Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD

The GAPs diet

Aired on Feb 8, 2019

Episode Description

Why are there epidemics of degenerative diseases in the Western World? Diet, nutrition and life style choices play a large part in degenerative diseases and in our health Dr. Campbell-McBride developed the GAPs diet which has helped in many chronic diseases. She discusses different diets including vegetarian, GAPs, low fat diets. Studies indicate that eating animal fat is not related to heart attacks and that cholesterol may not be related to heart disease. Studies also show it is impossible to reduce blood cholesterol or the death rate from low fat, low cholesterol diets. She will compare the benefits of many different diets

The Importance of the Gaps Diet

• Gut and psychology syndrome/ Gut and Physiology Syndrome
  • We have microbes living in digestive system
  • Recent research discovered that 90 % of all cells are in our gut flora
  • Is very complex and serve many useful functions in the body
  • In many cases they are in charge of every organ and function of the body
  • We live in harmony with these until we change our life style
    • For example, taking an antibiotic wipes out large numbers of bacteria resulting in other bacteria getting out of control
    • Same happens with some other pharmaceuticals, processed foods
    • Modern agricultural practices fill our bodies with many chemicals which are in their nature antibiotics
      • These damage the biodiversity of the gut
      • This results in abnormal gut flora
        • Cannot digest and absorb food properly
        • Will develop numerous nutritional deficiencies and food allergies
        • The pathogenic bacteria growing in the gut digest food in their own way converting it to thousands of very toxic chemicals
        • This damages integrity of gut wall making gut leaky and allowing toxins to go into the blood system
        • Hence, instead of the gut being a source of nourishment, it becomes a major source of toxicity
          • These toxins, microbes and undigested foods flow into the blood stream to the lymph and then all over the body
          • In the brain, they can cause any kind of symptoms
            • Depression
            • Emotional instability
            • Sleep disturbances
            • Epilepsy
            • Psychological disorders
            • Manic episodes
            • Anxiety
          • In the joints, these cause arthritis
          • In skin, these cause psoriasis, eczema
          • In lungs can cause asthma, obstructive pulmonary disorder
          • In heart can cause atrial fibrillation
          • In the kidneys they can cause nephropathy, chronic cystitis
        • 85 % of our immune system is in the gut wall
          • The digestive system is the biggest and most important immune organ
          • Is a strong relationship between the gut flora and the immune system
          • Abnormal gut flora leads to an unhealth immune system leading to
            • Allergies, inflammation and autoimmunity
            • Every autoimmune disease is born in the gut
          • Children acquire their gut flora from their parents
          • Is epidemic of abnormal gut flora
          • Every generation is passing deeper and deeper compromised gut
          • Every year babies ‘gut flora is getting less diverse/ worse flora as antibiotics are given increasingly, formula milk was on the market, girls are put on contraceptive pills
            • Bottled milk can never replace breast milk
          • Not increase in conditions such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, oppositional defiant disorder, epilepsy, diabetes type I allergies, asthma, eczema,
          • Hippocrates said that disease begin in the gut
            • The gut flora is in charge or
              • our absorption, digestion,
              • balancing and feeding our immune system
              • keeping our bodies clean
              • detoxification systems
            • Autism
              • She believes that 100 % of autistic children are born with normal brains but they acquired abnormal digestive system creating toxicity
              • This toxicity when it reaches the brain it interferes with brain development
              • Babies learn by observing the environment
                • If the brain is clogged with toxicity, the babies cannot process this information
                  • They don’t develop normal relations
                • Depending on the child, some may develop ADHD< dyslexia, dyspraxia
                • They may not easily fit into our diagnostic boxes
                • The real disorder in these children is GAPS
                • Each child is unique
                • Typically other members of the family have other gut related problems
              • The GAPs diet can help
                • This changes gut flora establishing normal gut flora
                • This seals the holes in the gut wall stopping the leakiness
                  • Food can digest properly so it does not develop allergies
                • The river of toxicity to brain stops, and the brain cleans itself up.
                • This can take a few weeks.
                  • Then the child’s symptoms improve
                • The younger the child is the quicker they recover
                  • Then they have to catch up for lost time
                  • The longer the problem occurred, the more damage there is likely to be
                    • When this goes on for a long time, there is likely to be brain atrophy
                  • She believes that every mental disorder is a GAPs condition
                    • The toxins adversely affect the brain
                    • The autoimmune system attacks the brain
                  • Asthma, allergies, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, ALS, neuropathy, narcolepsy, arthritis, skin problems urinary problems start in and have to be treated in the gut

 

