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Hi,
I’ve had several posts on here going back to the early days of clever guts. As my name suggests I Keep Trying – to sort out my digestive health, my weight and fitness 😀

In February I was diagnosed with acid reflux, hiatus hernia and and inflammation of the oesophagus as well my usual IBS issues. All this was following a fairly stressful time where we’d had a year long drawn out building project to do an extension and new kitchen, we had no kitchen for a large part of this time and too many ready meals and overly processed foods.

Six months on, I’m much much better – I just have be careful and not to eat too many carbs. I want to lose some weight to help reduce the reflux, and get myself fit and healthy. So I’m wondering what would people recommend as the best approach to help me lose weight – 2 stone. I’m thinking of a combination of Fast 800, 5:2, and Clever Guts diet.

The advice I got from the hospital was to eat smaller, frequent meals and to try to lose weight. I was prescribed omeprazole, and once I started to heal, I weaned myself off them because I’m concerned about the long term use of medication. Doing a low carb Mediterranean style diet helped too.

I’ve kept to a more or less low carb mediterranean diet and I enjoy it and I think it’s why I feel so well, but I’ve not lost weight, nor have I put any on. I think doing fast 800 programme 5:2 might help me shift the weight but I’m worried about fasting and reflux symptoms returning. Does anyone have any experience of reflux and hiatus hernia and weight loss methods? Thanks for reading

Does anyone have any experience of doing 5:2 with acid reflux and a hiatus hernia? Would it make it worse or not?

Yes, anxiety and sleeping disorders are such a nuisance. They affect our lives and work. Magnesium plays a vital role in primary insomnia, for those who are suffering from it can try it as a night time regime.

With a strict elimination diet it quickly becomes impossible to eat a properly balanced and very varied diet as Dr Mosley recommends, and that is needed for health. For safety’s sake a full-blown elimination diet must be medically supervised.

Your first step is the detailed daily food and symptom diary for *at least* a week before you start, with everything weighed and measured (p.187). This will help you determine which food group or food type is potentially problematic and thus should be eliminated first.

Dr Mosley and co “don’t recommend removing too many foods at one time, so it might be helpful to do remove and repair in several stages” (p.190).

If you already avoid dairy you can continue to do so, but ensure you take whichever supplements your family doctor, dietician or pharmacist has recommended. If your issue is lactose intolerance you should be able to reintroduce traditional aged cheeses once your gut has rested. These are very low in lactose, yet loaded with gut-friendly probiotics.

HTH!

May I start with saying thank you very much for replying to my question, and it was done in such depth and so easy for me to follow.

I actually went out after I had posted the question and funny enough bought the two books you mentioned well actually I bought 3 the other one is called CIS I think Thats what it’s called as I haven’t looked at it yet as I am going through the clever gut first.

The funny thing is I use to always be very fit with running and kayaking, but somehow at the age of 58 I seem to have lost myself with looking after the family and moving to 4 different countries with my husbands job that I didn’t think for one minute to make sure I was eating correctly, the worse thing was I was reading the gut book and eating a bounty bar with a gin and tonic 🤭 so I have only myself to blame.

New book new hope and again thank you for your reply.

Hi All,

I’m about to start Phase 1 to reset my gut and want to ensure I’m doing it correctly.
Am I to cut out all; dairy, gluten, pulses, brassicas etc?
The book says to cut out problem food groups in this phase but then it also says to avoid all so just not sure what to do? I already avoid dairy but not really sure what my problem areas am thinking of cutting out all of the above mentioned to be safe and then slowly introducing one by one.
Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks,
Mel

How are you getting on Charlorre?

Recoveringfatty: I would direct anyone to read Dr Mosley’s books again. In ‘The Fast 800’ he explains the differences between a very low carbohydrate or ketogenic diet, and a low carb Mediterranean diet (p.88-p.103).

Any eating plan should be healthy, nutrient dense, properly balanced and very varied. This is more difficult to achieve the harder you cut calories, or cut carbs, or cut fat.

