Sore Throats & Colds

[dietf***ed]

I recently moved to a Peat friendly diet - still eat some stuff like chicken and mashed potatos for lunch but largely following Dr Peat's principles. What has surprised me is that after some initial improvements in my sleep, I found that I have become susceptible to catching colds and sore throats - which was not the case in my paleo days. Has anyone experienced this ? ryan

 

[dietf***ed]

Ughh ! This was meant to be in the Ask For Help section. My brain works slower when I have a cold

 

[kiran]

Colds are usually related to the gut bacteria. Have you tried eating a raw carrot everyday?
Especially if you eat significant quantities of starch and fiber.

 

[dietf***ed]

ahh! Interesting that you link it to gut bacteria - never thought of it that way. I thought it was because of sudden exposure to cold wind/weather or something. I have been avoiding the raw carrot for a while and trying to eat it in cooked form. I will experiment adding that back in as initially I had some bloating issues thanks to my stomach being a bit of a mess.

 

[kiran]

You could also try some charcoal. Also, carrot salad is significantly easier to eat than a raw carrot.

I believe the idea is that your gut bacteria get infected first, and then you catch the cold from them. That's why antibiotics do help shorten the cold and improve symptoms if you catch it early, despite the strenuous protests of the CDC and other do-gooders, who seem to be more worried about antibiotic resistance than your symptoms.

 

[dietf***ed]

Very true. Grating the carrot makes it so much easier to eat. I'll try and carry some to work - hopefully the grated version will stay 'fresh'. I'll pop some charcoal as well. Instead of antibiotics would aspirin also help?
One thing I am confused about are natural cures like ginger and garlic. If I remember these are not considered Peat friendly but their ability to 'unblock' things is second to none (even cayeenne).

 

[kiran]

You don't necessarily need antibiotics, it was an aside. Yes, aspirin should help, but by a different mechanism, it's an analgesic.

I don't doubt that ginger, garlic, cayenne work to unblock you. They're irritants though, that's how they thin the mucus.

 

[gretchen]

I got a bunch of colds a few months ago. I think vitamin D has something to do with it.

 

[FredSonoma]

post 12766 I got a bunch of colds a few months ago. I think vitamin D has something to do with it.

A lack of Vitamin D? Or too much? I've had a bad sore throat for a couple weeks now and I'm pretty worried about it - could a big dose of Vitamin D help?

 

[Blossom]

post 112988

post 12766 I got a bunch of colds a few months ago. I think vitamin D has something to do with it.

A lack of Vitamin D? Or too much? I've had a bad sore throat for a couple weeks now and I'm pretty worried about it - could a big dose of Vitamin D help?

I had an upper respiratory tract infection that lingered for months and it cleared up quickly once I realized via lab work that I was deficient in vitamin D and started supplementing it again. If you don't take D or get regular sunlight it might be worth checking your levels.