Case studies
Beneficial health outcomes of IgG food sensitivity testing and elimination diet in clinical practice – real life success stories
Food sensitivities (intolerances) and related diseases affect a large portion of the population worldwide (estimated at 15-20%) causing a wide variety of food-related inflammatory conditions. These range from skin rashes, headaches and migraines, pain and inflammation, to chronic digestive and gut conditions.
The incidence of food sensitivities is on the rise due to a number of factors. These include microbiome imbalances, a leaky gut syndrome, impaired digestion (low stomach acid and digestive enzymes), food contamination with chemicals and pesticides (especially glyphosate which is implicated in leaky gut), and many more.
Having taken multiple medications for years without improvements, many clients with chronic conditions are making different therapeutic choices nowadays. They are applying nutrition, tailored supplementation and lifestyle modifications as potential solutions to their complex health problems, rather than solely relying on the prescription drugs.
The benefit of doing a food sensitivity test is that it will be able to quickly identify which of the foods that are eaten on a regular basis are a problem for the body at present causing immune reactions and inflammation. In addition, the test is able to highlight more foods such as so called ‘superfoods’ or just ‘healthy’ foods, which a person may not have considered removing from their diet.
All case studies p[resented here are part of the clinical study we conducted over two years+ to track patients’ progress over time. As a results, we have published a fully referenced and statistically analysed clinical study. Here’s the link to the full study:
Study title: “Therapeutic use of IgG food sensitivity testing and elimination diet as an effective approach to patient’s care”
Study authors: Joanna Sochan and Dr Nicholas Greene
Our clients who reported a variety of symptoms which were broadly classified into six categories:
- Gut and digestive imbalances
- Hormone imbalances
- Autoimmune disorders
- Skin disorders
- Weight loss
- Other
Screening for food sensitivities was the first step in the overall therapy plan for each client to determine which foods were deemed as problematic. The foods which tested positive were removed from the diet and the clients were prescribed an elimination diet based on the test results for a minimum of 6 months. The initial and other symptoms were monitored throughout this period and reviewed after 6+ months to determine any changes in symptoms, blood tests, nutrition status and weight.
Supplements were also used where necessary to support the body repair processes. After 6+ months retests were done to determine which foods are no longer inflammatory and can be re-introduced.
A significant reduction or complete elimination of symptoms was observed in the vast majority of clients across all categories. In most cases food sensitivities were also reduced. In our clinical practice this demonstrates that a temporary food elimination based on the IgG test reduces or eliminates symptoms and is an effective tool in client care.
We’ve applied food sensitivity testing to a large number of our clients (around 100 people at present) and they are having remarkable beneficial results including greater energy, fewer digestive problems, less pain and inflammation, and weight loss, among others. We are continuing using the test and the elimination diet to help our clients to heal both subtle and/or profound health issues.
Find the detailed description of the IgG food sensitivity testing here.
Our clinically tested methodology utilises key steps based on achieving optimal results for clients. The sequential stages are organised into a clear and doable steps, where a client and a practitioner work closely together facilitating optimal health and wellness outcomes. Main steps involved include:
- In-depth naturopathic health assessment using a tailored health questionnaire covering client’s health history combined with an assessment of main body systems, nutrition patterns and lifestyle habits.
- Identification, initial rating and prioritising of current symptoms prior to taking the IgG food sensitivity test.
- Referral for basic blood tests to assess overall health status and identify key nutritional deficiencies of vitamins and minerals necessary for the body to start the repair process.
- Referral for the IgG food sensitivities blood test.
- Test results interpretation, agreeing on the priorities and implementation steps.
- Symptom review at each consultation – each client is asked to record and rate their symptoms in a ‘symptom tracker table’ on a weekly basis. This is reviewed and discussed at each consultation to remove any roadblocks as they arise.
- Frequency of consultations – depending on a client’s needs, their nutritional literacy, ability to cook or work commitments. Consultations typically take place every 4-5 weeks. Therapy duration: around 6-12 months.
- Tools and aids utilised throughout the program include:
- Detailed nutrition guides covering food groups that need to be eliminated for a period of time (e.g. gluten-, diary-, egg-, yeast-, soy-free)
- Relevant food substitute lists e.g. gluten free flours, dairy alternatives, eggs replacements
- Best food preparation methods for optimum digestion and absorption
- ‘Safe’ product lists and where to get them
- Personalised, tried and tested recipes and menus covering all meals
- Lifestyle modifications guidelines to support recovery including improving sleep, stress management, rest and relaxation, exercise, etc.
Review this weight loss case study to better understand the steps and what’s involved in the therapy
Gut and digestive disorders cases studies
The main gut disorders and digestive imbalances, and related symptoms, our clinical study participants suffered from included:
- Leaky gut (increased gut wall permeability)
- Bloating and flatulence
- Diarrhoea and/or constipation
- Reflux and/ or indigestion
- Cramps and gut pain
- Low stomach acid and digestive enzymes deficiencies
- Intestinal parasites
- Microbiome imbalances
Callum, a 17-year-old teenager, was suffering for many years with severe gut symptoms, tiredness and low stamina. His main symptoms included:
- Severe diarrhoea multiple times per day significantly impacting his daily life. It was ‘very bad’ in the 6 months before testing and starting the elimination diet.
