I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC) 10 years ago this summer. This is not a fun disease to have. The good news is that I haven’t had any symptoms for over three years; nothing, zilch, nadda. How did I cure myself (I consider myself cured)? It had to be my diet. I started by analyzing what I was eating and how often. I also looked into any and all possible foods that may have aggravated or caused my condition. Although UC is considered an autoimmune disease, there are several foods that could have aggravated my intestinal inflammation. One of the things in my diet that stood out was that it was heavily tilted toward acidic foods. Meats, dairy, beer, wine, and some grains are acidic. Most vegetables and some fruits are alkaline. I thought I ate a lot of vegetables, but through my dietary analysis they did not balance the acidity. So I began eating lots and lots of vegetables and cut down on meats and dairy; a practice I still follow today. The human body has a slight alkaline pH (7.3-7.4, neutral is 7.0). Bodily systems don’t function very well at an acidic pH. In fact, at a pH of 6.9, coma and death are common (think of diabetic coma). There are lots of ways to eat vegetables other than in salads. I love grilling zucchini, onion, garlic, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant; they taste heavenly. Plus, my gut loves them. I often make soups, stews, and sandwiches with vegetables. I like what Jack LaLane said; “If nature made it, eat it. If man made it, don’t). I’m oversimplifying, but if the food comes out of the ground, it’s pretty good for you. It sure worked for me in my battle with UC.
Stay well, John R Blilie, M.S.