Cream is high in fat …. and little else. By contrast full-fat dairy such as live Greek yogurt or traditional French cheeses are a source of protein, essential micronutrients and probiotic micro-organisms.

HTH!

I’ve tracked this forum back over several years and still observe frequent requests to participate in the potato starch survey.
It appears that there is not going to be one so would suggest that interested would be participants conduct their own test and indicate their progress on this forum… I have been taking a teaspoon of potato starch in a glass of water at night and have observed a considerable decrease in arthritis in my fingers… I haven’t really noticed any significant improvement in my sleep patterns…

hi recoveringfatty
wow, you really have this worked out well. congrats, great effort and commitment. I drink lactose free milk but only in my 2 to 3 coffees a day. I just don’t like the taste of full cream milk, makes me want to pewk. 3 stone is fantastic weight loss. I haven’t lost any weight as yet, not that I am really counting as I am more focussed on healthy eating rather than losing weight. I have also have increased my physical activity substantially therefore can feel muscle building more than anything else. thanks so much for your reply, it is greatly appreciated to hear your great schedule and how others are doing it, hopefully someone else has something to offer. 😀

Hi lizzygirl66
I’ve not ditched milk totally just avoid it during the 16hr fasting window which means my morning coffee’s. I vary my routine between 16:8 and 5:2 So three days a week I do 16:8 (actually more like 17:7 as I have evening meal hopefully before 8pm then don’t eat until 1pm the following day) and 2 days a week I fast until the evening meal. At weekends I eat ‘normally’ but avoid sugar mostly. My weights pretty steady, I lost over 3 stone a couple of years a go (5:2 and HIIT every other day) and have managed to keep it off and maintain my now normal BMI, if some creeps back on (if I cheat and get lazy with the exercise) I’ll do 3 days fast until evening meal 16:8 for 2 days, be more careful at weekends, and get moving more.. When I have Milk its always full fat but I’ve ditched Lattes for White Americano’s (less milk). I also read adding cream could be better as there is lower in carbs so doesn’t spike blood sugar as much and therefore insulin and thus fat storage. Its also more satiating so my curb appetite? However cream is obviously much more calorific so I would think it could be easily overdone, so I’m not totally convinced on this one- Anyone else have any thoughts on this?

How much milk are we talking about, and is it full fat (4%), semi skimmed (2%) or skimmed (0%)? Do you think it is the caffeine hit, or the ritual of the coffee you are struggling without?

thanks recoveringfatty, I am loving the 16:8 eating method not having a problem with it at all but its my milky coffee that I am struggling with. I enjoy the herbal teas (no sugar its a baddy) but the morning coffee is hurting as I also rise very early in the morning. Well done on eliminating milk from your coffee, great effort. May I ask how long you have been on the 16:8 and how its affected your weight? 😀

Hi! I’m doing some research for a project on guts and would love it if you could just give me a word or sentence about what your biggest challenge is at the moment – in relation to your gut. ie: bloat, IBS, leaky gut, SIBO, gut pain, constipation etc etc.
Thanks! N

Hi Melodious! I always recommend to peel chickpeas to help reduce gas, so I’d say that alone is a good reason why it’s a good idea to do this. In terms of roughage and fiber, the whole chickpea provides that anyway and you’re probably eating the houmous with crudites, or perhaps wholegrain? These will give you a good supply of extra fiber too 🙂 enjoy it!

I can’t see a problem with herbal teas as long as you don’t have sugar. Personally I went the black coffee route but it has to be good, fresh ground (I make mine in an aeropress) I used to drink it very milky. I’ve got used to the taste without and now enjoy it. How about green tea? Its a bit subtle for my palette but you might like it?

anyone please ? 😀

Hi Chalorre!

I started with Michael Mosley’s ‘Clever Guts Diet’ book, but recently bought the ‘Fast800 Diet’ book. I likely have fatty liver, but am three weeks into reversing that (no alcohol down from loads of alcohol!). Today was my first big grocery shop since reading the second book.