- Stomach pains and cramps
- Difficulty with focus and concentration at school, brain fog
These troublesome symptoms significantly impacted his daily life. Also, they impaired his ability to play sport – he loves playing soccer at school; however, his ability to play was significantly decreased because of low stamina and constant tiredness, in addition to daily frequent diarrhoea episodes.
After doing the IgG food sensitivity testing with us, we agreed he’ll remove all inflammatory foods listed on the test results. From the start, he was 100% committed to following the elimination diet and reading labels. He quickly noticed a big difference after just a few weeks on the diet. After a month, he hardly had any gut or other initial symptoms. Moreover, he was back playing soccer and felt his stamina was almost back.
After 6-7 months on the elimination diet he experienced a complete resolution of symptoms. In particular, all gut symptoms i.e. severe diarrhoea and stomach pains were resolved 100%.
His energy levels and stamina were very good. He put on muscle and lost body fat, resulting in his athletic abilities and strength increasing. As a bonus, the diet also helped to clear his pimples/ acne, which he was very pleased about.
Needless to say, doing food intolerance testing and eliminating inflammatory foods has totally changed his life. He is now enjoying leading ‘a normal life’ of a busy teenager and is planning to continue his studies at a university.
He feels energetic, healthy and motivated as he continues following the elimination for now, eating only the non-inflammatory foods as listed on his test results – click on the link below to his test results and a 6-month symptom tracking table.
Overall, Callum made a very successful transition to a nutritious and tasty diet that doesn’t trigger his old symptoms. He said he’s not missing the foods that caused his problems because it feels great to be so healthy and well without them.
Robyn, a 68-year-old retired teacher, presented with persistent gut issues over the past 2 years – “always uncomfortable but really bad at present”. Her main complaints and/or symptoms were:
- Diarrhoea, pain and cramps after eating. Urgent diarrhoea within 30 minutes after eating
- Flatulence – constantly during the day
- Constipation – sometimes
- Aching joints – worse in the past year
She rated all the above symptoms as severe at 8 out of 10 (10= severe).
The symptoms had severely curbed her social life as she needed to be ‘within running distance of a toilet at all times’. It was also very embarrassing for her.
After doing nutritional assessment and IgG food sensitivity test, she needed to make significant dietary changes to comply with the elimination diet. She was determined to give it a go and adhered strictly to the tailored diet for the duration of nutritional therapy.
Amazingly, she experienced major improvements in all symptoms within the first month on the diet, with the urgent diarrhoea and cramps resolving 100% after just 2 weeks. In addition, the flatulence also markedly decreased and she reported a significant reduction in joint pain.
After 7 months on the elimination diet, all her symptoms either totally resolved or she experienced some minimal discomfort with aching joints after gardening or long walks. In addition she lost 6 kg in the process!
She said: “My life is my own again to enjoy”.
Read Robyn’s life changing recovery story in her own words HERE.
Jarrod, a 21-year-old university student, was struggling with a number of health issues for the past few years including:
- Gut imbalances :
- Bloating, diarrhoea, flatulence, pain. Bad diarrhoea especially in the morning. Pain and fullness in the belly
- Bad reflux – especially during exercise (when doing cardio), he also felt nauseas when exercising
- Anxiety during Covid, felt locked up in the room, wasn’t coping well, felt down. Was grumpy and not motivated to study or work
- frequent headaches
- Low energy levels and not motivated to exercise – he previously exercised regularly in the gym
He was concerned about his symptoms and went to see a gut specialist. He was told that his symptoms are related to stress. He was also tested for gut parasites and Blastocystis hominis was discovered, which might’ve contributed to his gut symptoms. Jarrod also started seeing a psychologist and was diagnosed with “health anxiety’ triggered by the symptoms.
A friend suggested Jarrod does food sensitivity testing and he was keen to give nutrition a go to get better. He started the elimination diet straight away after receiving his IgG food sensitivity test results, and began seeing significant improvements after about a month. He stopped taking drug Somac (for his reflux) after 2 months.
After six months on the elimination diet he experienced an overall 90% improvement in his symptoms. Reflux was gone, he got gut symptoms only occasionally and for a short period of time. Energy levels were back to normal – he was exercising 6 times per week in the gym; his anxiety and low moods also vastly improved.
Overall, Jarrod achieved significant continuous improvements during the 6 months following the elimination diet, resulting in much better health allowing him to study, work and exercise at the levels he desired.
He stated: “the results of following the elimination diet have been pretty amazing!”. Prior to working with us he saw multiple doctors to seek advice on how to resolve his health issues, but experienced no difference after many treatments.
