levels within the gut.

The immune system achieves this to a large extent by making antibodies that selectively bind

and inhibit pathogenic bacteria, but not the 'friendly' ones. Science has therefore explained why

regularly eating B. subtilis helps regulate the repopulation of the gut with bacteria, despite the

fact that the spores may neither persist or even germinate.

Despite this, spores are taken throughout the world, (from south-east Asia to Mediterranean

Europe) to achieve that very purpose. Can a million people all be wrong? (they were about the

world being flat but not about aspirin in willow bark). Alternatively, if people by their millions are

taking B. subtilis, should not the effects of their doing so, be scientifically established? Since

spores do not stay in the gut long, they are far more straightforward to study than many other

probiotic bacteria that do colonise the gut (such as Lactobacillus & Bifidobacter strains).

Furthermore, if spores help to repopulate the gut, they achieve it without interfering with the

levels of gut bacteria directly.

The only obvious mechanism by which they might achieve this is through the immune system.

You might expect a non-pathogenic bacterium, such as B. subtilis, to be treated like food and get

completely ignored by the immune system. This, as it turns out, is precisely what does 'not'

happen. Recent scientific research has clearly established that spores are extremely good at

stimulating the immune system, especially the innate immune system.

The innate immune system forms the oldest part of the general immune system. The cells within

it are found in all animals that have a backbone (vertebrates) and the receptors they employ go

all the way back to fruit flies.

38, Paddock Street, Soham, Cambridgeshire, CB7 5JBe-mail: [email protected], www.cambridgebioceuticals.com

Cambridge Bioceuticals LtdIssue 3

Footnote:

B. subtilis has recently been evaluated and listed by the European Food Safety Authority as

QPS (Qualified Presumption of Safety). In addition B. subtilis is rated as GRAS (Generally

Regarded as Safe) by the Food and Drug Association (FDA) of the United States.

Bio-Kult is the leading practitioner probiotic in the UK for Intervention, with over six years

clinical use.

It contains 8 strains of Lactobacillus, 4 strains of Bifidobacter, 1 Streptococcus and more

importantly it's highest strength component is B. subtilis.

Innate stimulation such as the type provided by B. subtilis has been proven to be critical for the

development and maintenance of gut immunity and through it a healthy balance of gut flora. Gut

bacteria stimulate gut immunity, which in turn regulates the bacteria present. However, if this

balance becomes skewed, due to e.g. a bad diet, excessive alcohol intake, stress etc., the

consequences can result in many conditions including constipation, flatulence, indigestion,

susceptibility to infection, etc By supplementing a diet with bacteria, such as B. subtilis, many of

these problems can be potentially reduced or circumvented entirely due to the gut being better

able to regulate itself.

However, the science goes much further than this, and suggests spores could be used in a much

broader context. Disease caused by Clostridium difficile has become a bigger problem than the

infamous MRSA in hospitals today. C. difficile disease is caused by the use of broad spectrum

antibiotics, killing the gut flora and suppressing gut immunity. Probiotics have been shown to be

effective at treating the disease after antibiotics have been lowered or stopped. However,

because spores are resistant to antibiotics and have no requirement for germination, B. subtilis

could potentially be used during treatment and without taking the patient off the antibiotics.

Likewise, B. subtilis could also potentially be used to prevent illness due to external changes in

bacteria. When travelling abroad, diarrhoea is commonly caused by drinking normal tap water

(Delhi belly). This is because bacteria abroad, exhibit regional differences from those a person is

used to. Natural antibodies differ from those made in response to an infection or a vaccine. They

are preprogrammed into your genes because they bind to a wide range of pathogens that have

been experienced in our ancestral past. Since B. subtilis spores stimulate the production of

natural antibodies, they could prove highly effective at minimizing the impact of being populated

by foreign strains of bacteria, either due to travel abroad or due to sudden outbreak.

The following article is written by Dr John A Jones, MA (Cantab.), MB, BS who has been a GP in Cambridgeshire for 20 years.

John has worked with probiotics for many years, is a founder of Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd and a key member of the team that invented and developed the

Advanced Probiotics Bio-Kult and Duo-Kult.

Probiotics - Dispelling The Acid Myth

Issue 4

At birth, a baby's gut is sterile – yet within a few days a thriving bacterial flora has developed. How

does this happen? Bacteria are ingested during passage through the birth canal and also during

feeding and sucking on other objects. These organisms have to survive the joint hurdles of the

stomach, with it's hydrochloric acid, and the duodenum where bile enters via the common bile duct.

While many will not make it through, a proportion do, and it is these survivors which multiply to form

the gut flora. Normally, there are over 400 different strains of organisms inhabiting our intestinal tract

and co-habiting happily with us. In fact, as we have evolved, we have lost the ability to produce

various compounds and now rely on our gut flora to produce them for us. Without this symbiotic

relationship our health suffers and we are unable to be nutritionally complete.

During life, the composition of the gut flora changes considerably, as many of the organisms are not

naturally resident and have to be continually replaced. These replacements come from bacteria on

and in the food we eat. There is concern that, as we have increasingly cleaned and sterilised our

food and environment, we have reduced the variety and numbers of organisms we ingest.

Nowadays we also eat less of the types of food that contain bacteria – fermented foods such as

yoghurt, sauerkraut and kefir (a fermented milk product containing various lactobacilli & other micro-

organisms).Acommon yoghurt producer, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, was first identified in Bulgaria – a

country where the population have both a long lifespan and high consumption of yoghurt and kefir.

Whilst our food has less and less of the normal environmental organisms, it is somewhat paradoxical

that the organisms most likely to be in our food now are 'spoilage' organisms such as Escherichia

Coli and Clostridium difficile which are often pathogenic.

These naturally occurring organisms are not enteric coated or otherwise protected and yet still

manage to survive passage through the acidic conditions of the stomach to the alkaline environment

of the intestine.

How do they do this? There are a number of important factors involved:- PTO

Probiotic News

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd Article by Dr John A Jones

Issue 4

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd38, Paddock Street, Soham, Cambridgeshire, CB7 5JBe-mail: [email protected], www.cambridgebioceuticals.com Issue 4

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd Probiotics - Dispelling The Acid Myth

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd are the manufacturers of Bio-Kult; the leading practitioner

probiotic in the UK for Intervention, with over six years clinical use.

1. Stomach pHWhile the acidity (pH) of the stomach can be quite harsh at times – dropping to a pH of about 2 – at

other times, such as at mealtimes it can rise to a pH of around 6. This may not sound a major

change, but the pH scale is a logarithmic scale. Each 1 pH change means an increase in acidity of

10 times – so a pH of 2 is 10 times more acidic than a pH of 3, and 10,000 times more acidic than a

pH of 6! ApH of 7 is 'neutral' and pH's between 7 and 14 are alkaline.

This is an important fact in respect to probiotics. Whilst even the hardiest of probiotics may only

survive for a short time at pH 2 they have a much longer survival time at pH 5 or 6. Taking a

probiotic with food is therefore the natural way, and will also give it the best chance of survival.

2. Transit TimeWhen you eat, food is masticated in the mouth and mixed with alkaline saliva. This food bolus then

passes into the stomach, where it mixes with the stomach juices and is churned around by the

stomach muscle, much like in a washing machine. This liquid part of the mixture is called chyme,

and 50% of this leaves the stomach 30 minutes after eating.

As probiotics are mixed uniformly with the chyme it also follows that within 30 minutes 50% of the

probiotics will have passed out of the stomach, thus limiting the duration of acid exposure.

3. Probiotic StrengthBacterial survival is a numbers game. Even in the harshest environment, if you start with enough

organisms, some will survive. It therefore follows that with probiotics, having a high strength will10

improve survival. For example a formulation of ten billion per gram (1 x 10 ) will have one hundred8

times more organisms than one of one hundred million (1 x 10 ). Conversely a probiotic strength of10 10

forty billion per gram (4 x 10 ) is only four time stronger than one of ten billion (1 x 10 ) per gram.

It is generally accepted, that at the point of consumption, a probiotic should have a concentration of6 8

at least 1 x 10 organisms per gram and that a minimum of 1 x 10 should be consumed daily for

beneficial effects to be realised.

To take a worst case example using the above factors:-

If you take a daily dose of two capsules, each containing two billion organisms, with meals and theorganisms have only a 20% survival rate after 30 minutes at pH 6 then you will have eight hundred

8million survivors (8 x 10 ) passing through from the stomach into the intestine.

Most probiotics have a much better survival rate at pH 6 – usually more than 70%, which would8

mean that over 28 x 10 survive. Enteric coatings may increase this number even more but, as you

can see, are not really necessary – historically the probiotics in nature that we have ingested with

our food have never been enteric coated.

The following article is written by Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride who has a Degree in Medicine and Postgraduate Degrees in Neurology and Human Nutrition.

In her clinic Natasha specialises in Nutrition for Children and Adults with Behaviouraland Learning Disabilities, and Adults with Digestive and Immune System Disorders.Natasha is a founder of Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd and a key member of the team

that invented and developed the Advanced Probiotics Bio-Kult and Duo-Kult.Natasha is the author of the book, Gut & Psychology Syndrome

Irritable Bowel Syndrome & Probiotics

Issue 5

If you have been diagnosed as suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), then you are certainly

not alone! About 9 million people in the UK suffer from IBS; it is the second most common cause of

absenteeism – second only to the common cold. IBS has a very strong impact on patients' quality of

life and is associated with a number of serious health conditions e.g. fibromyalgia, ME, and auto-

immunity.

To complicate matters even further, the medical profession is not sure what causes this common

condition or how to treat it. The treatment offered is purely symptomatic:- drugs which relax the

bowel muscles, painkillers, antidepressants etc.

Until recently, the most common theory was that IBS was psychosomatic. Patients were often told

that their misery was probably caused by stress and were advised to go on holiday, relax or try

hypnosis.

However, rapidly accumulating research is leading us in a different direction. Many medical

professionals now believe, that the answer may be found in one of the most vital parts of our

digestive system – the gut flora. A healthy digestive tract is largely populated by the beneficial or

probiotic species of microbes, which fulfil a number of vital functions in the body. These probiotic

bacteria are the housekeepers of the gut, making sure that it does its many jobs well without ever

attracting your attention to it. Unfortunately, various modern factors can damage our friendly

bacteria in the gut, starting a chain of health problems. Antibiotics, chemotherapy, steroids,

radiotherapy, infections, pollution and many other factors can lead to a condition, called gut

dysbiosis, where the 'good' probiotic bacteria get replaced by pathogenic microbes.

The first place to suffer is, of course, the gut itself. In IBS the gut wall is populated by an abnormal

mixture of microbes, which bring all the typical IBS symptoms of diarrhoea, constipation, urgency,

bloating, flatulence, etc. The digestion and absorption of food suffer, so the person develops multiple

nutritional deficiencies.

Probiotic News

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd Article by Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride

Issue 5

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd38, Paddock Street, Soham, Cambridgeshire, CB7 5JB

e-mail: [email protected], www.cambridgebioceuticals.com Issue 5

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Cambridge Bioceuticals Ltd are the manufacturers of Bio-Kult; the leading practitioner

probiotic in the UK for Intervention, with over six years clinical use.

The gut wall, damaged by pathogenic microbes, becomes porous and 'leaky', allowing partially

digested foods and toxins to pass through. This can lead to food allergies / intolerances, fatigue,

aching joints / muscles, headaches, mood swings and many other unpleasant symptoms.

The gut wall in an IBS patient is sore and sensitive, that is why following the right diet is very

important. In my clinical experience the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) is the most appropriate

diet for an IBS sufferer. However, in order to help an IBS patient it is vital to introduce probiotic

bacteria into their digestive system; both the right kind of bacterial species and in large enough

numbers to drive the pathogens out and to heal the gut.

Bio-Kult has been designed as a therapeutic probiotic to accomplish just that. Any therapeutic

strength probiotic produces a so-called ‘die-off reaction’ - as the pathogens in the gut die they

release toxins, which may bring an initial worsening of the symptoms. To control this reaction it is

important to introduce Bio-Kult slowly, starting from a small dose. The dose can then gradually be

increased to a therapeutic level of 8-10 capsules of Bio-Kult a day for an adult. Once on this dose,

the patient needs to take it for 6 months or so, depending on the individual symptoms. When the

symptoms have gone, the dose can be gradually reduced to a maintenance level, which is

individual – generally 4 - 6 capsules a day.

Treating IBS patients can be very rewarding - following the right nutritional protocol with the right

probiotic, these patients can improve quite quickly and dramatically.

As one of my patients put it: “I never ever want to be without Bio-Kult! Now I can have my meals

without running to the toilet between mouthfuls of food! I can now live my life without thinking, is

there a toilet in the vicinity!”

Selected references:1. Balsari, A., Ceccarelli,A., Dubini, F., Fesce,E. & Poli,G. (1992). The faecal microbial population in the

irritable bowel syndrome. Microbiologica 5, 185 - 194.2. Brigidi P at al. Effects of probiotic administration upon the composition and enzymatic activity of

human fecal microbiota in patients with irritable bowel syndrome or functional diarrhea. Research in

Microbiol. 2001 Oct; 152(8): 735-41 Journal Code: R6F.3. King, T.S., Elia, M., Hunter, J.O. (1998). Abnormal colonic fermentation in Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Lancet. 352: 1187 - 1189, 1998 Oct.10.4. Niedzielin D at al. A controlled, double-blind, randomized study on the efficacy of Lactobacillus

plantarum 299V in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Eur J Gastoenterol Hepatol, 2001 Oct;

13(10): 1143-7 Journal Code: B9X.5. Nobaek S at al. Alteration of intestinal microflora is associated with reduction in abdominal bloating and

pain in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Am J Gastroenterol 2000 May; 95(5): 1231-8

Arachidonic Acid is a new term for me. And after you hear Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride say it with herRussian accent…the R just wants to roll off my tongue all day. I first heard of AA when listening to DrNatasha Campbell-McBride lecturing on autism. Arachidonic Acid is a vitally important essential fatty acid.