‘Clever Guts’ is primarily for anyone with a digestive issues, not targeted at weight loss at all. It is a properly balanced and very varied Mediterranean style healthy eating programme. Phase One is about identifying and eliminating problem foods in a structured, scientific way. Snacking between meals is discouraged to ‘rest’ the digestive system, which would also support the liver as it regenerates and recovers.

‘Fast 800’ is the update to Dr Mosley’s 5:2 Fast Diet and perhaps also to his Blood Sugar Diet too. It is targeted at those who need to lose weight/ bodyfat to improve their health long term. It is a flexible, reduced carbohydrate Mediterranean style eating plan. There are three Stages to choose from: strict 800 cal a day for up to eight weeks, OR 800 cal a day twice a week, healthy reduced carbohydrate diet the other five days, OR maintenance/ slow weight loss.

Whichever you go for, read and then reread the book. Show your own doctor/ nurse/ dietician the book and ask for their suggestions. Do not feel you need to go in ‘all guns blazing’. You sound determined to change for life, not a quick fix which is great!

Many of us on the different Mosley diet forums have read two books, and are either combining or moving from one programme to another as our needs change. This is fine because Dr Mosley and his wife Dr Claire Bailey are both medical doctors who are ALL about health, balance and variety in our diet. Daily physical activity is also strongly encouraged. This does not have to be formal exercise if that is daunting.

Do post any more questions, I will come by each day to check for you. 🙂

hello all,
I am about to embark on the 16:8 fasting and as I do love my coffee in the morning I was wondering whether herbal teas are an option to replace my milky coffee (not a big fan of black coffee). Any suggestions most welcome. Thank you 😀

Good morning, I have never written on any forum before so this information would be important to me.

I have fatty liver and hypertension and need to get this under control, I do not want to take medication so I am going to try and sort these problems myself and have been looking at both books, 800 a day or good gut, does anyone know what the differences are.

Thank you

Lovin’ your recipe dear! Thanks for giving us your recipe. I love foods with natural ingredients for it is good for our body. It makes us healthy and fit. I can’t wait to see your new recipes. Keep it up!

*BY WEIGHT*

Baobab powder 54%
Chia seeds 33%
Cocoa powder 28%
Cracked linseeds 24%
Dessicated coconut 21%
Cacao nibs 21%
Pot barley 17%
Pinhead oatmeal/ steel cut 11%

*Check the packaging*Brands do vary*

It’s a pleasure Lyndal..am happy to help…best of luck!!

Cheers
Steph

Thanks so much Steph, you have been a mine of information. Yes I tend to agree with you about the antibiotics. I think in this case it just has to be done.
I’ll let you know how I get on once I start the treatment.

Thanks again for all your input. It was you who put me on to Dr Caunes in the first place so I’m very grateful.

Lyndal

Making hommus at home like it’s going out of fashion. Eating it from the jar like it’s icecream. Going to bed dreaming about spreading it on toasted green flaxseed bread (recipe in Clever Guts) for brekky the next morning…
I’ve discovered that peeling the chickpeas makes my hommus one thousand times creamier and smoother and more hom-licious. (Tinned chickpeas, pop them out of their skins one by one. Adds an extra ten minutes to the process but it’s deeply satisfying.)
My question is: how much does this change their nutritional value? I imagine a good bit of roughage is in those skins, but there’s also going to be a decent amount left in the peeled version, right? Any thoughts?

Good question…I asked my tutors at college and they felt that in certain incidences where we have massive overgrowth and it’s a nasty pathogen, which strep and enterococcus both are, antibiotics are justified and quick to fix it. What we have been tested for is an overgrowth in the large colon, where all our bacteria should be. We probably have some degree of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth as well (SIBO). The colonic bacteria shouldn’t be in the small intestine but sometimes it gets relocated when there’s a serious overgrowth in the colon. I would be the first person to avoid antibiotics if I could but I believe it was the right course of treatment. The only other way you could approach it would be through a medical herbalist and to try various antimicrobial herbs. Personally I think it is a more definitive and fast “kill off” with the antibiotics and then you can work on repopulating the gut with the right bacterial strains and eating the right foods to encourage the right bacterial populations. Then effectively you get a new microbiome! Certainly with me, it worked quite quickly. Don’t stress about the drugs. Sometimes we just need them!