Discovering and dealing with food intolerances was the key missing piece for Jarrod to identifying the ‘root cause’ of his symptoms.
Weight loss cases studies
Case studies in this category include the following health imbalances:
- Excess weight, overweight and obesity
- Inability to lose weight for a long time
- Blood sugar imbalances – hypoglycaemia and hyperglycaemia
- Insulin resistance
- Persistent food cravings
Karen, a 51-year-old secretary, was keen to utilise wholistic nutrition to get well and lose body weight. The main reason Karen was seeking help was her inability to lose weight since for the past 10 years. She followed a number of fad diets over the years but even when she initially lost weight, she put it back on as soon as she went off the diet. She “was at 90 kg about 11 years ago and since then her weight ballooned to 115 kg”. Her goal was to get the weight down to 80kg-85kg within 12 months or so.
She wanted to apply the IgG testing to lose weight using ‘food as medicine’ first and foremost. Therefore, we agreed to use the elimination diet as the main therapeutic tool, and only address key nutrient deficiencies indicated by the blood tests.
Karen’s main complaints and/or symptoms included:
- Long-term excess weight/ obesity,
- Low energy and fatigue
- Insulin resistance, blood sugar imbalances/sugar cravings
- Menopausal symptoms (hot flushes at night interfering with sleep, night sweats)
- Dry skin, dark circles and bags under the eyes
Her therapeutic program included nutrition modifications guided by her test results, new ways of meal preparation, using new or forgotten ingredients, such as gluten free flours and dairy alternatives. We focused on what she could eat, selecting the foods that were marked as ‘green’ in her test results.
Karen felt overwhelmed at first with the challenge of excluding so many major food groups (i.e. dairy, grains, eggs, etc) which she consumed on a regular basis, many of them multiple times daily. Nonetheless, she persisted and started to gradually implement the nutrition guidelines we discussed. She looked for new recipes and made new dishes with the new ingredients until she found new favourites.
After just two months on the elimination diet she lost 10kg, after three months her total weight loss was 16kg, at four months she lost 20kg and at seven months her overall weight loss was 35kg – from 115kg initially to 80kg. At 12 months she lost another two kg and her weight stabilised at around 78kg. In total, she gradually lost 37kg since commencing the elimination diet.
During this time she didn’t restrict calories or watched portion sizes in order to lose weight. She ate three meals and 2 snacks per day on average and was sticking to the diet guidelines as per the test results. It was all she did to facilitate the gradual and natural weight loss.
Karen was very happy with the results which also included significant decreases in all other symptoms, including completely resolving her menopausal symptoms and sugar cravings.
By undertaking and persisting with the elimination diet, Karen’s life had been changed dramatically at all levels. She learnt what are the best foods for her and she is now able to manage most aspects of her health and weight control by herself, adjusting the diet as needed. She also continues making lifestyle adjustments she learnt during the program to support her much improved health and wellbeing.
At two years since starting her nutrition program, her weight had been stable and she was maintaining her improvements of all symptoms.
Overall improvements: 95% from baseline. Lost 37kg and kept it off!
Read Karen’s story in her own words.
Read her heart felt and life changing story of finally succeeding at losing weight here.
Brett, a 58-year-old greenkeeper, presented with a number of health complaints and symptoms including:
- Type 2 diabetes controlled with weekly insulin injections for the past two years
- High blood pressure and high cholesterol controlled with medication
- Excess weight increased over the years. Current weight: 110kg
- Long-term reflux controlled with medication – 8/10=severe*
- Bloating and flatulence (from insulin injections), diarrhoea – 8/10=severe
- Shortness of breath with moderate exercise – 8/10=severe
- Blood sugar imbalances resulting in sugar cravings, binge eating and up /down moods – 8/10=severe
- Fatigue and low energy levels – 7/10=severe
- Multiple food sensitivities, allergy to bee stings
*Rating scale 1= mild to 10 = severe symptoms
Brett was taking nine doctor prescribed drugs daily and, in addition to feeling better overall, he also wanted to decrease and/or stop taking some of them, if possible (with his doctor’s approval). Food sensitivity testing was suggested to him as a method to decrease inflammation, lose weight, improve digestion and gut function.
Prior to the testing, he was consuming a diet comprising many processed foods including commercial breads and bakery products, sweets, and soft drinks.
Brett’s food sensitivity test results showed a large number of food intolerances across many food groups – see the full case study report for details, link below. His body was struggling with properly digesting and assimilating the nutrients from the foods he ate and his immune system was highly reactive to the foods he was sensitive to.
He was keen and motivated from the start to follow the elimination diet to the best of his ability. In the past, it was challenging for him to commit to a diet for long enough to gauge if it could work for him. He started making substantial modifications to his diet with supported by his wife who prepared and cooked his meals. He also began exercising consistently aiming to walk 10k steps daily.