The only way to get arachiconic acid (AA) is to eat animal fat. And since AA makes up 12% dry weight ofthe brain, you can see why it’s vital for Lyme patients to get plenty of it. “Arachidonic acid is apolyunsaturated fatty acid that is present in the phospholipids of membranes of the body’s cells, and isabundant in the brain.” (1)

Since AA is an EFA required by humans, we must make sure our diets have plenty of good organic fats inthem. If we don’t eat these fats then our bodies will draw the AA from our brains for use. Most of us can’tafford for that to happen.

It’s recommended by Dr Natasha that one eat plenty of chicken fat, duck fat, pork fat and beef fat in theirdaily diets. She emphasizes the importance of eating the dark meat and suggests with great enthusiasm eatingduck 1x week. It’s also recommended that you collect your fats and keep them in the frig for future use whencooking. Make sure that when you have your daily stock that it includes the fat.

As always, it’s important to know the source of your food. The animals that are grassfed will have a betterratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3′s are important for your brain also, but AA comes strictlyfrom Omega 6 and can only be obtained through eating animal fats.

“This graph shows that grain-fed beef has a much higher ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids than wildgame or grass-fed beef. A high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids has been linked with an increased riskof cancer, cardiovascular disease, allergies, depression, obesity, and auto-immune disorders. (Simopoulos andRobinson, The Omega Diet, published by HarperCollins in 1999.) A ratio of four or lower is considered ideal.The ratio in grain-fed beef is more than 14 to 1. In grassfed beef, it is approximately two to one.”(2)

Even the skin on animals that are grass-fed and have the proper Omega 6 to Omega 3 don’t burn whencooking like grain-fed animals. It’s a beautiful golden skin that is full of AA!

If your worrying about cholesterol-don’t. The lie about cholesterol has been proven to be just that by SallyFallon. In fact I’ll post soon and show you the numbers on my cholesterol after switching from grain-fedanimals to grass-fed. It’s pretty cool stuff.

For a farmer near you check out Local Harvest and Eat Wild.

(1) Wikipedia

(2) Eat Wild

Photo Credit: Flickr

October 19, 2008 Posted by peacefulacres | Diet | AA, arachidonic adic, beef fat, brain weight, brains,chicken fat, dark meat, dr natasha campbell-mcbride, duck, eat wild, EFA, essential fatty acids, local harvest,omega 3 fatty acids, omega 6 fatty acids, pork fat, sally fallon | Leave a Comment

I can’t impress upon you how important detoxing is when healing from Lyme Disease & co-infections. Mostexperts agree that our symptoms are a manifestation of the biotoxins and neurotoxins in our bodies. It onlygoes to reason that if you can get these toxins out on a regular basis then your symptoms will decrease. Whenyour symptoms decrease you will have less stress and your body will heal faster. Whether you are using theRife Machine, natural ABX, synthetic ABX or herbs, you must detoxify.

My chosen methods of detoxing are; coffee enemas, hydrotherapy, infrared sauna and diet. Of course thereare others, but these are my favorites.

I know that the topic of coffee enemas is a bit private. OK, a lot private, but sometimes these things must betalked about. For further understanding of coffee enemas you can study the work of Dr Max Gerson. Coffeeenemas were in the Merck Medical Manual until 1970. They were removed as a form of treatment, due to thelack of space not due to a lack of effective treatment. Dr Max Gerson found them vital for cancer patients toheal. He used them regularly for his migraine head aches and in our family we can attest to thereeffectiveness for this malady. Order some brochures or other printed material and research it. You will beglad you did.

Hydrotherapy is the use of water in detoxing. It was from Dr Richard Schulze, an herbalist that I learned to dothis. It really takes guts, but it is very effective. Stand in the shower and use as hot, hot, hot as you can standwithout burning your skin, for 30 seconds, then switch to cold, cold, cold for 30 seconds. Do this 7-8 timesand it will wake you up. Hydrotherapy shocks the body. It forces the blood in and out. Focus on areas that arepainful or if you think it needs attention. Dr Schulze’s patients have sworn by hydrotherapy to reduce oreliminate cysts or tumors. I did them for one complete year and have resumed them since realizing thatBartonella is quite active in my body. (I do not agree with Dr Richard Schulze on his adoption of thevegetarian diet. Dr Weston A Price proved other wise and it is that diet that I adhere to.) As Dr Schulzeso accurately says, “this won’t kill you, but the disease you have will!!!”

The other area of detoxing is diet. Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride suggests that the body detoxes from 2-10AM. She recommends not eating breakfast until at least 10 AM, allowing the body to properly detox. DrCampbell-McBride allows juices first thing in the morning. Not canned juices. Fresh carrot, green veggies andjuicy fruits. My favorite is, carrot, celery, chard or kale, beet root, and an apple. You can use which everveggies are your favorite, but consider the biggest bang for your buck. Another great detox food is BeetKvass; a blood tonic made from Beet Root. Beets are a wonderful detox food for the liver. Always considernutrient dense foods even for your juices.

During my most toxic days, I used the Infrared Sauna every day for 20 min’s at 125*F. During the wintermonths I usually ramp it up to 135*F, but it takes some time to get use to. It increases your heart rate andtakes a little while afterwards of resting to get your heart rate back down to what’s normal for you. So, don’trush these things. Make sure you take plenty of time to rest. Your skin is your largest organ. Not only does itabsorb toxins but it is an excellent way to detox the body. If you dry brush your skin before entering thesauna, you will stimulate your lymphs and slough off dead skin cells.

And of course drinking lots of clean filtered water is one of the very best ways to detoxify your body. It willreplace the fluids lost during saunas and enemas and it will flush out toxins. It’s recommend that a personconsume at least 64 oz of water a day.

Here is a wonderful explanation of detoxing for cancer. Even though Lyme is not Cancer, the elements ofdetoxing remain the same; the need to eliminate biotoxins & with Lyme neurotoxins from the blood.

INTRODUCTION TO DETOXIFICATION

This article may come in handy. It is from canceroption.com newsletter.An Introduction to Detoxificationby: Michael Guthrie, R. Ph.

“Cancer cells produce a large number of toxins that inhibit the immune response, damage tissues andcause weight loss and other complications. Thus, a spreading cancer becomes more and more difficultto control because of an increased toxin load. There are safe, and effective ways of reducing the toxinload on the body.

Detoxification is an important aspect of cancer protocols, and any kind of detoxification of the body,and is often a neglected part of optimizing treatment and clinical results. We live in a toxic world withair and water pollution, food and medication additives derived from petroleum and coal tars and othercarcinogenic (cancer producing) sources. Drinking water sources when tested may show elevated levelsof TCE, PCB, chloramines, dioxin and other carcinogenic substances. Even our supplemental vitamins,nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical drugs are often synthesized from sources such as geneticallyengineered corn, sugar or soy. These sources of raw materials are often cheaper than less allergenicsources and corn allergies constitute one of the most common food allergens in the US. Traces ofallergens may cause down regulation of our immune system or a sidetracking of our bodies immunesystem with a consequential less than optimum immune system to fight cancer and opportunisticdiseases and organisms. Cosmetics, food with hydrogenated vegetable oils, pesticides, flea collars,decaffeinated coffee and a host of other daily-encountered substances are carcinogenic!

By detoxification of the body, we can optimize the well being of our healthy cells including our immunesystem. Everyone has some levels of mutated cells produced daily, however our immune system keepsthese abnormal cells in check. Cancer cells and cancer-associated viruses are more likely to mutate andadapt to toxic environments than healthy cells. Indeed, cancer is induced in laboratory animals bygiving the animals toxic substances which cause cancer by mutating normal cells to survive the toxin.Toxins in our body can accumulate in the subcutaneous fat layer under our skin and in the liver. Theliver is the largest immune organ in our body and is a source of Kupffer’s cells. These cells filter anddestroy foreign bacteria, fungus, viruses, mycoplasma and cancerous cells. Since the liver is our body’s

j di l d l i i i i h li f i

major waste disposal system and largest immune organ, it is important to enhance liver function,reduce excessive stress and detoxify this major organ.

By detoxification of the body, we enhance our clinical approach to cancer and other illnesses. It is alsoimportant to restore nutrients necessary for optimum utilization of healthy cells and immune system.Many traditional approaches to treatment of a serious disease can cause depletion of these essentialnutrients. By utilizing detoxification and restoration of necessary levels of nutrients, clinicalapproaches are integrated and optimized for enhanced healing and well-being. Detoxification isaccomplished through various supplements as well as via far-infrared saunas.”

My doc has been very pleased even with the portable saunas.

Resting in my opinion is one of the most cherished gifts you can give yourself. Learn to say, “no” and “I needhelp”. You will become stronger and those around you will learn compassion.

How will you know if you are detoxing?

1. Your body odor will stop or if you’re really dumping toxins, it will increase. (stop using regulardeo/antiperspirants from the drug store). Not only are they toxic, but they clog your glands and you can’tdetox. Remember your skin is one of your major detox organs. Sweat glands were made to sweat!!! I haven’tused deo/antiperspirants for over 15 yrs. I use a crystal stone sold in any health food store. Most days Iremember it, but there are many that I don’t. I no longer have BO, since I practice regular detoxing.

2. You will feel better. Sometimes you feel worse, before you feel better. Sometimes upon dumping the colonand releasing lots of toxins you have a head ache. Pay attention to where the head ache is. You will learn adetox h.a. from another h.a. Mine are in my frontal lobe as opposed to an over all head ache. It is vital to beconstantly replacing and replenishing the colon with good quality flora especially if you’re using coffeeenemas. My favorite is Friendly Flora from

Dr Rons.

3. You may experience things like, sinus drainage, fatigue, energy, intensified itching, or an intensity ofsymptoms prior to a relief.

Every one of us is different and will have different experiences from detoxing. But one thing is universal, wemust all detox.

Most of Dr Natasha Campbell-McBrides work is done with Autistic Children. What I have found is that thesame principles apply to those of us healing from Lyme Disease and co-infections. In this video clip shediscusses some of the detoxing results. I recommend you watch all these videos that she and Donna Gatespresent for parents of Autistics. The info on the gut flora is vital to healing.

Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAP syndrome or GAPS)™.

Copyright and Trade Mark Dr. N. Campbell-McBride November 2003.

The right of Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the sole author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means without the prior written permission of the author.

We live in the world of unfolding epidemics. Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD/ADD), schizophrenia, dyslexia, dyspraxia, depression, obsessive –compulsive disorder (OCD or bi-polar disorder) and other neuro-psychological and psychiatric problems in children and young adults are becoming more and more common. In clinical practice these conditions more often than not overlap with each other. A child with autism often is hyperactive and dyspraxic. There is about 50% overlap between dyslexia and dyspraxia and 25-50% overlap between hyperactivity and dyslexia and dyspraxia. Children with these conditions are often diagnosed as being depressed and as they grow up they are more prone to drug abuse or alcoholism than their typically developing peers. A young person diagnosed with schizophrenia would often suffer from dyslexia, dyspraxia or/and ADHD/ADD in childhood. OCD children are often hyperactive with autistic tendencies and indeed they often receive those two diagnoses before being re-diagnosed as bi-polar. Schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder are often described as two sides of one coin. We have created different diagnostic boxes to fit our children in. But a modern child does not fit into any one of them neatly. The modern child in most cases fits into a rather lumpy picture of overlapping neurological and psychiatric conditions. This picture leads us to the fact that these conditions are related to each other by similar underlying causes. Let us discuss what these causes may be. What is a typical scenario we see in clinical practice? Before examining the child it is very important to look at the health history of the parents. Whenever the parents are mentioned people immediately think about genetics. However, apart of genetics there is something very important the parents, mother in particular, pass to their child: their unique gut micro-flora. Not many people know that an adult on average carries 2 kg of bacteria in the gut. There are more cells in that microbial mass than there are cells in an entire human body. It is a highly organised micro-world, where certain species of bacteria have to predominate to keep us healthy physically and mentally. Their role in our health is so monumental, that we simply can not afford to

