Amy Myers's Blog, page 54

6 Tips for Following an AIP Protocol During College

College life! Many consider it the “golden era” of young adulthood. There’s no other time in your life quite like it. It’s an exciting season of opportunity and growth coupled with hectic schedules, little to no sleep, and a fair amount of stress. Juggling classes, exams, papers, a possible job, and a social life keeps most college students occupied 24/7. Unfortunately, today’s college life is often thought to be synonymous with pizza, burgers, and just about any other junk food you can imagine washed down with caffeinated soda and coffee concoctions for those late nights studying. For this reason, following an AIP protocol during college can sometimes feel as if you’re swimming upstream!

Four years (or potentially longer if you add a master’s degree, medical or law degree) is a long time to compromise your health by not taking care of yourself, and this impact can be even larger if you’re already dealing with an inflammatory condition such as asthma, eczema, seasonal allergies, or an autoimmune condition. Eating an inflammatory diet and not managing stress–combined with the extra viruses and bacteria that come along with living in the dorms or a shared apartment–can lead to frequent illness and set you on the path to autoimmunity or worsen an existing condition.

As a parent myself, this is something I’m already thinking about and it’s an issue often raised by my patients who either are college students or have college-aged children and want to prevent them from developing an autoimmune condition or other chronic illness.

Fortunately, you don’t have to sacrifice your health on the altar of getting your degree and having the “time of your life”! I managed to do this myself in college because I was fortunate enough to have parents who taught me the importance of nourishing my body with real whole foods.

And the great news is that following an AIP (Autoimmune Paleo) or other anti-inflammatory protocol is now easier than ever. There is a wonderful array of options for the busy college student to eat healthful, delicious foods that support the gut and immune system, and by adding in a few essential supplements, you can ensure you or your college student build a strong foundation of optimal health. After all, your health is the foundation on which you can build your future!

Before we dive into navigating living the AIP lifestyle while in college, let me refresh your memory on what “AIP” actually means. If you’re new to this lifestyle, I’ll highlight the main ideas and show you where you can read more.

What is the AIP Protocol?

AIP, or the Autoimmune Paleo protocol, is a lifestyle approach centered on eating an anti-inflammatory diet to promote an optimally functioning immune system–one which does not malfunction, attack your own cells, and lead to autoimmune conditions of all types. I explain this in my books, The Autoimmune Solution & The Thyroid Connection.

In my books, here on my website, and in my programs, I explain how I have reviewed the research on the AIP protocol, refined it based on what I have seen work best for myself and thousands of patients, and expanded it to include all of the environmental root causes of chronic illness (beyond just diet) to develop my own program for preventing and reversing chronic illness called The Myers Way®.

The five steps of The Myers Way® include:

Repair your gut
Optimize your diet
Tame the toxins
Heal your infections
Relieve your stress

In this article we’ll be focusing on step 2, and you can read about the others at the links above or in my books.

The Why and How of Following an AIP Protocol During College

If you have an autoimmune condition such as type 1 diabetes, lupus, Crohn’s Disease, Grave’s, asthma, eczema, or psoriasis, have a history of autoimmune disease or chronic illness in your family, or simply want to take proactive measures to protect your health, it’s in your best interest to follow The Myers Way® to maintain optimal health.

If you need a little extra motivation, consider that The National Institute of Health (NIH) estimates that 23.5 million Americans are now affected by autoimmune disease, with the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) putting the estimate even higher, at 50 million.1 The number of young adults and children with autoimmune conditions is on the rise, and women are at an even higher risk than men.2

In terms of optimizing your diet, you’ll want to focus on eating plenty of leafy greens, organic vegetables, lean animal protein from a clean source, healthy fats, and a bit of organic fruit. Likewise you’ll want to ditch toxic and inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy, corn, soy, packaged or junk foods, and moderate your consumption of sugar, alcohol, and caffeine. For a full breakdown of foods to enjoy and foods to toss see this article.

Now that you understand what AIP is, I’ll give you some tips on incorporating it into your college life. Remember, this is a lifestyle, not a diet. That’s why I call my program The Myers Way®, because it truly is a way of life. You can start slow if this is new to you. Even a few steps in the right direction can set you on a completely different path. College life can be demanding to say the least, and I don’t want to add to your stress. My goal is to encourage you to make gradual changes over time that will allow you to truly take back your health!

Easy Tips for Following an AIP Protocol During College

1. Start Your Day with a Protein Smoothie

To keep your body and mind fueled all day long, protein is paramount because it is literally what you’re made of! All of your body’s functions require protein to operate optimally, and animal protein from a clean source is the best form of protein to fuel you. And thanks to convenient protein powders, you can start your day or enjoy a midday pick me up in the form of a delicious, protein-packed smoothie!

My Paleo Protein powder is sourced from grass-fed, pasture-raised cows who were never given GMOs, hormones, or antibiotics. It comes in 4 delicious varieties: Mocha Latte (my new favorite!), Vanilla, Chocolate, and Unflavored. And, to make it easier than ever to enjoy it on the go, you can now purchase single-serving packets that you can bring with you in your backpack or purse! I keep these with me at all times and will also be sending these to school with my daughter Elle. Simply add one packet to a mason jar (to avoid the plastic of a shaker bottle) with one of those metal shaker balls and mix with dairy-free milk, or toss it in a blender with organic frozen fruits and greens.

To supercharge your smoothies there are two other convenient additions you can easily include. The first is collagen. Unlike Paleo Protein, which includes all 9 essential amino acids, collagen is not a complete source of protein. However, it is particularly rich in 4 key amino acids that support a healthy gut, beautiful hair, skin, and nails, optimal metabolism, and healthy bones and joints. Like my Paleo Protein, it also now comes in single-serving packets that you can add to your smoothie or simply stir into water since it dissolves easily into either hot or cold water and is completely flavorless.

The second ingredient to supercharge your smoothies is a scoop of my organic superfoods green juice powder. It contains a powerhouse blend of 14 organic plant foods rich in the phytonutrients missing from our modern diet. It has a wonderful, mildly sweet flavor with absolutely no grassy taste and is a super easy way to get your daily dose of greens without needing a fridge full of fresh, organic produce!

2. Pack Snacks

Your girl scout or boy scout troop leader gave the best advice, “Be prepared!” This is the key to your success as a busy college student. I want to encourage you to be prepared and be present over perfect. If you’re prepared with healthy snacks ahead of time, you can avoid the pitfalls of eating inflammatory foods out of hunger.

So, what do you take with you to eat and drink? First and foremost, take water with you to keep hydrated and alert. Use a glass or stainless steel water bottle, as plastics leak chemicals into your water. This adds to your toxic burden, so avoid drinking out of plastic bottles altogether when possible.

While packing real whole foods such as organic fruits and veggies is ideal, sometimes we need simple grab-and-go options that you can keep in your bag. For those of you have completed reintroduction phase of The Myers Way® Autoimmune Solution or AIP protocol, my grab-and-go Chewy Chocolate Paleo Bars are perfectly balanced to handle those between-meal cravings! This travel-friendly snack contains a whopping 12 grams of clean-sourced grass-fed beef protein per bar, perfect for between meals and before or after a workout.

My Coconut Joy Fiber Bars and Mint Joy Fiber Bars will satisfy your craving for something sweet, and are excellent for keeping you full, energized, and focused. These decadent chocolate-covered coconut bars contain 11 to 13 grams of prebiotic fiber to support a healthy microbiome and blood sugar balance, and are rich in medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) to support fat burning and weight control.

