The autoimmune paleo diet is an elimination diet that supports the immune system and gut lining in people with autoimmune disease. Could it help you?
Autoimmune diseases occur when your body’s immune system mistakenly attacks your own cells, perceiving them as a dangerous foreign invader or pathogen.
This reaction causes systemic inflammation as autoantibodies start to attack your healthy tissue. More than 20 million people in the United States have some sort of autoimmune condition, according to estimates. And millions of them are yet to be diagnosed.
Symptoms of autoimmunity can vary but commonly include skin rashes, joint pain, brain fog, and fatigue–just to name a few.
The autoimmune paleo diet, also referred to as the autoimmune protocol or AIP diet, is a variation of the paleo diet that strives to heal the immune system and digestive tract lining in those suffering from autoimmune disease.
The diet temporarily eliminates potential dietary triggers that may be causing inflammation and further fueling autoimmune reactions.
How does the autoimmune Paleo diet work?
The protocol requires at least 30 days of elimination of the following.
- dairy
- gluten
- grains
- pseudo-grains (like quinoa, buckwheat, and amaranth)
- legumes
- nuts
- seeds
- nightshade vegetables
- eggs
- processed vegetable oils
- alcohol
- added sugar or sweeteners
- food additives
- NSAIDs (such as ibuprofen)
After the elimination phase of the diet, you reintroduce eliminated food groups one at a time and assess your reaction.
If a reaction occurs, these foods should be eliminated again. Then you can retest for tolerance at a later date, usually after another month.
The AIP diet helps to uncover a more personalized paleo-based diet that helps to reduce inflammation, promote gut healing, and diminish autoimmune-related symptoms for the long-term.
Beyond just a diet, the autoimmune protocol also emphasizes a way of life that prioritizes adequate sleep, stress reduction, and regular physical activity. These lifestyle factors are known to have a direct influence on symptoms of autoimmunity.
At Parsley Health, we promote these self-care practices as essential components in achieving optimal health and wellness for all individuals.
Until recently, the AIP diet was only supported through the anecdotal stories of the thousands of people who successfully used the protocol to help treat their autoimmune disease.
But new research in the past few years in the journals Inflammatory Bowel Disorders and Current Developments in Nutrition examined the effectiveness of AIP for inflammatory bowel disease, a group of inflammatory conditions of the colon and small intestine.
In both studies, the researchers found that the majority of study participants, greater than 70 percent in each study, achieved remission after six weeks of following AIP.
The AIP diet has also been shown to help with Hashimoto's disease.
Broader applications of the AIP diet and autoimmune disease require more research.