During the 6 months on the elimination diet, Brett continued to improve in all parameters/ symptoms we were monitoring. His energy levels and fitness were increasing steadily and he expanded his walks to around 14K steps per day at two months.
Following the elimination diet was difficult for him as he had to give up many of his favourite foods. He consulted with his doctors monitoring his diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol for check-ups. They were pleasantly surprised by the improvements made. Based on his progress, Brett’s endocrinologist paused the weekly insulin injections and decreased one other diabetic drug he was taking. His cardiologist also removed one blood pressure medication and decreased intake of other medications.
At seven months on the diet, Brett was feeling well and he increased his walking exercise to around 23k steps per day, including bushwalking and walking uphill. He started gym twice a week in addition to his regular walking routine.
He relaxed his diet more and was having some of the trigger as he found it hard to stick to the strict diet at this point.
Brett’s weight loss since starting the elimination diet was 14kg (from 110kg to 96kg). This was a substantial shift in body weight and Brett felt the physical and mental benefits of this.
He listed the main benefits of the elimination as follows:
- Feels better about himself having stuck to the diet for 6 months.
- Able to do more activities such as exercising, walking, gym without experiencing any shortness of breath
- Feels stronger and fitter
- Gut symptoms significantly improved
- Eating more vegetables and fruits, more whole foods and less processed foods
- Was able to reduce doses of / stop a number of drugs he was taking
By embarking on the elimination diet, Brett found an eating method that works for him most of the time. Providing he doesn’t overindulge in trigger foods or eats them too often.
Overall improvements: 80% from baseline.
Read Brett’s step-by-step-journey in the full case study report HERE.
Maritza, a 57-year-old financial counsellor, suffered with a number of complaints and symptoms, including excess weight. She listed the following main complaints / symptoms experienced prior to the IgG food sensitivity testing:
- Gut imbalances – bloating, constipation, reflux, flatulence
- Stress/ nervous system – unable to relax, mood swings, memory problems, brain fog
- Fatigue – chronic tiredness, hard to get up in the morning
- Cardiovascular – high blood pressure for the past 5 years. Swollen ankles and knees especially in hot weather, shortness of breath with moderate exercise. Taking a blood pressure medication.
- Menopausal symptoms for around 6 years – hot flushes, irritability, insomnia
- Feeling heat at the bottom of the feet – an unusual symptoms that persisted for years with no solution despite seeking help from many doctors
- Constant pain in the left elbow and upper arm
- Sleep problems – tired but wired, sleep apnoea
- Overweight – her weight was 75kg in 2017, she put on weight since to 93kg
To start with, she reported struggling to follow the diet as she was getting headaches almost every day and felt very tired for the first month on the elimination diet. It likely was detox process activated by the body in the first phase of the diet. She understood this and persevered with the diet and increased daily hydration to help eliminate the toxins faster.
Maritza removed all the trigger foods but she felt a bit lost as to what to eat. Also, she was working long hours and didn’t have much time to cook. This added to her feeling rather overwhelmed in the first 4-6 weeks on the elimination diet. Despite this, she was determined to continue. To her amazement, she reported she was not missing any of the trigger foods she removed – see her test results and follow her progress on the diet in the full case study by clicking the below.
She started seeing good improvements in all symptoms after 2 months on the elimination diet. was excited seeing and feeling the positive changes and significant lessening of symptoms. She said: ‘waking up without any pain is great!’
The sensation of heat at the bottom of the feet completely resolved after two months on the diet. Nothing worked before for this despite trying for years. It’s not uncommon for unusual symptoms such as this resolving on the elimination diet, although we were not able to identify the trigger food(s) at that stage.
At six months on the diet Maritza was feeling good and was very happy to report that all the initial symptoms either resolved completely or significantly subsided. She was ‘full of energy and sleeping like a baby’. She had no cravings for the trigger foods she used to eat, and very much enjoyed her new meals.
She lost 11kg and dropped two dress sizes in 6 months without calorie counting or watching portion sizes. Her blood pressure stabilised and she was experiencing hardly any hot flushes associated with it.
Maritza decided to continue on the elimination diet without doing a retest. She said she found a balanced and yummy nutrition plan to follow and felt much more in control of her symptoms and overall wellbeing. This experience was truly empowering and life changing for her.
Overall improvements: 90-95% from baseline.
Read a full case study report describing Maritza’s journey HERE.
Mat, a 34-year-old assistant school principal, struggled with weight loss and obesity for a considerable time. His main presenting complaints and/or symptoms were:
- Inability to lose weight for a long time
- Gut symptoms: bloating, flatulence, diarrhoea
- Insulin resistance, excessive appetite, sugar cravings
- Shortness of breath, heart palpitations
- Fatigue, low energy
- Past spinal injury and arthritis
Mat decided to do the IgG food sensitivity testing after he was inspired by a colleague who experienced major health improvement after following the elimination diet based on the test results.
