{How This Blog Became Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free and Mostly Vegan} Days 4-7

Update June 2010 on How This Blog Became Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free and Mostly Vegan – I had originally named this series the Detox Diet Diaries, but my experience with these changes in my diet, while incredibly positive, has made me decide I really do not like the concept of  a detox diet.   It is ironic in that the diet my naturopath put me on was incredibly helpful, and a year later, it has become clear I have non-Celiac gluten intolerance, as well as a strong dairy intolerance.  I continue to avoid all dairy and gluten, as well as other problematic foods such as corn, but have grown to really dislike the concept of “detox” – the term promotes the concept of a quick fix, which is just nonsensical.  I firmly believe that the vast improvements in my heath are based on the long-term changes I made, and want my posts on the experience to convey this.   

Background: The Detox Diet Diaries recounts my story of doing a detox diet for health reasons and to isolate food allergies which may have been a contributing factor to some of my health problems. This diet involves real food. I am not on the Master Cleanse, or Gwyneth Paltrow’s latest cleanse, or Oprah’s cleanse, nor are my posts on my diet a way to support their actions. As I explained in my background post, I am doing this under the care of a naturopathic doctor.By Day 4 I was well into the work-week and continuing to marvel at the lack of afternoon slump.

To the meals I described in Days 1-3, I added the following dishes to the rotation:

*Spinach and arugula with warmed shallot dressing and grilled zucchini (see below for details, above for picture)
*Brown rice mixed with scallions and parsley (or cilantro), topped with black beans cooked with onions, garlic and cumin
*Poached wild Alaskan salmon
*Pan cooked wild Alaskan salmon (use 1 teaspoon of oil and cook on the skin side)
*Sweet potatoes, cooked with onions, garlic, green chiles and curry powder
*Steamed broccoli with rice vinegar
*Grilled zucchini

By Day 6 I had gotten through most of a work-week and felt good. However, that night, I felt awful – I had been warned that detox diets have some low points {something about how the body is truly starting to get rid of toxins} but I remember feeling very nauseous and tired, which was strange considering how much energy I had been having. It passed though, and only happened one more time during the second week.

Husband and I were also getting into a routine with how to split up the cooking yet not having to cook completely separate meals for each of us. I have to say that while some people might consider this detox diet easier if you live alone, I would definitely not have been eating as much variety if it weren’t for husband. Chances are, I would probably come up with a couple of things and just have them at every meal for several days, until I got thoroughly sick of them. Husband likes more variety, which means the same few things for days on end will not work.

Salad is a prime example – left to my own devices, I probably would have had the same basic mixed greens every day, but because of husband we were both thinking of different ways to do mixed greens. The one above is a mix of spinach and arugula with a warm shallot dressing {mix 1 finely chopped shallot with 1 teaspoon mustard, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, heat in a small saucepan, pour on top of 3-4 cups of greens and mix. pour juice of 1/2 lemon on top} and I remembered it was a salad we used to really like when we had French bread and cheese for dinner {the acid was a nice foil for the richness of cheese}. Since there was no bread and cheese now, I added grilled zucchini to give some texture to the salad and cut the acid.

Speaking of grilled zucchini – husband makes them on the Foreman grill and they are great. Even though there’s no oil, they get all soft and gooey from the grilling, and it’s easy enough to make several portions in one go. So I was very grateful husband suggested them as a quick vegetable idea.

Disclaimer: I am just a regular person posting about my experience doing a detox diet for health reasons and, ultimately, to isolate food allergies that may be the underlying cause of said health problems. I am not a medical professional or nutritionist. Please do not use information from these posts to do your own detox diet. Rather, seek advice from a doctor, naturopath or nutritionist to determine what the correct course of action for your health is.