Low Toxin Testimonials Low Vitamin A Diet Testimonials

[Blossom]

Hi Blossom,

Wow, I am totally absorbed by the discussion here. I kept seeing this thread, and tonight I finally took the time to read more only to find that the one problem I have is the same problem he had.....ECZEMA! I have posted many times in various threads on eczema helps. I am now beginning to have some hope that trying a low-A diet for a few weeks just might be for me, to test Grant Genereux's hypothesis!

Your point above is very well put. We have not changed, but our food has! Tell me, do you still keep to a low-A diet? Do you have to supplement with calcium to compensate for removal of dairy? I'll keep reading through here to pick up what I can, but I was so excited to think this might be an easier fix than I had ever thought- and my current eczema flare-up has been off and on for the past 1-1/2 years now!

Thank you for posting your experiences- yours and others' are so encouraging to someone who has struggled with no answers to my skin problem.

Oh my goodness, sorry you are dealing with eczema for so long. I’ve taken eggshell calcium for a long time.

 

[charlie]

Do you have to supplement with calcium to compensate for removal of dairy?

Ray Peat felt the calcium in MASA Harina is special and highly absorbed. White corn MASA, or White Hominy will get er' done.

 

[Blossom]

Ray Peat felt the calcium in MASA Harina is special and highly absorbed. White corn MASA, or White Hominy will get er' done.

Good point, I hadn’t really considered that angle but makes perfect sense as it’s processed with calcium hydroxide.

 

[Kray]

Ray Peat felt the calcium in MASA Harina is special and highly absorbed. White corn MASA, or White Hominy will get er' done.

Wow, it seems hard to believe one could enough calcium in a day from masa vs dairy. I'll see what I can find out on masa.

 

[Kray]

Oh my goodness, sorry you are dealing with eczema for so long. I’ve taken eggshell calcium for a long time.

Can you share a brand and dosage? Thank you-

 

[Kray]

Ray Peat felt the calcium in MASA Harina is special and highly absorbed. White corn MASA, or White Hominy will get er' done.

Charlie, is this how you get all the calcium you need, or do you include dairy sources, or supplement calcium?

 

[Blossom]

Can you share a brand and dosage? Thank you-

I make it from egg shells myself. Not supermarket eggs though because they are disinfected. I get eggs from people I know who have their own chickens and clean, boil, dry and grind them into a powder. It sounds like a lot of work but it’s really not bad. I’ve read about people buying ground eggshell powder but personally don’t know of a good source. Sorry

 

[Kray]

I make it from egg shells myself. Not supermarket eggs though because they are disinfected. I get eggs from people I know who have their own chickens and clean, boil, dry and grind them into a powder. It sounds like a lot of work but it’s really not bad. I’ve read about people buying ground eggshell powder but personally don’t know of a good source. Sorry

Nice you have that resource. Are you eating the eggs from the shells you use? I am cutting out eggs for now. I do have a local egg rancher that I haven't bought from in a while. Since I'm the only one in my family doing this, maybe I'll go back to buying the local eggs, my family can eat them, and I'll eat the shells. Ha- nothing wasted.

Have you cut out all dairy at this point? I'm trying to gauge how much calcium I need. Charlie mentioned Masa, but it seems you'd have to eat a lot of that to get enough. About how much powder do you consume in a day? Would you mind sharing your eggshell calcium recipe? Thank you!

 

[Blossom]

Are you eating the eggs from the shells you use? I am cutting out eggs for now. I do have a local egg rancher that I haven't bought from in a while. Since I'm the only one in my family doing this, maybe I'll go back to buying the local eggs, my family can eat them, and I'll eat the shells. Ha- nothing wasted.

Now I occasionally do but I didn’t for a couple years or just ate the whites. I started low A in 2018 after heavy supplemental A, retin-a use and regular liver consumption. By 2020 I was in a lot better shape and due to my job during covid my options were often limited so I would have some eggs or cheese at work rather than not eat at all. My husband has eaten them regularly though so I always have plenty of shells on hand.
I wash the shells in a natural dish detergent and rinse them well. I boil them on the stove for about 5 minutes and then strain off the water. After those steps I dry them in the oven for an hour at 225 degrees Fahrenheit and then let them cool. I then grind the shells in a dedicated coffee grinder and store them in a glass jar. After grinding them I wait several minutes for the powder to settle before transferring them to the jar to avoid breathing any into my lungs. I might be going overboard on the last part but it just appeals to my slight OCD I guess.

 

[Kray]

Now I occasionally do but I didn’t for a couple years or just ate the whites. I started low A in 2018 after heavy supplemental A, retin-a use and regular liver consumption. By 2020 I was in a lot better shape and due to my job during covid my options were often limited so I would have some eggs or cheese at work rather than not eat at all. My husband has eaten them regularly though so I always have plenty of shells on hand.
I wash the shells in a natural dish detergent and rinse them well. I boil them on the stove for about 5 minutes and then strain off the water. After those steps I dry them in the oven for an hour at 225 degrees Fahrenheit and then let them cool. I then grind the shells in a dedicated coffee grinder and store them in a glass jar. After grinding them I wait several minutes for the powder to settle before transferring them to the jar to avoid breathing any into my lungs. I might be going overboard on the last part but it just appeals to my slight OCD I guess.

