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What I Ate in Paradise

Last week my husband and I were away in Puerto Rico for a relaxing vacation. We stayed right on the beach in a little B&B, it was paradise! After getting back results a few weeks ago confirming delayed food allergies, I proved to be a challenge to the B&B. After all, I can’t eat eggs, dairy, wheat, nuts so the standard breakfast of eggs, yogurt and granola, or pancakes was a no go. They offered to get me gluten free bread to eat with fruit and bacon, but the bread proved to have egg whites in it, so I skipped out on bread after learning that and having a little allergic relapse when I ate some.

Here we are on vacation: me at dinner and one of Heman while exploring the beach earlier.

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So I kept it simple with meals, and focused on relaxation, not having to make the bed or do dishes, and no laundry for a week either = heaven!

Even if you don’t have food allergies, you may want to live life with more energy, not feel bloated in your belly or foggy in your brain. So clean eating is really important and it’s totally possible in paradise too, that way you can actually enjoy it more! Find out what foods are native to where you are traveling. In Puerto Rico, mangos are everywhere, so are bananas and plantains. They also like to grill meat and fish on skewers, called pinchos. You can get those just about anywhere. I also enjoyed rice and beans, which had bits of cooked yucca and yummy spices in the beans, delish and paired with fresh salad was a delightful meal.

There were other dishes such a mofongo and tostones, made of mashed and fried plaintains. Heman tried those out, very filling but not the healthiest. He also tried the empanadas, some great and some just okay. It’s fun to try these authentic dishes too, but the key is having them as part of the meal, not an entire meal of fried empanadas or tostones. Fish tacos were easy to find and pinchos (skewers) of fresh fish were easy to come by and super tasty!

Tips for eating healthy on vacation:

  • start with fruit for breakfast or healthy smoothie plus some protein like bacon or pumpkin seeds, skip a heavy meal so you have energy to explore for the day
  • eat outdoors as much as possible, this makes eating that much more pleasurable
  • enjoy local cuisine as side dish if it’s fried or share as appetizer
  • indulge in fresh fish or local fresh produce
  • build meals with fresh or cooked veggies
  • share desserts or skip dessert if you’re getting a cocktail
  • go all out one day and eat the indulgent local foods, then you’ll be over it and crave healthy the rest of the trip

Plate scenes…

His and her breakfast:

His = pancakes with banana compote, bacon, fruit. Hers = fruit with bacon

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Lunch at a cozy cafe: churrasco bowl with sweet potato, red bell peppers, and spinach.

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Sunset dinner: churrasco with veggies

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Giant salad with grilled mahi, topped with seaweed salad

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Overall, I ate pretty well and even though I brought a bar of chocolate with me for dessert, I ate just 3 squares in 5 days. that’s very little for me! When we got back home and I had two super busy days at my corporate job, I craved chocolate and fats like crazy. Wow this really hit me and showed me clearly that high stress = cravings for chocolate and fats. This struck me so clearly and helped me bring a direct awareness that obviously I don’t need tons of chocolate and fat in my diet so I really need to work on reigning in the stress.

One of my neighbors brought a book to me that his friend wrote about how to handle stress called, The Practice. The writer found her way to meditation and has integrated it into her daily routine for over 18 years. If you are like me and affected by stress than check it out. I’m reading through this book and it’s been really helpful!

What are your tips for clean eating on vacation and how do you reign in stress?

 

What I Did Wrong

It seems like so many people have allergies these days or at least it’s being talked about more in recent years. If you’ve ever gone to the allergist for a scratch test to determine what you are allergic to but suspect additional allergies then you may need to go a step further and take a delayed food allergy test called IgG.

I never thought about food allergies when I was younger, it just wasn’t talked about. All I knew was my stomach hurt after almost every single meal. As I got older I started changing my diet a bit and realized that dairy wasn’t one of those foods my body needed or wanted – it actually wreaks havoc on my body. I tried to make it work since we are told to have 3 servings of dairy a day, but they I finally decided to give it up after experiencing not only digestive upset but also terrible acne and headaches.

In recent years I suspected more food allergies and took a test from Immuno Labs about 4 years ago. This type of test showed delayed food allergy reactions, which can be harder to determine because symptoms can occur 12 to 72 hours after consuming offending foods. I also did an elimination diet following the test by taking out the foods the test revealed and I began to feel so much better! After feeling better for quite some time, I decided that I could start adding foods into my diet again. This can be OK for some people, but needs to be done very slowly and the foods are to be eaten in small amounts. I didn’t go this route and started added back foods too much too soon. I started to feel a little off but dismissed what I was feeling. I thought that I could will my body to accept these foods again. Oh I have never been so wrong!

My health started to make a downward spiral and not only was my belly unhappy, more heartburn occurred, and I also developed eczema all over my body, mainly my legs, but also my belly, back, underarms. It seemed to come out of nowhere and for whatever reason, I did not equate this to all of the foods I had reintroduced into my life again. I thought it was just bad luck and stress. Sometimes we can’t see what is right in front of us! If a client told me this story, it would be so much easier for me to see that it was all the offending foods back in the diet that were causing problems.

So I decided to get another delayed food allergy test. This time from USBiotek. A friend referred me to a location that could administer the test and so I went and got it done. This time I am going to eliminate these foods for good. I am sure my husband will keep a close eye on me too!

More about the testing: USBiotek offers a delayed allergy test you can get done on about 96 foods in several categories: General, Vegetarian, Mexican, Asian, Japanese. These tests will cover grains, legumes, nuts/seeds, dairy, fruits, vegetables, meats and eggs, fish, spices. Each categorized test has a specific protocol of the foods it will test. They also offer testing for environmental factors including inhalants that can cause reactions mold, trees, weeds, indoor allergens.

Your test results will show your reaction based on a scale of 0 to VI (7). Zero being no reaction, I = Very Low, II = Low, III = Moderate, IV = High, V = Very High, VI = Extremely High. Ideally, you will then avoid all foods that gave results of II (Low) to VI (Extremely High) for at least 6 weeks. Then you may reintroduce the foods one at a time, starting with the lowest reaction, to see if the reaction subsides. Sometimes our bodies need a break from foods we eat a lot and other times, we need to avoid foods forever. The foods on the High reaction and above may need to be avoided indefinitely or perhaps several years, then consumed sparingly if at all. Learning which foods work well for your body and which foods cause allergic reaction is key to optimal health.

Some common delayed food allergy reactions may include: fatigue, anxiety, depression, brain fog, rashes, eczema, asthma, hives, digestive upset, heartburn. Delayed food reactions may occur 12 – 72 hours after consuming a food so that can make it much harder to detect than an immediate food allergy.

If you want to get the UsBiotek test done, you can locally by this provider or go to the website and contact UsBiotek directly.

Dr. Frank Driano

(954)-438-1212

9684 Pines Blvd, Pemproke Pines, FL 33025

Here are my test results. If you see me eating an egg, please throw it on the floor (results are at Level VI – Extremely High Reaction)!

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Have you had delayed food allergy testing and traditional scratch testing done? Did removing those foods from your diet help improve your health?

There are a lot of foods I shouldn’t be eating so I am going to get more creative with my meals, because despite everything I still love food! If you are in the same place and need help figuring out what meals to eat with a limited selection I can help. Please contact me for more information: totalhealthcounseling@gmail.com

I hope sharing my experience will benefit you in some way!

XO,

Pam