ignore them. We will talk in detail about the child’s gut flora later. Now let us come back to the source of the child’s gut flora – the parents. After studying hundreds of cases or neurological and psychiatric conditions in children, a typical health picture of these children’s mums has emerged. A typical modern mother was probably not breast fed when she was a baby, because she was born in 60s or 70s when breast-feeding went out of fashion. Why is it important? Because it is well known now that not breast fed babies develop completely different gut flora to the breast fed babies. This compromised gut flora in a bottle fed baby later on predisposes her to many health problems. Having acquired compromised gut flora from the start, a typical modern mum had quite a few courses of antibiotics in her childhood and youth for various infections. It is a well known fact that antibiotics have a serious damaging effect on gut flora, because they wipe out the beneficial strains of bacteria in the gut. At the age of 16 and sometimes even earlier the modern mum was put on a contraceptive pill, which she took for quite a few years before starting a family. Contraceptive pills have a devastating effect on the beneficial (good) bacteria in the gut. One of the major functions of the good bacteria in the gut flora is controlling about 500 different known to science species of pathogenic (bad) and opportunistic microbes. When the beneficial bacteria get destroyed the opportunists get a special opportunity to grow into large colonies and occupy large areas of the digestive tract. A modern diet of processed and fast foods provide perfect nourishment for these pathogens and that is a typical diet a modern mum had as a child and a young adult. As a result of all these factors a modern mum has seriously compromised gut flora by the time she is ready to have children. And indeed clinical signs of gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora) are present in almost 100% of mothers of children with neurological and psychiatric conditions. The most common health problems in mothers are digestive abnormalities, allergies, auto-immunity, PMS, chronic fatigue, headaches and skin problems. A baby is born with a sterile gut. In the first 20 or so days of life the baby’s virgin gut surface gets populated by a mixture of microbes. This is the child’s gut flora, which will have a tremendous effect on this child’s health for the rest of his/her life. Where does this gut flora come from? Mainly from the mother. So, whatever microbial flora the mother has she would pass to her new-born child. Gut flora is something we do not think much about. And yet the number of functions the gut flora fulfils is so vital for us that if some day our digestive tract got sterilised we probably would not survive. The first and very important function is appropriate digestion and absorption of food. If a child does not acquire normal balanced gut flora, then the child will not digest and absorb foods properly, developing multiple nutritional deficiencies. And that is what we commonly see in children with learning disabilities, psychiatric problems and allergies. Many of these children are malnourished. Even in the cases where the child may grow well, testing reveals some typical nutritional deficiencies in many important minerals, vitamins, essential fats, many amino-acids and other nutrients. The most common deficiencies, recorded in these children, are in magnesium, zinc, selenium, copper,

calcium, manganese, sulphur, phosphorus, iron, potassium, vanadium, boron, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, A, D, folic acid, pantothenic acid, omega-3, 6, 9 fatty acids, taurine, alpha-ketoglutaric acid, glutathione and many other amino-acids. This usual list of nutritional deficiencies, commonly seen in these children, includes some most important nutrients for normal development of the child’s brain, immune system and the rest of the body. Apart of normal digestion and absorption of food healthy gut flora actively synthesises various nutrients: vitamin K, pantothenic acid, folic acid, thiamine (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin (vitamin B3), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), ciancobalamine (vitamin B12), various amino-acids and proteins. Indeed, when tested people with gut dysbiosis always present with deficiencies of these nutrients. Clinical experience shows that restoring the beneficial bacteria in their gut is the best way to deal with these deficiencies. The majority of children with neurological and psychiatric conditions look pale and pasty. When tested they show various stages of anaemia, which is not surprising. To have a healthy blood we require many different nutrients: vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, K, A, D, etc), minerals (Fe, Ca, Mg, Zn, Co, Se, boron, etc.), essential amino-acids and fats. These children not only can't absorb these nutrients from food, but their own production of many of them in the body is damaged. On top of that people with damaged gut flora often have particular groups of pathogenic bacteria growing in their gut, which are iron-loving bacteria (Actinomyces spp., Mycobacterium spp., pathogenic strains of E.Coli, Corynebacterium spp. and many others). They consume whatever iron the person gets from the diet, leaving that person deficient in iron. Unfortunately, supplementing iron only makes these bacteria grow stronger and does not remedy anaemia. To treat anaemia the person requires all the nutrients we have mentioned, many of which healthy gut flora supplies. Apart of taking a direct part in nourishing the body, beneficial bacteria in the gut act as the housekeepers for the digestive tract. They coat the entire surface of the gut protecting it from invaders and toxins by providing a natural barrier and producing a lot of anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal substances. At the same time they provide the gut lining with nourishment. It is estimated that 60 – 70% of energy, the gut lining derives, is from the activity of bacteria, which live on it. So, it is no surprise that when the gut flora is abnormal the digestive tract itself can not be healthy. Indeed most children with learning disabilities, psychiatric disorders and allergies present with digestive problems. In many cases these problems are severe enough for the parents to talk about them first. In some cases they may not be very severe, but when asked direct questions the parents describe that their child never had normal stool, that their child suffered from colic as a baby and that tummy pains and flatulence are a common part of the picture. In those cases where these children have been examined by gastro-enterologists inflammatory process in the gut was found along with faecal compaction and an over-spill syndrome. The most recent research was performed at the Royal Free Hospital in London by Dr. Andrew Wakefield and his team. They found an inflammatory condition in the bowel of

autistic children, which they have named Autistic Enterocolitis. Schizophrenic patients were always known to have serious digestive problems. Dr. Curtis Dohan, MD has devoted many years to researching digestive abnormalities in schizophrenia. He found a lot of similarities between coeliac disease and the state of the digestive tract in schizophrenics. Indeed, in my clinical practice long before these patients develop psychotic symptoms they suffer from digestive problems and all other typical symptoms of gut dysbiosis pretty much from the start of their lives. Children and young adults with ADHD/ADD, OCD, depression and other neuro-psychological problems are very often reported to suffer from digestive abnormalities though there have not been formal studies published yet. What other symptoms of gut dysbiosis do we know? Well functioning gut flora is the right hand of our immune system. The beneficial bacteria in the gut ensure appropriate production of different immune cells, immunoglobulins and other parts of the immunity. But most importantly they keep the immune system in the right balance. What typically happens in a person with gut dysbiosis is that two major arms of their immune system Th1 and Th2 get out of balance with underactive Th1 and overactive Th2. As a result the immune system starts reacting to most environmental stimuli in an allergic or atopic kind of way. A baby is born with an immature immune system. Establishment of healthy balanced gut flora in the first few days of life plays a crucial role in appropriate maturation of the immune system. If the baby does not acquire appropriate gut flora then the baby is left immune compromised. The result is lots of infections followed by lots of courses of antibiotics, which damage the child’s gut flora and immune system even further. The most common infections in the first two years of life in the children with neurological, psychological and atopic disorders are ear infections, chest infections, sore throats and impetigo. At the same time in the first two years of life the child receives a lot of vaccinations. A child with compromised immune system does not react to vaccinations in a predicted way. In most cases vaccines deepen the damage to the immune system and provide a source of chronic persistent viral infections and autoimmune problems in these children. There has been a considerable amount of research published into the state of the immune system in children with learning disabilities and psychiatric problems. The research shows deep abnormalities in all major cell groups and immunoglobulins in these children. The most common autoantibodies found are to myelin basic protein (MBP) and neuron-axon filament protein (NSFP). These antibodies attack the child’s brain and the rest of the nervous system. So, the modern child, who we are talking about, did not get normal gut flora from the start and then got it damaged even further by repeated courses of antibiotics and vaccinations. As a result these children commonly suffer from digestive problems, allergies, asthma and eczema. But apart of that in children who then go on to develop neurological and psychiatric problems something even more terrible happens. Without control of the beneficial bacteria different opportunistic and pathogenic bacteria, viruses and fungi have a good chance to occupy large territories in the digestive tract of the child and grow large colonies. Two particular groups which are most commonly found on

testing are yeasts (including Candida species) and Clostridia family. These pathogenic microbes start digesting food in their own way producing large amounts of various toxic substances, which get absorbed into the blood stream, carried to the brain and cross the blood – brain barrier. The number and mixture of toxins can be very individual, causing different neurological and psychological symptoms. Due to the absence or greatly reduced numbers of beneficial bacteria in the gut flora, the child’s digestive system instead of being a source of nourishment becomes a major source of toxicity in the body. So, what kind of toxins are we talking about? There are many toxins, which we have not studied very well yet. But some toxins have received a considerable amount of research. Let us have a look at them. Acetaldehyde & Alcohol. What have these substances got to do with children? The most common pathogenic microbes shown to overgrow in the digestive systems of children with neuro psychological conditions and allergies are yeasts, particularly Candida species. Yeasts ferment dietary carbohydrates with production of alcohol and its by-product acetaldehyde. Let us see what does a constant exposure to alcohol and acetaldehyde do to the body. • Liver damage with reduced ability to detoxify drugs, pollutants and other toxins. • Pancreas degeneration with reduced ability to produce pancreatic enzymes, which

would impair digestion. • Reduced ability of the stomach wall to produce stomach acid. • Damage to immune system. • Brain damage with lack of self-control, impaired co-ordination, impaired speech

development, aggression, mental retardation, loss of memory and stupor. • Peripheral nerve damage with altered senses and muscle weakness. • Direct muscle tissue damage with altered ability to contract and relax and muscle

weakness. • Nutritional deficiencies from damaging effect on digestion and absorption of most

vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Deficiencies in B and A vitamins are particularly common.

• Alcohol has an ability to enhance toxicity of most common drugs, pollutants and other toxins.

• Alteration of metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates and lipids in the body. • Inability of the liver to dispose of old neurotransmitters, hormones and other by-

products of normal metabolism. As a result these substances accumulate in the body, causing behavioural abnormalities and many other problems.

Acetaldehyde is considered to be the most toxic of alcohol by-products. It is the chemical, which gives us the feeling of hangover. Anybody who experienced a hangover would tell you how dreadful he or she felt. Children, who acquire abnormal gut flora with a lot of yeast from the start, may never know any other feeling. Acetaldehyde has a large

variety of toxic influences on the body. One of the most devastating influences of this chemical is its ability to alter the structure of proteins. Acetaldehyde – altered proteins are thought to be responsible for many autoimmune reactions. Children with neuro-psychological problems are commonly found to have antibodies against their own tissues. Clostridia Neurotoxins. There are about 100 different Clostridia species known so far. They are present in the stools of people with autism, schizophrenia, psychosis, severe depression, muscle paralysis and muscle tonus abnormalities and some other neurological and psychiatric conditions. Many Clostridia species are normal inhabitants of a human gut. For example Clostridium tetani is routinely found in the gut of healthy humans and animals. Everybody knows that tetanus is a deadly disease, due to an extremely powerful neurotoxin Clostridium tetani produces. Clostridium tetani, which lives in the gut, is normally controlled by the beneficial bacteria and does us no harm, because its toxin can not get through the healthy gut wall. Unfortunately, children, which we are talking about, do not have a healthy gut wall. In gut dysbiosis this powerful neurotoxin may well get absorbed through the damaged gut lining and then cross the blood-brain barrier affecting child’s mental development. Many other species of Clostridia (perfringens, novyi, septicum, histolyticum, sordelli, aerofoetidum, tertium, sporogenes, etc) produce toxins similar to tetanus toxin as well as many other toxins. Dr. William Shaw at Great Plains Laboratories describes in detail number of autistic children, who showed serious improvements in their development and biochemical tests while on anti-Clostridia medication. Unfortunately, as soon as the medication was stopped the children slipped back into autism, because these children do not have healthy gut flora to control Clostridia and not to allow their toxins through the gut lining into the bloodstream. In many cases Clostridia were not identified in the stools of these children, because Clostridia are strict anaerobes and are very difficult to study. We need to come up with some better ways of testing for these potent pathogens. . Yeasts and Clostridia have been given a special opportunity by the era of antibiotics. Broad-spectrum antibiotics do not touch them while killing the beneficial bacteria in the gut, which are supposed to control the yeasts and Clostridia. So, after every course of antibiotics these two pathogenic groups get out of control and overgrow. The children that we are talking about usually are exposed to numerous courses of antibiotics pretty much from the beginning of their lives. Gluteomorphins & Casomorphins or opiates from gluten and casein. Opiates are drugs, like opium, morphine and heroin, which are commonly used by drug addicts. What have they got to do with children? Gluten is a protein present in grains, mainly wheat, rye, oats, barley. Casein is a milk protein, present in cow, goat, sheep, human and all other milk and milk products. In the bodies of children and adults with autism and schizophrenia these proteins do not get digested properly due to the fact that their digestive systems are full of abnormal

microbial flora and hence unhealthy. As a result of misdigestion gluten and casein turn into substances with similar chemical structure of opiates, like morphine and heroin. There has been quite a substantial amount of research done in this area by Dohan, Reichelt, Shattock, Cade and others, where gluten and casein peptides, called gluteomorphin and casomorphin, were detected in the urine of schizophrenic patients and autistic children. Incidentally, these substances were also found in patients with depression and rheumatoid arthritis. These opiates from wheat and milk get through the blood-brain barrier and block certain areas of the brain, just like morphine or heroin would do, causing various neurological and psychological symptoms. Based on this research the gluten and casein free diet (GFCF diet) has been developed, which helps a lot of children and adults with autism and schizophrenia. Dermorphin & Deltorphin . These are two frightening toxic substances with opiate structure, which have been found in autistic children by a biochemist Alan Friedman, Ph.D. Dermorphin and deltorphin were first identified on the skin of a poison dart frog in South America. Native people used to dip their darts into the mucous on these frogs in order to paralyse their enemy, because deltorphin and dermorphin are extremely potent neurotoxins. Dr. Friedman believes that it is not the frog that produces these neurotoxins, but a fungus, which grows on the skin of this frog. It is possible that this fungus grows in the gut of autistic children, supplying their bodies with dermorphin and deltorphin. Organic Acid Testing available now in many laboratories around the world identify various metabolites of microbial activity in the gut, which get absorbed and finish up in the child’s urine. Many of these metabolites are highly poisonous substances. Low Serum Sulphate is a common picture in these children, which is an indirect indication of toxicity in the body, because sulphates are essential for many detoxification processes and normal metabolism of brain neurotransmitters. In many cases the child may be getting plenty of sulphates through he diet, but they all get consumed by the detox pathways struggling with the river of toxicity, which is constantly coming from the child’s gut. At the same time another large group of bacteria, which commonly overgrow in the gut dysbiosis situation are sulphate-reducing bacteria, which make sulphur unavailable for the body to use. These bacteria metabolise sulphate coming from food into sulphites, many of which are toxic like hydrogen sulphide for example, which is the gas with rotten egg smell. Some parents of autistic, hyperactive and other children tell me that their child’s stool has this characteristic smell. The mixture of toxicity in each child can be quite individual and different. But what they all have in common is gut dysbiosis. The toxicity, which is produced by the abnormal microbial mass in these children, establishes a link between the gut and the brain. That is

why it will be logical to group these disorders under one name: the Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAP Syndrome)™. The GAP children can present with symptoms of autism, ADHD, ADD, OCD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, schizophrenia, depression, sleep disorders, allergies, asthma and eczema in any possible combination. These are the children who fall in the gap in our medical knowledge. Any child with a learning disability, neurological or psychological problems and allergies should be thoroughly examined for gut dysbiosis. Re-establishing normal gut flora and treating the digestive system of the child has to be the number one treatment for these disorders, before considering any other treatments with drugs or otherwise. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, MD. MmedSci in neurology, MmedSci in human nutrition. The right of Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the sole author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means without the prior written permission of the author. References. 1. Absolon CM at al. Psychological disturbance in atopic eczema: the extent of the

problem in school-aged children. Br J Dematol, Vol 137(2), 1997, pp.24105. 2. Ashkenazi et al. Immunologic reaction in psychotic patients to fractions of gluten.