From the start, he eliminated all trigger foods and lost 8kg in 4 weeks as a result. He significantly modified the diet with the help of his wife who enjoyed cooking new meals for him. They both embraced the required food and lifestyle changes and were motivated to stick to the guidelines.
I consulted with Mat three times over the 6 months on the elimination diet reviewing his food diaries and nutrition requirements, monitoring all symptoms and making things easier for him to adhere to the diet. He followed the elimination diet sufficiently but found it challenging as he was missing his favourite foods.
Overall, he lost 24kg (from initially 117kg to 93-94kg), his energy levels significantly improved, gut function normalised and he stopped experiencing a shortness of breath.
Mat achieved his most important goal of a significant weight loss which positively impacted all other symptoms and complaints. After the initial 6-month period, he planned to keep following many aspect of the elimination diet and re-introduce some of the he missed.
Overall improvements in his complaints and/or symptoms: 70%-80% from baseline.
Autoimmune disorders case studies
Autoimmune disorders covered in the case study reports include:
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Mixed connective tissue disease (MTCD)
- Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)
- Skin disorders – eczema and psoriasis. See the Skin Disorders category below
Melissa (Mel), a 46-year-old teacher, had been unwell for many years going from doctor to doctor in search for answers, but nothing worked for her. Prior to this she was a fit elite athlete who at one stage was selected to play soccer for Australia.
Her health worsened over the years and she was diagnosed with Mixed Connective Tissue Disease (MCTD) and Rheumatoid Arthritis in 2015 (both are autoimmune disorders). These conditions manifested as swelling and pain of Mel’s hands, feet, left knee and left hip. She had many cortisone injections to help with pain over the years, with no avail.
Other significant daily complaints/ symptoms included:
- Severe migraines or headaches
- Stomach pains, gas and bloating; frequent nausea was particularly debilitating;
- Constant food reactions and poor digestion
- Sinus pain
- Fatigue most of the time
- Poor sleep and insomnia
- Memory problems and brain fog
- Inability to exercise much because of the pain and swelling.
Mel was in constant pain and was barely able to function or work. She ‘felt most anxious she ever felt in her life’.
She was taking a great number of drugs prescribed by various doctors for her cumulative health problems, without feeling any improvements. She felt the doctors ‘didn’t know what to do with her’ and they prescribed more and more drugs that gave her serious side-effects. Subsequently, she decided to stop all medications just before starting the elimination diet (with her doctor’s consent).
Prior to doing the food sensitivity testing and embarking on the elimination diet, Mel rated her health and lifestyle as 2 (poor) out of 10 (10 = very good). She was severely restricted in what she could do for herself, for her family and at work.
Her wellness journey was a challenging one with many ups and downs. It took her around 16 months to get where she wanted to be health wise, considering her multiple symptoms and conditions. Overall, she stated she was 80% better compared to before starting the elimination diet. She said she ‘can now live a normal life and doesn’t feel exhausted all the time’.
Today, Mel’s life is profoundly different at all levels – personally, her family and at work. Overall, her improvements were remarkable starting at 2 out of 10 and barely functioning, to 8 out of 10 (10=very good) and enjoying her life again!
Read the step-by-step Autoimmunity and Food Sensitivities case study about Mel’s remarkable and very inspiring journey to better health and wellbeing.
Margaret, a 62-year-old retiree, presented with a plethora of chronic health complaints. At the time, her main health concerns were:
- PMR (Polymyalgia rheumatica) – an autoimmune inflammatory condition affecting the joints
- Osteoarthritis in both hips and multiple joints
- Gut imbalances – alternating diarrhoea and constipation (since ‘forever’), indigestion, reflux (pretty bad for last 6 months). Dull gut pain after eating lasting around two hours
- Upper right quadrant pain that started after a fall
- Recently diagnosed with oesophagitis
- Binge eating – especially chocolate and sweets, sugar cravings
- Asthma – long-term, relatively mild (on medication when needed), worse with pollens
She was taking multiple medications and nutritional supplements.
It was a long journey for Margaret to better health. I regularly consulted Margaret over the 16 months to help her better understand her food restrictions, provide tailored nutrition advice and meal suggestions, and monitor progress. We agreed that she will record detailed food diaries and email them to me before each consultation for analysis and modifications.
At two months on the diet she reported ‘huge’ improvements in the majority of her symptoms. However, she still experienced ‘annoying’ gut symptoms, mainly on/off constipation and cramps. Pain levels decreased and she was able to get off all pain killers she was taking for arthritis aching joints.
As her gut symptoms were not improving, we decided to do a stool test to look for clues. Subsequently, the stool test identified microbiome imbalances, a presence of parasite Dientamoeba fragilis as well as high levels of harmful bacteria, especially Klebsiella that has been linked with autoimmunity and joint pain.
These results indicated that a natural parasite treatment is needed to facilitate any further gut health improvements. Subsequently, Margaret was prescribed a comprehensive 8–10-week anti-parasitic protocol comprising herbs and gut support supplements.