Here is a list of some of my other favorite prepackaged snack options:

Nature’s All organic freeze-dried fruit
Vital Choice wild salmon jerky or free range bison jerky

Jackson’s Honest Sweet Potato Chips
Bone broth (such as Bare Bones)
or

Artisana Raw Coconut Butter Squeeze Packs
Yucan Crunch Crackers
Power Balls
Plantain chips (such as Terra)

3. Make Smart Choices in the Cafeteria

In the dorm, fresh fruits, vegetables, and salads are always a great choice! Most dorm cafeterias likely do not stock organic produce (although hopefully this will change as more research emerges!), so that’s an area where you may need to compromise or you can stock your own in your dorm fridge. You can also look on the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) website or download their app and choose non-organic fruits and vegetables from the Clean Fifteen list when eating in your dining hall!

Look for grilled or roasted meats without sauces (which are often hiding butter and other inflammatory ingredients), and steamed vegetables. Always ask for gluten- and dairy-free options. I recommend calling your university cafeteria to find out if they label their gluten-free and dairy-free foods. Don’t be afraid to politely inquire about what’s in the food before you make your choices. When in doubt, leave it out!

4. Cook Simple Meals Packed with Essential Nutrients

If you have your own apartment in college, with very little effort on your part you can stock your fridge and prepare simple meals that will satisfy your taste buds and support your immune system. In minutes you can have a meal made yourself that you can feel proud of and good about eating! You’ll be training yourself how to cook for a lifetime of vibrant health!

For starters, make sure your freezer is stocked with grass-fed, organic meats and organic fruits and vegetables. If you can’t afford to buy everything organic, focus on meat first because it’s at the top of the food chain, and non-organic meat can be full of pesticides and hormones. I love Butcher Box’s grass-fed, pasture raised meats available as a monthly delivery option and Vital Choice for fresh caught seafood. Now, I know those freezers in your dorm’s mini-fridges are small, so I’d recommend finding a handful of like-minded students on campus with similar health goals to split a subscription with you! Regarding produce, you’ll want to prioritize buying organic fruits and vegetables on the EWG’s Dirty Dozen list, which are the 12 foods with the highest concentration of pesticides.

Stock up on pantry staples such as coconut oil, coconut aminos (a delicious soy sauce replacement), gluten- and grain-free flours, and other autoimmune-friendly items. offers tons of AIP-approved choices at prices 25-50% lower than you’ll find in health stores and they deliver straight to your door!

Choose simple AIP approved recipes that you can prepare as staple dishes for the week. You can even prep them ahead of time and store in your fridge or freezer to enjoy throughout the week. You can find over 150 easy and mouth-wateringly delicious recipes in my cookbook, The Autoimmune Solution Cookbook, which are perfect for people who don’t have hours to spend in the kitchen. My family cooks meals from this cookbook almost every night and even my toddler daughter, Elle, enjoys them!

For even more pointers on eating AIP on-the-go and on a budget, check out my article 15 Tips to Save Time & Money While Following AIP!

5. Get Right Back on Track If You Get Derailed

Living a healthy life is about balance and no one is perfect! So if you do get derailed, I have some great resources to get you back on track. First, take digestive enzymes to help you quickly digest and flush any inflammatory foods you have have eaten. The ones I carry in my store contain a special enzyme, DPP-IV, that specifically helps you break down gluten to get it out of your system faster.

You can follow that up with binding agents in the form of activated charcoal, which absorbs toxins from your digestive tract so that you can flush them out. Make sure you drink plenty of water during this process as well, to help you pee, poop, and sweat any toxins out.

Next, you’ll want to take Omega-3 fatty acids and curcumin to reduce inflammation.

Finally, to repair your gut, add in Leaky Gut Revive, which is packed with nutrients to repair your gut lining and soothe any digestive symptoms that may arise from getting off track.

6. Build a Strong Foundation with The Myers Way® Essential Supplements

No matter where you are in your health journey, there are four supplements that I recommend virtually everyone to take in order to maintain a strong foundation for optimal health. These include a high-quality multivitamin, a potent probiotic, Omega 3 fish oils, and vitamin D3/K2. You can find all of these (and save 10%!) in my Essentials Kit.

I hope after reading this that you’re feeling empowered and confident that you or your college-aged child CAN maintain (and even improve!) your health during this exciting time in your life.

Stock Up and Save 15% on my NEW Vanilla Paleo Protein and Collagen Single Serving Packets!

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Perfect for college students, frequent travelers, and commuters, these convenient grab-and-go packets are going to make your life SO much easier!

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Click here now to grab your box of these gut-repairing, time-saving little miracles!

The post 6 Tips for Following an AIP Protocol During College appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

The Candida and Autoimmune Disease Connection

Did you know that if you are dealing with either Candida overgrowth or an autoimmune disease, there’s a good chance you could be dealing with the other as well? In working with thousands of patients, I’ve found it to be incredibly common for Candida and autoimmune disease to go hand in hand because Candida overgrowth is not only very widespread, it actually sets you on the path to autoimmunity.

Unfortunately, another aspect the two conditions have in common is that they are frequently missed by conventional medicine doctors. As I write in my book, The Autoimmune Solution, it takes an average of 5 years and 6-10 doctors to receive an autoimmune diagnosis. And doctors often write off the symptoms of Candida overgrowth as signs of stress, aging, or simply being a woman. This is because the common symptoms, including brain fog, fatigue, skin issues, digestive problems, and mood imbalances, tend to be vague, impact multiple areas of the body, and can overlap with other chronic conditions you’ve already been diagnosed with, such as autoimmunity.

However, once you identify Candida overgrowth as the cause of your symptoms and the role it plays in autoimmunity, you can overcome it in just a few simple steps, eliminating your symptoms and putting you on the path to reversing or preventing autoimmunity.

So let’s dig into what Candida overgrowth is and how it can lead to autoimmunity, as well as how to overcome it using dietary and lifestyle changes.

Candida Overgrowth: What It Is, How You Get It & Symptoms

Candida is a fungus, a form of yeast, that is naturally found in your mouth and intestines. In small amounts, Candida is essential for your digestive health and helps you absorb nutrients.

Ideally your good bacteria, bad bacteria, and Candida that make up your gut microbiome exist in a balanced state. In fact, I like to think of your microbiome as a rainforest, with many different species living together in a balanced harmony.

However, if your immune system is compromised, you eat a diet high in carbohydrates and sugar, you take medications such as birth control pills or antibiotics, or are even just dealing with chronic stress, the balance can be disrupted, and Candida can grow out of control and quickly become a problem.

Symptoms of Candida Overgrowth

Candida overgrowth can come with many unpleasant side effects and serious health conditions, including:

Fungal infections of your skin and nails, such as toenail fungus, athlete’s foot, and ringworm1
Oral thrush2
Vaginal infections, vaginal itching, urinary tract infections and rectal itching3,4
Brain fog, difficulty concentrating, lack of focus, poor memory, ADD/ADHD
Skin conditions, such as psoriasis, eczema, rashes, hives, and tinea versicolor
Digestive issues, including bloating, constipation, or diarrhea5
Mood issues, such as anxiety, depression, and mood swings
Tiredness, feeling worn out, chronic fatigue, or fibromyalgia6
Strong cravings for sugar and refined carbohydrates
Itchy ears
Severe seasonal allergies
Nutrient deficiencies7
Recurring sinus infections8
Autoimmune diseases, such as Hashimoto’s, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, ulcerative colitis, scleroderma, or multiple sclerosis

The Candida, Leaky Gut & Autoimmune Connection

 

You likely noticed that although Candida lives in your gut, many of those symptoms affected other areas of the body. So how does a fungus in your gut wreak havoc on so many areas of your body? The answer is that Candida overgrowth leads to leaky gut by breaking down the walls of your intestine.