Yes I was just saying to my husband that if you didn’t know how to put together a meal with the foods your allowed it would be very hard to do the diet side of it, so yes I’m very fortunate that I can do that, and in fact even enjoy coming up with tasty things to eat.
Sorry, but just one more question. I’ve been reading online about different ways to heal SIBO ( I guess that’s what I’ve got )and it appears lots of people do it without antibiotics, and say you shouldn’t use them. Grrrrrrr bloody Google can be so contradictory. You’re study to be a naturopath so what’s your take on this theory? Dr Caunes was very adamant that it was the only way to get rid of it.

Cheers
Lyndal

OMG Lyndal, you are so lucky to be a chef! You’ll know all the right things to make. That’ll be such a huge help.

…I know what you mean about the carbs, I lost a heap of weight doing the diet..but felt really good. Amazing how when you reintroduce a few carb-ish things the kilos go back on …grrr. You may just have to be a walking skeleton for a few months…let me know how you go with everything and all the best!!

Cheers
Steph

Thanks so much for putting my mind at ease Steph. I was really nervous about the whole antibiotic thing but felling more comfortable with it now.
Luckily I’m a chef so have no problem coming up with good meal ideas. I have to do the whole low/no carb thing. Funnily enough I’ve always felt better on low carb but I just loose too much weight ( I’m on the slim side anyway) and I end up looking like a walking skeleton, so I try and have quite a few carbs to keep my weight up. But I’ll just have to suck it up for a few months and hopefully come out the other side feeling better.

Thanks again for your help.

Lyndal

Hi Lyndal

Wow, what great news…well not great that you have loads of strep but great you have a reason now for your problems!! I wouldn’t worry at all about the antibiotics. They’re a special slow release version of amoxycillin that stays in the gut a long time and seems to cause less systemic problems than the normal types. I had no problems at all and I’ve always had trouble with antibiotics in the past, big body rashes etc. Also if you have to wait a couple of months it won’t matter in the grand scheme of things. I waited at least 2 months before I got stuck in. Once you get used to what you’re doing it’s not so difficult and I felt really good on that diet so am sure you will too. I now have pretty perfect bowel function after 10 years of misery!!!!
Funny that it’s strep, I’ve just got over 4 weeks of the worst strep infection I’ve ever had, all through the sinuses, ears and of course the throat! The choices were, take the antibiotics and mess up the gut again (arrrgggghhhh) or have damaged heart valves or kidney damage. I opted for the former!!! However luckily 3 1/2 weeks of antibiotics doesn’t seem to have adversely affected my poor gut so that’s good. Anyway strep is a nasty bug and you certainly don’t want to have an overgrowth of that!
I found Selina, one of the naturopaths in with Dr Caunes, very helpful with adding in the right supplements (just a few) to support the protocol and helping me with food options. How to approach the eating regime etc. Of course you have to pay for her but 2 or 3 sessions with her were a great help…..
I think you will get sick of making and consuming bone broth!!! I did!!!
Anyway, great to hear you’re getting yourself sorted Lyndal….and have a great trip. Don’t let the food thing spoil it for you. Forget it and enjoy your time away and worry about it when you get back.
Cheers
Steph

t

Hi Steph and Col,

Just to let you know I’ve had my results from BioScreen back.
It appears that I am in a very similar situation as you Steph in that I have a HUGE overgrowth. Mine was of Streptococcus. It’s at 99.6%. So I’m pretty much doing the same protocol as you. I have to say I’m very nervous about the antibiotics bit. I haven’t taken antibiotics for 30 years and the last time I did it made me feel so sick. But Dr Caunes said it’s the only way to knock this thing on the head and there is no natural alternative the would work.
And unfortunately we are off next week to the States for two months so I won’t be able to start the program until I get back. In the meantime he said to do as low a carb diet as I can manage while travelling ( the USA is not known for its healthy food so this could be a challenge 😆).