Following the completion of the parasitic protocol, all gut symptoms were resolved plus all other symptoms improved as follows:
- Pain in the right quadrant – completely resolved, severity rating down from 8/10 to 0/10 = severe
- Indigestion/ reflux – completely resolved, severity rating down from 6/10 to 0/10
- Gut – on/off constipation and stomach cramps – all symptoms resolved, severity rating down from 6/10 to 0/10
- Arthritis, joint pain – much improved, pain almost gone, severity rating: down from 8/10 to 2-3/10
- Asthma – almost gone, severity rating down from 3/10 to 1/10
- Sugar cravings – completely resolved
- Weight loss since starting – 6kg (from 72kg to 63kg)
She reported feeling more energetic and more mobile without experiencing pain or inflammation. Her nails were strong and healthy, and the skin also improved. She started Pilates classes again and was able to do the exercises without much pain.
At 14 months on the diet Margaret reported doing well overall and had no major complaints. Her weight was stable at 64kg-65 kg. She kept off all pain and anti-inflammatory drugs and we also reduced a number of supplements she was taking. At this point, Margaret started re-introducing a few foods as indicated by the IgG retest.
At 18 months, the 2nd retest indicated significantly decreased inflammation, improved gut wall integrity (leaky gut) and better digestive capacities. Importantly, gluten sensitivity was no longer indicated (except for barley). In addition, Margaret could consider re-introducing some dairy foods.
Importantly, her autoimmune conditions improved dramatically and on redoing the blood test with her doctor she was told that ‘PMR was not present according to inflammatory markers tested’.
Although it was a long journey for Margaret to significantly reduce pain and inflammation, improve her gut function and other complaints, the end result was very satisfying and life changing.
The key factor and a circle breaker in the therapeutic sequence was the use of a microbiome balancing and parasite protocol, when her persisting gut symptoms indicated it, in order to move forward. In fact, having intestinal parasites likely was the main cause of not only her gut symptoms but also her arthritic pain and chronic inflammation.
Final weight loss: 7 kg, down from 72kg to 65kg.
Overall improvement: 90% from baseline.
Read Margaret’s story and follow her step-by-step health journey HERE.
Skin conditions case studies
Conditions covered in the case studies include:
- Eczema
- Psoriasis
- Hives / welts
- Histamine intolerance
Bruce, a 62-year-old executive, recently retired after a rewarding but demanding corporate career which involved working long hours and frequent travel. He had enjoyed his post-retirement ‘slow life’ and felt content with his new lifestyle. He also felt it was time for him to ‘get healthy, change a few habits’ and improve his nutrition.
He presented with the following health concerns:
- Eczema – often over many parts of the body, currently mainly on both hands. Takes a steroid drug when it gets really bad, gets a relief for about a week. His latest flair up was pretty bad
- Chronic muscle tightness and back spasms – for a long time
- High blood pressure – was taking a medication prescribed by his GP
- Excess weight – currently 93kg / Height 173cm. He wanted to lose around 15kg
After doing the IgG food sensitivity testing, Bruce was keen to implement the elimination diet and made a very good start by removing all trigger foods identified. The nutrition changes that needed to be made were significant and across many food groups – read the full report by clicking the link below).
After a month on the elimination diet he reported eczema getting better. He adhered 100% to the diet when at home, but slipped when going out or socialising with friends. He also reported feeling less tense and his muscles were more relaxed.
Bruce noted significant improvements after three months on the elimination diet. There was no eczema anywhere on the body except small amounts on his hands. His energy levels were higher and he slept better. He was able to do more exercise. Also, he lost 8kg at this point.
Bruce enjoys cooking and socialising so following the elimination diet wasn’t easy for him. He slipped occasionally, especially when eating out. He noted eczema symptoms return especially after eating dairy, his main trigger food. Nonetheless, he noticed that following the elimination diet helped to decrease an inflammatory response and he recovered from an eczema episode at a faster rate than before.
At seven months on the diet Bruce achieved significant improvements considering the long-term nature of his chronic health complaints, especially eczema. His blood pressure readings also improved when he visited his doctor for a check-up. He lost 11kg since starting the elimination diet.
Overall improvement: 80%-90% from baseline.
Glen, a 35-year-old male, is a personal trainer and gym owner. Despite following what he thought was a good diet and ‘looking after his health’, he started experiencing significant skin symptoms such as large eczema like, red itchy rash on the torso, hands and legs; as well as joint pain and restless legs at night. The symptoms worsened when he was stressed or run down.
Prior to the symptoms appearing, he was under a lot of stress because of his father’s illness and then death. He also did high intensity training and pushed the body to the limit.
Glen consulted with a few doctors and naturopaths seeking help but to no avail. He also followed a vegetarian diet for 6 months hoping it’ll help him recover but it didn’t make any difference. He was getting very frustrated and didn’t know what to do next. Fortunately, he talked to his trusted chiropractor about his problems, who suggested doing food sensitivity testing.