It may surprise you to learn that your gut lining is only one cell layer thick, and is held together by tight junctions. These junctions act as a drawbridge, allowing teeny tiny boats (micronutrients in food) that are meant to travel back and forth to go under the bridge without a problem. This is an important system that allows vital nutrients from the food you eat to be absorbed into your bloodstream.

However, an overgrowth of Candida damages your gut lining, causing the drawbridge to go up and allowing bigger boats that aren’t meant to travel through to cross over, including toxins, microbes, proteins, and partially digested food particles. This in turn can lead to a myriad of symptoms, many of which coincide with symptoms of Candida overgrowth.

Signs of Leaky Gut

Pain
Fatigue
Digestive issues, including diarrhea, constipation, gas, bloating, IBS and IBD
Brain fog, memory problems
Nutritional deficiencies
Skin problems, including eczema, rosacea, and rashes
Headaches
Intense cravings for refined sugar, carbs and processed foods
Mood disorders
Joint pain and arthritis
Fibromyalgia
Thyroid conditions
Autoimmune conditions

Even more serious than the laundry list of symptoms above, leaky gut sets you on the path to numerous chronic illnesses, particularly autoimmune disease. I write about this in my books, explaining that Harvard researcher Alessio Fasano has actually identified leaky gut as a necessary precursor to autoimmunity.

You see, all of the undigested food particles, toxins, viruses, and bacteria that pass through your intestinal wall and flood your bloodstream trigger an inflammatory response from your immune system in an attempt to fight off these foreign “invaders”. As your gut remains leaky and the invaders continue escaping, your immune system goes into overdrive. It wants to protect you so it sends even more inflammation to battle the invaders. This chronic inflammation exacerbates many of the symptoms above, and over time, your immune system becomes stressed, weakened, confused, and begins firing less accurately, until your own tissues end up under fire and you develop full blown autoimmunity. The tissues that end up attacked determined what type of autoimmune disease you have. If your joints end up under fire, you develop Rheumatoid Arthritis, in the case of Psoriasis or Scleroderma your skin is under attack, and so on and so forth.

To make matters worse, many of the substances that leak into your bloodstream look very similar to your body’s own cells, so you can imagine how confusing this must be to your immune system! This process of mistaken identity, known as molecular mimicry, leads your immune system to accidentally attack your body’s organs and tissues in an attempt to protect you.

The most prominent example of this is in the case of Hashimoto’s and Graves’ disease, which are autoimmune thyroid conditions. Gluten (which is incidentally the number one cause of leaky gut) contains proteins that look very similar to your thyroid tissue. So when your gut is leaky and your immune system begins to attack the gluten proteins from the toast you had for breakfast or the sandwich you had for lunch, it goes to attack your thyroid as well by mistake.

Once you develop an autoimmune condition, you must treat the underlying Candida overgrowth that caused your gut to become leaky in the first place, in order to repair the damage and overcome your autoimmune disease. Left untreated, it can lead to further damage and other autoimmune diseases. In fact, as I write in The Autoimmune Solution, once you have one autoimmune disease, you are three times as likely to develop another. If you have Candida overgrowth and/or leaky gut and have not yet been diagnosed with an autoimmune condition, it is important that you address these issues to prevent autoimmunity and restore your healthy gut flora.9

How to Overcome Candida Overgrowth

The good news is that by overcoming Candida overgrowth you can repair your gut and reverse (or prevent!) autoimmune disease! In my Candida Breakthrough Program, I use a proven, 3-step approach to help you beat Candida overgrowth for good.

Step one is to starve the yeast by eliminating the foods that feed it. This includes cutting all sugar and alcohol, and limiting carbohydrates such as fruit, starchy vegetables, grains, and legumes to no more than 2 cups per day.

Step two is to attack the yeast using supplements that destroy the Candida’s cell walls. I use Candifense, a powerful blend of plant-based enzymes that break down the cell walls of Candida, and Caprylic Acid, a short chain fatty acid derived from coconut that pokes holes in the yeast cell walls.

Finally, step three is to repopulate your gut with the probiotics, or good bacteria, that usually keep the yeast in check. While dealing with Candida, I recommend a 100 Billion Probiotic, which contains 100 billion colony forming units (CFUs) of high-quality, good bacteria. This will not only help restore your gut’s healthy balance, it will also help repair your gut lining so that the Candida can no longer escape and wreak havoc in other areas of your body.

To make it easy for you, I’ve created a complete 30-day program with all of the supplements, recipes, shopping lists, and support you need to eliminate Candida overgrowth and restore your gut. You can learn more about my Candida Breakthrough Program by clicking here.

The post The Candida and Autoimmune Disease Connection appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

Superfood Meatballs

These are no ordinary meatballs–these are SUPERFOOD Meatballs, bursting with greens, greens, and more greens!

What’s great about making your own meatballs is you can literally put almost anything you want in them! Your family would never guess these Superfood Meatballs are filled with zucchini, basil, and 14 other powerful plant foods in the form of my Clean Greens Superfood Juice Powder!

Flavorful and nutrient-dense, you can serve these meatballs as an appetizer at your next gathering, or on a bed of zucchini noodles for a veggie-packed meal! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Superfood Meatballs





CourseAppetizer, Main Dish, Side Dish

ProtocolAutoimmune Solution (AIP), Candida Control & SIBO, Elimination Diet, Paleo, Thyroid Connection





Servings18 meatballs







Ingredients








1lb

grass-fed ground beef

1/2

zucchinigrated

1clove

garlic

1/2cup

fresh basilloosely packed

1tbsp

bone broth

1scoop

Clean Greens Superfood Juice Powder










Instructions









Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.



Place zucchini, garlic, basil, greens powder and bone broth in a high-speed blender or food processor. Pulse until combined.



Combine the mixture with the ground beef. Shape into meatballs of equal size, about 1 inch meatballs. Place on sheet pan.



Bake meatballs for 25 minutes or until cooked through.

The post Superfood Meatballs appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

10 Foods to Fight Candida

Do you suffer from mood swings, seasonal allergies, digestive issues, or frequent yeast infections? If so, you may have Candida overgrowth. Fortunately, there a number of powerful, anti-fungal foods to fight Candida that you can start eating TODAY to help get you back on track towards optimal health!

What is Candida Overgrowth?

Candida is one of the scientific names for yeast, which is a form of fungus. A very small amount naturally resides in your mouth and intestines to aid digestion, however your medications, diet, and environment can all change your normal balance of Candida. When it’s overproduced, it breaks down the wall of your intestines and enters directly into your bloodstream, where it releases toxic byproducts that can cause a leaky gut. Symptoms of Candida overgrowth can range from digestive issues to depression.

How Can I Treat it?

When it comes to treating Candida overgrowth, there are few key points to remember.

Starve the Candida

Overpower the Candida

Build up good bacteria

First, you  want starve the Candida, which feeds off of sugar, refined carbohydrates, and yeast-containing foods. For this reason, you will want to remove all sugar, refined carbohydrates, alcohol, dried fruit, fruit juices, fermented foods*, vinegars**, and mushrooms from your diet.  You will also want to limit legumes and grains to 1 cup a day. See this article for a complete list of the foods to ditch if you have Candida.

Once the Candida is contained, you want to overpower it. You can do this with anti-fungal prescriptions, like Diflucan or Nystatin or anti-fungal supplements such as Candifense, caprylic acid, anti-fungal foods, or a combination of the three. Treating with Diflucan or Nystatin is certainly the fastest option, however it’s not the only way to combat Candida. My 30-day Candida Breakthrough Program is a step-by-step guide to naturally overcoming Candida overgrowth, and includes a complete meal plan and supplement regimen, plus a comprehensive set of tools to help you take back your health and eliminate your symptoms.