Thank you for the recipe, I hope to try it. How do you know how much to take, assuming you are supplementing this in lieu of calcium in your diet? Other than dairy, what are good calcium sources? Sorry- I've lived on dairy for so long I never looked anywhere else for my calcium, nor took any supplements. From what limited reading I've done so far on VAD, the calcium question is one thing that seems to be missing in the conversation.

 

[Blossom]

Thank you for the recipe, I hope to try it. How do you know how much to take, assuming you are supplementing this in lieu of calcium in your diet? Other than dairy, what are good calcium sources? Sorry- I've lived on dairy for so long I never looked anywhere else for my calcium, nor took any supplements. From what limited reading I've done so far on VAD, the calcium question is one thing that seems to be missing in the conversation.

I’ve read varying estimates but I generally take 1/2 tsp per day which should provide 350-400mg. I do not feel I need more than that these days although there was a point where I used more.

 

[yerrag]

These testimonials are real and I'm glad a lot of people are benefiting from a low Vitamin A lifestyle.

in the thread, a lot of factors have been mentioned, such as the relationship of vitamin A and vitamin D, the relationship between metabolism and vitamin A, and the quality of the foods eaten in the modern Western world.

Still, it is mainly empirical and it has not applied to every human being? Is it a Caucasian issue, or s geographical issue related to temperate climes, or is it an issue of the Western population sharing s common supply chain of foods and drugs and vaccines and medical thought?

I live in the tropics, I'm Asian, I drink at most 2 glasses of milk a week, eat a serving each of oysters and livers once a week, eat egg once a day, and eat pork, beef, chicken, and wild caught seafood (squid, anchovies, scads), and fruits are mainly bananas, pineapples, papayas, and a citrus fruit called calamansi. My only veggie is cooked green leaves.

But I benefited from taking vitamin A in the form of liver. My eyesight and my dandruff and my dry skin (at my heels) improved greatly, to the extent that I no longer need to wear glasses be it driving or reading small text with my small Samsung s5.

There are so many confounding factors aka rabbit holes introduced by our masters into the western way of life that one cannot begin to understand where the root cause of vitamin A toxicity comes from.

So, the best thing we have is just to practice a vitamin A elimination diet, in the.presence of doubt.

 

[Kray]

I’ve read varying estimates but I generally take 1/2 tsp per day which should provide 350-400mg. I do not feel I need more than that these days although there was a point where I used more.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Apple]

I live in the tropics, I'm Asian, I drink at most 2 glasses of milk a week, eat a serving each of oysters and livers once a week, eat egg once a day, and eat pork, beef, chicken, and wild caught seafood (squid, anchovies, scads), and fruits are mainly bananas, pineapples, papayas, and a citrus fruit called calamansi. My only veggie is cooked green leaves.

No grains at all...not even rice?
What do you eat for breakfast ?

 

[yerrag]

No grains at all...not even rice?
What do you eat for breakfast ?

I missed the rice? Thanks for catching that.

I usually have rice and egg and some meat, and coffee.

Sometimes, sweet potatoes and butter. Egg and coffee.

I'd have apple cider vinegar with sugar in a glass of water when I wake up.

 

[Apple]

I missed the rice? Thanks for catching that.
I usually have rice and egg and some meat, and coffee.
Sometimes, sweet potatoes and butter. Egg and coffee.
I'd have apple cider vinegar with sugar in a glass of water when I wake up.

How do you usually cook your rice over there?
Is it white (any specific kind...) or brown rice ?

 

[Kray]

I missed the rice? Thanks for catching that.

I usually have rice and egg and some meat, and coffee.

Sometimes, sweet potatoes and butter. Egg and coffee.

I'd have apple cider vinegar with sugar in a glass of water when I wake up.

yerrag, thank you for your input. I love these snapshots of real people's real daily diets, what works for them. As a mother of 4 adult children, I see this as sharing recipes- change is sometimes fun- and good.

I'm trying to see the low-A diet this way too. I know it's individual, but I'm not sold on eliminating food groups altogether unless there is substantial evidence that that food is causing (toxic) issues. There's a lot more to milk and dairy than just vitamin A, and I have access to milk in the Pacific Northwest (USA) that is A2 and raw, and unfortified. And when I read your post, the first thing that popped into my mind was- no, not where's the rice, although that's a refreshing addition to my diet- but with even that one glass of milk per week, is it vitamin A- and D-fortified? How can we compare pasteurized, homogenized, fortified milk to naturally raw milk, not knowing what effects altering the milk may cause in the big picture? And realistically, the majority of people here only have ready access to commercial milk.

