Saponins are bitter, biologically active compounds found in chick peas, soybeans, legumes (beans) and alfalfa sprouts that foam up like soap suds in water. They are named after the soapwort plant (Saponaria), the root of which was used traditionally as a soap. Robb Wolf, in The Paleo Solution, is pretty scathing about them, explaining that they are […]
low iron, sleep & dopamine
My hubby made a point this morning that I rarely toss and turn and thrash and twitch in bed anymore. This used to be a standard night for me, and I very rarely dreamed either. As we know, this points to a lack of deep, non-REM sleep, that lovely restorative sleep that so eludes us fibro sufferers. And I […]
what are oxalates?
I recovered from fibro thanks to an oxalate-free diet. So let’s understand what oxalates are, and which foods contain them! Put simply, plants, fruits & veggies protect themselves from insects by producing their own ‘pesticides’ called oxalates. For some reason, fibro sufferers seem to be very sensitive to them (probably due to leaky gut), and they seemed to […]
dopamine and how to boost it
There are so many conflicting theories as to what causes fibro – from damage to the thalamus to Lyme disease via adrenal fatigue. One thing that I’m sure about is that there is clearly a deregulation of our dopamine system: increased sensitivity to pain, to noise, lack of pleasure, restless leg, fibro fog and dependence on […]
is the brain chronically inflamed in fibro?
I’ve read many, many books over the last 20 years, searching for answers. This is the first one that has them, written by a well-respected authority on the subject, Gary Kaplan. Yes, there’s lots about chronic inflammation (the hot topic du jour) but this is the only one to offer a very interesting theory about how […]