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Dealing with the Autoimmune Aspect with Diet
Hi I am new to Alopecia World. I have Hashimotos and frontal fibrosing alopecia. So that is now two autoimmune conditions. They say if you have one you will have more. I don't really want more and want to deal with these only. So, as I think on my health in the past I always felt I had inflammation that I was dealing with. It is now not until I am in my 60's that I have real diagnoses. It makes me think since there is no real answer or understanding about why the body decides to attack itself in the alopathic world and there is only symptom treatments then there must have to be another way to view what is going on. So, I am now adopting the Paleo Autoimmune Approach to see if food sensitivities have been what has put me into this state. It makes a lot of sense to me. I have support of my Internal Med doctor as it makes sense to her and I see in the popular literature that there are very smart people who are explaining autoimmune conditions and overall inflammation from a very intelligent perspective. So, have any of you found help and a stop to your hair loss with this approach? It has seemed to help many others with other types of autoimmune diseases. I would love to meet other women who are exploring this approach as well as their regular medical regimen. Thanks......
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by carebear42 on
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Hi I have been following Stella Arenillas Garcia on Youtube, she is following the Paleo diet and it has not only helped her hair to grow back but has also helped her with her crohn's disease (She no longer takes meds for her crohn's).
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Permalink Reply by Robin on
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thank you so much. This is the approach that I am taking. I will watch Stella as well. My alopecia is fibrosing (scaring) so it is not supposed to be able to come back like alopecia ariata so what I want is a stop to the loss......and hair regrowth would be amazing if it could happen. This is encouraging......Is it helping you? How long have you been using this diet? I have been on it for four weeks now. I feel great and there is a big lessening of my inflammation at my hair line but that could also be the drugs I am taking.........want to hear more about you......
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I'm not doing the diet yet, there is a book that Stella mentions that was a big help to her so I am getting the book first, honestly I suck at diets lol so this is going to be a huge struggle for me but will be worth it if I can get off the meds. I noticed a small patch on top of my head February of this year, it grew bigger and by April I was having a hard time covering the spot and I cried all the time. I took some extra time off of work thinking it was stress but it just got worse. My family doctor gave me shots but never gave them right and only made my head hurt and uncomfortable. I then decided to buy a wig and found a girl at a salon who was such a wonderful help, she was very comforting and had a wig in the salon that matched my dyed hair color and it was like it was sitting on the shelf waiting for me lol. I still cried a lot trying to get use to the wig but within a couple weeks I got better, the crying stopped and I started living again. Then I got in to see a dermatologist who put me on Methotrexate and gave me more needles. I go every 8 weeks to get more shots and I take the drug faithfully 6 pills one time a week and folic acid on the days I don't take the pill. I have lots of hair growth on top of my head but my hair is thinning out. I forgot to mention that during april and may I found a new spot at the back of my head (both on my left side) that grew as big as the one on the top of my head. I do have some new growth at the back as well but it is slower (guess it's a hard area to treat). I am still wearing the wig and will be buying a new one soon. I do think the Methotrexate is doing me more harm than good so i'm ready to start a diet and get off of the drug, I just don't know where to begin. Happy to hear the diet is making you feel great....hope it continues to work for you.
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Oh my that is tough. Loosing my hair was it for me. My daughter told me about Sarah Ballantyne's book and I read it and it made total sense to me and my scientist husband. I dove in.......it is hard at first but the food is so wonderful....I see that I thought I was eating healthy but I did not know a lot of what I know now. I encourage you to do this. As they say, if you have one autoimmune you will have more......I think this may be the answer to the overall question of autoimmune. Makes so much sense. Take the leap, your beauty and health are worth it........and it appears that Stella is really doing well.......stay in touch
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Thanks, I will have to give it a try...best of luck to you.
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Permalink Reply by Rach1992 on
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I dont eat gluten or dairy going on 8 months now and no improvenent (alopecia universalis). I got AA a year and a half ago and lost the last of my hair 6 months ago.
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Hi, thanks for responding. congratulation on letting go of the gluten and dairy. I am following Sarah Ballantyne's approach to autoimmune disease. the first reply on my posting includes an interesting you tube of an alopecia sufferer who is successfully using this approach too. It is more than no Gluten and Dairy. You should get her book and look at her web site, Paleo Mom. You may be still consuming offenders to your leaky gut and what you are doing is not enough yet. Her book is very thorough and explains this approach. You would have to also give up nuts and seeds, all grains, night shade vegetables, alcohol, and sugar. This makes the diet quite limited but it may bring back your hair. Good luck..........stay in touch....and your food will still be delish........
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Aimee, wish you well. I so recommend that you read Sarah Ballantyne's book. The Paleo Autoimmune Approach that will give you a lot of support and research as to why this will help. good Luck!!!
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Permalink Reply by Vanessa on
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Hi, I have tried the auto-immune paleo diet a couple of times but only lasted 6-7 weeks each time. I did not see any change in my alopecia (AU/AT) nor in my dry eye condition (likely autoimmune). I don't think I felt any better in general on the diet and may have felt worse actually - more tired, more weird ailments? However, I am always thinking 'maybe I didn't follow the diet exactly right?' or 'maybe I need to explore some of the other restrictions like low FODMAPS' (whatever that is). I have just found it very difficult to do all the meal planning and cooking, shopping for grass and pasture fed meat/bones etc with everything else that needs doing, and cooking meals that the rest of my family will eat too. I have read so many convincing testimonials about this diet and have met a few people who have successfully put other auto-immune conditions into remission by eating this way. There must be something to it. Sarah Ballentyne's book seems very legitimate and thorough. Her credentials are impressive. I did read somewhere once where she wrote that skin conditions will take the longest to improve and that she considered hair follicles in the same category. Some folks talk about needing several months on the diet before they see improvement. One of these days I'll try again. All the best to you! My one piece of advice - get a good pressure cooker to make your bone broth! What used to take me 3 days now takes me 3 hours :-)
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Thanks Vanessa. I am totally committed to three months as my starting point. And now that I no longer have kids at home and I do have a supportive husband I can concentrate on the diet and I am loving it and feel great. It does take work and can be hard to do........It does make sense to me though......I think you did not give it enough time.
Happy thanksgiving.
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