Re: Leaky gut/candida/anxiety/adrenals; LOST, need help...

Hello Hveragerthi; again, sorry for the delay in this reply. Thank you for your answers.

Regarding Kefir, yes, you are correct; it can be made of other things, and I had forgotten this until being reminded by other posters about the Body Ecology Diet; I have in fact tried coconut kefir, and found it most delicious, though am not sure about how it made me feel. (Perhaps, it was a case of, as you'd said, not being fermented fully? It was still sweet-tasting).

I understand your point about the relatively limited strains of probiotic bacteria found in most commercial probiotic supplements versus the variety found in fermented foods.

Thank you very much for the information on Aloe Vera Juice; bearing in mind what you'd said, I went back to the health food store and got a brand called "George's"; it says right on the bottle "No Water Added", along with things like "No Additives" and "No preservatives "; I think it also says it's "Anthraquinone-free".

On the back they say that it's pure Aloe Juice though with no bitter taste and constituents they consider undesirable removed. It may say inner-leaf - truth be told, it tastes exactly like water; first sip, I thought "sh*t! I got ripped off!" - though read up on it, and other people's experience match mine, though people noticed distinct benefits when drinking it, so I'm thinking (praying) that it really is Aloe Juice, just processed differently than most. I'll keep a look out for that brand you suggested, too.

Regarding stimulatory/calming adaptogenic herbs, thank you. I will keep those you mentioned in mind. And I agree, doesn't matter what people say about Yerba Mate having "no caffeine" or "hardly any caffeine"; it's got it in it, and looking back, yes, it was very stimulatory, and would get me sweating and spaced out in an unpleasant way. Lord knows why I drank so much of the stuff, but I guess that's the nature of tired adrenals and stimulation addiction.

Watercress? Great idea! I remember loving it as a kid; if I feel fine with it, I'll give it a go.

I'll be ordering the adrenal-cortisol test any day now.

Yesterday was the best day, food-reaction wise, thus far; not much itching, not much in the way of digestive issues. I still have itchy areas on me, though I don't look madly flared up after showering like in the pictures; I've done best with fish, and fresh fruit (eaten well away from one another). Quality, natural salami (biodynamic (above organic) beef and pork) was pretty good, but a bit of itch. Could've been the spices in it, who knows.

Hopefully I'm improving.

Edit: Whoops, forgot to mention: I got hold of some bitters, St. Francis Herb Farm Canadian Bitters, reasonably priced for the amount needed; first time I took them I got a bit of a red spot on my face and mild flushing, but fine since. I enjoy the feeling the bitter taste gives me, and they have some herbs in them which are also anti candida/parasitic (turmeric, Black-Walnut , ginger). Thanks for the recommendation - I'm still taking Betaine HCl when I feel it's needed, with high protein foods, but will try to wean off of it, now that I have the bitters.

Cheers,

sevenpoints

Thanks again for your help! Let me know if you've got any more thoughts.
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