Five years ago in April at age 45 I was diagnosed with lupus. My doc could not figure out what was causing repeated bouts of increasingly terrible shoulder and back pain. Finally, when suffering so much pain I could barely move, I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. A CAT scan revealed that I had been suffering from flare-ups of pericarditis for two years. Further tests showed that I had several typical Lupus antibodies. My immune system was attacking the connective tissue surrounding my heart, the pericardium.
By itself, this is not awful. The body repairs the damaged tissue. But accompanying the damage is an enormous amount of inflammation and fluid, just like you get with a water blister from rubbing your finger repetitively. This fluid constricts the pumping of the heart and can be life threatening. I had 650 milliliters drawn out of my pericardium and another 12 pounds in my abdomen.
Despite taking increasingly potent immune-suppressing drugs, I suffered almost constant flare-ups for another three years. I was taking higher and higher doses of steroids to control the inflammation, but they weren't working anymore. Then I read “The Anti-Inflammation Zone” and immediately started taking fish oil with high concentrations of EPA and DHA. Within one day of starting 10 grams of EPA and DHA, my flare-ups stopped. I took high doses for about two months; then lowered my intake to about 2.6 grams per day. I have not had another flare-up for almost three years. I take no steroids, no immune suppressors, no medication at all.
To be honest, I don't follow the Zone Diet too closely, but I have greatly reduced my consumption of starch and sugar. Perhaps not surprisingly, my flare-ups started within a couple months of my doctor advising me to take dietary measures to lower my cholesterol, which I did. I drastically reduced consumption of red meat, eggs, shrimp, coconut and anything else high in cholesterol. The next time I visited my doctor, he was amazed that my cholesterol level was down so dramatically. He was proud of me. Said one in twenty patients were able to lower cholesterol levels through diet alone. But he couldn't figure out what was causing that awful pain in my shoulder.
Well, taking all the enjoyment out of my diet had left quite a void, which I filled with French fries, pasta, bread and potatoes. I attribute the onset of lupus to this misguided method of lowering cholesterol. And I attribute my return to good health to Dr. Sears. I'm unbelievably fortunate to have found “The Anti-Inflammation Zone,” which convinced me to change my diet and take fish oil.
Todd L.