So here goes………. I think I’m going to be in for a rough ride but at least I now know what the problem has been for all these years.
Any tips you have would be very helpful.

Cheers
Lyndal

Thanks for the feedback, I’ll amend that question and remove ‘herbalist’, I’ll then replace ‘nutritionalist’ with ‘registered dietician’ and ‘registered nutritionalist’… the ‘other’ field can be used for any other suggestions.

Did you feel there was anything else that needed amending?

Thanks again.

Completed with difficulty. Concern over your bias.

Options in some cases channelled away from medical/ healthcare and skewed towards alternative fluff. What even is a nutritionalist? In Western countries mainstream protected titles in this field include registered dietician, nutritional therapist, registered nutritionist.

Registering this because The Clever Guts Diet is written by medical and healthcare professionals and is evidence-based. If we follow the programme we could be working with various healthcare professionals (p.187-188). Lets not backslide into the ‘comfort blanket’ of alternative practitioners and their unscience.

Hello! I’m doing some research on improved gut health and wondered if you had 3 minutes to fill in my short survey? (No worries if not) https://jonmarshall791992.typeform.com/to/ay7OuR

Or, if you have less than 3 minutes to spare then I’d appreciate any top tips below (Clever Guts diet, or otherwise).

Thanks!

Welcome, Corinnes gut. Sorry to read how unwell you have been, and how long for.

Which medical professionals are currently overseeing your strict elimination diet and your supplement regime? Are you under the care of a registered dietician and a gastroenterologist? For safety’s sake DO NOT self-prescribe any supplement including probiotics.

Do reread pages 186 to 188 of the Clever Guts book – A 2-Stage Healing Programme & Before You Start – where Dr Mosley cautions “If you are underweight, suspect you have a food allergy, have other significant medical problems or are frail or unwell, we would not advise embarking on this programme.”

Hopefully you have been medically advised to “Keep a detailed daily food and symptom diary … Ideally keep the diary going throughout the programme until you identify any culprits … If you see a professional, you will also have useful information available.” (p.188)

The Clever Guts 2-Stage Healing Programme should be appropriate for you once any food or other allergies have been identified by your medical team, and once any major micronutrient (vitamin/ mineral/ essential fatty acids) deficiencies have been treated with prescribed supplements.

By all means post here for support and to keep yourself focussed whilst on your strict elimination diet. HTH. 🙂

I have read the Clever Guts book and am very interested in your research on seaweed.
I live in North Lakes, Qld and wonder if I can purchase a supply of the supplement here. Can you help, please?
Regards
Brenna

I have struggled with gut health namely leaky gut syndrome, since 1998 and can sympathize with not feeling well. You mentioned using antibiotics and probably know that they kill off the good bacteria in the gut. A high count probiotic is one supplement that will begin to replace the good bacteria. There are some very informative articles published on PubMed, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc that talk about leaky gut, gut microbiota and the gut-brain connection. I’ve picked up on it that studies show a correlation between intolerances, auto immune disease and gut health. A good naturopathic doctor or a doctor who uses integrative medicine will be able to get you going fully in the right direction.
Diet and good water are two basic key elements toward returning to optimum health. As for me, I mostly eat gluten free, sugar free, corn free and dairy free and use organic, non GMO foods incorporating as many raw vegetables as possible. I’m careful to stay away from any foods containing nitrates which are found in cured meats. As far as meats go, I mostly use chicken and turkey and fish, if it’s available. One thing I never drink is sodas. I’ve found them to be pretty rough on me.

Hi, I am unsure if anyone can help but I have recently been diagnosed with eoe, an auto immune which is caused from a food allergy.