Am J Psychiatry 1979; 136:1306-1309. 3. Baruk H. 1978. Psychoses of digestive origins. In: Hemmings and Hemmings (eds),

Biological Basis of Schizophrenia. Lancaster MTP Press. 4. Bolte ER, (1998). Autism and Clostridium tetani. Medical Hypothesis 51(2): 133-

144. 5. Cade R et al. Autism and schizophrenia: intestinal disorders. Nutritional

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1966; 42: 125-152. 7. Dohan CF et al. Relapsed schizophrenics: more rapid improvement on a milk and

cereal free diet. Brit J Psychiat 1969; 115: 595-596.

8. Dohan et al. Is schizophrenia rare if grain is rare? Biology and Psychiatry. 1984: 19(3): 385-399.

9. Dohan FC. Is celiac disease a clue to pathogenesis of schizophrenia? Mental Hygiene.

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with epithelial damage in children with autism. J Pediatr 2001;138: 366-72. 11. Ferrari P et al. Immune status in infantile autism: Correlation between the immune

status, autistic symptoms and levels of serotonin. Encephale 14:339-344, 1988. 12. Holford P. Optimum nutrition for the mind. 2003. ISBN 0 -7499 -2213 -3. 13. Horrobin DF, Glen AM, Vaddadi K. 1994. The membrane hypothesis of

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children with autism. Journal of Pediatrics 1999; 135: 559-563. 15. Kawashima H, Takayuki M, Kashiwagi Y et al. Detection and sequencing of measles

virus from peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with inflammatory bowel disease and autism. Digestive Diseases and Sciences. 2000;45:723-729.

16. Kontstanareas M and Homatidis S, (1987). Ear infections in autistic and normal

children. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 17: 585. 17. Krasnogolovez VN. Colonic disbacteriosis. - M.: Medicina, 1989. 18. Kirjavainen PV, Apostolov E, Salminen SS, Isolauri E 1999.New aspects of

probiotics - a novel approach in the management of food allergy. (Review)(59refs).Allergy. 54(9):909-15, 1999 Sep.

19. Lewis SJ, Freedman AR (1998). Review article: the use of biotherapeutic agents in

the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal disease. (Review)(144 refs). Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 12(9):807-22, 1998 Sep.

20. Lykova EA, Bondarenko VM, Sidorenko SV, Grishina ME, Murashova AD, Minaev

VI, Rytikov FM, Korsunski AA (1999). Combined antibacterial and probiotic therapy of Helicobacter - associated disease in children (Russian).Zhurnal Microbiologii, Epidemiologii I Immunobiologii. 1999 Mar-Apr;(2):76-81.

21. Macfarlane GT, Cummings JH (1999). Probiotics and prebiotics: can regulating the

activities of intestinal bacteria benefit health? (Review) (48 refs).BMJ. 1999 April;318:999-1003.

22. McCandless J. Children with starving brains. 2003. ISBN 1-883647-10-X. 23. Mycroft et al. JIF-like sequences in milk and wheat proteins. NEJM 1982; 307: 895. 24. Papalos D, Papalos J. The bipolar child. Broadway Books, 2000. 25. Plioplys AV at al. Lymphocyte function in autism and Rett syndrome.

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behaviour and peptide secretions. Journal of Applied Nutrition. 42:1-11, 1990. 27. Reichelt K et al. Biologically active peptide-containing fractions in schizophrenia and

childhood autism. Adv Biochem Psychopharmacol 28:627-47, 1981. 28. Rimland B. New hope for safe and effective treatments for autism. Autism Research

Review International 8:3, 1994. 29. Samonis G et al. (1994). Prospective evaluation of the impact of broad-spectrum

antibiotics on the yeast flora of the human gut. European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infections Diseases 13: 665-7.

30. Schoenthaler SJ et al. The effect of randomised vitamin-mineral supplementation on

violent and non-violent antisocial behaviour among incarcerated juveniles. J Nut Env Med, Vol 7, 1997, pp.343-352.

31. Singh V. Neuro-immunopathogenesis in autism. 2001. New Foundations of Biology.

Berczi I & Gorczynski RM (eds) Elsevier Science B.V. pp 447-458. 32. Singh V at al. Changes in soluble interleukin-2, interleukin-2 rector, T8 antigen, and

interleukin-I in the serum of autistic children. Clin. Immunol. Immunopath. 61:448-455, 1991.

33. Singh V et al. Immunodiagnosis and immunotherapy in autistic children. Ann NY

Acad Sci 540:602-604, 1988. 34. Singh V et al. Serological association of measles virus and human herpesvirus-6 with

brain autoantibodies in autism. Clinical Immunology and Immunopathology. 1998:89; 105-108.

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37. Shaw W. Biological Treatments for Autism and PDD. 2002. ISBN 0-9661238-0-6 38. Tabolin VA, Belmer SV, Gasilina TV, Muhina UG, Korneva TI. Rational therapy

of intestinal disbacteriosis in children. - M.:Medicina, 1998, 22p.. 39. Vorobiev AA, Pak SG et al. (1998). Disbacteriosis in children. A textbook for doctors

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Environ Med, Vol 7, 1997, p.333-342. 41. Ward NI. Hyperactivity and a previous history of antibiotic usage. Nutrition

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specific colitis and pervasive developmental disorder in children. Lancet 1998; 351:637-41.

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1


Dr. N. Campbell-McBride, MD

Not many people would choose to become parents of an autistic child. Yet it is

happening to more and more of us in our modern world. There is an

unmistakable epidemic of autism going on across the globe. If this can possibly

be of any comfort for a parent, then I would say that you are certainly not alone!

Most parents of autistic children can clearly recall that traumatic moment of the

diagnosis of "Autism" being announced to them by a doctor followed by the

statement "There is nothing that can be done.” Well, being a doctor myself, I

have to say that your doctor is wrong, there is a lot that can be done! I would

even go further, depending on your commitment and certain circumstances, you

have a good chance of bringing your child as close as possible to normality!

Hundreds of autistic children across the globe, appropriately treated and

educated become almost indistinguishable from their typically developing

(normal) peers. My own son was diagnosed severely autistic at the age of three.

Now at the age of 12 he has fully recovered and is leading a normal life. In my

clinic in Cambridge in England I work with hundreds of autistic children and

adults. My personal and professional involvement with autism has been my best

education in how to treat this disorder effectively.

Treating autism is not an easy task. It takes years of continuous effort and

commitment. But, being a parent myself, I can tell you that it is one of the most

rewarding experiences on Earth! In my book “Gut and Psychology Syndrome.

2

Natural Treatment for Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Depression and

Schizophrenia” I would like to share with you what I strongly believe to be the

appropriate treatment for an autistic child.

So, what is a typical scenario I see in clinical pr actice?

Before examining the patient it is very important to look at the health history of

the parents. Whenever the parents are mentioned people immediately think

about genetics. However, apart from genetics there is something very important

the parents, mother in particular, pass to their child: their unique gut micro-flora.

Not many people know that an adult on average carries 2 kg of bacteria in the

gut. There are more cells in that microbial mass than there are cells in an entire

human body. It is a highly organised micro-world, where certain species of

bacteria have to predominate to keep us healthy physically and mentally. Their

role in our health is so monumental, that we simply can not afford to ignore them.

We will talk in detail about the child’s gut flora later. Now let us come back to the

source of the child’s gut flora – the parents.

After studying hundreds of cases of autism in children and adults, a typical health

picture of these children’s mums has emerged.

A typical modern mother was probably not breast fed when she was a baby,

because she was born in 60s or 70s when breast-feeding went out of fashion.

Why is it important? Because it is well known now that bottle fed babies develop

completely different gut flora to the breast fed babies. This compromised gut flora

3

in a bottle fed baby later on predisposes her to many health problems. Having

acquired compromised gut flora from the start, a typical modern mum had quite a

few courses of antibiotics in her childhood and youth for various infections. It is a

well known fact that antibiotics have a serious damaging effect on gut flora,

because they wipe out the beneficial strains of bacteria in the gut. At the age of

16 and sometimes even earlier the modern mum was put on a contraceptive pill,

which she took for quite a few years before starting a family. Contraceptive pills

have a devastating effect on the beneficial (good) bacteria in the gut. One of the

major functions of the good bacteria in the gut flora is controlling about 500

different known to science species of pathogenic (bad) and opportunistic

microbes. When the beneficial bacteria get destroyed the opportunists get a

special opportunity to grow into large colonies and occupy large areas of the

digestive tract. A modern diet of processed and fast foods provides perfect

nourishment for these pathogens and that is a typical diet a modern mum had as

a child and a young adult. As a result of all these factors a modern mum has

seriously compromised gut flora by the time she is ready to have children. And

indeed clinical signs of gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora) are present in almost

100% of mothers of children with autism and other neurological and psychiatric

conditions.

But why are we talking about mother’s gut flora? Because her baby is born with a

sterile gut. In the first 20 or so days of life the baby’s virgin gut surface gets

populated by a mixture of microbes. This is the child’s gut flora, which will have a

4

tremendous effect on this child’s health for the rest of his/her life. Where does

this gut flora come from? Mainly from the mother.

So, whatever microbial flora the mother has she would pass to her new-born

child.

Gut flora is something we do not think much about. And yet the number of

functions the gut flora fulfils is so vital for us that if some day our digestive tract

got sterilised we probably would not survive.

The first and very important function is appropriate digestion and absorption of

food. If a child does not acquire normal balanced gut flora, then the child will not

digest and absorb foods properly, developing multiple nutritional deficiencies.

Apart from taking a vital part in nourishing the body, beneficial bacteria in the gut

act as the housekeepers for the digestive tract. They coat the entire surface of

the gut protecting it from invaders and toxins by providing a natural barrier and

producing a lot of anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal substances. At the

same time they provide the gut lining with nourishment. So, it is no surprise that

when the gut flora is abnormal the digestive tract itself can not be healthy. Indeed

most patients with autistic spectrum disorders present with digestive problems. In

many cases these problems are severe enough for the parents to talk about

them first. In some cases they may not be severe, but when asked direct

questions the parents describe that their child never had normal stool, that their

5

child suffered from colic as a baby and that tummy pains and flatulence are a

common part of the picture. In those cases where these children have been

examined by gastroenterologists, inflammatory process in the gut was found

along with faecal compaction and an over-spill syndrome. The most recent

research was performed at the Royal Free Hospital in London by Dr. Andrew

Wakefield and his team. They found an inflammatory condition in the bowel of

autistic children, which they have named Autistic Enterocolitis.

Well functioning gut flora is the right hand of our immune system. A baby is born

with an immature immune system. Establishment of healthy balanced gut flora in

the first few days of life plays a crucial role in appropriate maturation of the

immune system. If the baby does not acquire appropriate gut flora then the baby

is left immune compromised. The result is lots of infections followed by lots of

courses of antibiotics, which damage the child’s gut flora and immune system

even further. At the same time in the first two years of life the child receives a lot

of vaccinations. A child with compromised immune system does not react to

vaccinations in a predicted way. In many cases vaccines deepen the damage to

the immune system and provide a source of chronic persistent viral infections

and autoimmune problems in these children.

So, the autistic child who we are talking about, did not get normal gut flora from

the start and then got it damaged even further by repeated courses of antibiotics

and vaccinations. As a result these children commonly suffer from digestive

6

problems, allergies, asthma and eczema. But apart from that in autistic children

and adults something even more terrible happens. Without control of the

beneficial bacteria different opportunistic and pathogenic bacteria, viruses and

fungi have a good chance to occupy large territories in the digestive tract and

grow large colonies. These pathogenic microbes start digesting food in their own

way producing large amounts of various toxic substances, which get absorbed

into the blood stream, carried to the brain and cross the blood – brain barrier.

Due to the absence or greatly reduced numbers of beneficial bacteria in the gut

flora, the child’s digestive system instead of being a source of nourishment

becomes a major source of toxicity in the body.

In my book “Gut and Psychology Syndrome. Natural Treatment for Autism,

ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Depression and Schizophrenia” we will look in great

detail at what particular toxins have been found in autistic children and adults and

how they make these children and adults autistic. The toxicity, which is produced

by the abnormal microbial mass in the digestive tract of the child, establishes a

link between the gut and the brain. That is why I named this condition: the Gut

and Psychology Syndrome (GAP Syndrome ). Patients with GAP Syndrome

fall in the gap – the gap in our medical knowledge. As a result they do not receive

an appropriate treatment.