What is in the Gaps Diet

• Based on a specific carbohydrate diet and the traditional wisdom of traditional people who ate from the land
• Meat stock, vegetables, fish, soups and stocks, eggs. Fermented dairy products, fermented vegetables, butter, and ghee
  • Dairy products fermented at home for 24 hours – yogurt, kefir, sour cream, cottage cheese,
    • Has beneficial microbes
    • Longer fermentation reduces histamine levels
    • Introduce fermented foods gradually
      • As these can kill pathogens which can lead to symptoms as pathogens die off
        • This die off releases histamine
      • So you might feel worse before you feel better
    • Does not include milk, itself, because it contains sugar (lactose) which id indigestible for the majority of people and milk is a perfect food for pathogenic microbes in the gut
      • Produces gas and toxins
    • All made from fresh, raw ingredients at home
    • No processed foods
      • The food industry makes processed foods for convenience and profit
    • No starch as it is a large molecule, difficult to digest especially for people with a compromised digestive system
      • These feeds bad microbes
      • No grains, potatoes,
        • Hence the diet becomes gluten free
      • Remove starchy vegetables
      • Remove foods which cross react with gluten
        • Non gluten grains
        • Most beans and lentils
        • Bananas,
        • Cocoa, coffee, tea
      • Supplements
        • Commercially produced probiotics
        • Cod liver oil for vitamins A and D
          • Needed for gut and immune system to heal
          • Recommend extra fish oil for persons with mental problems
        • Need to treat the whole family

 

Food Allergies

• The main problem is that the gut flora is abnormal leading to a porous gut wall resulting in undigested food entering the blood stream which is attacked by the immune system
• The symptoms can be immediate or delayed but results in food allergies and food intolerances
• With a leaky gut, a person reacts to all foods
• Rather than removing many foods from the diet, the GAPs diet focuses on sealing and healing the gut wall.
• The most powerful foods to heal the gut are foods containing gelatin, collagen, glucosamine
  • Found in gelatinous meat stock
    • From the gelatinous parts of the animal – the feet, the head, skin, bones, and joints, ligaments, joint capsules
    • A third of our body is collagen
    • Our gut is made out of collagen to a large degree

 

Fats and Proteins

• Is essential
• Has been vilified by commercial powers
• Eating protein without fats can lead to insulin spikes
• Human body is 70 % water
• The rest is 50 % protein and 50 % fat
• The fat is similar to animal fats
• The proteins in the human body is similar to proteins in animals
• We should eat as much fat as protein
• Eating lean muscle is a recipe for disaster leading to illness
• Eating organ meats (liver, kidneys, heart, tongue, intestines, tripe (stomach)
  • Liver contains 100x nutrients compared to muscle
  • Nutrient deficiencies disappear quickly
  • The human body is designed to survive on food not pills

 

Vegetarianism

• Vast majority of her anorexic patients became ill because of misguided vegetarianism
• There is not any reliable research
  • Most of the research on vegetarian diets was designed by pro vegetarian groups
• She wrote a book, Vegetarianism Explained
  • Animal foods are the building foods
    • The human digestive system is designed perfectly to digest animal proteins and fat
    • The heart, liver and intestines are surrounded by fat
    • The fat is a structural element under the skin
      • There are high fat organs such as the brain, nervous system, bone marrow, endocrine organs
      • Each of these fat cells regenerate and need proteins and fat for this regeneration process
      • Only animal proteins and animal fats are suitable for this process
        • The heart uses fat as a fuel
      • Plants
        • Their composition is not appropriate for building our body
        • Plants are for cleansing
        • Most are indigestible
          • Animals digest by a different system
          • Traditional cultures knew this through experience
          • Hence traditional cultures focused on animal foods
        • They are not in the proportions needed by the body
        • Plants cleanse
          • They have phytonutrients, phenols, oxylates, salcyclates, vitamin C
          • These keep our bodies clean on the inside
        • The bulk of the plant (cellulose and starch)
          • Goes through the stomach and lands in the bowel where the majority of the microbes reside
            • In animals this occurs in the at the beginning of the digestive system so it can later be absorbed
            • In humans, this occurs too late as absorption already occurred
          • In the bowel these starches are fermented and converted to fully saturate short chained fatty acids
            • This sustains us between meals
            • This grows new colonies of beneficial bacteria
          • A vegetarian can be healthy as long as some animal foods are eaten
            • Eggs, full fat dairy, fish, occasional meats
          • Veganism is a form of fasting
            • Raw and cooked vegetables
            • At some point, the body will finish fasting
            • The body will let you know by a yearning for meat or cheese
            • Passionate vegans do not listen to this signal from the body
              • At this time, the body starts cannibalizing less important organs such as muscles and bones to feed more important organs such as the heart, brain
              • At this time the body develops degenerative disease
              • Mental problems occur
                • Sense of humour disappears,
                • Learning cognitive ability decline
                • Emotions and personality changes
              • The statements vegans believe about saving the planet are false.

 

Heart

• Her book, Put your Heart in Your Mouth