Lastly, you want to reinforce your body’s defenses against future infections. You can do this by taking a high quality probiotic supplement to help restore the balance of good bacteria in your gut.

10 Foods to Fight Candida

Eat the following foods to fight Candida overgrowth and restore balance to your microbiome.

Coconut oil

Coconut oil naturally contains a fatty acid, called caprylic acid. This anti-fungal interferes with Candida growth and replication by poking holes in the walls of the yeast cells, causing them to die off.

Garlic

Garlic contains allicin, a sulphur-containing compound with natural antifungal properties, specific to Candida. When eaten raw, this little food is one of the best antifungals around.

**Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is the one type of vinegar allowed on a Candida diet. Research on apple cider vinegar is limited, though it appears to contain enzymes that help break down Candida.

Cruciferous Vegetables

Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, arugula, cabbage, and radishes, contain isothiocyanates, the sulphur- and nitrogen-containing compounds that attack Candida.

Ginger

Ginger contains gingerols and shogaols, the anti-inflammatory and anti-fungal components of the ginger root. While ginger is not the most powerful anti-fungal of the group, it does provide significant liver support while your body is detoxifying the Candida overgrowth.

Olive Oil

Olive, flax, avocado, and primrose oils contain polyphenols, which are antioxidants that can help your body fight Candida.

Cloves

Cloves naturally contain eugenol, a powerful essential oil and extremely effective antifungal when taken internally. Clove oil can also be effective as a topical aid for fungal infections of the toe and fingernails.

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is an anti-inflammatory spice with added anti-fungal properties. Similar to caprylic acid, it appears to damage yeast cells, causing them to denature and eventually die off. Cinnamon appears to be beneficial in the treatment of Candida, H. pylori, and even head lice, but it should not be used while pregnant or in the presence of a stomach or intestinal ulcer.

Wild Salmon

Wild salmon is an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are also known to fight fungal infections.

Lemon Juice

The essential oil of lemons contains mild anti-fungal properties.  Lemon’s main role in the diet is to help detoxify your liver as it tries to fight off the Candida.

*Fermented foods are considered ‘food’ for the good bacteria in your gut, however it can feed Candida as well.  Therefore, I recommend eradicating the Candida overgrowth first and then adding in fermented foods to help build-up your army of beneficial bacteria.

Are you ready to take back your health? Sign up for my free training to learn how to beat Candida for good in three easy steps, and don’t forget to register for my Candida Breakthrough Program so that you can join the thousands of others who have successfully overcome their Candida overgrowth and found relief from chronic symptoms, including digestive issues, fatigue, brain fog, recurring fungal infections, skin problems, mood swings, and more.

Sign me up!

The post 10 Foods to Fight Candida appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

10 Signs You Have Candida Overgrowth & How to Eliminate It

Candida overgrowth is one of the most common conditions I see in my clinic, especially among my autoimmune patients. I’ve seen thousands of patients suffer from digestive issues, fatigue, brain fog, recurring fungal infections, skin problems, mood swings, and more, all caused by Candida overgrowth!

I have also seen the incredible transformation that they experience by beating their Candida. I’ve witnessed energy and vitality return, mental clarity restored, and chronic symptoms fade away.

You might be wondering, “What on earth is Candida?” Candida is a fungus, which is a form of yeast, a very small amount of which lives in your mouth and intestines. Its job is to aid with digestion and nutrient absorption, but when it is overproduced it breaks down the wall of the intestine and penetrates the bloodstream, releasing toxic byproducts into your body and causing leaky gut. This can lead to many different health problems ranging from digestive issues to depression.

How do you get Candida overgrowth?

The healthy or ‘good’ bacteria in your gut typically keeps your Candida levels in check. However, the Candida population can get out of hand if a round of antibiotics kill too many of those friendly bacteria, you have a diet high in refined carbohydrates and sugar (which feed the Candida), high alcohol intake, are taking oral contraceptives, or any number of other factors including a high-stress lifestyle. Even a diet high in beneficial fermented foods like Kombucha, sauerkraut, and pickles, can feed Candida causing an overgrowth.

10 Common Candida Symptoms

Candida has the unique ability to change shape in order to protect itself from harsh environments. It responds to a shift in temperature or acidity levels by transforming from a rounded yeast cell into an elongated hyphal cell. These elongated cells have the ability to permeate the gut lining, causing leaky gut, and, once in the bloodstream, invade other tissues. This means that Candida can quickly transition from a gut problem to a full-body problem as it colonizes the skin, mouth, ears, thyroid, genitourinary organs, or elsewhere. For this reason, Candida overgrowth symptoms are wide-ranging and can present as the following:

Skin and nail fungal infections such as athlete’s foot, ringworm, and toenail fungus
Feeling tired and worn down or suffering from chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia
Digestive issues such as bloating, constipation, or diarrhea
Autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, lupus, psoriasis, scleroderma, or multiple sclerosis
Difficulty concentrating, poor memory, lack of focus, ADD, ADHD, and/or brain fog
Skin issues such as eczema, psoriasis, hives, and rashes
Irritability, mood swings, anxiety, or depression
Vaginal infections , urinary tract infections, rectal itching, or vaginal itching
Severe seasonal allergies or itchy ears
Strong sugar and refined carbohydrate cravings

Do you think you have Candida overgrowth? Take this simple quiz to find out!

The Candida & Autoimmune Connection

Once Candida has penetrated your intestinal lining and caused your gut to become leaky, it opens the floodgates for undigested food particles, toxins, viruses, and bacteria to pass through your intestinal wall and into your bloodstream. This triggers an inflammatory response from your immune system in an attempt to fight off these foreign “invaders”. As your gut remains leaky, your immune system continues sending out wave after wave of inflammation, and soon gets stressed, weakened, confused, and begins firing less accurately. When this happens, your own body’s tissues can end up in the crosshairs of your immune system. Over time this can lead you to develop full-blown autoimmune disease.

How do you test for Candida overgrowth?

IgG, IgA and IgM Candida Antibodies

Blood tests check for IgG, IgA, and IgM Candida antibodies in your blood, and can be performed at most any lab. High levels of these antibodies indicate that an overgrowth of Candida is present somewhere in the body and that your immune system is reacting to it.

Remember, Candida has the ability to suppress the immune system so it is important to ask your doctor to test your total IgG, IgA and IgM levels along with the Candida antibodies.  Low levels of total IgG, IgA or IgM could cause a false negative response to the Candida antibodies, meaning you have Candida but since your immune system is lowered, you are unable to produce a response and your blood test comes back negative. Since I see so many patients with suppressed immune systems, I find in my clinic that blood tests can often be negative even when the stool or urine tests are positive.

Complete Blood Count (CBC)

Often, I will see clues on a CBC that let me know that Candida is present.  A low white blood cell count (WBC) has been associated with Candida overgrowth as well as a pattern of  high neutrophil and low lymphocyte count. While these are non-specific to Candida, after working with thousands of patients, I can tell you I see this pattern very frequently in those with Candida overgrowth.

Stool Testing

I personally find this to be the most accurate test available. This will check for Candida in your colon or lower intestines. However, you need to make sure that your doctor orders a comprehensive stool test rather than the standard stool test. With the stool test, your stool is directly analyzed for levels of Candida. The lab can usually determine the species of yeast as well as which treatment will be effective.

Urine Organix Dysbiosis Test

This test detects D-Arabinitol a waste product of Candida overgrowth. An elevated test means an overgrowth of Candida. This test will determine if there is Candida in your upper gut or small intestines.

How do you treat Candida overgrowth?