The book on GAP Syndrome explains how and why autism develops and how to

treat it using a sound nutritional protocol. The treatment is completely natural and

7

can be implemented at home. It is a self-help book with a comprehensive recipe

section and is written in easy to understand language. Knowledge is power! This

book gives the parents the power to help their child !

Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, MD

MmedSci (neurology)

MmedSci (human nutrition)

Cambridge, England

To learn more about Gut and Psychology Syndrome, how it develops and how to

treat it with a sound nutritional protocol please look at the book by Dr.

Natasha Campbell-McBride “ Gut and Psychology Syndrome.

Natural treatment for autism, ADHD/ADD, dyslexia, d yspraxia,

depression and schizophrenia.” You can get the book on

www.mindd.org or Tel: (61) (2)9388 7383

Gut and Psychology Syndrome*N. Campbell-McBride, M.D.

In his seminal book, Good Calories, BadCalories, Gary Taubes quotes Hilde Bruchwho wrote: "The literature on obesity is notonly voluminous, it is also fall ofcoriflictingand confasing reports and opinions. Onemight well add to this the words ofArtemusWard: "The researches of so many eminentscientific men have thrown so much darknesson the subject that if they continue theseresearches we shall soon know nothing. "

Determining the causes of the hundredsofpsychiatric disorders and their treatmenthas almost reached that state of total dark-ness. Dr. Campbell-McBride, in her bookGut and Psychology Syndrome, blows awaysome ofthefog and shows us where to look.After I read it, I wrote to the author: "HadI read your excellent book forty years ago Iwould have thought you were nuts. Thirtyyears ago I would have seen some merit andin the last years what I have learned hasconfirmed what you have written. It is a verygood book. Isn't it a shame that psychiatricillnesses are fueled by foods and the way wedeal with them. Ironically, psychiatry maynever accept this idea, as it has become theunpaid servant of the drug industry. Manythanks for sending it to me. "

To learn more, please read the book byDr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, Gut andPsychologySyndrome:NaturalTreatmentforAutism, ADHD/ADD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia,Depression, Schizophrenia.

-Ahram Hoffer, MD, PhD

We live in the world of unfoldingepidemics. Autistic Spectrum Disorders,Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD/ADD), schizophrenia, dyslexia,dyspraxia, depression, obsessive -compul-sive disorder, bipolar disorder and otherneuro-psychological and psychiatric prob-

*GAP Syndrome or GAPS™'

lems in children and adults are becomingmore and more common.

In clinical practice these conditionsoverlap with each other. A patient wdthautism often is hyperactive and dyspraxic.There is about 50% overlap between dys-lexia and dyspraxia and 25-50% overlapbetween ADHD/ADD and dyslexia anddyspraxia. Children with these conditionsare often diagnosed as being depressed,and as they grow up they are more proneto drug abuse or alcoholism than theirtypically developing peers. A young per-son diagnosed with schizophrenia oftensuffered from dyslexia, dyspraxia or/andADHD/ADD in childhood. When westart examining the patients with theseso-called mental conditions, we find thatthey are also physically ill. Digestive prob-lems, allergies, eczema, asthma, variousfood intolerances and immune systemabnormalities are universally presentamongst them. We have created differentdiagnostic boxes for these patients, buta modern patient does not fit into anyone of them neatly. The modern patientin most cases fits into a rather lumpypicture of overlapping neurological andpsychiatric conditions.

Why are all these conditions related?What underlying problem are we missing?

To answer all these questions we haveto look at one factor, which unites all thesepatients in a clinical setting. This factoris the state of their digestive system. Ihave yet to meet a child or an adult withautism, ADHD/ADD, dyspraxia, dyslexia,schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depres-sion or obsessive-compulsive disorderwho does not have digestive abnormali-ties. In many cases they are severe enoughfor the patients or their parents to starttalking about them first. In some casesthe parents may not mention their child'sdigestive system, yet when asked direct

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questions, would describe a plethora ofgut problems. So, what have digestive ab-normalities got to do with these so-calledmental problems? According to recentresearch and clinical experience - a lot!In fact it appears that the patient's diges-tive system holds the key to the patient'smental state.

What is a typical scenario we see inclinical practice? Before examining thepatient it is very important to look at thehealth history of the parents. Wheneverthe parents are mentioned people im-mediately think about genetics. However,apart from genetics there is somethingvery important the parents, mother inparticular, pass to their child: their uniquegut micro-flora. Not many people knowthat an adult on average carries 2 kg ofbacteria in the gut. There are more cells inthat microbiai mass than there are cells inan entire human body. It is a highly orga-nized micro-world, where certain speciesof bacteria have to predominate to keepus healthy physically and mentally. Theirrole in our health is so monumental, thatwe simply cannot afford to ignore them.We will talk in detail about the child'sgut flora later. Now let us come back tothe source of the child's gut flora - theparents.

After studying hundreds of cases ofneurological and psychiatric conditionsin children and adults, a typical healthpicture of these children's mums hasemerged: due to various modern factors amodern mum has seriously compromisedgut flora by the time she is ready to havechildren. Indeed, clinical signs of gut dys-biosis (abnormal gut flora) are present inalmost 100% of mothers of children withneurological and psychiatric conditions.

A baby is born with a sterile gut. Inthe first 20 or so days of life the baby'svirgin gut surface is populated by amixture of microbes. This is the child'sgut flora, which will have a tremendouseffect on this child's health for the rest

of his/her life. Where does this gut floracome from? Mainly from the mother atthe time of birth. Whatever microbiaiflora the mother has, she passes to hernewborn child. Fathers with abnormalgut flora contribute to the bodily flora ofthe mother and through her to the gutflora of the child.

The Role and Importance ofthe Gut FloraGut flora is something we do not

think much about. And yet the numberof functions the gut flora fulfils is so vi-tal for us that if some day our digestivetracts were sterilised we probably wouldnot survive.

The first and very important functionis appropriate digestion and absorption offood. If a child does not acquire normalbalanced gut flora, then the child will notdigest and absorb foods properly, develop-ing multiple nutritional deficiencies. Andthat is what we commonly see in childrenand adults with learning disabilities, psy-chiatric problems and allergies. Many ofthese patients are malnourished. Even inthe cases where the child may grow well,testing reveals some typical nutritionaldeficiencies in many important minerals,vitamins, essential fats, many amino acidsand other nutrients.

Apart from normal digestion and ab-sorption of food, healthy gut flora activelysynthesizes various nutrients: vitaminK, pantothenic acid, folie acid, thiamine(vitamin Bi), riboflavin (vitamin B2),niacin (vitamin B3), pyridoxine (vitaminBe), cyancobalamin (vitamin B12), variousamino-acids and proteins. Indeed, whentested, people with gut dysbiosis presentwith deficiencies of these nutrients. Clini-cal experience shows that restoring thebeneficial bacteria in their gut is the bestway to deal with these deficiencies.

Apart from taking a vital part innourishing the body, beneficial bacteriain the gut act as the housekeepers forthe digestive tract. They coat the entire

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surface of the gut protecting it from in-vaders and toxins by providing a naturalbarrier and producing anti-bacterial,anti-viral and anti-fungal substances. Atthe same time they provide the gut liningwith nourishment. Beneficial bacterianormally control various opportunisticand pathogenic microbes in the gut.Lack of beneficial bacteria would allowdisease-causing microbes to grow andoccupy large parts of the digestive sys-tem causing damage and inflammationin the gut wall. So, it is no surprise whenthe gut flora is abnormal, the digestivetract itself cannot be healthy. Indeedmost patients with learning disabilities,psychiatric disorders and allergies presentwith digestive problems: constipation anddiarrhoea, infantile colic and abdominalpain, bloating and flatulence, reflux andindigestion. Examination by gastroenter-ologists commonly reveals inflammatoryprocess in the gut and many of these pa-tients are diagnosed with coeliac disease.Housing a mass of pathogenic microbesthe gut cannot be healthy. Indeed, longbefore these patients develop so-calledmental symptoms they usually suffer fromdigestive problems and all other typicalsjmiptoms of gut dysbiosis pretty muchfrom the start of their lives.

The Role and Importance oftheImmune System

A baby is born with an immatureimmune system. Establishment of healthybalanced gut flora in the first few daysof life plays a crucial role in appropriatematuration of the immune system. If thebaby acquires compromised gut florafrom the mother then the baby is left im-mune compromised. The result is lots ofinfections followed by lots of courses ofantibiotics, which damage the child's gutflora and immune system even further.

The beneficial bacteria in the gut en-sure appropriate production of differentimmune cells, immunoglobulins, keeping

immunity in the right balance. Damageinflicted upon the gut flora typically leadsto an imbalance between major parts ofimmunity, resulting in allergies, asthmaand eczema - symptoms, which childrenand adults with neurological and psychi-atric conditions commonly suffer from.

There has been a considerable amountof research published into the state oftheimmune system in patients with learningdisabilities and psychiatric problems. Theresearch shows deep abnormalities in allmajor cell groups and immunoglobulins.The most common autoantibodies foundare to myelin basic protein (MBP) andneuron-axon filament protein (NAFP).These antibodies specifically attack theperson's brain and the rest ofthe nervoussystem.

To summarize: A child born fromparents with abnormal gut flora did notacquire normal gut flora from the start.The flora may have been damaged furtherby repeated courses of antibiotics andvaccinations. As a result, these childrencommonly suffer from digestive problems,allergies, asthma and eczema. However, inchildren and adults who go on to developneurological and psychiatric problems,something even worse happens. Withoutcontrol ofthe beneficial bacteria, differentopportunistic and pathogenic bacteria, vi-ruses and fungi have a good chance to oc-cupy large territories in the digestive tractand grow large colonies. Two particulargroups, which are most commonly foundon testing, are yeasts (including Candidaspecies) and the Clostridia family. Thesepathogenic microbes start digesting foodin their own way producing large amountsof various toxic substances, which areabsorbed into the blood stream, carriedto the brain and cross the blood-brainbarrier. The number and mixture of toxinscan be very individual, causing differentneurological and psychiatric symptoms.Due to the absence or greatly reducednumbers of beneficial bacteria in the

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gut flora, the person's digestive systeminstead of being a source of nourishmentbecomes a major source of toxicity inthe body.

The mixture of toxicity in each childor adult can be quite individual and dif-ferent. But what they all have in commonis gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora). Thetoxicity, which is produced by the abnor-mal microbiai mass in these patients,establishes a link between the gut and thebrain. That is why it is logical to groupthese disorders under one name: the Gutand Psychology Syndrome (GAPS)3. TheGAPS children and adults can presentwith symptoms of autism, ADHD, ADD,OCD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, schizophrenia,depression, bipolar disorder, sleep dis-orders, allergies, asthma and eczema inany possible combination. These are thepatients who fall through the gap in ourmedical knowledge. Any child or adultwith a learning disability, neurologicalor psychological problems and allergiesshould be thoroughly examined for gutdysbiosis. Re-establishing normal gutflora and treating the digestive systemof the person has to be the number onetreatment for these disorders, beforeconsidering any other treatments withdrugs or otherwise.

Gut And Psychology Syndrome(GAP Syndrome or GAPS) establishesthe connection between the state of thepatient's gut and the functioning of thebrain. This connection has been knownby medics for a very long time. The fatherof modern psychiatry French psychiatristPhillipe Pinel (1745-1828), after workingwith mental patients for many years,concluded in 1807: "The primary seat ofinsanity generally is in the region of thestomach and intestines." Long before himHippocrates (460-370 BC), the father ofmodern medicine has said: "All diseasesbegin in the gut!" The more we learn withour modern scientiflc tools, the more werealize just how right they were.

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3. Baruk H: Psychoses of digestive origins. In:Hemmings and Hemmings (eds). BiologicalBasis of Schizophrenia. Lancaster MTP Press.1978.

4. Bolte ER: Autism and Clostridium tetani. MedHypoth, 1998; 51(2): 133-144.

5. Cade R et al: Autism and schizophrenia: intes-tinal disorders. Nutri Neurosci, 2000; 3.

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12. Holford P: Optimum Nutrition for the Mind.2003. ISBN 0 -7499 -2213 -3.

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15. Kawashima H, Takayuki M, Kashiwagi Y etal: Detection and sequencing of measles virusfrom peripheral blood mononuclear cells frompatients with inflammatory bowel disease andautism. Digest Diseas Sei, 2000; 45: 723-729.

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energy. Allergy, 1999; 54(9): 909-15.19. Lewis SJ, Freedman AR: Review article: the

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20. Lykova EA, Bondarenko VM, Sidorenko SV,et al: Combined antibacterial and probiotictherapy of Helicobacter-associated diseasein children (Russian). Zhurnal Microbiologii,Epidemiologii I Immunobiologii. 1999; Mar-Apr;(2): 76-81.

21. Macfarlane GT, CummingsJH: Probiotics andprebiotics: can regulating the activities of intes-tinal bacteria benefit health? BMJ, 1999; April;318:999-1003.

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Introduction Diet Most GAPS patients should follow the Introduction Diet before going into the Full GAPS Diet. Depending

on the severity of your patient’s condition he or she can move through this program as fast or as slow as

his/her condition will permit: for example you may move through the First Stage in one or two days and

then spend longer on the Second Stage.

Following the Introduction Diet fully is essential for people with serious digestive symptoms: diarrhea,

abdominal pain, bloating, some cases of constipation, etc. This diet will reduce the symptoms quickly

and initiate the healing process in the digestive system. Even for healthy people, if you or your child gets

a ‘tummy bug’ or any other form of diarrhea, following the Introduction Diet for a few days will clear the

symptoms quickly and permanently usually without needing any medication.

