That Sugar-Free Life.

If you’ve browsed my website (particularly my Wine page), you may have learned that I am one of the 7 million individuals in the US affected by psoriasis. Fortunately, I don’t have it all over my body: mine is limited to my scalp. It is still, however, super frustrating to deal with on a daily basis: dealing with medications, treatment routines, the itchiness and urge to pick, and, although it sounds peculiar, diet restrictions. It has been about 4 years that I’ve been dealing with this immune-mediated condition, which seemingly came out of nowhere, and I’ve tried everything! I’ve read countless articles, seen multiple doctors and dermatologists, purchased dozens of shampoos and conditioners, and tried every home remedy on the internet. Although I am still on my journey to trying to improve my condition each and every day, I did come across an approach that has helped me tremendously…

Throughout the years, I’ve read dozens of articles discussing the correlation between certain foods and psoriasis flare ups, as well as certain foods that could be good for reducing inflammation. I started adjusting my diet accordingly, but didn’t see any significant results. The science is not proven, but many individuals have found diet adjustments to work, so I wondered why it hadn’t for me. Then I came across a doctor that was suggesting people take the diet restrictions a step further by following his elimination diet. Although I was a bit nervous about the whole thing, I decided to give it a try.

For 2 months, I avoided all wheat, grains, meat (other than fish), nightshades, sugar (including natural), dairy, and alcohol. You're probably wondering what I did eat given all those restrictions, and I can say I had a lot of options, but I did get creative. I basically ate green vegetables, beans, fish, nuts, avocados, simple salads (only including the ingredients just listed), and yams. And yes, my wife was forced to do it with me - for the most part. She was down to support me no matter what if there was a possibility it would help in any way.

All of this was ok for a while, but then I started missing simple things, like my homemade hot sauce (no peppers), a relaxing glass of wine with some parmesan cheese, and oddly pizza - I have never been a big pizza guy, but I craved this more than anything. But I maintained course, because no food is worth the effects I was facing day in and day out dealing with psoriasis.

And so, we maintained a very strict diet, and although my psoriasis did not go away, it improved to a place where it was better than ever. I was still itchy from time to time and had mild dandruff, but none of the thick scabbing, intense itchy flare ups, and scalp bleeding that I had in the past. I was still taking my medication of course, and continued to use organic all natural shower products (washing my hair every few days instead of daily), but these elements were my constants of the experiment, I had been doing them all along.

After a few months, I believe I got to a point where I was fully detoxed off of everything inflammatory, and decided I would try to slowly reintroduce certain food groups to see if they had any negative effects. I started with healthier things like nightshades and fruits, and did not notice any major impacts. Then, we took the leap and ordered a pizza, after which I was relatively ok, suffering no major flare ups. I continued the process with other foods like rice, cheeses, alcohol (started with strictly hard liquors like whiskey) and didn't notice any impacts. I was quite surprised how well I was reacting to all of these foods, although I was still eating them in moderation as I introduced them.

Finally, I took the step of trying a dessert. I tried one of my favorites from the Fudge Shoppe, a chocolate covered peanut butter graham - basically peanut butter on a graham cracker, covered in chocolate...if heaven had a taste, it would be one of those. I’ve always struggled with stopping myself if I am enjoying something that is unhealthy, like smelling freshly baked cookies and eating 10 once they came out of the oven, and the same applied here. Once I had that first bite, I scarfed down the whole thing. Then, within an hour, my scalp became fiery itchy! It was the itchiest it has ever been. Of course I was sad, but at that moment I realized that sugar was a big problem for me. I would face the same flare ups after drinking certain wines as well. It was interesting that it was not all wine though, and I had not had these effects after eating natural sugars from fruit. When I tested this theory further, I realized that any foods that have natural sugars like fruit, honey, etc., I did not have these reactions to - it was just the food that contained added processed sugar.

From there on in I have not found a food group that causes me as much distress and I began going back to my typical diet, but stopped eating foods with added sugar entirely. This has forced us to get creative with certain foods, deserts, drinks etc., which was the kickstart to what has turned out to be a really fun culinary journey - not to mention the health benefits from eliminating added sugar from our diets. This experience has helped me a ton, although it has not completely ridded my scalp of psoriasis.

Sometimes in life we are forced to react to what gets thrown at us. We can choose to let it get to us, and in the case of my psoriasis, frustrate me every time I am at a restaurant and can't order dessert. Or we can take active steps forward in growth and learn to enjoy the alternatives. Whether we choose change, or it happens upon us, in some way or another it is inevitable. So let’s choose to embrace it, and allow ourselves to continually grow into the best versions of ourselves.

Hope you enjoyed the week end read,

Dionisio III

P.s. if you struggle with inflammation in different ways and don't know why, I highly recommend trying the elimination diet. Not only will you help provide yourself with near term relief, you may also be preventing more serious illnesses that could arise down the road.

P.p.s. here is one of my wife’s modified chocolate chip cookie recipes made from chickpea flour!

No Sugar-Added, Chocolate Chip Chickpea Cookies

Prep time = 10-15 minutes

Cook time = 10 minutes

• Gluten free

• Grain free

• Dairy free

• Sugar free

Servings: 16-20

Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/3 cup chickpea flour

• 1/2 cup coconut sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil

• 1/2 cup no-sugar added chocolate chips

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1 egg

• pinch of salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set on top of oven until ready to use.

• Mix together the coconut sugar and melted coconut oil until creamy with a mixer. Add in egg, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined - don’t overmix it!

• Add in your chickpea flour, baking soda and a pinch of salt and mix those in until smooth. It may be a little dry but fear not! Next, fold in the chocolate chunks.

• Use a cookie scoop to form large cookies. Place on the lined baking sheet. We make 6 large cookies on each sheet. Flatten the dough slightly on top with your hands until it forms a more “cookie” shape.

• Place in the oven to let bake for 9-10 minutes. Let them cool for about 3-5 minutes on the pan before you transfer them to a rack to let them fully cool. Enjoy warm and dip it in milk!