Effectively treating Candida involves stopping the overgrowth, restoring the friendly bacteria that usually keep them in check, and repairing your gut so that Candida can no longer enter your bloodstream. I accomplish this with a simple and proven three-wave attack in my 30-day Candida Breakthrough Program. The steps are as follows:

Step 1: First, you need to starve the Candida by removing the foods that feed it from your diet. This means cutting all sugar and alcohol, and limiting carbohydrates such as fruit, starchy vegetables, grains, and legumes.
Step 2: Next, you’ll want to attack the Candida by taking supplements that destroy Candida’s cell walls. I like to use Candifense  as well as Caprylic Acid, both of which are excellent at breaking down the walls of Candida cells.
Step 3: Finally, you will repopulate your gut with good bacteria using a high-potency probiotic to keep Candida under control. While battling Candida, I recommend a probiotic supplement containing 100 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) to restore your gut’s healthy microbial balance.

The post 10 Signs You Have Candida Overgrowth & How to Eliminate It appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

The Top 5 Sources of Inflammation

Inflammation is the root cause of nearly every modern, chronic illness. Cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, autoimmune disease, and even cancer can all be traced back to the body’s inability to keep up with the bombardment of inflammation we experience on a day-to-day basis. It’s the catch-22 of living in an industrialized world, where we are surrounded by plastics, air and water pollution, synthetic chemicals in our health and beauty products, and processed junk being sold as “food”.

Research shows that as developing countries (which were once nearly free of so-called “Western” diseases such as heart disease and diabetes) start to adopt the unhealthy lifestyles of industrialized nations, obesity and non-communicable disease rates skyrocket.1 This goes to show just how much of a role environmental factors play in today’s disease epidemic.

Now for the good news: YOU decide what you eat, drink, and put in and on your body! I find it incredibly empowering to know that we have so much control over our own health. You can minimize your exposure to the top sources of inflammation by knowing what they are, where they are coming from, and how to tweak your diet and lifestyle to significantly reduce your inflammation levels and get you on the path to optimal health. Let’s take a look at some of the top sources of inflammation to help you identify the root cause of your symptoms and prevent (or reverse) chronic illness!

1. Foods

Eating a poor diet accounts for 1 in 5 deaths worldwide, and has surpassed smoking as the number one cause of death and disability in the U.S.2,3 That’s because the Standard American Diet (SAD) is full of inflammatory foods such as gluten and dairy, fried foods, corn, soy, skyrocketing levels of sugar, and highly processed junk. These foods wreak havoc on your gut and set you on the path to autoimmune disease and chronic illness. Gluten has been linked to over 55 diseases, making it the worst offender by far, followed closely by dairy products.4 Other inflammatory triggers include grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.

Eating an anti-inflammatory diet that includes plenty of leafy greens, healthy fats, and clean-sourced protein is one of the best ways you can reduce your risk of chronic illness. To learn more about the toxic and inflammatory foods you should avoid (and the nutrient-rich ones you should enjoy!), see this article. If you’re short on time, a daily smoothie made with an organic greens powder is a surefire way to maximize vitamins and minerals and reduce inflammation.

2. Leaky Gut

When you have a leaky gut, it’s as if you’re throwing the drawbridge wide open for toxins, microbes, and immune-triggering food particles to flow freely throughout your bloodstream–where they can do some serious damage. A high-carb diet containing many of the above inflammatory foods is one of the main causes of leaky gut. Other factors include medications, gut infections such as SIBO and Candida overgrowth, and stress.

How does leaky gut lead to chronic inflammation? The particles that escape into your bloodstream are seen as foreign invaders by your immune system, which uses inflammation to attack them in the same way it would fight off a virus or bacterial infection. The problem is that as your gut remains leaky, even something as simple as eating lunch causes this reaction so that your immune system is constantly sending out wave after wave of inflammation, to the point where your body becomes chronically inflamed.

To seal a leaky gut naturally, I recommend following the 4R approach. My most comprehensive weapon for overcoming leaky gut is my Leaky Gut Revive powder, which contains L-glutamine, aloe vera, deglycerinated licorice, slippery elm, and marshmallow root for sealing and rebuilding a healthy gut lining. Other important gut-repairing supplements include digestive enzymes, a high-potency probiotic, and collagen.

3. Toxins

Environmental toxins are a major source of inflammation as they are all around us nowadays–from the food we eat, to the water we drink, to the air we breathe, and the products we use on our bodies and in our homes. We are exposed to toxins in the following forms:

Medications such as antibiotics and birth control
Mercury and other heavy metals in fish and amalgam fillings
Plastics, including BPA
Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and GMOs in non-organic produce
Hormones in our food (especially dairy products)
Air and water pollution
Chemicals in our cleaning products and beauty products
Alcohol
Cigarette smoke

Taming the toxins is super important for lowering your inflammation levels, so what can you do to minimize your exposure?

Avoid Unnecessary Medications

Consider whether you really need to take certain medications. Antibiotics in particular are some of the most over-prescribed medications, with nearly half of outpatient prescriptions being completely unnecessary.5 And if you are taking birth control for skin issues or mood swings, these pills are merely masking the symptoms of a deeper problem while simultaneously throwing fuel on the inflammatory fire. I recommend getting to the root of your symptoms so you can ditch superfluous medications for good.

Reduce Heavy Metal Exposure

Reduce your exposure to heavy metals and other pollutants by filtering your air and water, and consider seeing a biological dentist to safely remove amalgam fillings. Reference the Environmental Defense Fund for lists of fish that are highest and lowest in mercury to make smarter choices about what you eat. You can also chelate heavy metals using my Heavy Metal Detox, which contains EDTA, chlorella, and cilantro to pull metals such as mercury, cadmium, and lead from your bones and tissues so they can be safely flushed out.

Ditch the Plastic

Ditch the plastic and replace your water bottle and storage containers with glass or stainless steel.

Go Organic

Try to buy organic whenever possible. If going completely organic is out of your budget, prioritize meats (where toxins are most concentrated) and only buy grass-fed, pasture-raised meat and wild-caught fish. Also prioritize buying produce on the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) Dirty Dozen list, which tend to carry the most pesticide residue.

Choose Non-Toxic Beauty and Cleaning Products

You’ll also want to choose toxin-free beauty and cleaning products. My favorite non-toxic personal care brand is Beautycounter. And the best way to ensure you’re getting safe cleaning products is by making your own! The Autoimmune Solution Cookbook includes simple, easy-to-use recipes for natural DIY household cleaners, along with plenty of ideas for inflammation-busting meals!

Don’t Drink or Smoke

Finally, it goes without saying that you should quit smoking and limit alcohol consumption if you haven’t already. These two bad habits are a burden on your system, accelerate aging, and increase your risk of chronic illness.

4. Infections

Underlying bacterial and viral infections could be adding to your systemic inflammation levels. The presence of a virus (Herpes simplex, Epstein-Barr, Hepatitis C) or bacteria (Lyme, H. Pylori, Yersinia enterocolitica, E. coli) triggers your immune system to release antibodies, and is often a key factor in autoimmunity. If you have an autoimmune disease and changing your diet and lifestyle has not helped reduce your symptoms, you should get tested for infections that may be preventing you from reaching optimal health.

5. Stress

Stress is more than just a feeling–it’s an inflammatory state. When your body is met with a physical, mental, or emotional challenge, it releases hormones including the primary stress hormone, cortisol. Cortisol signals your immune system to gear up for fight or flight, and your immune system responds by producing inflammation. Once the danger has passed, cortisol once again signals your immune system to calm down. However, when you are chronically stressed–whether from a poor diet, sleep deprivation, a stressful work environment, or relationship problems–your body never gets the signal to “cool off” and inflammation runs rampant. This can cause your overworked immune system to become suppressed, leaving you susceptible to infection, autoimmune disease, and other chronic illness.