In cases of stubborn constipation, introduce freshly pressed juices earlier in the diet, from stage 2: start

from carrot juice first thing in the morning and take your cod liver oil at the same time. The juice will

stimulate bile production as many cases of persistent constipation are due to poor bile production.

When there is not enough bile, the fats in the food do not digest well; instead they react with salts and

form soap in the gut, causing constipation. Removing dairy may also help.

People with food allergies and intolerances should go through the Introduction Diet in order to heal and

seal their gut lining. The reason for allergies and food intolerances is so-called “leaky gut” when the gut

lining is damaged by abnormal micro flora. Foods do not get the chance to be digested properly before

they get absorbed through this damaged wall and cause the immune system to react to them. Many

people try to identify, which foods they react to. However, with damaged gut wall they are likely to

absorb most of their foods partially digested, which may cause an immediate reaction or a delayed

reaction (a day, a few days or even a couple of weeks later). As these reactions overlap with each other,

you can never be sure what exactly you are reacting to on any given day. Testing for food allergies is

notoriously unreliable: if one had enough resources to test twice a day for two weeks, they would find

that they are “allergic” to everything they eat. As long as the gut wall is damaged and stays damaged,

you can be juggling your diet forever removing different foods and never get anywhere. From my clinical

experience it is best to concentrate on healing the gut wall with the Introduction Diet. Once the gut wall

is healed, the foods will be digested properly before being absorbed, which will remove most food

intolerances and allergies.

Those without serious digestive problems and food intolerances can move through the Introduction Diet

quite quickly. However, please do not be tempted to skip the Introduction Diet and go straight into the

Full GAPS Diet, because the Introduction Diet will give your patient the best chance to optimize the

healing process in the gut and the rest of the body. I see cases where skipping the Introduction Diet

leads to long-term lingering problems, difficult to deal with.

If you have decided to go straight into the Full GAPS Diet, keep in mind that about 85% of everything

your patient eats daily should be made out of meats, fish, eggs, fermented dairy and vegetables (some

well-cooked, some fermented and some raw). Baking and fruit should be kept out of the diet for a few


weeks, and then be limited to snacks between meals and should not replace the main meals.

Homemade meat stock, soups, stews and natural fats are not optional – they should be your patient’s

staples.

Start the day with a cup of still mineral or filtered water. Give your patient the probiotic. Make sure that

the water is warm or room temperature, not cold, as cold will aggravate his or her condition. Only foods

listed are allowed: you patient must not have anything else. On the First Stage the most drastic

symptoms of abdominal pain, diarrhea and constipation will quickly subside. If, when you introduce a

new food, your patient gets diarrhea back, pain or any other digestive symptoms then he/she is not

ready for that food to be introduced. Wait for a week and try again.

If you suspect a real allergy (which can be dangerous) to any particular food, before introducing it do the

Sensitivity Test. Take a drop of the food in question (if the food is solid, mash and mix with a bit of

water) and place it on the inside of the wrist of the patient. Do it at bedtime. Let the drop dry on the

skin, then let your patient go to sleep. In the morning check the spot: if there is an angry red reaction,

then avoid that food for a few weeks, and then try again. If there is no reaction, then go ahead and

introduce it gradually starting from a small amount.


First stage: • Homemade meat or fish stock. Meat and fish stocks provide building blocks for the rapidly growing

cells of the gut lining and they have a soothing effect on any areas of inflammation in the gut. That is

why they aid digestion and have been known for centuries as healing folk remedies for the digestive

tract. Do not use commercially available soup stock granules or bouillon cubes, they are highly

processed and are full of detrimental ingredients. Chicken stock is particularly gentle on the stomach

and is very good to start from. To make good meat stock you need joints, bones, a piece of meat on the

bone, a whole chicken, giblets from chicken, goose or duck, whole pigeons, pheasants or other

inexpensive meats. It is essential to use bones and joints, as they provide the healing substances, not so

much the muscle meats. Ask the butcher to cut in half the large tubular bones, so you can get the bone

marrow out of them after cooking. Put the bones, joints and meats into a large pan and fill it up with

water, add natural unprocessed salt to your taste at the beginning of cooking and about a teaspoon of

black peppercorns, roughly crushed. Bring to boil, cover and simmer on a low heat for 2,5 - 3 hours. You

can make fish stock the same way using a whole fish or fish fins, bones and heads. After cooking take the

bones and meats out and sieve the stock to remove small bones and pepper corns. Strip off all the soft

tissues from the bones as best as you can to later add to soups or encourage your patient to eat all the

soft tissues on the bones. Extract the bone marrow out of large tubular bones while they are still warm:

to do that bang the bone on a thick wooden chopping board. The gelatinous soft tissues around the

bones and the bone marrow provide some of the best healing remedies for the gut lining and the

immune system; your patient needs to consume them with every meal. Take off all the soft tissues from

fish bones and heads and reserve for adding to soups later. The meat or fish stock will keep well in the

fridge for at least 7 days or it can be frozen. Keep giving your patient warm meat stock as a drink all day

with his meals and between meals. Do not use microwaves for warming up the stock, use conventional

stove (microwaves destroy food). It is very important for your patient to consume all the fat in the stock

and off the bones as these fats are essential for the healing process. Add some probiotic food into every

cup of stock (the details about introducing probiotic foods follow).

• Homemade soup with your homemade meat or fish stock. Please look for some recipe ideas in the

recipe section. Here we will go through some details, specific for the Introduction Diet. Bring some of

the meat stock to boil, add chopped or sliced vegetables: onions, carrots, broccoli, leeks, cauliflower,

zucchinis, marrow, squash, pumpkin, etc. and simmer for 25-35 minutes. You can choose any

combination of available vegetables avoiding very fibrous ones, such as all varieties of cabbage and

celery. All particularly fibrous parts of vegetables need to be removed, such as skin and seeds on

pumpkins, marrows and squashes, stock of broccoli and cauliflower and any other parts that look too

fibrous. Cook the vegetables well, so they are really soft. When vegetables are well cooked, add 1-2

tablespoons of chopped garlic, bring to boil and turn the heat off. Give your patient this soup with the

bone marrow and meats and other soft tissues, which you cut off the bones. You can blend the soup

using a soup blender or serve it as it is. Add some probiotic food into every bowl of soup (the detail

about introducing probiotic foods follow). Your patient should eat these soups with boiled meat and

other soft tissues off the bones as often as he/she wants to all day.


• Probiotic foods are essential to introduce right from the beginning. These can be dairy - based or

vegetable - based. To avoid any reactions introduce probiotic foods gradually, starting from 1-2

teaspoons a day for 2-5 days, then 3-4 teaspoons a day for 2-5 days and so on until you can add a few

teaspoons of the probiotic food into every cup of meat stock and every bowl of soup. Start adding juice

from your homemade sauerkraut, fermented vegetables or vegetable medley (please look in the recipe

section) into cups of meat stock (do not add the vegetables themselves yet, as they are too fibrous).

These juices will help to restore normal stomach acid production. Make sure that the food is not too hot

when adding the probiotic foods, as the heat would destroy the beneficial probiotic bacteria. In my

experience a large percentage of GAPS people can tolerate well-fermented homemade whey and

yoghurt right from the beginning. However, some cannot. So, before introducing dairy, do the sensitivity

test. If there is no reaction on the sensitivity test, then try to introduce some whey from dripping your

homemade yoghurt (dripping will remove many dairy proteins): start from 1 teaspoon of whey added to

the soup or meat stock. After 3-5 days on 1 teaspoon of whey per day, increase to 2 teaspoons a day

and so on, until your patient is having ½ a cup of whey per day with meals. At this stage try to add 1

teaspoon per day of homemade yoghurt (without dripping), gradually increasing the daily amount. After

yoghurt introduce homemade kefir. Kefir is far more aggressive than yoghurt and usually creates a more

pronounced “die-off reaction”. That is why I recommend introducing yoghurt first before starting on

kefir. If your patient had no reaction to yoghurt, then you may be able to introduce kefir almost from

the beginning. For those who clearly react to dairy, please look at p.95 in my book.

• Ginger tea, mint or chamomile tea with a little honey between meals. Most people know how to make

mint or chamomile tea. To make ginger tea, grate some fresh ginger root (about a teaspoonful) into your

teapot and pour some boiling water over it, cover and leave for 3 - 5 min. Pour through a small sieve.

In extreme cases of profuse watery diarrhea exclude vegetables. Let your patient drink warm meat stock

with probiotic foods (preferably whey or yoghurt), eat well-cooked gelatinous meats (which you made

the stock with) and consider adding raw egg yolks gradually. Do not introduce vegetables until the

diarrhea starts settling down. When the gut wall is severely inflamed, no amount of fiber can be

tolerated. That is why you do not rush to introduce vegetables (even very well-cooked).


Second stage: • Keep giving your patient the soups with bone marrow, boiled meats or fish and other soft tissues off

the bones (particularly gelatinous and fatty parts). He or she should keep drinking the meat stock and

ginger tea. Keep adding some probiotic food into every cup of meat stock and every bowl of soup: juices

from sauerkraut, juices from fermented vegetables or vegetable medley, and/or homemade

whey/yoghurt.

• Add raw organic egg yolks. It is best to have egg yolks raw added to every bowl of soup and every cup

of meat stock. Start from 1 egg yolk a day and gradually increase until your patient has an egg yolk with

every bowl of soup. When egg yolks are well tolerated add soft-boiled eggs to the soups (the whites

cooked and the yolks still runny). If you have any concerns about egg allergy, do the sensitivity test first.

There is no need to limit number of egg yolks per day, as they absorb quickly almost without needing

any digestion and will provide your patient with wonderful and most needed nutrition. Get your eggs

from the source you trust: fresh, free range and organic.

• Add stews and casseroles made with meats and vegetables. Avoid spices at this stage, just make the

stew with salt and fresh herbs (look for a recipe of Italian Casserole in the recipe section). The fat

content of these meals must be quite high: the more fresh animal fats your patient consumes, the

quicker he or she will recover. Add some probiotic food into every serving.

• Increase the daily amount of homemade yoghurt or kefir, if introduced. Increase the amount of juice

from sauerkraut, fermented vegetables or vegetable medley.

• Introduce fermented fish, starting from one piece a day and gradually increasing. Look for the recipes

in the recipe section.

• Introduce homemade ghee, starting from 1 teaspoon a day and gradually increasing.


Third stage: • Carry on with the previous foods.

• Add ripe avocado mashed into soups, starting from 1-3 teaspoons and gradually increasing the

amount.

• Add pancakes, starting from one pancake a day and gradually increasing the amount. Make these

pancakes with three ingredients: 1) organic nut butter (almond, walnut, peanut, etc); 2) eggs; 3) a piece

of fresh winter squash, marrow or zucchini (peeled, de-seeded and well blended in a food processor).

Gently fry small thin pancakes using ghee, goose fat or duck fat, make sure not to burn them.

• Egg gently fried or scrambled with plenty of ghee, goose fat or duck fat. Serve it with avocado (if well

tolerated) and cooked vegetables. Cooked onion is particularly good for the digestive system and the

immune system: melt 3 tablespoons of duck fat or ghee in the pan, add sliced large white onion, cover

and cook for 20-30 minutes on low heat until soft, sweet and translucent.

• Introduce the sauerkraut and your fermented vegetables (your patient has been drinking the juices

from them for a while now). Start from a small amount, gradually increasing to 1-2 tablespoons of

sauerkraut or fermented vegetables per every meal.


Fourth stage: • Carry on with the previous foods.

• Gradually add meats cooked by roasting and grilling (but not barbecued or fried yet). Avoid bits, which

are burned or too brown. Let your patient eat the meat with cooked vegetables and sauerkraut (or

other fermented vegetables).

• Start adding cold pressed olive oil to the meals, starting from a few drops per meal and gradually

increasing the amount to 1-2 tablespoons per meal.

• Introduce freshly pressed juices, starting from a few spoonfuls of carrot juice. Make sure that the juice

is clear, filter it well. Let your patient drink it slowly or diluted with warm water or mixed with some

homemade yoghurt. If well tolerated gradually increase to a full cup a day. When a full cup of carrot

juice is well tolerated try to add to it juice from celery, lettuce and fresh mint leaves. Your patient should

drink the juice on an empty stomach, so first thing in the morning and middle of afternoon are good

times.

• Try to bake bread with ground almonds or any other nuts and seeds ground into flour. The recipe

(please look in the recipe section) requires only four ingredients: 1) nut flour; 2) eggs; 3) piece of fresh

winter squash, marrow or zucchini (peeled, de-seeded and finely sliced); 4) some natural fat (ghee,

butter, goose or duck fat) and some salt to taste. Your patient should start from a small piece of bread

per day and gradually increase the amount.


Fifth stage: • If all the previous foods are well tolerated try to add cooked apple as an apple pure: peel and core ripe

cooking apples and stew them with a bit of water until soft. When cooked add some ghee to it and mash

with a potato masher. If ghee has not been introduced yet add duck or goose fat. Start from a few

spoonfuls a day. Watch for any reaction. If there is none gradually increase the amount.

• Add raw vegetables starting from softer parts of lettuce and peeled cucumber. Watch your patient’s

stool. Again start from a small amount and gradually increase if well tolerated. After those two

vegetables are well tolerated gradually add other raw vegetables: carrot, tomato, onion, cabbage, etc.

• If the juice made from carrot, celery, lettuce and mint is well tolerated, start adding fruit to it: apple,

pineapple and mango. Avoid citrus fruit at this stage.


