Bye Bye Nightshades....

I suffer from bilateral carpal tunnel.

It sucks.

I have a really difficult time gripping, holding, grasping, sometimes lifting, sometimes pushing; I have weakness, numbness, and pain.

It makes WODs more difficult, push ups awful, pull ups almost impossible, jungle rows and kettlebell swings a little dangerous, cleans a little wobbly at times, and anything with me putting a lot of my body weight onto my hands hurty.

For the past 5 or 6 weeks, my hands have been numb.  My arms and hands get really weak.

Yesterday I completed my Whole30. which consisted of a Paleo inspired diet of meat, chicken, fish, vegetables, fats, nuts and seeds, and some fruit.

While doing the W30, I was consuming a great amount of inflammatory nightshade vegetables/spices.

I have been researching nightshades, B6, inflammation, alkalization, and carpal tunnel and planned to eliminate nightshades and anti-inflammatory spices from my diet to see if that would help my worsening carpal tunnel symptoms. 

Through this research I learned that a body with high levels of acidity could worsen carpal tunnel and too much B6 could also exacerbate symptoms.

I am trying to get more information on B6.  The levels I have found so far is 1.3mg a day for women, but I have also found 100-200mg per day should be taken to help reduce inflammation properties.  I am so confused.

Nightshades are also a little dagger in my heart...here is the list of the foods I will eliminate from my diet for the next 6-8 weeks to see if I can see a difference in my carpal tunnel:


Potatoes:
No worries here..I don't normally eat potatoes and sweet potatoes are not nightshades, as they are a different species, therefore NOM NOM NOM!

Peppers:
This means all peppers.  Literally.  All. Peppers.  This means green, red, yellow, chili, paprika, cayenne, black, habenro, jalapeno....this breaks my heart.  I eat this stuff all the time.  But that could be why I am getting worse.

Eggplant:
Oh, my elegant purple friend....you will be missed.  I love you.  Please don't think otherwise.  I am sad.

Blueberries:
Say it aint so!  I cry.  I am sorry but raspberries and blackberries just can't compete with the blueberry wonderment of wonder.  Sigh.....

Okra:
I die.  Okra is a food I have eaten all my life.  I.  LOVE.  OKRA.  I have been eating loads of okra over the past month.  I make it in a variety of ways and with many other foods on this list, namely....


Tomatoes:
Wow.  This is going to be a toughie.  Tomatoes are good with everything.  Ev-er-y-thing-a.  

Artichokes:
For me, artichokes are the easiest one to give up.  While I love to eat the soft heart (especially marinated in high quality olive oil) I don't eat it often.

I mentioned before that I want to re-evaluate my diet for my personal needs, not to follow any type of diet per sé, but for the needs of my body and its requirements.  

I honestly hate the fact that I am afraid to hold babies because I don't want to drop them like I drop a lot of other things I attempt to pick up.  I hate that I have no grip strength and that my hand always hurt and that they are numb and that I get shooting pain up my arms into my elbows and feel like nerves are pinching in my shoulders.  It is a constant thing and I am really tired of it.

It is a pain that I can't button buttons efficiently or need help clasping my bra or unlocking doors because I can't turn the key...I am only 30, not 97!

A few months ago I was being tested for lupus and other auto-immune diseases.

Thank GOD the tests all came back negative. 

Autoimmune disorders are extremely prevalent in my family on both my mother and father's side and I am at a high risk of developing one myself if I am not careful.

Most of my nutritional experimentation is for preventative purposes as well as finding a balance that works well for ME.

My doctor was in favor of a gluten free diet, as gluten is linked to central nervous system and autoimmune deficiencies.  I am ok with that.

I honestly don't miss breads and pastas and pastries or cakes and cookies.  I was never a big proponent of those types of foods anyways (well, with pasta and bread I was) except for short spans of time.  I would always return to clean eating.

I do think, however, that I may be a little acidic.  My body is sensitive to this type of thing whereas other people may not be.  I know I have an issue with inflammation and am at risk for developing an autoimmune disorder and I know that a diet without gluten is most likely ideal for me.

BUT....

I think I may have been overloading on animal protein.  I eat a ton of eggs, beef, chicken, and some fish.  I think I might also be getting a little too much B6.

Through the research (not just now, but even from a year ago...making the connection and making sense of how it all is fitting together) I found that a highly acidic body makes issues like mine worse.

For my personal needs, my diet is off kilter.

So, I am going to eliminate the nightshades and I am going dial back my animal protein intake and intake of some other acidic foods I have been eating in large quantities for the past month or so.  I am going to see if this makes any difference.

I pray it does.

I will be posting here, like always, about what is happening and how things are going.

I am going to up the ante on my vegetable intake, dial back on my black tea (green on the other had has great anti-inflammatory agents!), and see how things go...see if I have more energy and stamina.

I want to see most of all, if this carpal tunnel irritation subsides.

I don't just want to eat foods because they are deemed clean, I want to eat the RIGHT clean foods for ME and MY body.  No two people are exactly alike, and not everyone has the same dietary needs or sensitivities.  So that is part of this challenge.  I just want to put clean things IN my body so I am clean and healthy INSIDE my body. 

Now that I am used to eating the W30 way, it will be easy to manipulate to see what is helping and what is harming.  It is all about the journey!