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Trying again

1K views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  Tom 
#1 ·
Hi everyone,

My name is Tammy I'm a mom of 3 and a wife to a great guy. I'm 49 yrs old and about 100lbs overweight. I have fatty liver and very concerned for my health. Everytime I try to go vegan I constantly break out in cold sores (I'm assuming from low lysine) and im lethargic constantly and my arthritis flairs up. Ive always stayed the course thinking its the detox phase but it doesnt get better.I then feel miserable and go back to a diet that includes animal products. Any and all advice or guidance is welcomed.

Thank You Tammy
 
#2 ·
Based on your arthritic flair, my guess is that for some reason you are having an inflammatory response - which is completely weird because a healthy, plant based diet is the opposite of the kind of diet that would cause inflammation which would be high in saturated fat and dairy products. I would suggest that you look at your sugar and alcohol intakes and see if they could be reduced, and stick to quality food, at least for the first several weeks while your body adjusts. Also, if you know you get cold sores, supplement lysine. A good quality vegan multi might just do the trick for you.
 
#3 ·
Hi Tammy,

Because you have existing health issues, it might be a good idea for you to plan your vegan diet with the guidance of a Registered Dietitian. Your physician should be able to refer you to a local RD that specializes in vegetarian diets. Because you are addressing diet-related health issues, your insurance may cover the cost of seeing the RD.
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#5 ·
Hi, Tammy! I remember from that book "Diet For A Small Planet", written many years ago by Frances Moore Lappe, that almost all legumes are rich in lysine. But I don't know whether you like them, or if they will aggravate any of your other issues. I second what @David3 said: a professional dietitian would be able to offer you great advice, and would probably be covered by your insurance. (You might want to get information about that first- I recently had some routine bloodwork done because I'm in my mid-60s and hadn't seen a doctor for a regular check-up since my doctor retired a few years ago. I can handle the expense and it was money well spent, but it was more than I had expected.)
 
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