The other thing that comes to mind is, how much of a "good" food is too much? I think I can speak for Americans, that if something is good for you, then it's ok to have as much as you want. Same for eggs. So for some, it means reducing these foods to not exceed their body's capacity. I sense I'm in this category, and I've never liked to diet, so I'm just shifting the load, so to speak. I hope I'm right, but time will tell.

Like so many other fortified foods imposed upon societies, there are no doubt some (un?)intended consequences, and do the benefits of fortification or alteration outweigh the risks in the long run, since these foods have been altered beyond their naturally-preferred state (not many home farms anymore, but lots of industrial farming)?

Refresh my memory on taking ACV? What's the upshot and how does it benefit you? I tried your recipe yesterday morning with a bit of sugar, and I really liked it that way.

 

[yerrag]

yerrag, thank you for your input. I love these snapshots of real people's real daily diets, what works for them. As a mother of 4 adult children, I see this as sharing recipes- change is sometimes fun- and good.

I'm trying to see the low-A diet this way too. I know it's individual, but I'm not sold on eliminating food groups altogether unless there is substantial evidence that that food is causing (toxic) issues. There's a lot more to milk and dairy than just vitamin A, and I have access to milk in the Pacific Northwest (USA) that is A2 and raw, and unfortified. And when I read your post, the first thing that popped into my mind was- no, not where's the rice, although that's a refreshing addition to my diet- but with even that one glass of milk per week, is it vitamin A- and D-fortified? How can we compare pasteurized, homogenized, fortified milk to naturally raw milk, not knowing what effects altering the milk may cause in the big picture? And realistically, the majority of people here only have ready access to commercial milk.

The other thing that comes to mind is, how much of a "good" food is too much? I think I can speak for Americans, that if something is good for you, then it's ok to have as much as you want. Same for eggs. So for some, it means reducing these foods to not exceed their body's capacity. I sense I'm in this category, and I've never liked to diet, so I'm just shifting the load, so to speak. I hope I'm right, but time will tell.

Like so many other fortified foods imposed upon societies, there are no doubt some (un?)intended consequences, and do the benefits of fortification or alteration outweigh the risks in the long run, since these foods have been altered beyond their naturally-preferred state (not many home farms anymore, but lots of industrial farming)?

Refresh my memory on taking ACV? What's the upshot and how does it benefit you? I tried your recipe yesterday morning with a bit of sugar, and I really liked it that way.

I take 2 tsp of ACV with 2 teaspoons of white sugar mixed in a glass of water after I wake up. I used to just do of not really knowing how it could be good. That it tastes good also helps, especially with ice.

But I am getting more convinced of the health benefits of vinegar. Once, I shifted from using a vinegary marinade for pork chops to a dry rub, and I got a bum stomach. What fixed it was copper acetate. Which made me think that acetates are esters that have some antimicrobial, particularly fungal, properties.

I would never use dry rub again on thick 1 inch pork chops that are cooked the right way, where the outside is charred and caramelized but the inside is soft and cooked just right. The vinegar isn't only there for flavor but to give the food an extra antimicrobial protection.

I am learning how to use essential oils and I also got to find out about some oils having higher ester content being suitable as anti-fungals. These esters are mostly acetates.

I have to think that perhaps the ACV I drink daily is doing something protecting the gut as well.

People in the Philippines often use vinegar in most meals. They're habituated to it, and I think it is a good thing. Nobody use rubs here. I wonder where rubs originated, as I think they are a relatively new invention and is new world.

 

[Kray]

I take 2 tsp of ACV with 2 teaspoons of white sugar mixed in a glass of water after I wake up. I used to just do of not really knowing how it could be good. That it tastes good also helps, especially with ice.

But I am getting more convinced of the health benefits of vinegar. Once, I shifted from using a vinegary marinade for pork chops to a dry rub, and I got a bum stomach. What fixed it was copper acetate. Which made me think that acetates are esters that have some antimicrobial, particularly fungal, properties.

I would never use dry rub again on thick 1 inch pork chops that are cooked the right way, where the outside is charred and caramelized but the inside is soft and cooked just right. The vinegar isn't only there for flavor but to give the food an extra antimicrobial protection.

I am learning how to use essential oils and I also got to find out about some oils having higher ester content being suitable as anti-fungals. These esters are mostly acetates.

I have to think that perhaps the ACV I drink daily is doing something protecting the gut as well.

People in the Philippines often use vinegar in most meals. They're habituated to it, and I think it is a good thing. Nobody use rubs here. I wonder where rubs originated, as I think they are a relatively new invention and is new world.

Thanks for that. Morning ACV drink has been popular here in America, used to be anyway. Not sure about now. I will keep doing it to see what I think. Great to hear you're liking the EOs. They do have some pretty amazing properties, and I absolutely love the smell of some, like a high-quality Helichrysum and Frankincense, the latter of course well known since ancient times.

 

[peatmoss]

I’ve read varying estimates but I generally take 1/2 tsp per day which should provide 350-400mg. I do not feel I need more than that these days although there was a point where I used more.

Do you notice much of anything when you first started to take egg shell calcium? Do you feel it helps you in any way?