Work on reducing your stress levels with a nutrient-dense diet, plenty of sleep, and stress-relieving activities such as meditation, yoga, deep breathing, listening to your favorite music, or some much-needed “me” time to emphasize self-care. You deserve it, and your health depends on it!

Tame Inflammation with The Myers Way®!

Now that you know where inflammation is coming from and how to stop it, you have the power to take health into your own hands and watch your brain fog, fatigue, autoimmunity, and other painful symptoms disappear! By cooling down the inflammation in your body with these lifestyle strategies, YOU can prevent and reverse chronic illness, and enjoy a life of vibrant wellness! Get to the root. Learn the tools. Live the Solution.®

The post The Top 5 Sources of Inflammation appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

Gut Repairing Tropical Smoothie

Need a little extra help repairing your leaky gut? This Gut Repairing Tropical Smoothie should do the trick!

My Gut Repairing Tropical Smoothie will make you feel as if you’re on an island getaway, while giving your gut some much-needed love!

Brimming with good-for-your-gut ingredients, including collagen, Clean Greens powder, and my brand NEW Leaky Gut Revive, this smoothie is exactly what you need to supercharge your gut-repairing protocol! Enjoy!

Gut Repairing Tropical Smoothie





CourseBeverage

ProtocolAutoimmune Solution (AIP), Candida Control & SIBO, Elimination Diet, Paleo, Thyroid Connection





Servings1 person







Ingredients








1cup

full fat coconut milk

1/2cup

frozen strawberries

1/2cup

frozen mango

1scoop

The Myers Way® Collagen Protein

1scoop

Clean Greens Superfood Juice Powder

1scoop

Leaky Gut Revive










Instructions









Place all ingredients into a high-speed blender. Blend until fully combined.

The post Gut Repairing Tropical Smoothie appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

Video: 10 Simple Mistakes that Are Sabotaging Your Gut

Are you frustrated by leaky gut symptoms such as digestive issues, eczema, brain fog, or seasonal allergies that never seem to go away, despite all your efforts? If so, it’s quite possible that you’re overlooking a few key steps in your gut-repairing protocol that could be delaying your progress. I went LIVE on my Facebook page to talk about the 10 simple mistakes that are sabotaging your gut, and how to tweak your protocol to finally overcome leaky gut!

Watch the replay below!

Resources I Mentioned:

The Autoimmune Solution

The Thyroid Connection

The Autoimmune Solution Cookbook

Leaky Gut Revive

Clean Greens Superfood Juice Powder

Primal Earth Probiotic

Complete Enzymes

Probiotic Capsules 100 Billion

Collagen Protein

The post Video: 10 Simple Mistakes that Are Sabotaging Your Gut appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

10 Mistakes You’re Making When Repairing a Leaky Gut

Have you been working hard to repair your leaky gut, only to have your digestive issues, eczema, brain fog, seasonal allergies, or other symptoms persist? If you’re finding yourself frustrated by persistent symptoms, don’t give up! Repairing a leaky gut can take time depending on how long you’ve been dealing with chronic health issues, and there are many factors that contribute to leaky gut that can complicate matters.

In fact, it’s quite possible that you’re simply overlooking a few key steps in repairing your gut, which could be delaying your progress. Once you’ve made the necessary tweaks to your gut-repairing protocol, it should be smooth sailing from there on out! Here are the most common mistakes I’ve seen in those struggling with leaky gut.

1. Eating too many raw vegetables

Yes, while it’s true that vegetables are good for your gut, too many raw vegetables could be slowing your progress when you’re dealing with a leaky gut. That’s because digesting raw vegetables takes a lot of work, and if you’re short on digestive enzymes (as many people with gut issues are), raw veggies can contribute to bloating, gas, and other GI discomfort. Instead, focus on mostly cooked vegetables while getting your gut back into shape. Over time, you can slowly increase the amount of raw veggies in your diet. Another option is to drink juice or smoothies using an organic greens powder, as the vegetables are already partially broken down, making them more bioavailable and easier for your body to digest and absorb.

2. Not doing an elimination diet

If you’re working to repair your gut, you’ve presumably cut out leaky gut triggering foods such as gluten, dairy, sugar, and all packaged, processed, and junk foods. However, if you’re still struggling with leaky gut symptoms such as rosacea, IBS, or chronic fatigue despite all your efforts, you could be dealing with an undiagnosed food sensitivity. It’s crucial for anyone with leaky gut to do an elimination diet to rule out whether a hidden food intolerance might be at the root of your gut issues. See this article for basic instructions on how to conduct an elimination diet, and enroll in my Comprehensive Elimination Diet eCourse for additional resources to guide you through the process such as a symptom tracker, shopping guide, and easy-to-follow meal plans.

3. Cheating on your gut-repairing protocol

Let’s face it—nobody’s perfect! That being said, if you want to get serious about repairing your gut, this is one step you absolutely cannot skip. Each time you figure “a little pizza can’t hurt” or “I’ll just have one glass of wine,” your gut takes a hit, as does all the progress you’ve made.

Another pitfall to watch out for is once you’ve “finished” repairing your leaky gut, it can be tempting to go back to the way you were eating before. However, this is exactly what made your gut leaky in the first place! You don’t want to be trapped in a vicious cycle of breaking down and building back up the integrity of your intestinal wall. The key is to make The Myers Way® a way of life by learning to enjoy the plethora of delicious, nutritious foods you CAN eat rather than focusing on the toxic, inflammatory foods that compromise your gut health and have no place in a healthy lifestyle.

Need some ideas for gut-friendly meals? Check out The Autoimmune Solution Cookbook for over 150 recipes made with real, whole foods that will satisfy every craving and keep you on track towards a life of optimal gut health!

4. Eating when stressed out

We all know stress is bad news for our health and is one of the main causes of leaky gut. That’s why eating while stressed can significantly derail your progress. The reason for this is evolutionary. If you’re running from a predator, you need blood flow concentrated in your limbs for fleeing and your brain for problem solving, not in your gut for digesting your lunch. So when your stress response kicks in, your digestive process slows down to a crawl. Instead of trying to force down your lunch when your stomach is in knots, try going for a walk, meditating, or doing some deep breathing exercises before digging in. Your gut will thank you.

5. Missing one or more of the 4Rs

I know it can be challenging to stick with a gut-repairing protocol when you can’t physically “see” the progress you’ve made and don’t know how long it might take to undo the damage that’s been done to your gut over the years. You might be tempted to cut corners or skip steps in an eagerness to return to “normal” as fast as possible. You figure, “I’ve removed the gluten, dairy, corn, soy, eggs, and sugar from my diet, so do I really need all those gut-repairing supplements too? However, it’s called the “4R approach,” not the 3R or 2R approach. Although removing inflammatory foods is an important and necessary step in stopping the damage being done to your gut, repairing the damage that’s already been done may require an extra boost.

That’s why I absolutely love Leaky Gut Revive powder, my most comprehensive weapon for overcoming leaky gut! It contains a high concentration of L-glutamine, which is an amino acid that helps seal the tight junctions in your gut, along with aloe vera to replace the lost mucus in your gut, deglycerinated licorice, which soothes the gut lining, and other powerful gut-repairing ingredients. In addition to Leaky Gut Revive, I also recommend Complete Enzymes to aid in digestion, a high-potency probiotic to restore a healthy balance of good bacteria, and collagen to help repair damaged cells in your gut and build new tissue.

