We Are All Made Of Corn

Is everything made of corn? From the looks of it, that is what America is made of. Corn seems to be in everything! After watching such documentaries as King of Corn, I knew that corn made up a large variety of the foods we consume in America.  We think we are consuming a variety, when in reality we are consuming corn, corn and more corn. What I didn't realize is how many non food items we use every day are also made of corn, that is until I discovered that I am likely allergic to corn.  I have been completing a elimination diet to determine if some of the foods I consume are contributing to the problems I experience. For two weeks I eliminated corn, citrus fruits, and strawberries. I intended to add back one of these items per week and observe whether or not I experience any symptoms after consuming these foods. Week one I added back corn to my diet. I made a delicious salad which included corn and then about an hour later I ate a cob of corn, almost immediately I experienced a terrible headache. My fiancé, my mother and I were playing Scrabble and I could not even complete the game.   I had to stop and go lay down, it was terrible. What I thought was a headache turned into a horrible migraine and forced me to have to leave work early the next day. Nothing seemed to be helping, I took aspirin, which I later discovered to contain corn as well, and no improvement. My mother advised me to take Benedryl and see if that would help my headache, this terrible migraine disappeared within 30 minutes of taking Benedryl. There was no denying this headache had been caused by an allergen, I was forced to accept that corn is in fact a problem food for me. What I didn't expect was to find is that corn is in many non food items as well. Something told me to read the ingredients in the aspirin I had been taking. There it was, starch, I knew that this nearly always meant cornstarch. After some time with my dear friend Google I found that aspirin was nearly always  was made with corn starch. Luckily I found that there was one exception BC Powder. My toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, and also most of my cosmetics also contain corn.  Even my eyedrops listed dextrose, an ingredient derived from corn. There was much work ahead of me in determining all the situations in which I was coming in contact with corn. Although it does appear that corn dominates my life, I have found that most of these items can be found without corn.  Over the course of the next few weeks I intend to rid my life of corn. I hope to see an improvement and have a strong feeling that I will. Through this experience I have come to believe that most of us could rid ourselves  of what we view as health problems by simply eliminating the allergens from our diet.

When I started this I imagined I would have many horrible cravings for cooked food. I thought beans and rice (my favorite cooked food) would be floating around in my head taunting me with what I can't have. Instead, I have no desire for the heavy feeling of cooked food and my tastes have shifted to raw. My cravings are for tomatoes of every variety, and delicious salads filled with red and yellow bell peppers.

So what is the problem? Nuts. I love them. I could eat my weight in them. I'm afraid I could be the only person in the world who could manage to gain weight eating raw food due to my addiction. Almonds, walnuts, Brazil nuts, peanuts (though technically not a nut, but a legume), I love them all.   I have learned than most nuts we buy in the United States are actually not raw because they have been pasteurized. During pasteurization the nuts are heated above the acceptable temperature of 118 degrees, therefore killing any living enzymes that the nut had to offer us. Because of this I have sought out raw nuts at my local health food store.  Cashews and Almonds specifically are currently required to be pasteurized and may take a bit of a search to find truly raw. While raw nuts do not taste the same as cooked nuts, in the case of almonds, I have discovered I like them even more than before, adding fuel to my desire for nuts.

 Nuts are easy, nuts are fast, they do not need to be cut up or peeled. Sometimes I believe I reach for nuts so often because of this reason. Even though I do believe that nuts are a healthy part of a raw diet, I think I need to watch my nut intake as to not let it get out of control.  I think that nuts should be a small part of a raw diet and that it would be best to reach most often for a fruit or vegetable. If I over do it with nuts they seem to irritate my stomach which is one thing that raw food has otherwise allowed me to avoid. After all nearly every raw food article I have read says that we should limit nuts and seeds to a small part of the diet.

If you are like me and experience fibromyalgia pain on a nearly daily basis then you are probably to a point where you will try nearly anything. Today is day 10 on my raw food journey, and while I am still experiencing pain I have been impressed with what has changed. I feel more alert and my senses are heightened. I have experienced very little stomach issues compared with my usual diet. For these reasons I believe this diet can do something, and I have read the stories of many others who claim their pain dissipated on a raw food diet. Follow me on my journey through the raw food diet with fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis pain.

This morning I awoke and something was different, I could smell everything around me. Everything around me. I was shocked! Do I really want to smell everything around me? Some things don't smell good after all.  I had awoken with a heightened sense of smell!

 Today is actually the 8th day into my raw foods diet, and while my pain continues I have seen some other improvements, one being heightened smell, and no I'm not pregnant for those who are wondering. I also feel more alert, and my stomach doesn't hurt as it does about 75% of the time. Reduced stomach pain alone is reason to continue. Something is happening, my body is changing. There is hope.

For the last 8 days I have eaten at least 95% raw food. I must admit I have still eaten black olives and vegan pesto on my vegetables one night, but other than that all raw. Amazingly enough my cravings have already shifted towards raw food. I was already a vegan, but a cooked vegan, a cooked vegan who could have never imagined switching to a diet of all raw food. A cooked food vegan who loved her cooked food and the process of cooking. Already I feel that I could stick to this, but what will I fix for dinner? So far I have survived on salads, fresh fruit, and nuts. That may last for 8 days, but eventually I am going to have to make a meal. I look at spiralizers online confused on which one to buy. Pictures of zucchini pasta are so appetizing, maybe that's the place to start. Off I go to find something to eat.

Pain. Life for me is literally a pain, a pain in the knee, a pain in the hip, better yet make that both hips or both knees for that matter. All of my life I have experienced some degree of pain and was diagnosed around the age of 20 with Fibromyalgia. Before that they called it Juvenile Arthritis, and most recently Rheumatoid Arthritis. About a month and a half ago I went to the doctor for an adjustment and we discussed the worst, Rheumatoid Arthritis. He believed that I likely have Rheumatoid Arthritis and wished to run the tests. Being against the medical establishment, as I am for reasons we will later discuss, I of course refused. Instead I went home and at first tried to ignore the inevitable only to experience pain that would make it impossible to make it through a full day of work. Only a month and a half later it is impossible to ignore, bumps are beginning to form on my hands and my joints are often swollen and hot to the touch. I am only 27! I am determined to find relief, natural relief. Through my research I have stumbled upon raw foods and people who claim to have cured disease and improved their eyesight through the raw food diet. I must find out for myself and invite you to join me on this journey.