In the process of trying to find out what foods I found out I have salicylate and amines intolerance and low zinc that hasn’t changed after months of taking supplements. I am gathering that I have leaky gut due to antibiotic use for chronic sinus infections. I have had 70 head colds followed by sinus infections in last six years (sinus problems are also related to salicylate intolerance). I am aware I need to increase my zinc to up my immune system but this is proved difficult with a super restrictive diet.

Has anyone got any tips for me?

Prescription antidepressants are not a single family of drugs, there are several with different mechanisms of action. Similarly gut health is a huge field. So it would not be possible to study such a broad topic in one or even a small number of scientific studies.

If you want to find out about studies on a specific prescription drug search PubMed or Google Scholar and/ or speak to your community pharmacist. Known side effects will be listed in the patient information leaflet (in the pharmacy box or online).

It is worth noting that various chronic mental health problems are linked to poorer physical health, in part because we do not always take care of ourselves. Targeted diet modification and physical activity are proven to be beneficial in mild to moderate depression, as well as in gut health. In some cases people can withdraw their prescription medication: speak to the prescribing doctor if you are interested in the self-care approach.

HTH!

Rather late to the party but just in case…. Try to get back into keeping your detailed food and symptom diary. This can really promote awareness and focus.

It is possible to eat quick and easy meals that are also healthy, with limited kitchen equipment or gadgets. You can make a surprisingly decent one pot ‘stir fry’/ steam fry or quick curry in the microwave. Assembly meals can be no more effort than a ready meal.

Protein: Fish that is already cooked (canned or chiller), hard-boil organic eggs six at a time *in* your kettle, frozen cooked jumbo prawns, probiotic-rich cheeses and yogurt or kefir.
Fruit and vegetables: A huge range is available ready prepared fresh or frozen.
Jar sauces: Some brands of tomato/ vegetable sauce or curry sauces have solid ingredients lists and tasty too. I rate Loyd Grossman and supermarket ‘premium’ own brands.
Starches: Brown rice thread noodles just need a kettle, frozen wholegrain mixes, ‘instant’ ready-cooked brown rice, wholemeal pitta or other flatbreads in the toaster, canned beans and lentils.

I am not one to talk 😮 but that number of standard glasses of wine is more likely to be harmful when your diet is low quality, and less likely to be harmful when your diet is nutrient dense. Always eat before not with your drinks: there is scientific evidence that the old ‘line your stomach’ thing does reduce the negative effect on alcohol on the liver and the gut.

Ditto physical activity really can balance out any negative effects of alcohol by making the organs function more efficiently. It does not have to be full-blown formal ‘exercise’. Do you/ can you walk or cycle to and from work, or to and from the pub or both?

HTH.

AFAIK the Fast 800 Diet is the updated version of the 5:2 Diet. The Clever Guts Diet is about digestive health and general wellbeing not weight management.

What type of diet has been recommended by the prescribing doctor or registered dietician? It is important to find an eating plan that fits with the medical advice you have already been given.

Fatty liver is an inflammatory condition linked to metabolic syndrome. This would suggest eating more oily fish (up to four servings a week), more low sugar fruits and non starchy vegetables (*at least* five servings every day) in the full rainbow of bright and dark colours, whole unprocessed grains and pulses. This Mediterranean style of eating fits with all Dr Mosley’s programmes.

Have you starting keeping a detailed food and activity diary, with servings weighed and measured? Knowing where your diet is at present is key in moving forwards (or downwards on the scale).

HTH!

Plan to change as many other parts of the tea-and-sugary-snack ritual as you can. Use a different mug, have a different hot drink (eg. proper cocoa/ fruit tea/ green tea/ Horlicks/ tea with lemon), walk out of the kitchen whilst the kettle boils or your new drink brews. Do more than just think about it, write your plans for your new relaxation ritual down.

Sit in a different chair or different spot on the sofa, move your coaster to a different side table, hold your mug in the hand you would normally be eating with, set your new mug down on the side you would normally have a little plate. Learn a simple mindfulness, breathing or meditation technique from YouTube and use this during your new evening relaxation ritual.