6. Taking medications that damage your gut

Medications are truly the double-edged sword of our modern world. Some are life-saving and non-negotiable. Others you’ll want to seriously weigh the risks and benefits. These are the gut-damaging medications such as antibiotics, oral contraceptives, and NSAIDs that tend to do more harm than good.

Antibiotics are one of the most over-prescribed medications, with nearly half of all outpatient antibiotic prescriptions being unnecessary, according to the CDC.1 They wreak havoc on your natural microbial balance and set you up for gut infections including Candida overgrowth and SIBO, which in turn can contribute to leaky gut.
Oral contraceptives are also widely overused and often prescribed to women who have issues with acne, mood swings, or other hormonal imbalances, rather than looking to treat the root cause of these symptoms. Excess estrogen in birth control pills doubles your risk of developing Candida overgrowth, and women who are genetically predisposed to chronic GI troubles may be three times more likely to develop Crohn’s Disease after using the pill for at least five years.2 As a safer alternative to birth control pills, I recommend a non-hormonal copper IUD, which is approved for 10 years of use and may be effective for up to 20 years.
NSAIDs such as Advil and Motrin can cause intestinal bleeding even in very small doses, making them one of the biggest hurdles to recovery for those dealing with leaky gut. Studies have shown that curcumin supplements are a much safer option and are just as effective, if not more so, than NSAIDs at relieving pain caused by inflammation.3

7. Eating “health” foods that really aren’t healthy

We grew up being told that foods such as dairy, grains, and legumes are “health” foods. As it turns out, these foods might be what’s keeping you from successfully repairing your gut. Dairy is one of the two most inflammatory foods (second only to gluten). Seventy percent of the population stop producing the lactase enzyme needed to properly digest dairy after they finish breastfeeding, which is why so many people have a dairy intolerance.4 Plus, dairy products are often full of gut-damaging hormones and antibiotics. Meanwhile, grains and legumes contain chemicals such as lectins and phytates that can aggravate your gut lining and even lead to autoimmune disease.

8. Taking the wrong probiotics

If your leaky gut is due to SIBO and you can’t seem to make it past step three of the 4R approach, your probiotics could be to blame. Bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine can be an overgrowth of good bacteria as well as bad, and typically involves lactobacillus or bifidobacterium species. So when you take a lactic acid-based probiotic (which most on the market are) you are actually throwing fuel onto the fire by feeding those “good” bacteria that have grown out of control and mistakenly inhabited your small intestine. Until your gut is repaired, you should use a soil-based probiotic that contains spore-forming bacteria, which are able to bypass your small intestine and colonize your colon and large intestine instead.

9. Eating too many fermented foods

You’ve probably heard from countless sources that fermented foods are a gut’s best friend. The truth is, your gut contains a delicate balance of microflora, and when you introduce fermented foods into your diet, you don’t really know exactly what kind of bacteria or yeast they contain. So as with probiotic supplements, if you have SIBO or Candida overgrowth, you should wait until after you’ve repaired your gut to use fermented foods as they could potentially be feeding your bad bacteria and yeast, thereby worsening the overgrowth and derailing your gut-repairing progress.

10. Not addressing the other three pillars of The Myers Way®

Perhaps you’ve worked your way through the 4Rs and are wondering why you’re still showing signs of leaky gut. Well, repairing your gut is only the first pillar of The Myers Way®, and while I’ve seen thousands of people make huge strides and some even eliminate all of their symptoms through gut health alone, it’s key to address all of the underlying environmental causes of your condition. That means you also have to optimize your diet, tame your toxic burden, heal your infections, and relieve your stress.

Together, these four pillars are the recipe you need to overcome chronic illness, autoimmune flare-ups, and leaky gut symptoms. Once you’ve worked your way through the four pillars, you’ll see your digestive issues disappear, your food sensitivities go away, your skin issues clear up, and your autoimmune labs improve. Most importantly you will feel like yourself again. You’ll regain mental clarity, your energy and vitality will return, your mood will improve, you’ll achieve your ideal weight, and you will be living life as your best self, symptom-free.

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The post 10 Mistakes You’re Making When Repairing a Leaky Gut appeared first on Amy Myers MD.

5 Causes of Graves’ Disease and 5 Solutions for It

A lot of articles and blog posts about thyroid dysfunction tend to focus on the signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid. However, it’s estimated that between 3 and 10 million people actually suffer from an overactive thyroid, or hyperthyroidism.1 The most common form of hyperthyroidism is the autoimmune condition known as Graves’ disease.

I myself was diagnosed with Graves’ during my second year of medical school. In my book, The Autoimmune Solution, I share my personal experience with Graves’ disease and how conventional medicine failed me in that process. I never want anyone to go through what I had to go through to treat my Graves’ disease, so it is my mission to educate as many people as I can that there is a healthier and more natural way to recover from Graves’ and other forms of hyperthyroidism.

What is Graves’ Disease?

Your thyroid, the butterfly-shaped gland in the front of your neck, produces hormones to help regulate body temperature, heart rate, growth, energy production, and brain health. Hyperthyroidism is a condition that occurs when the thyroid is overactive and produces too much thyroid hormone. When thyroid hormones are too high, energy metabolism will speed up, causing the body to burn through nutrients too quickly. This can result in malnutrition and lead to a wide range of problems. I personally was eating everything in sight and went from a size 4 to a size 0 in a matter of months. Trust me when I tell you that it was not healthy!

There can be many reasons for the thyroid to be overactive, yet this most commonly occurs as a result of the autoimmune condition, Graves’ disease. Graves’ disease accounts for roughly 60-80% of all hyperthyroid cases.2 Normally, thyroid function is regulated by the pituitary gland, a tiny gland responsible for secreting TSH, which signals the thyroid to produce thyroid hormones T3 and T4. In Graves’ disease, an antibody known as thyrotropin receptor antibody (TRAb) can mimic pituitary hormones and completely override the system, causing an overactive thyroid. You can also develop Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) antibodies or Antithyroglobulin antibodies. I personally did not have antibodies to TRAb, I only had antibodies to TPO. I see this very frequently in my clinic as well.

Two other forms of hyperthyroidism are non-autoimmune conditions known as toxic multinodular goiter and toxic adenoma. Toxic multinodular goiter involves the growth of independently functioning nodules on the thyroid gland itself. These nodules are able to stimulate the thyroid without the use of TSH, thereby overriding the system and causing an overactive thyroid.

Similarly, toxic adenoma is a benign tumor consisting of thyroid follicular cells, which produce excessive amounts of T3 and/or T4. The excess thyroid hormones produced by toxic adenomas can suppress the function of remaining healthy thyroid tissue, leading to hyperthyroidism.

Graves’ Disease Symptoms

Hot flashes, sweating
Unintentional weight loss
Frequent stools, loose stool or diarrhea
Difficulty sleeping and insomnia
Anxiety, irritability, or constant fatigue
Elevated heart rate
Changes in menstrual cycles
Reduced libido
Bulging eyes
Thick red skin on shins or feet
Increased appetite
Osteoporosis
Hand tremors
Muscle weakness

How is Graves’ Disease Diagnosed?

Blood testing your thyroid hormone levels is the first step. In hyperthyroidism, the thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) will be very low and the Free T4 and Free T3 will be elevated. In autoimmune conditions, you will see elevated levels of antibodies as well. To read more about optimal thyroid lab values, you can read my article on the thyroid here.

Radioactive iodine uptake (RAIU) is the next step in diagnosing a thyroid imbalance. An RAIU using a small dose of I-131 will determine how much iodine the thyroid takes up. A high iodine uptake is indicative of Graves’ disease. This test can be helpful in ruling out other possible causes of overactive thyroid.

Ultrasound (US) of the thyroid is helpful to look at nodules on the thyroid, and your doctor may request you have a fine needle biopsy to confirm that the nodules are not cancerous.