Sixth stage: • If all the introduced foods are well tolerated try some peeled raw apple. Gradually introduce raw fruit

and more honey.

• Gradually introduce baking cakes and other sweet things allowed on the diet. Use dried fruit as a

sweetener in the baking.

As I mentioned before, your patient may be able to move through the Introduction Diet faster or slower

depending on the stool changes: let the diarrhea start clearing before moving to the next stage. You may

have to introduce some foods later than in this program depending on his/her sensitivities. Make sure

that you carry on with the soups and meat stock after your patient completed the Introduction Diet at

least once a day.

After the Introduction Diet is completed and when your patient has more or less normal stools move

into the Full GAPS Diet.


The Full GAPS Diet Your patient needs to carry on completely avoiding starches and sugar for two years at least. It means

avoiding all grains, sugar, potatoes, parsnips, yams, sweet potato and anything made out of them. The

flour in your cooking and baking can be replaced with ground almonds (or any other nuts or sunflower

or pumpkin seeds ground into flour). In about 1 - 1.5 years you may be able to introduce new potatoes,

fermented buckwheat, millet and quinoa, starting from very small amounts and observing any reaction.

Wheat, sugar, processed foods and all additives will have to be out of the diet for much longer.

Slowly increase the amounts of fermented foods. You can ferment vegetables, fruit, milk and fish (please

look in the recipe section). I would also recommend reading a wonderful book by Sally Fallon

“Nourishing Traditions”, it will provide you with a lot of good recipes. Eating fermented foods with every

meal will help your patient to digest the meal without using supplements of digestive enzymes. Make

sure to introduce all new fermented foods into the diet very gradually starting from 1-2 teaspoons a day.

The best foods for the GAPS person are eggs, meats and fish (bought fresh or frozen, not smoked or

canned, and cooked at home), shellfish, fresh vegetables and fruit, nuts and seeds, garlic and olive oil. As

well as eating the vegetables cooked it is important to have them raw in the form of salads and sticks. In

this form they will provide your patient with valuable enzymes and detoxifying substances, which will

help in digesting meats. Raw fruit should be eaten on their own, not with meals, as they have a very

different digestion pattern and can make the work harder for the stomach. At that stage let your patient

to have fruit as a snack between meals. Remember, that about 85% of everything your patient eats on a

daily basis should be savory - made out of meats, fish, eggs, vegetables and natural fats. Sweet baking

and fruit should be snacks between meals in limited amounts.

It is very important for a GAPS person to have plenty of natural fats in every meal from meats, butter,

ghee, coconut and cold pressed olive oil. The fat content of the meal will regulate the blood sugar level

and control cravings for carbohydrates.

If your patient gets a tummy bug or any other form of diarrhea go back to the low fiber diet for a few

days: remove all nuts, raw vegetables and raw fruit out of the diet; go back to meats cooked in water

and meat stock, fish, eggs, fermented dairy and cooked vegetables (skinned, de-seeded and well cooked

with meats as soups and stews) until diarrhea completely clears. After the stools stay normal for a week

introduce raw vegetables slowly, one at a time and starting from small amounts. When vegetables are

introduced, try to introduce nuts, seeds and fruit gradually.

It is important for your GAPS patient to balance the meals so that his or her body pH stays normal. All

protein foods, such as meats, fish, eggs and cheese leave an acid ash in the body, which may aggravate

his or her condition. Vegetables are alkalizing, so you need to combine meats, fish and eggs with good

amount of vegetables cooked and/or raw. Raw fruit, vegetables and greens have particularly strong

alkalizing ability. Apple cider vinegar is very alkalizing, it is good to have it every day: just add one

teaspoon of cider vinegar into every glass of water your patient drinks. Hot water with cider vinegar will

makes an excellent warming and alkalizing drink. Fermented foods are also alkalizing.


It is very important to avoid processed foods (any packet or tinned foods). They are stripped from most

nutrients that were present in the fresh ingredients used for making these foods. They are a hard work

for the digestive system and they damage the healthy gut flora balance. On top of that they usually

contain a lot of artificial chemicals, detrimental to health, like preservatives, colorants, E-numbers, etc.

Try to buy foods in the form that nature made them, as fresh as possible.

Do not use a microwave oven, as it destroys food. Cook and warm up food using conventional oven and

stove.

Foods to avoid:

• Sugar and anything that contains it.

• Molasses, maple syrup, corn syrup, any other syrup.

• Aspartame in any form, it is a potent neurotoxin (brain toxin).

• Sweets, cakes, biscuits, chocolates, ice – creams.

• All alcoholic beverages. An adult can have good quality wine with meals occasionally but not beer or

spirits.

• Tinned and processed foods, always read the ingredients label, beware of sugar, lactose, maltose,

starch, corn flour, preservatives, flavorings, colors, yeast. It is best not to buy processed foods at all.

• Grains: rice, corn, rye, oats, wheat and anything made of wheat flour (breads, pasta, biscuits, cakes

and anything from the bakery, anything with bread crumbs or batter), buckwheat, quinoa, millet,

couscous, spelt, semolina, tapioca, etc. After about 1 – 1.5 years you may be able to slowly re-introduce

buckwheat, millet and quinoa (fermented to start with), but not wheat, rye or rice.

• Breakfast cereals are highly processed products with virtually no nutritional value, they are full of

sugar, salt, trans-fatty acids and other harmful substances. They should be out of the diet forever.

• Starchy vegetables and anything made out of them: potato, parsnips, yams, Jerusalem artichoke and

sweet potato. In about 1 - 1.5 years you may be able to introduce new potatoes.

• Milk should be out at this stage. However, the GAPS person can have soured milk products, such as

natural hard cheese, live natural yoghurt and kefir, crème fresh or soured cream, butter and ghee. There

are many substances in milk, which could cause trouble, such as milk sugar lactose, casein, immune

complexes, etc. Soured milk products do not contain lactose and are pre-digested by the fermenting

microbes, which makes fermented milk products very easy to digest for us. I would recommend using

only organic milk products and introduce them one at a time, starting from small amounts. If you were

not able to introduce any dairy in the Introduction Diet, and then please look at page 95 in the GAPS

book, it will explain how to introduce dairy safely. If you have introduced homemade yoghurt, kefir and

ghee as a part of the Introduction Diet, then gradually introduce fermented cream and butter. When

that is well tolerated try natural mature cheeses. You may want to try goats or sheep’s milk products


first as they are often better tolerated by the GAPS people, than cows. In about 1,5 -2,5 years and when

all fermented dairy products are introduced, your patient may be able to drink raw unpasteurized

organic milk. Introduce it gradually starting from 1-2 teaspoons a day. A GAPS person must never have

pasteurized milk!

• Fruit juices apart from freshly pressed. Unfortunately fruit juices (not freshly pressed by you) are a

source of processed sugars and can contain a lot of fungi and moulds in them, which your GAPS patient

might react to.

• Beans and pulses are generally hard to digest. The two varieties that your patient can have are white

(navy) beans also called haricot beans, fermented and cooked at home, and fresh green beans.

Commercially available baked beans have almost 40% sugar and should be avoided. You can make your

own baked beans at home (please, look in the recipe section).

• Coffee is a strong irritant for the digestive tract, try to avoid it. Strong tea is not advisable either.

Natural herbal teas (no flavorings added) and ginger tea are fine. Ginger tea is a well-known folk remedy

for digestive problems.

• Soft drinks are not allowed at all, they are full of sugar and various chemicals, which are very damaging

for GAPS people.

• Anything with colors, preservatives, flavorings and other chemicals.

• Soya and anything made out of it. It interferes with thyroid function in the body and negatively affects

hormonal balance, as it contains estrogen – like compounds. It is important to avoid all synthetic

estrogens, such as from soya, contraceptive pill, many other drugs, domestic cleaning chemicals, laundry

detergents, toiletries, etc.

Recommended foods:

• Buy fresh or frozen meats, fish and shellfish. Make sure that they are not smoked, salted or preserved

in any other way. Your patient needs to have gelatinous meats every single day (meats around bones

and joints, skin and brown meats on the poultry). It is important for him or her to have all the fats on the

meat, eating lean muscle meats will not be good for GAPS.

• Liver and other organ meats should be eaten on a regular basis. They can be cooked any way you like.

It is very nourishing and is the best remedy for many nutritional deficiencies.

• Eggs - the yolk is best eaten raw, the white should be slightly cooked, like for example in soft boiled or

fried eggs. Make sure that you find good quality eggs, free-range organic eggs are the best. Your patient

should have minimum 2-3 eggs a day as they are particularly good for restoring neurological functions.

• Fresh vegetables – all types of vegetables are recommended, apart from starchy vegetables, like

potatoes, parsnips, sweet potato, Jerusalem artichokes and yams. You can cook vegetables by steaming

them, stewing, roasting, grilling or stir-frying. It is particularly good to eat them as a homemade soup or


stew with plenty of garlic, added at the end of cooking. Your patient should have plenty of cooked

vegetables with every meal, as they are better digested than raw vegetables and are more nourishing. It

is also important to have fermented and raw vegetables with every meal in a form of salads with olive

oil and fresh lemon juice or as a snack. Raw and fermented vegetables will help in digesting proteins and

detoxifying. However if your patient gets diarrhea then cook all vegetables until diarrhea clears.

• Fresh fruit. It is important that the fruit should be ripe. After completing the Introduction Diet

introduce local seasonal ripe fruit gradually. At that stage start your patient’s day from a bit of fruit and

offer some fruit between meals. He or she should not have fruit if there is diarrhea. When the diarrhea

has cleared he or she can start from having cooked fruit (peeled, de-seeded and well cooked with a good

dollop of butter, ghee or coconut oil) and then raw, introduced slowly.

• Avocado is a wonderfully nutritious fruit. Make sure it is ripe and serve it with meats, fish, shellfish and

salads.

• Butter is better than any so-called healthy substitutes. You can cook with it or add it into ready dishes.

Butter should be bought organic and unsalted, because non-organic butter contains a lot of pesticides

and antibiotics, which the cows consume. Cold pressed virgin olive oil is very good for your patient, use

it in salads and ready dishes liberally. It is not a good idea to cook with olive oil because it changes its

chemical structure when heated. Frying is best done with animal fats: pork dripping, lard, lamb fat,

goose fat, duck fat, ghee and butter. Coconut oil and palm oil are two plant oils, very good to use for

cooking. These fats do not alter their structure during cooking. They can even be re-used. Collect your

own fats after roasting meats. Avoid all common vegetable cooking oils, margarines and other

processed fats: they are very harmful to health.

• Nuts and seeds are a wonderful source of very good nutrients. Nuts should be bought just shelled –

not salted, roasted, coated or processed in any other way. This way they are an excellent source of

essential fatty acids and many nutrients. However, nuts and seeds contain enzyme inhibitors, which may

make them difficult to digest for some people. If you feel that it is a problem for your patient, as soon as

you bought nuts to remove the enzyme inhibitors try to do the following: soak the nuts in salty water

over night (1 tablespoon of sea salt per liter of water), in the morning drain them, rinse the salt off and

dry in your oven -24 hours (keep checking them as different nuts take

different time to dry). Your patient can also eat nuts and seeds straight after soaking without drying

them. Once they are dried keep them in an airtight container or well-sealed plastic bag. They become

nice and crunchy and make an excellent snack food together with dried fruit. You can grind nuts and

seeds (sunflower and pumpkin) into flour consistency to make bread, pancakes and even cakes at home.

My book will provide you with recipes. Ground almonds or almond flour is available in health food

shops.

• If your child would like to have a milk-like drink, nut/seed milk can replace all other milk while you are

gradually introducing dairy. You can use almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and pine nuts to make

milk. Blanched almonds make the best milk. You can add a teaspoon of flax seeds to make the milk

thicker. Soak a cup of almonds in water for 12 - 24 hours, drain. Blend in a food processor with water:


for 1 cup of nuts/seeds add 1-2 cups of water. A good juicer will crash the nuts/seeds well, making a

paste, which you would blend with water. Mix well and strain through cheesecloth or a fine strainer and

you have got milk. You can add some soaked dates or raisins, when blending, they will make the milk

sweet. If you find that the milk is too rich, just add more water. You can add some of freshly pressed

apple juice or carrot juice into it to make a very tasty and nourishing drink for your child. You can “milk”

the same cup of almonds a few times. Just keep the paste covered with water in the refrigerator.

• You can also make coconut milk. Bring to boil (but do not boil) 1 cup of unsweetened shredded dried

coconut and 1 cup of water. Cool down and blend well in your food processor. Strain through

cheesecloth or a fine strainer.

• It is better to replace the table salt in your patient’s diet with unprocessed salt. The salt, which is sold

in shops, has been processed to remove all natural minerals apart from the NaCl. The human body

needs all those minerals, that is why we must consume natural unprocessed salt. You can get very good

quality sea salt called Celtic Salt or a Himalayan Crystal Salt.

• Garlic is very important to eat every day. It will help to normalize your patient’s gut flora and stimulate

the immune system. It is important to have it raw with meats or cooked as a part of the meal. Work on

using a whole head of garlic every day (not just a few cloves).

• Unprocessed honey is the only sweetener allowed (in baking it is better to use dried fruit as a

sweetener). Locally produced honey is usually the most reliable.

by lydia on November 19, 2010

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This was the first session I attended at the Wise Traditions Conference. I took notes, but I am a slow writerand typer, so thankfully a reader sent me an email with her fabulous notes. She graciously agreed to let meuse them in this post. So a huge thanks to Jenifer Andersen for her thorough notes.

