GAPS

by Starlene

I was slender for the first two decades of my life, even underweight as a child. Then I had my two sons in my mid-twenties and never got back down to my pre-pregnancy weight. I thought at the time that having children had changed my metabolism. In looking back with what I've learned from GAPS, now I believe it was the birth control pills I was on for two or three years, and the four courses of antibiotics I'd taken in the year prior to becoming pregnant with my first son.

This morning I was thinking:

1. When trying to affect gut flora, one is up against absolutely entrenched homeostasis.

2. Changing this, even in order to heal "mild" symptoms, takes a looooong time and a lot of faith, since as Natasha Campbell-McBride says, medical knowledge of the human gut "is in its infancy."

3. Dr. Campbell-McBride says that healing requires an average of 2-3 years of "hard work" while adhering strictly to the GAPS protocol.

Dear Family,

“'If only I had some grease I could fix some kind of a light,' Ma considered. 'We didn't lack for light when I was a girl, before this newfangled kerosene was ever heard of.'

“'That's so,' said Pa. 'These times are too progressive. Everything has changed too fast. Railroads and telegraph and kerosene and coal stoves--they're good things to have but the trouble is, folks get to depend on 'em.'”

--“The Long Winter,” by Laura Ingalls Wilder

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Jemmerisms:

Dear Family,

Is it possible that meat-eating can be ecologically sustainable, even compared with a vegan diet? Is it healthy to regularly and copiously eat meat? Is it true that my new diet, full of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal flesh (as well as very few carbs), lots of broths and fermented veggies/dairy, might actually be even _more_ healthy than the whole-foods vegetarian regimen I consumed, Before?

This is a growing collection of favorite resources relating to the GAPS dietary protocol.

Please send suggestions and additions for this list!
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BOOKS:

"Gut and Psychology Syndrome," by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride.

"Breaking the Vicious Cycle," by Elaine Gottschall.

"The GAPS Guide," by Baden Lashkov.

"Cooking Provence," by Antoine Bouterin (A cookbook focusing on amazingly delicious French dishes, many of which can be GAPS-ified).

...or, What I Wish Someone Had Told Me in April 2010
by Sarabeth Matilsky

This is obviously biased by my family's experiences, but I'm hopeful that it will help you as you craft your own, unique health-promoting GAPS diet plan. This article will be updated as needed--please send me suggestions!)

by Sarabeth Matilsky

If you're anything like me, you get really skeptical when someone presents a new miracle cure. This is the sort of necessary skepticism that prevents one from being snake oiled. Especially when you're trying to sort through medical advice, you need a fully-functioning baloney detector.

Lecture at Wise Traditions Conference, King of Prussia, PA, November 12, 2010.

This is a transcription and adaptation by me (Sarabeth Matilsky). Any mistakes are undoubtedly mine, although I made an effort to leave out any details or insert a (?) when I felt unsure about NCM's intended meaning.