Autoimmune: The Cause and The Cure (This book identifies the cause & the cure for: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Raynaud's, Rosacea, Myasthenia Gravis, Hashimoto's, Type 2 Diabetes, Multiple Sclerosis, Sjogren's, and more)

Autoimmune diseases run in my family and I watched parents and grandparents suffer from a number of debilitating illnesses. I tried for years to do all I could to prevent my health from following the same path as theirs. I began to eat gluten free to try to get rid of stomach aches and diarrhea and although that helped, it didn't completely eliminate these problems. Recently I had developed severe joint and muscle pain. I took Tylenol each morning just to be able to go to work. I would come home at night and be unable to do anything but sit on the couch with a hot water bottle. I was definitely open to trying something new in order to feel better. I have a biology degree and the research cited in this book made good sense to me. So I decided to give it a try.I started with just three of the many things recommended in the book. I began eating only organic produce. I quit eating processed foods. I stopped taking supplements. I was not on any prescription medication, but took a multi-vitamin and vitamin D supplement each morning. After learning in this book how my body could be fighting against these supplements I decided to stop taking them on a trial basis. WITHIN TWO DAYS OF IMPLEMENTING THESE THREE CHANGES I WAS COMPLETELY PAIN FREE!!! Needless to say, I knew Annesse and Kristin were on the right track.Pasteurization kills all the enzymes in milk including those you need to digest and assimilate it. Milk never agreed with me and this book explained why...my body was fighting against the denatured proteins that resulted from pasteurization. I was getting closer to osteoporosis with each bone density test. I was taking vitamin D to help absorb calcium, but this just wasn't working. I decided to give the raw milk a chance. I visited a local dairy that has grass-fed, grain-free dairy cows and bought a cow share so I could buy raw milk. We are taught in school that we must pasteurize milk for it to be safe. Not true! In fact raw milk has beneficial bacteria that will not allow the bad bacteria to survive. Raw milk can be contaminated through improper handling procedures so it's important to know your dairy follows proper handling procedures and that you do the same. I now drink raw milk without any ill effects. I make raw milk kefir. I've ordered raw milk cheese and love it!I'm learning how to make fermented foods at home, because they are an important part in healing your digestive track. I also stopped buying meat at my local grocery store and began getting pasture-raised organic beef and pork from the same folks who own the dairy. Once you taste these healthy foods and see how much better you feel, you will have no desire to go back to your old way of eating!Each week I find another example that reinforces the research and information in this book. I stopped by a local liquor store where the owner is knowledgable to ask about organic wine. During our conversation he mentioned that his two favorite beverages (wine and coffee) both come from crops heavily sprayed with pesticides. He gave me information on the organic/biodynamic wines that he carried in his store. He also mentioned that during a recent trip to Guatemala there was a lot in the news about a death and illnesses caused by a pesticide mishap with folks working in the coffee fields. I love coffee, but it always gave me a stomach ache. I had never considered the pesticides. I bought some organic coffee beans and it was no surprise that I didn't get a stomach ache, plus it just tasted better.I've also lost 10 pounds in the two months I've followed this diet. I feel better than ever! I'm no longer having digestive problems. I find that the foods I eat leave me full and satisfied. I'm not continually hungry for something that my body isn't getting in the food I eat. I thought I ate well before, but realized most of what I ate was heavily processed, full of chemicals, and had little nutritional value. Don't deprive yourself of the opportunity to live well and healthy. Read this book (several times) to learn what you need to know to successfully battle autoimmune diseases. It takes a little effort, but it is well worth it!

