I’m On the GAPS Diet to Treat Crohn’s-Ulcerative Colitis and IT’S WORKING

I’m the one! YES

I have been on GAPS for 11+ months to treat Crohn’s/UC and it has completely healed me and given me my life back! It’s a phenomenal diet. Reid will be interviewing me for his documentary soon and I will be talking about the GAPS diet.

Here’s the short version: I am a 31 year old female who was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease in May of 2004 at the age of 25. The first couple of years weren’t too bad. I had two serious flares, one of which landed me in the hospital for a week. But in October of 2006 the Crohn’s flew out of control and I spent the last 4 years in agony and near death on several occasions. I had another doctor who said she thought I had UC not Crohn’s, but the diagnoses matter little to me as they are one and of the same in my opinion. I generally say I have Crohn’s.

From 2006-2009 I had numerous hospitalizations and emergency visits due to the Crohn’s, and I failed every medication and treatment available to me including: asacol, prednisone, budesinide, flagyll, 6MP, Remicade, and TPN therapy (tube feeding). My doctor told me there was nothing left that she could do for me besides surgery. It was shortly after this that I was led to a doctor in San Francisco, Dr. Cowan, who was the first one to tell my why I had Crohn’s disease, how it got that way, and what I needed to do to reverse it. He prescribed the GAPS diet.

It took me a couple of months to research and learn the diet as I knew NO ONE on the planet (besides people online) who had even heard of it. On February 15th, 2010 I began the GAPS diet and over the next few months all of my symptoms subsided. By September of 2010 I felt like a new person. I’m now able to be back to work part time and pursue interests that would have been an impossibility a year ago.

So the diet IS indeed based on the SCD but here is where it differs: it is more of a PROTOCOL than strictly a diet. It incorporates detoxing, and has a big emphasis on eating foods that HEAL the body rather than just avoiding the foods that irritate it. Forgive me if I’m misunderstanding SCD as I’m not 100% familiar with it, but it is my understanding that it eliminates the foods that cause problems (complex carbs). GAPS is the same but where I believe it goes further is in the introduction of probiotic and fermented foods such as homemade sauerkraut and homemade milk kefir. It also emphasizes healing bone broths, juicing, detox baths, and other key foods that work to HEAL the body and restore the gut flora. I’ve noticed that many people who are on SCD do great on the diet as long as they stay on the diet. But when they venture out and go back to eating more regularly, they become symptomatic. The goal of GAPS is to actually heal the gut so the body is able to handle complex carbs (in moderation of course, as we eat way too many in western culture anyway!) They say that after your last symptom disappears, to be on the diet a year beyond that and that it should be a good indicator of healing. Of course, if one was to go back to eating a SAD diet or one full of complex carbs, I’m sure the healing would unravel, but the idea is to be able to back to a regular, nourishing, traditional diet.

I haven’t cheated since starting GAPS so I’ve not tested the waters when it comes to eating illegals but when I hit one year in February I plan on treating myself to an illegal meal of pizza so I can let you know how it goes! I will stay on GAPS at least another year from February but eventually I would like to eat a little more normally, but still a nourishing traditions type of diet.

As far as not being able to find any info about GAPS and UC or Crohn’s people, trust me when I say there are MANY who have been healed on this diet with our ailments and more. The book is a bit misleading as it focuses on Autism and ADD since this is what Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride (the founder of GAPS) healed her son of. But the diet is DEFINITELY right for people like us and more: http://gapsguide.com/about/conditions-addressed-by-gaps/

If I were you, I would highly recommend reading “Gut and Psychology Syndrome” book as it offers such a fascinating explanation of what GAPS is and how it works. There is a new 2010 edition of the book but I believe it is on backorder until the end of January. You can get it on Amazon or the GAPS website. Once I read this book, the lightbulb went on and everything made sense.

Bottom line: GAPS is pretty much SCD with some variation, but ADDS more into the diet to promote better overall healing. It takes SCD a step further in my opinion which makes all the difference, I think. Please let me know if you have more questions as I’m happy to share my experience. Hope that helps.

Health & Healing,

Tara :o)