Like many of us, we usually restart our healthy eating habits every Monday after coming to terms with our poor food choices over the weekend. The cool thing about restarting each week though is that it's a choice-NOT a punishment. We enjoyed our time relaxing and definitely the food, but when there are so many good things in life, there are equally bad, so moderation is KEY.
An unpopular form of dieting with people that LOVE food is the elimination diet. This is not due to the results, but primarily the strict component of what makes this diet helpful and life changing to those that follow it. It is not done for weight loss purposes, although it may help some to lose weight, but it is first and foremost to reduce symptoms associated with food intolerances & sensitivities.
I know... I have to admit its not my favorite form of a diet, but it also gets a bad rap for its true purpose as a diet.
A lot of us suffer from food sensitivities or food intolerances. It wasn't until I was tested later in my life that I was told I had high intolerances to 2/3 of what I was eating daily.
Food sensitivities/intolerances can cause a wide array of symptoms as well.
These usually include:
-nausea
-vomiting
-abdominal pain
-bloating
-gas
-diarrhea
-fatigue
-migraines/headaches
-trouble sleeping
-emotional/hormone imbalances
With that being said, the elimination diet is to provide a way to identify what foods may be causing your abdominal issues and then over the course of 2-4 weeks you slowly reintroduce foods back to your diet to observe for any symptoms.
The biggest component to this diet is eliminating the top foods that are known to impact your health:
Dairy
Wheat
Sweetners
Alcohol
Caffeine
Processed foods
Research has shown that only 35% of people worldwide can actually digest lactose beyond the age of around 7 or 8.
The other important thing to note about this diet is that it is not supposed to be a longterm diet, and it will not necessarily cure food intolerances-but it WILL help if followed correctly.
The reason I brought this diet up with this particular recipe is for the fact that we are going to be doing the elimination diet as a means to reduce some of the symptoms that we have on a day to day basis. Instead of taking Midol for my PMS or popping a pepto for an uncomfortable stomach, why not just address the root cause of the problem, our diet?
Not to mention that a recent study also showed that "93 percent of medications contain allergens, including lactose, dyes, and peanut oil. Almost all medicines contain ingredients that some people might not be able to tolerate, such as gluten."
We are eager to start consistently eating better to heal within, and the benefits will soon follow with a bit of discipline and perseverance.
With that being said- the next few weeks my recipes will be really healthy, so I wanted to prepare you for disappointment. LOL Like I stated before, it's all about moderation, and you can guarantee cinnamon rolls will be back under recipes in a month or two. ;)
Do you have questions about the elimination diet? Let me know and I'd be happy to help give you answers or find them for you!
In the meantime, please enjoy this simple and FLAVORFUL veggie bowl (protein is optional!)
Click the picture below for a printable recipe!
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