GUT & PSYCHOLOGY/PHYSIOLOGY SYNDROME“All diseases begin in the gut.” ~ Hippocrates◦If the root of the tree is not healthy, the whole tree will be sickly

Roles of Gut Flora◦Recent research suggests that 90% of the body’s cells are micro-flora◦Beneficial gut flora (bacteria, viruses, protozoa, fungi, even worms) are essential to life & health; a sterile gutwould likely be fatal◦Gut flora is major barrier to heavy metal absorption/toxicity (mercury, arsenic, etc.); also helps blockchemical toxin absorption◦Gut flora are critical to digestion of several kinds of foods, therefore also to absorption of several kinds ofnutrients◦Some nutrients (i.e. all B vitamins) are actually produced by healthy gut flora from nutrients provided in food◦The gut flora can neutralize toxic byproducts of digestion, as well as preventing cancer cells fromdeveloping. Long-term damage to gut flora ultimately results in digestive cancers(antibiotic use is likely amajor factor).◦Approx 84-88% of immune system is located in gut wall. The gut flora actually regulates the balance of theimmune system. If the primary (gut-related) part of the immune system is damaged and not working properly,the secondary system steps up and allergies are among the results.

What Can Damage Gut Flora◦Antibiotics kill not only the bad bacteria, but also the good. After a course of antibiotics, the gut flora cantake up to 2 months to recover; this is a major window of opportunity for problems to develop. Prolongedantibiotics (i.e. 6-24 months in teenagers for acne) can have extreme prolonged effects.◦Poor diet (the modern standard diet) feed abnormal gut flora with the sugar, processed starches andchemicals.◦Chronic disease always is related to problems in the gut flora – sometimes a circular relationship.◦Pretty much everything a dentist uses is toxic, so it’s important to pay attention to diet & take probioticsbefore and after dental treatments.

A Typical Scenario◦Babies now start out with abnormal gut flora due to the abnormal gut flora of the mother; this problemself-perpetuates through multiple generations unless deliberate action is taken.

◦Babies are born with a very immature immune system; the first few weeks are critical to establishing gutflora and therefore a healthy immune system. The most common result of of failure to develop a healthy gutflora and immune system in an infant is recurring ear infections, which starts a cycle of antibiotics andongoing gut flora damage.

◦Vaccinations are designed for healthy, well-nourished children. Most children in the western world are not fitto be immunized because they are not healthy and properly-nourished.

Damaged Gut Wall◦With a healthy gut there are no spaces between enterocytes. Nutrients can’t get into the blood without goingthrough the enterocytes and being checked/detoxified.◦Food intolerances are a result of a leaky gut – of foods being absorbed before being properly digested. If thegut is healed and sealed, food intolerances can be corrected.◦Many proteins in foods are similar to proteins naturally found in the body. Improperly-digested proteinsgetting through the gut wall can cause the immune system to attack similar proteins that are natural in thebody, resulting in autoimmune disease. This is called “mimicking phenomenon”.◦Toxins that get through can change the structure of proteins in the body, thereby creating strange/unnaturalproteins that the immune system then attacks. This is a factor in rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, psoriasis,eczema, etc.

Cleaning the Flow from the Gut◦The lungs are a major detoxification organ

Liver◦The liver, when overwhelmed by a damaged gut, can change from being an effective filter into being asource of ongoing toxins released into the blood.◦The liver forms bile stones that harden and the center of the stone is infection. The bile stones that hardenand can’t be passed will further compromise liver function, which will cause more stones to form. This is aself-perpetuating problem, and it frequently causes problems with digesting fats.◦Freshly-pressed celery and apple juice can help dissolve/soften bile stones in the liver.

Lungs◦Lungs are a major factor in removing toxins from the bloodstream◦Wheezing (bronchospasm) is a biological action to close off damaged bronchi and allow them time to quicklyrepair (20-30 minutes usually). Asthma is when multiple sections of the lungs do this at the same time.Supportive therapy for asthma is keeping still, warm, calm and hydrated, thereby allowing the body to healproperly.◦Asthma medications override the body’s self-healing functions, leading to major long-term lung damage. Thishas taken a benign, mild condition and turned it into a life-threatening problem.

Gut & Psychology Syndrome: Asthma

◦When asthma treatment doesn’t allow the lungs to heal themselves and detoxify the body, the toxins have toend up elsewhere in the body.

Gut & Physiology Syndrome◦Caused by the need to eliminate toxins and undigested food through other parts of the body because the gutisn’t doing it’s job and the liver and lungs can’t do theirs.◦Every mucous membrane is a potential means of eliminating toxins, be it bladder, sinuses, vaginal wall, orgut.

Gut & Physiology Syndrome: Autoimmunity◦Autoimmunity always involves more than one body system because more than one toxin will be comingthrough the damaged gut.

Gut & Physiology Syndrome◦The conditions listed as “autoimmune” are due to being toxic. Fatigue (debilitating fatigue) is generally a firstand primary symptom.

Blood-Brain Barrier◦The blood-brain barrier is similar to the gut wall in that it is supposed to be very tight. Zonulin is one of thecomponents that maintains this tightness.◦When toxins damage the integrity of the blood-brain barrier, toxins, microbes & antibodies pass through intoareas where they do not belong, causing neurological symptoms. These symptoms may be physical (epilepsy,etc.) or psychological/behavioral (bipolar, schizophrenia, substanceabuse, etc.)

Gut & Psychology Syndrome: Child vs. Adult◦GAPS children, unhealed, will become GAPS adults with major problems◦GAPS kids are the ones that easily are pushed into psychotic reactions and end up with extensive psychiatricproblems (i.e. schizophrenia).

Epilepsy in children◦Standard treatment of epilepsy is to not really look for a cause (just classify it as “idiopathic”), but rather tojust treat it by medicating to suppress symptoms.◦If there is no biological reason for epilepsy, it is a gut problem that should be able to be healed.

Eating Disorders◦Vegetarian diets are becoming a major source of eating disorders in the western world. Children govegetarian because they are told it’s “healthy” or “planet-saving” or “kind to animals”.Parents generally don’t object because it’s so common, but the child ends up with nutritional deficiencies(especially B12 and fat-soluble vitamins). Additionally, the diet becomes heavy in starches and sugars…eventually toxicity gets past the blood-brain barrier and alters perception and thinking.

◦Current treatment focuses only on “gaining weight and eating”. Treatment should focus on detoxification,healing and sealing the gut and the blood-brain barrier, and correcting nutritional deficiencies. A few weekson the GAPS Introduction Diet will usually allow enough detoxification to allow self-perception to becomeaccurate.

◦Correcting the diet is the most important part of treatment.◦GAPS Diet was developed from the SCD (Specific Carbohydrate Diet)

Foods to Avoid◦It takes TWO YEARS on the GAPS diet to allow full healing of the gut-related◦Starch molecules are large and difficult to digest. The final steps of starch digestion are accomplished by theenzymes of the enterocytes, which are not active in a sick gut. The starch that is not properly digested is foodfor pathogenic flora.◦Sugar consumption pulls magnesium from bones, teeth, etc., and leads to magnesium deficiency. In childrena main symptom of magnesium deficiency is hyperactivity; in adults a main symptom is hypertension. Bloodvessels need magnesium in order to be able to relax, calcium to contract.◦Sugars are carried into capillaries and block them, forming amyloids and causing arthritis.◦All beans contain starch; they can be added to later diet if soaked and properly prepared.

Recommended Foods◦Foods that are homemade, easy to digest, and nutritious.◦Animals designed to eat plant food only have several pH-neutral stomachs (rumins) full of bacteria thatdigest plants for them People and carnivorous animals have one acidic stomach that can digest the plant

digest plants for them. People and carnivorous animals have one acidic stomach that can digest the plant-eaters.◦Healthy bowel flora will convert starches into short-chain fatty acids for absorption as fat. Few people in thewestern world have enough healthy gut flora to do this. This is why starches should be avoided.◦Liver is one of the most nutritionally powerful food and should be a regular part of the diet.◦Vegetables should be cooked well in the initial stages.◦Fruit should be only eaten if it was ripened naturally; chemically-ripened fruit is not healthy.◦In fermented dairy the probiotics have digested some of the proteins as well as the lactose.◦Bees won’t eat honey that has been heated above 113º F – it is damaged. This is why honey should becold-extracted.

Meat & Fish Stock◦Meat stock is rich in simple amino acids, gelatins, etc., that help the gut lining be able to rebuild/heal itself.Soups and stews should always be made with meat stock.◦Bone marrow is one of the most nutritious substances on earth and should be eaten.◦Long cooking of joint tissue results in extra collagen, which his especially essential for recovery of gut flora(especially in autoimmune situations)◦Fish stock should be made using heads, bones, fins, tail.

Breads, pies, cakes, etc.◦These can be made using ground nuts and seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame) as flour

Fermented Foods◦Not only pre-digested (and therefore easy for digestion), but also teeming with probiotics◦Probiotics help attack pathogenic organisms that can cause problems, therefore they have to be ramped up toprevent die-off reactions◦Sauerkraut and kimchi must be fermented long enough for a complete fermentation process, otherwise it willcause gas and digestive problems (because the fermentation must finish in the digestive tract). When thefermentation process is complete, the lactic acid stops the process; completely fermented sauerkraut will keepfor a year safely

GAPS Introduction Diet◦People with signs of leaky gut need to go through the introduction diet in order to allow the enterocytes toheal◦The current love affair with fiber is due to improper interpretation of a study of native African diets andhealth. Fiber is rough (“roughage”) that can further irritate an already-irritated gut.

Fiber is not necessary for health.◦The third stage of GAPS is truly complete nutrition that allows the gut lining to truly heal; it can be followedfor a long period of time.

Dairy Introduction Structure – Organic Only!◦If there is no severe reaction (anaphyllaxis), dairy can be started at step 3 with fermented dairy.◦Dairy fat is critical – the gut lining needs large amounts of fat.◦Cultured butter is more nutritious than butter made from sweet cream.◦Yogurt should be introduced before kefir because kefire has a more extreme probiotic content. Both areexcellent for fixing problems with diarrhea, but may aggravate constipation. If there is a problem withconstipation, the diet needs more fat.◦Homemade cheese == yogurt cheese (strained yogurt)

Low Fiber Diet for Diarrhea◦Makes for quick healing of gut from illness◦During diarrhea, give meat stock with a bit of sour cream every hour◦Raw egg yolks do not require digestion; cooked egg yolks are difficult to digest because ofchanges to the protein structure

g p◦The juice of fermented vegetables provides strong probiotic content

Natural Fats◦Fats and cholesterol are necessary building blocks of life – our cells can not develop/reproduce without fats,and cholesterol is critical to healing in the body. Cholesterol is also a basic building block for hormoneproduction, is necessary food for brain and nerve cells, and is critical to vitamin D production.◦Dietary animal fat stimulates glucagon production, which causes bodily fat to be burned for energy.

◦The majority of fat in human breast milk is saturated fat, with a smaller portion of monounsaturated fat.. Thephysiology of adults is not substantially different from that of an infant; we still need a lot of fat.

Put Your Heart in Your Mouth (book cover slide)GAPS – Practical Issues

Fussy Eating Habits◦Many times the baby/child with abnormal gut flora becomes a fussy eater because the pathogenic gut floraare trying to self-perpetuate. They are less likely to have psychiatric or learning symptoms early on because ittakes time for the blood-brain barrier to be compromised.◦Solid foods for GAPS babies will cause illness symptoms that they can’t verbalize, but the baby refuses foodbecause he makes the association that it makes him feel bad.

Failure to Thrive◦Result of fussy eating habits◦Conventional medical care is even more damaging to this

Supplementation◦Good probiotics are a critical part of the process, as are probiotic foods◦Multivitamins, mineral, amino-acid supplements are not necessary for everyone◦Children may not need HCl or pepsin; only if excess burping is an issue. Cabbage juice or whey or kefir maywork well in place of these (just a little before a meal).◦Reflux can be caused by yeast overgrowth damaging the ability of the esophageal sphincter to close; theyeast overgrowth is a symptom of the stomach not be acidic enough.◦Pancreatic enzyme production is directly dependent on adequate stomach acidity. When the stomach acidityis enough to properly digest the food, the pancreas will produce enzymes accordingly.

Detoxification◦GAPS patients are toxic, so detoxification is necessary. Cleaning up the gut is the major focus because thegut is the major source of toxins in the body.◦The most therapeutic juices are not palatable, but they can be mixed 50/50 with carrot or apple juice toimprove the flavor. The fresh juice can also be made into a smoothie with a bit of kefir and an egg yolk.◦If doing detoxification baths, rotate the add-ins… sea salt one time, cider vinegar the next, seaweed powderthe next…◦Skin absorbs everything put on it in seconds, so eliminate toxins from personal care products.Puttingsomething on the skin bypasses the liver’s detoxification.

Natural Chelation◦Chelation chemicals not only remove heavy metal toxins, they also remove critical minerals (especially zinc).As a result, the long-term effects of chemical chelation are very damaging.◦Probiotics are a potent chelator of heavy metals, as are fermented foods.

Constipation◦Constipation is worse than diarrhea because toxins are staying in the bowel too long. Yeast(candida) is amajor player in developing constipation.◦Constipation should be defined as no stool for one day; enemas are sometimes quite helpful, especially if asmall amount of baking soda.

small amount of baking soda.◦Castor oil can be massaged into the skin of the abdomen (over the stomach) to be absorbed through the skinand help loosen the stool.◦Magnesium oxide (milk of magnesia) is a rather violent solution.◦If you are constipated, there are not enough animal fats in your diet.

Documents

Natasha Campbell Gut-and-Psychology-Syndrome GAPS Diet.pdf