Sounds a little strange but this method is proven to work: UK National Health Service and other ‘behaviour change’ professionals use it with their clients or patients.

HTH!

“If I drink tea without eating anything I can often feel sick afterwards, which passes after three or four minutes ….. I can drink fruit juice or squash (I don’t drink these very often) without eating so why not tea? I can’t bear to give up tea, it’s such a big part of my life ….. If I ditched the ‘last thing at night’ cup of tea then I wouldn’t eat the food but having a ‘last thing at night’ cup of tea is part of the relaxing process.”

I have studied and worked in lifestyle healthcare (smoking cessation, healthy eating, physical activity). Some of your language is very similar to how tobaccosmokers or alcoholics talk about their habit and the associations (very often with de-stressing or winding down). Each cigarette or each cup of tea or each alcoholic drink is a separate bad habit with a separate set of rituals to change. Very often the mental side of addiction is much stronger than the physical side.

The first stage is changing unhealthy habits or aspects of addiction is recognising and acknowledging them just as you have done here. The next step is planning the change: making it much harder to engage in the unhealthy habit and much easier to engage in a healthier habit. Let the people around you know exactly what you are planning, exactly why (ill health or a scare?) and clearly request their support. Anyone who cares about you will want you to be happy and healthy. If the people around you do not listen the first time, say it clearly again (and again and again).

If you cannot resist the temptation to have a biscuit/ cake/ chocolate/ butter DO NOT buy them in the supermarket and DO NOT have them in your home. Stock up on healthier alternatives that have a similar natural crunch and similar natural sweetness (eg. sliced apple/ carrot sticks/ flavoured nuts and seeds/ homemade granola/ root vegetable crisps). 

“If I drink tea without eating anything I can often feel sick afterwards, which passes after three or four minutes ….. I can drink fruit juice or squash (I don’t drink these very often) without eating so why not tea? I can’t bear to give up tea, it’s such a big part of my life ….. If I ditched the ‘last thing at night’ cup of tea then I wouldn’t eat the food but having a ‘last thing at night’ cup of tea is part of the relaxing process.”

I have studied and worked in lifestyle healthcare (smoking cessation, healthy eating, physical activity). Some of your language is very similar to how tobaccosmokers or alcoholics talk about their habit and the associations (very often with de-stressing or winding down). Each cigarette or each cup of tea or each alcoholic drink is a separate bad habit with a separate set of rituals to change. Very often the mental side of addiction is much stronger than the physical side.

The first stage is changing unhealthy habits or aspects of addiction is recognising and acknowledging them just as you have done here. The next step is planning the change: making it much harder to engage in the unhealthy habit and much easier to engage in a healthier habit.

Let the people around you know exactly what you are planning, exactly why (ill health or a scare?) and clearly request their support. Anyone who cares about you will want you to be happy and healthy. If the people around you do not listen the first time, say it clearly again (and again and again).

If you cannot resist the temptation to have a biscuit/ cake/ chocolate/ butter DO NOT buy them in the supermarket and DO NOT have them in your home. Stock up on healthier alternatives that have a similar natural crunch and similar natural sweetness (eg. sliced apple/ carrot sticks/ flavoured nuts and seeds/ homemade granola/ root vegetable crisps).

Plan to change as many other parts of the tea-and-sugary-snack ritual as you can. Use a different mug, have a different hot drink (eg. proper cocoa/ fruit tea/ green tea/ Horlicks/ tea with lemon), walk out of the kitchen whilst the kettle boils or your new drink brews. Do more than just think about it, write your plans for your new relaxation ritual down.

Sit in a different chair or different spot on the sofa, move your coaster to a different side table, hold your mug in the hand you would normally be eating with, set your new mug down on the side you would normally have a little plate. Learn a simple mindfulness, breathing or meditation technique from YouTube and use this during your new evening relaxation ritual.

Sounds a little strange but this method is proven to work: UK National Health Service and other ‘behaviour change’ professionals use it with their clients or patients.

HTH!