Underlying Causes of Hyperthyroidism
1. Gluten

Gluten is a huge problem for most people these days because we hybridized it, modified it, and it’s in everything! Worst of all, it can wreak havoc on your gut and set you up for a leaky gut. Once the gut is leaky, gluten can get into your bloodstream and confuse your immune system. Since the building blocks of gluten share a similar molecular structure with building blocks of your thyroid gland, the immune system can get confused and accidentally attack your thyroid gland. This process is called molecular mimicry. You can read all about how gluten contributes to thyroid disease in this article.

2. Leaky gut

In order to absorb nutrients, the gut is somewhat permeable to very small molecules. Many things including, gluten, infections, medications and stress can damage the gut, allowing toxins, microbes and undigested food particles – among other things – to enter directly into your bloodstream. Leaky gut is the gateway for these infections, toxins, and foods like gluten to begin causing the systemic inflammation that leads to autoimmunity. You must first repair your gut before you can heal yourself.

3. Mercury

Mercury is a heavy metal that is capable of altering or damaging the cells of various bodily tissues. When cells are damaged, your immune system can mistake them as foreign invaders and begin attacking its own organs. Studies show that individuals with higher mercury exposures have an increased risk of getting an autoimmune thyroid disease.3

4. Infections

Infections such as the herpes family of viruses (HSV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) have been implicated as a potential cause of autoimmune thyroid disease through inflammation and molecular mimicry.4,5

5. Iodine

Iodine status is a bit controversial. It seems that too little iodine can cause goiter and hypothyroidism and too much can cause hyperthyroidism. When the body detects an increased availability of iodine, this can trigger the thyroid to produce more thyroid hormone. If someone with a relatively low intake of iodine suddenly consumes a very iodine-rich diet, then over time that individual can produce an excessive amount of thyroid hormone, resulting in an overactive thyroid.

Conventional Treatment for Graves’ Disease

Conventional medicine is only focused on treating symptoms, not on getting to the root cause of the disease. Medications, radiation, and surgery only treat the overactive thyroid gland in hopes of reducing symptoms of the disease. In order to truly solve the problem and repair your thyroid and immune system, you must take a functional medicine approach and find the underlying cause of the imbalance. I personally tried two out of three of these treatments, and it’s honestly my only regret in life. Please do not make the same mistake I did.

1. Medications

Propylthiouracil (PTU) is an antithyroid drug that interferes with the production of thyroid hormones. Simply Google these medications and you will see a long list of dangerous side effects, one being the destruction of your liver. I took PTU when I had Graves’, and that’s exactly what happened to me. I was confined to bed rest until my liver healed, which nearly cost me my life and medical school.

Methamazole is another antithyroid drug administered for hyperthyroidism. As a result, this drug can actually cause hypothyroidism, requiring the careful monitoring of TSH and Free T4 levels. Side effects include rash, hair loss, vertigo, jaundice, aplastic anemia, lupus-like syndrome, and hepatitis.

2. Radiation/Ablation

This approach uses a large dose of radioactive iodine (I-131) to permanently destroy thyroid gland cells. After this procedure, you are destined to a life of manufactured thyroid hormone medication. After getting toxic hepatitis from the PTU, I had no choice other than to do this treatment myself. I truly believe that if I had discovered functional medicine sooner, I would have been able to reverse my condition and save my thyroid from destruction as I have done with numerous patients in my clinic.

3. Surgery

When antithyroid medications and radioactive treatments are not viable options, doctors may recommend a partial thyroidectomy, which is when part of the thyroid gland is surgically removed. This is actually the option I recommend as a last resort if someone is not able to reverse their hyperthyroidism using a functional medicine approach.

The Functional Medicine Approach to Graves’ Disease

The key to reversing your Graves’ disease is getting to the root of what triggered your hyperthyroidism in the first place and addressing those underlying causes head-on, rather than just treating the symptoms or resorting to harsh measures as I was forced to. I cover exactly how to do to this step-by-step in my book, The Thyroid Connection, using The Myers Way® 28-day plan. The basics of this plan are outlined below.

1. Remove Gluten from Your Diet

I recommend that all of my patients remove gluten from their diets because it’s simply an inflammatory food. For my patients with autoimmune diseases, such as Graves’ or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, I highly recommend they remove all grains and legumes from their diet as well. These foods contain proteins known as lectins, which act as a natural pesticide for crops and can wreak havoc on the lining of your gut. Changing your diet is the first step in getting well. I created The Myers Way® Comprehensive Elimination Diet eCourse, which you can do at home and is the foundation that I use with my patients to begin recovering from illnesses.

2. Repair Your Gut

Repairing your gut is essential to healing yourself, as I mentioned before. For this reason, I created The Myers Way® Guide to the Gut eCourse to help guide you through the exact same steps I use with my patients to repair a leaky gut. I also have many articles explaining my 4R approach to repairing the gut and gut-repairing supplements.

3. Test for Heavy Metals

We are exposed to heavy metals in a number of different ways: amalgams, fish consumption, and the environment. I recommend having your MTHFR genes tested and doing a DMPS chelation challenge test through a functional medicine practitioner to determine if mercury or other heavy metals are an issue for you.

4. Find and Treat Infections

Have your doctor test for infections such as HSV and EBV. Monolaurin from coconut oil can be very effective treatment for both HSV and EBV. Lysine and a lysine-rich diet is effective at treating HSV infections.

5. Support Your Immune System

Supplements like vitamin D, omega-3 fish oils, and glutathione are powerful immune modulators, which means that they can help support your immune system. Vitamin D has been shown to help regulate the immune system. Omega 3 fish oils help to reduce inflammation in your entire body. Glutathione is your body’s most powerful antioxidant, which can help reduce inflammation and improve detoxification.

Recommended Supplements for Graves’ Disease

While you work to address the underlying cause of your thyroid disorder, you can ease your symptoms and support your thyroid with supplements and thyroid-calming herbs. Here are the ones I have found to be most helpful.

Thyroid Calming

This supplement contains three different herbs that naturally regulate your thyroid hormones and reduce hyperthyroid symptoms, including:

Bugleweed – This plant is rich in Lithospermic acid, an organic acid that decreases levels of thyroid stimulating hormones, T4 (the storage form of thyroid hormone) and T3 (the active form). It also prevents thyroid antibodies from binding to your thyroid, which is a huge help to patients with Graves’ Disease.
Motherwort – A member of the mint family, this herb alleviates symptoms related to hyperactive thyroid such as heart palpitations, anxiety, sleeplessness, and decreased appetite. Please note that it might cause miscarriage, increase uterine bleeding, and potentially interact badly with many cardiac medications, so be sure to check with your doctor before taking it.
Lemon Balm – This herb is also a member of the mint family and seems to block hormone receptors, preventing TSH from binding to your thyroid tissue and keeping antibodies from attaching to your thyroid. As a result, it helps to calm thyroid symptoms by reducing stress and anxiety, improving sleep and appetite, and easing pain.

The Myers Way® Multivitamin

A high-quality multivitamin is one of the four supplements that I recommend EVERYONE should be taking. Because hyperthyroidism causes your body to go into overdrive, you are at an even greater risk for developing certain nutritional deficiencies than most people. I specifically formulated The Myers Way® Multivitamin for my patients with thyroid dysfunction, including Graves’ disease and Hashimoto’s. My multivitamin provides the optimal level of thyroid-specific nutrients such as selenium, zinc, and iodine to support thyroid health. Plus, the B vitamins and minerals included in The Myers Way® Multivitamin are in their activated forms to optimize detoxification and methylation, ideal for those with an MTHFR mutation.

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