The test identified a number of food intolerances across many food groups (see details in the full case study report – link below). He immediately removed all the problematic foods and focused on the ‘green’ foods he could safely eat.
After about 8 weeks of strictly adhering to the elimination diet the skin rash was gone, and after 12 weeks all other symptoms went away and haven’t come back since!
It’s been two years (as of Jan 2022) since Glen embarked on eliminating the trigger foods to address his skin and other complaints. The decision to do the IgG food intolerance testing and following through with the program turned out to be truly life changing for him.
Nowadays, he is a keen advocate of food intolerance testing and encourages his clients, friends and family to utilise it to possibly solve their health problems, too.
He remains symptom free, is healthy, has good energy levels and has put on muscle, too.
Overall improvement: 100% from baseline.
Matthew, a 50-year-old personal trainer, presented with severe raised red welts, at times all over the body. In addition, he complained of blocked sinuses and the nose.
He started to get hives and raised red welts around 2 years ago. They started to appear first on the face manifesting as swelling of lips and/or the eyes every few days. Some days he was waking up with swollen eyes so severe that he couldn’t see properly. The hives were worsening with time and he was very concerned about his health and the negative impact of the worsening hives on his life overall.
Before doing the IgG food intolerance test, he followed a general elimination diet with a doctor. Although he got a bit better, he still had regular swelling periods quite badly. He also noticed that chemicals in foods triggered his symptoms.
He started the elimination diet straight after getting his IgG test results. Quite incredibly for him, the welts subsided straight away and disappeared completely after around 2 weeks on the elimination diet. They haven’t come back since i.e. around 18 months after removing the trigger foods (at the time of writing).
His sinuses and the nose also cleared completely with no previously reported symptoms. Even chemicals in food didn’t bother him anymore.
Doing the food sensitivity test and following the elimination diet based on the test results, had been truly life changing for Matthew, both personally and professionally. He’s now able to go out and have meals that are safe for him without being concerned about getting immediate reactions/ swelling. As long as he sticks to the food plan, he is symptom free!
This is an amazing example of resolving often difficult to remedy condition with the diet alone. Food is indeed a fantastic medicine.
Overall improvements: 100% from baseline!
Sophie, a 52-year-old bookkeeper, presented with a number of long-standing health complaints and imbalances including:
- Skin – eczema since childhood, at present eczema on both hands most of the time (knuckles crack open). Skin reactions to animal fur, dust, certain foods and when stressed
- Gut imbalances – bloating, flatulence, diarrhoea or constipation, reflux, pain/ cramps – not all the time but bad if going through an episode
- Fatigue – had glandular fever around 30 years ago, struggled with tiredness since
- Joint pain/ osteoarthritis – swelling around wrists and thumbs, as well as bursitis and inflamed tendon
- Stress – constant level of high stress, mood swings, memory problems/ brain fog, stress-induced diarrhoea
- Food allergies (confirmed by IgE testing) – allergic to fresh fish (anaphylactic), potato, sesame seeds, egg white and eggplant
- Nasal/ sinus congestion, watery eyes
- Blood sugar imbalances – craves sweets, excessive abdominal weight (fat above belly button), frequent thirst and urination
- Hysterectomy two years ago after years of endometriosis, adenomyosis and fibroids
- Thyroid cancer – thyroid removed two years ago, now on thyroid medication
- Asthma from birth, now under control
- Removal of gallbladder 20 years ago
Sophie was dealing with a number of significant health concerns over the years and was searching for natural therapies and nutrition strategies that could help her feel better. She also wanted to lose weight; her goal was to weigh 65-68kg (starting weight was 77kg).
Sophie’s complaints manifested across many body systems and organs making it a complex clinical presentation. She had a number of long-term health issues, some since birth, and other more recent ones. Improving her gut health and digestion, and decreasing inflammation throughout the body were the main goals of the nutritional therapy we embarked on.
She embraced the elimination diet from the start and removed all trigger foods replacing them with substitutes, where possible. It was a big task because of the large number of restrictions indicated by the test results – read the full case study report to learn more, link below.
Her progress was steady with most of symptoms/ complaints responding positively within the first two months. She was very creative with cooking and finding suitable recipes which helped her go along and enjoy it as much as possible.
After around seven-eight months on the elimination diet she noted the following improvements:
- Eczema is pretty much under control providing she sticks to the diet and avoids contact with animals, or exposure to excessive dust or pollen.
- Her energy and vitality improved significantly and she was able to start a part-time work which she enjoys very much.
- At eight months on the elimination diet she exceeded her initial weight goal of 65-68kg and her weight stabilised at 61-62kg.
- Although she still had high levels of stress in her life, she was able to deal with it better and felt stronger physically and mentally.