‘Detoxing’ is not a recognised medical phenomenon, it comes from the alternative health community. The human body eliminates ‘toxins’ or waste products daily via the liver, kidneys and gut, if it did not we would die. It is more likely that you have increased your intake of dietary prebiotics too much in too short a period of time. The increased bulk of the stool itself and/ the or gassy waste products can cause bloating or otherwise irritate the bowel.

Dr Mosley recommends to “keep a detailed daily food and symptom diary for at least a week before you start, to help identify any pattern in relation to diet … Ideally keep the diary going throughout the programme until you identify any culprits” (p.187). He further notes that “we don’t recommend removing too many foods at one time, so it might be helpful to do remove and repair in several stages …” (p.188).

Have you discussed your concerns about your gut health with a medical professional?
Disordered eating is unique to each individual. Restricting food can obviously cause macronutrient and micronutrient insufficiencies or deficiencies. Binging and purging can irritate, inflame or damage the any portion of the digestive tract from mouth to rectum. However this can calm and repair with a consistent nutrient dense wholefood diet. Hence the Clever Guts diet!

Given that you relapse regularly it may be unwise to seek out a prescriptive personalised eating plan, but rather to consult a registered dietician in person.

Dr Mosley recommends to “keep a detailed daily food and symptom diary for at least a week before you start, to help identify any pattern in relation to diet … Ideally keep the diary going throughout the programme until you identify any culprits” (p.187). This will be be very valuable to any medical professional that you consult.

HTH!

Hi my son has idiopathis urticaria and is currently taking strong antihistimines would the seaweed capsules help as I think this is an autoimmune condition and he would really not be continually taking antihistimines as he has been taking them for almost a year and a half. He has tried to reduce them but gets symptoms again.

Flaxseed oil is rich in short chain omega-3s: these are inefficiently converted in the human body to the useable long chain format (DHA and EPA) at rates as low as 10%. Furthermore short chain omega-3s are much less stable than long chain omega-3s so the oil easily oxidises and goes rancid.

GrahamPhillips is correct that flaxseed oil is more processed than extra virgin olive oil or virgin avocado oil: not least because olives and avocados (both fruits) are soft and easily cold-pressed, whereas flaxseeds have a hard, indigestible coating so need to be finely ground to release the oil.

The only rich dietary source of long chain omega-3s are oily fish (eg. mackerel/ sardines/ salmon/ trout). Oily fish are also the only rich dietary source of bioavailable vitamin D. UK healthy eating guidelines recommend up to four servings of oily fish each week. There is no minimum requirement for flaxseeds or their oil, it simply is not essential for health.

There are much smaller amounts of omega-3s (DHA and EPA) and vitamin D3 in organic, free-range eggs from hens fed a seed rich diet. Dr Mosley’s advice on extra virgin olive oil and oily fish are on pages 103 to 110 of the Clever Guts Diet book.

Please do not use dietary supplements – including oils – without the guidance of a qualified health professional (eg. family doctor, registered dietician) who has access to your medical notes and/ or your detailed food and symptom diary.

This has come up before: the meal planners (p.262 – 265) are examples only, they are not prescriptive. We all have different health conditions, different symptoms, different starting diets, different lifestyles and different gut microbiomes. Because of that there is no one-size-fits-all ‘remove and repair’ stage.

Dr Mosley recommends to “keep a detailed daily food and symptom diary for at least a week before you start, to help identify any pattern in relation to diet … Ideally keep the diary going throughout the programme until you identify any culprits” (p.187). He further notes that “we don’t recommend removing too many foods at one time, so it might be helpful to do remove and repair in several stages …” (p.188).

HTH!

** So you might …
Replace white potatoes with other root vegetables (eg. carrot, celeriac)
Replace baked beans with other pulses (eg. kidney beans, edamame)
Replace sweetcorn with other yellow veggies (eg. bell pepper, baby corn)
Replace red or black grapes with other dark fruit (eg. raspberries, blackberries)
Replace white pasta with other grains (pot barley, wild rice).
And so on.