skin breakouts

[kimstories]

I am on day 16 of my first whole30 and am feeling really amazing. The only fly in the ointment is that I have multiple pustules and what seem to be boils on my body. Not hundreds but enough to be uncomfortable about them. Fortunately they are not on my face but rather my torso. Could this be because I am detoxing or completely unrelated to whole30 eating? Not sure if I should be worried or just ride it out.

Tx

[jmcbn]

It could be a symptom of detox, or it could be a reaction to something you're eating - if you'd like to list what you have eaten over the past 3-4 days, giving specifics about veg types, portion sizes etc we can take a look and see if anything jumps out...

[kimstories]

i have been eating pretty much the vegetables i always eat - nothing new or in much greater quantities. The usual really - cabbage, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, carrots,aubergine, leafy greens, peppers. The whole30 way of eating has had me cut stuff out rather than add much - salads and veg have always been a large part of my diet

[jmcbn]

Other than veg are you eating more nuts/nut butters than usual? Or coconut products? Dried fruit or larabars?

If you've cut foods out then those must have been replaced with something new - or more volume of something you're used to eating, which can have a surprising effect as our reaction to many foods is cumulative.

Have you started using any new beauty products, or detergents? Been anywhere which may have produced an environmental reaction?

 

Really in order to help you troubleshoot we need specifics...

[praxisproject]

Did these start just recently, or since you started your Whole30?

Have you had them before?

[kimstories]

Praxisproject - they are new, since starting whole30

jmcbn - i will create a quick food dairy for the last week and post it asap - thank you

[kimstories]

jmcbn - here is the last few days etc

 

Sunday:

Breakfast: sweet potato, butternut and white potato hash with onion and celery topped with a fried egg and roasted cherry tomatoes

Coffee with coconut milk (50ml)

Dinner: a piece of fish baked with rosemary and lemon, fruit salad

 

Saturday:

Breakfast: Aubergine slice topped with mushrooms and a poached egg

Green tea

Lunch: mixed cabbage coleslaw with mint mayo (homemade with olive oil and egg yolk) with tinned tuna and avo

Green tea

 

Friday:

Breakfast: avo, 1 egg, apple, cherry tomatoes, tahini sauce (home made with tahini, lemon, garlic)

Lunch: Salad with middlecut fish

Dinner: steak, egg and chips

 

Thursday:

Breakfast Omlette with aubergine, tomato, red pepper and baby spinach, and home made beetroot and apple juice

Coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: seafood curry made with mixed seafood and coconut milk on braised cabbage

Green tea

Dinner: lamb curry with stir fried greens

Rooibos tea

 

Drinking about 2 litres of water a day sometimes with lemon and/or mint, often just water

Have reduced my coffee intake to 1 cup a day from about 5

Drink one pot of either green or rooibos tea every day

No new detergents, body treatments, hygiene habits

 

I do not, and have never, eaten any processed meals or snack bars. The biggest change is cutting out grains, dairy and legumes. The only sugar I used to have was a tip of a teaspoon in coffee and alcohol.

I did used to eat quite  lot of dairy in various forms

[jmcbn]

Ok, first off - you're not eating enough. Some days you have only two meals, and you look very light on protein (when eggs are your only source of protein in a meal you should be eating the number of whole eggs you can hold in one hand - that's 3-4 for most females), and most of your meals look very light on fat. The fat you use for cooking is pretty much negligible as most of it stays in the pan so you should always look to include an additional source. Fat is essential for so many bodily functions - it really is your friend here.

 

I'm not sure that a nutritional deficiency would present itself so quickly, but nutrition is cumulative and if your body is struggling to play catch up nutritionally it may try & show you in a way that's pretty obvious... The composition of your meals isn't too bad, but I'd increase the volume of your food overall to see if that doesn't help, and stick to three meals a day - the first within an hour of wakening - your symptoms could also be the result of hormonal imbalance and eating meal one within an hour is one of the key steps in straightening things out.. You also only mention starchy veg on one day - we would recommend at least a fist sized serving per day so you might want to look at including a little more unless you have blood sugar issues or are particularly sedentary - it may or may not help - if it doesn't you can always cut back a little.

 

A couple of side notes:

Where your chips home made, oven baked? Anything commercially prepared or fried would be off limits.

Your beet & apple juice is fine for cooking, but not really for drinking - we'd prefer you ate the beet & the apple, and just used a splash of juice in some water if you want to fancy things up a bit.

.

[kimstories]

thanks for that

 

the chips are all home made - pretty much everything i eat is. and yes, oven baked

the fruit juice i use almost as a cordial to flavour water rather than having a whole glass

 

i am eating when hungry but maybe i need to eat earlier in the morning so i get three meals in

i am not a skinny woman under-eating so i am surprised to hear i don't eat enough

but let me try that, and increase the starchy veg to one a day

 

i will also eat an avo a day and include some nuts etc

 

thanks for the advice - i am feeling so amazing this slight glitch will not deter me

[jmcbn]

thanks for that

 

the chips are all home made - pretty much everything i eat is. and yes, oven baked

the fruit juice i use almost as a cordial to flavour water rather than having a whole glass

 

i am eating when hungry but maybe i need to eat earlier in the morning so i get three meals in

i am not a skinny woman under-eating so i am surprised to hear i don't eat enough

but let me try that, and increase the starchy veg to one a day

 

i will also eat an avo a day and include some nuts etc

 

thanks for the advice - i am feeling so amazing this slight glitch will not deter me

I'd suggest the likes of olives, or home-made mayo, or other oils/dressings over the nuts as an additional fat source - especially since you are already have skin issues and nuts are known to exacberate them.

Unfortunately not eating when you're not hungry only perpetuates the problem - aim for the three template meals as I suggested (and as is recommended - the template is the minimum amount you need to be eating) and if you feel you can't finish one then eat as much of it as you can, ensuring you get a little of each food group, and wrap up the remainder to eat as soon as you feel able (ie. do not wait for the next meal!). Your appetite will settle as your hormones do... and yes, meal one within an hour of wakening will really help in this process.

[kimstories]

I'd suggest the likes of olives, or home-made mayo, or other oils/dressings over the nuts as an additional fat source - especially since you are already have skin issues and nuts are known to exacberate them.

Unfortunately not eating when you're not hungry only perpetuates the problem - aim for the three template meals as I suggested (and as is recommended - the template is the minimum amount you need to be eating) and if you feel you can't finish one then eat as much of it as you can, ensuring you get a little of each food group, and wrap up the remainder to eat as soon as you feel able (ie. do not wait for the next meal!). Your appetite will settle as your hormones do... and yes, meal one within an hour of wakening will really help in this process.

thank you - i shall do that

i kind of forgot about olives. i shall add good fats to my diet immediately and report back in a week or so

[TheLadyD]

Once upon a time, we went on vacation and my daughter broke out into a rash. The local doctor said she must be having a reaction to something on site and that it would resolve when we got home. We got home, and it turned out she had strep throat before we even left!

 

So... it may be worth checking in with the doctor in case you have something else going on that appeared as you started your Whole30, as coincidences do happen.