She was a good cook beforehand but she needed to significantly modify cooking methods and ingredients used. She was proactive and brilliant at finding new recipes, which she shared with me, including photos of the meals she made.
Overall, it was a remarkable turnaround for Sophie in the majority of the initial symptoms. At 8 months+ after the initial testing, she continued the diet guided by the retest results. She was also taking digestive support supplements and ate foods that aid digestion and detoxification.
She gradually lost 14kg in eight months.
Overall improvements: 80%-90% from baseline.
Read Sophie’s step-by-step journey on the elimination diet HERE.
Hormone imbalances case studies
Hormones affect inflammation and immune tolerance of foods (i.e. food sensitivities) we eat because immune cells have receptors to hormones. That’s why hormone fluctuations in women (PMS, PCOS, perimenopause, etc.) can cause or increase inflammation when the immune system reacts to foods.
We find that many women who struggle with hormone imbalances also have multiple food intolerances. This indicates that their immune system has lost the ability to appropriately tolerate the foods they eat. As a result, the immune system starts to react to many foods, or ‘everything’ in some cases, causing many digestive, absorption and inflammatory problems.
Health conditions and symptoms experienced by our clients in the hormones category included:
- PMS and heavy periods (menorrhagia)
- Painful menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea)
- Estrogen dominance
- Low progesterone
- PCOS and endometriosis
- Menopause
Zoe, a 17-year-old student, was struggling with hormone imbalances, significant gut symptoms and high anxiety. Her main complaints / symptoms included:
- Mood swings and feeling flat. Severity ranking: 9/10=severe
- Anxiety – she was working with a counsellor. Severity ranking: 8/10
- Heavy and painful periods. Low iron. Severity ranking: 7/10
- Reflux, bloating, cramps and constipation. Severity ranking: 7/10
- Migraines. Severity ranking: 5/10
- Seasonal allergies, nasal congestion, runny nose. Severity ranking: 5/10
- Acne. Severity ranking 4/10
She was taking multiple medications as well as many nutritional supplements.
Food sensitivity testing was suggested to her in order to reduce gut inflammation (and inflammation throughout the body), balance the immune function and support her nervous system. It was seen as a safe strategy to pursue as she was on many medications and supplements at the time.
Zoe started the elimination diet straight away after testing and was sticking to it at around 90%-95% for the most of the first 6 months. Improving hydration was an important step to help with constipation, she also started consuming fermented foods to support the microbiome and overall digestion. She was also advised to remove all environmental hormone disruptors such as plastic food storage containers, plastic water bottles plus any personal products she was using that contained plastics and chemicals. She switched to the natural alternatives.
Zoe kept improving physically and mentally after a few months on the diet. She had no heavy periods anymore but still experienced cramps and lower back pain for a few days during the period. Constipation also improved significantly. Sleep was better averaging around 8hrs per night.
During the first 6 months on the elimination diet Zoe’s adherence to the diet was around 90%. She slipped occasionally without experiencing major symptoms except for reflux. She said it was pretty difficult to remove gluten, dairy, eggs and yeast, among others, at the beginning of the diet but once she felt better, she was motivated to keep going.
Zoe was pleased with the results after 7 months and estimated her overall improvements were at 85%-90% from baseline. All symptoms improved significantly. Most improvements were seen in the following:
- Mood swings, feeling flat – from 9/10 initially to 1/10=severe
- Anxiety – from 8/10 to 2/10
- Painful periods – from 7/10 to 1/10
- Acne – completely resolved, from 4/10 to 0/10
- Migraines – from 5/10 to 1/10
Overall improvements in all complaints / symptoms: 85%-90% from baseline.
Tracey, a 45-year-old female, suffered debilitating migraines (long-term), peri-menopausal symptoms (especially hot flushes), insomnia and/or interrupted sleep.
She started experiencing menopausal symptoms at 37 years old (mainly hot flushes), together with migraines and insomnia. She saw many doctors over the years without success. A neurologist she saw put her on a medication for migraines. Shortly afterwards she started working with us to try a nutritional therapy for her ailments.
Food sensitivities testing was suggested to her by her chiropractor. She started the elimination diet based on the test results and began to see improvements in the second month on the diet. For the first 2-3 months she adhered to the diet at 100%, and later at around 75%.
Tracey experienced the following improvements over the first 6 months on the elimination diet:
- Migraines – she used to have migraines every second day, now she only gets milder migraines 7-10 days before a period
- Insomnia – she fell asleep easily but still woke up many times during the night. Her sleep has improved but was it still ‘pretty bad in a week before the period’
- Hormones – her cycles were more regular, every 28 days or so. She still gets symptoms in a week before period, mainly insomnia and hot flushes, but the rest of the month she feels fine
- Medications – she mostly stopped using Panadol and Aspirin to alleviate the symptoms
Tracey’s symptoms fluctuate depending on the level of adherence to the elimination diet, which she is still following most of the time
Overall, she achieved 50%-70% improvement from baseline.