Patients of both doctors and nutritionists in functional medicine often ask them what they should eat. The answer is often to avoid gluten, wheat, dairy, soy, corn, canola oil and more.

After patients are tested and told not to eat eggs, dairy, wheat/gluten, nuts and seeds, they often wonder what is left.

There are many types of diets including keto, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, carnivore and more. What’s best for each individual depends on what our bodies need and what we are sensitive to. The best approach is to obtain a functional blood analysis and food panel. This way, we can determine deficiencies and the foods we are sensitive to.

There’s a difference between a food sensitivity and an allergen. Some people have sensitivities based on the underlying pathology, i.e., Candida, viruses, parasites and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). So, for example, a person may not be allergic to apples, but when they eat them, they may experience terrible bloating, gas and even diarrhea. When our gut is fully assessed any of the mentioned pathogens are accounted for, we can systematically eliminate sensitivities and eat a wider variety of foods. In this scenario, we would eat a low-FODMAP diet and clear out the SIBO with specific herbs that kill the harmful bacterial overgrowth and work to restore the microbiome balance.

Elimination diets work well to uncover what triggers symptoms, and functional medicine testing can reveal what foods are healing and which are causing inflammation and dysfunction.

It’s recommended to keep and maintain a food journal that details all food and drinks for a few months and getting extensive testing to take the guesswork out of getting well. 

Dr. Sean Inselberg, DAc, MSc, CNS, is chief executive officer at the Nutritional Wellness Center, located at 1 Cinnaminson Ave.,
Palmyra, NJ. For more information or to make an appointment, call 856-499-2160 or visit www.NWCNJ.com.