The Food As Medicine Thread

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I'll start, with this gluten-free and vegan bowl of yumminess, which is surprisingly warming and nourishing even on this dreary and soaking wet Dutch autumn day. Full of fish friendly omegas, good bacteria, and antioxidants. With a protein content that's as much if not more than meat. Chia seeds, walnuts, and goji berries soaked in rice milk for 10 minutes. With raw cacao powder, cinnamon, mandarin slices, and soy yoghurt.

OK, I didn't take a photo of lunch, but as a gluten-free diet is a good idea for lots of us, pasta made from peas taste just as good as that made of wheat, and cooks faster and is higher in protein. I enjoyed mine today with mushrooms, leeks, onion, seaweed tapenade, and fresh rocket (rucola).

That dish looks dreamy .

I've had pasta made from peas, it is far better than the usual wheat variety.

For dinner yesterday I had a baked potato with hummus, sliced cooked beetroot, lettuce and onion with a homemade salad dressing of olive oil, lemon juice and raw cider vinegar. Not as healthy as your meal but I'm trying.

Thank you!

Actually from an Ayurvedic point of view your dish is perfect for dreary autumn nights. Those of us on the spectrum tend to have issues with excess Vata(aka the cold and windy dosha), which is also much more of an issue this time of year than any other. Warm cooked foods, and root vegetables, are perfect for balancing Vata.

Tonight for dinner I took the lazy option and bought a bottle of fresh green juice on the way home, 800 ml, with broccoli (good for autism) as the main ingredient.

I don't know anything about Ayurvedic medicine but that sounds cool!

I had boiled rice cooked in water seasoned with turmeric for breakfast. Turmeric because it dyes the rice orange and treats gastrointestinal issues, prevents cancer, detoxifies the body and keeps skin healthy. (As an aside there are instructions online for making a turmeric face mask to help stop hairs growing as much which I am planning to try sometime.)

With turmeric, it's best to always, always, always combine it with black pepper, that's essential to unlock the antioxidant properties.

This is a good start with finding out about Ayurveda, it was part of my yoga teacher training. There's 2 quizzes on the following link, one to find out what dosha or combination of doshas you were born with, and the other to determine your balance at the moment. For most people on the spectrum, excess Vata is definitely an issue, and I also struggle with Pitta issues as well. Vata's negative emotion tends to be anxiety, Pitta's is anger, and Kapha's is depression. Vata and Kapha tend to be aggravated by cold weather, Pitta by hot. If I typed out everything I'd be here all night. Here's the link : https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/info/prakriti-quiz/

I have been doing some reading up too, and I found out that eating a mostly raw diet is supposed to do wonders for those on the spectrum. It's also very anti-inflammatory, so a good idea to take for a test drive while my tailbone fracture is healing. I'm thinking to try to eat at least 75% raw for a few months, and see if that makes a difference for the better. It's so hard to do though this time of the year when it's so cold and dark.

Great idea for a thread. I hope to post here in the near future.

I recently learned to make golden paste. I am unable to tolerate too much turmeric, as it can effect my stomach, and cause a slight rash. I can have it in small doses with no problems or symptoms of any kind. My sister taught me how to make a warm coconut/almond milk drink with a bit of golden paste, cinnamon, cardamon and nutmeg. It makes me feel relaxed and it tastes nice.

I am not vegan, however, I do eat certain foods for medicinal purposes, and, to maintain good health.

I think this is what you're talking about: https://www.drweil.com/diet-nutrition/a ... lden-milk/

I was Googling this a lot yesterday, and I noticed there's some evidence pointing to the right diet and lifestyle treating ASD. Not curing it, as it's not a disorder to be cured. But by relieving the body and therefore the brain of the toxicity most of us are carrying around, over time it automatically recalibrates our nervous system, so we're as numb as your average NT allowing you to navigate through life better. The right diet will never cure our unique ability to think outside the square, or to see through other people, or to basically change the world. Maybe it will help us change the world more efficiently, as blending in just long enough to be accepted then being ourselves in all our full glory is always one of the more effective forms of activism.

But in any case, I'm going to try high raw and then report what I find back here, and in my blog. This thread is for all of us to do the same, whether it's what I'm doing or something else. Food is the best medicine for so many things, and I'm sure being on the spectrum is no different!

I filled in the survey you linked to and it said I'm a Pitta-Vatta type. I added plenty of black pepper to my turmeric rice today.

I'm convinced raw food is healthier too.

I had lentil pasta with tomatoes, onions, bell peppers and broccoli for dinner last night. Then sprinkled on nutritional yeast flakes at the table for the cheesy-ish flavor and a complete protein. Nutritional yeast is low glycemic (almost no carbs), is high in B vitamins which help our body use carbs for energy, has several minerals that contribute to healthy blood sugar, and has plenty of fiber. I keep forgetting to take a photo. Sorry!

That pasta sounds nice! Nutritional yeast hasn't really taken off here yet, but I've enjoyed it the times I have had it. I've used it to make vegan cream sauce for pastas, combined with soaked cashews, garlic, and some other things, it was nice!

I had a really nice smoothie bowl with spirulina and acai when I was out earlier.

By the way, I struggle with Vata-Pitta as well. I've been aware of this for a few years, and have found since I moved to Holland, that I need to focus more on Vata during autumn and winter, though without neglecting Pitta, and concentrate on Pitta during the summer, without forgetting about Vata. Food wise, I've found I can never have too much fruit. And swimming seems to be really good for my Pitta. This link might help:

https://www.theayurvedaexperience.com/b ... itta-diet/
http://svasthaayurveda.com/exercise-for ... and-kapha/ - This one should also say running for Vata, it's incredibly grounding and I miss it!! !!

Blueberries, yogurt, turkey, and almonds help with mood.