I very much have enjoyed this book. I believe her ideas have merit and her conclusions seem to be well researched and documented. I am going to order the hard copy of this book though, because the kindle version is hard to maneuver around when looking for things. (Truthfully, I love a book in my hands.) She has some recipes in the back and lots of ideas which are great and I wish I had the book to use for them.I am a graduate of a health food cooking school and have followed an holistic approach to care for over 20 years. I know that diet has much to do with how we feel. I started my quest because of postpartum depression. Taking time to fix the foods you need is hard, and seeing the results from your efforts demands patience. But, while I haven't been perfect through out the 20+ years of healthy eating, I can honestly say that I would probably be in a lot worse position health-wise than I am now if I hadn't been paying attention.This is the one thing that I think is difficult about this book. If you are not acquainted with "how" to make fermented foods, or growing your own sprouts, you can easily get overwhelmed just by the thought of it. I personally, have never been a huge fan of naturally fermented foods as many of them have a sour taste that I find difficult to get accustomed to. However, that said, I think the end result, "feeling better", is worth the effort. I think I was most convinced by this when she said she started eating 2 spoonfuls of sauerkraut a day and by the end of a week she had no pain. (I don't know where this is in the book, but this is close to what she said.) This tiny affirmation, tucked deep into the book, was enough for me to try to get used to the sour taste of fermented foods.A small diversion to make a point on the challenge of learning to prepare foods the way she suggests. When I was first diagnosed with Celiac Disease, I was TOTALLY overwhelmed with all the things I had to learn about my new eating lifestyle. I found my adjustment easier because of my cooking school experience, but it still was very much a challenge. I likened it to moving to a foreign country and learning the language and customs. There is always a learning curve. Some are steeper than others. The same will be true when you adopt the lifestyle this book is advocating. There will be a huge learning curve. But, what the author says is sound and backed up by many studies. So, I believe it is worth the effort and outcome to learn and try. My last piece of advice is don't be discouraged, it will work and it will get easier.I did not give this book 5 stars because I feel it is not easy for the average person to just "switch over" to another lifestyle.

Please note, there are 100's of 5 star reviews not found here on the UK site! Sort it out Amazon! This book is quite simply revolutionary. I have cured myself of Sarcoidosis, asthma and eczema. It's that simple, cured. Totally. The premise is simple and backed up by a huge amount of hard science and actual studies you can look up yourself. I've been applying the reccomendations for 5 months now and all my symptoms have cleared up. Years of struggle with various issues from chronic rhinitus, ashtma, bouts of flu, eczema and finally Sarcoidosis are all now behind me. At 40 years of age I feel better than I did at 20. Even my weight issues are resolved and maintaining a healthy fit weight is a breeze by comparrison. I strongly reccomend this book. Throw away your prescibed medicines that treat the symptoms not the cause and get healing.

One fact/statement leads to a reference every time a comment is made it is then highlighted and repeated again. In my opinion that is what a"references"section is for at the end of the book. For me the book looses its flow as result of this. It is also very very very 😀 repetitive but goes without saying that some pertinent information is shared.The book covers similar subject matter to Dr Terry Wahls "The Wahls protocol" and "The H factor" but misses some important points from "Honest medicine" Also I would disagree on reference that LDN could cause issue with endorphins production in the long term. I personally know of at least 20 people who have used LDN with no issues of this and been taking it for up to 20 years!So I think the book could have been presented more elegantly to make it easier to read. The end parts are easier to read... Almost written by someone else! I don't like the fact that there is a commercial element to the book with references to a website where you can buy products....especially when the authors give the impression that the book is a mass collection of papers/articles....but ends up with a bit of shameless promotion.I would also disagree with eating with most fruits whilst trying to heal the intestine. Personal experience (I have Crohn's and others..) it's big no no in most schools of thought....the diets include fruit smoothies ...no! Also misses the point/research on High FODMAP and fermentation whilst trying to heal your intestine....you don't want a load of glucose to fuel fermentation in the gut. Also lack of mentioning ketosis...as a key helper in the healing process.So in summary, some very interesting papers presented with a clear message , thank you for sharing that. But not an easy read. The resulting advice is very similar to advice given by many paleo books but with more clinical references as to what may lead to autoimmune disease. So worth a read...with a pinch of sea salt...and deep breath to help with the repetition.

Extremely interesting book, makes so much sense and is really well written.I would highly recommend this book to anyone thinking they may be suffering from any sort of autoimmune illness. I found it really rang true after researching ME/CFS and Lupus over the years.The only one criticism would be that I really don't agree about what foods she feels you can absorb high protein, Iron and B12 from (basically only meat which couldn't be further from the mark)and that India has the highest rate of diabetics and heart disease because of high levels of vegetarianism there(this is more likely because they fry everything and eat tons of sweet foods), but apart from this is a super, super book.

This presents a theory on the cause of autoimmune disorders, this being that the body is unable to properly digest proteins and these mal formed products trigger an immune response (I assume the leaky gut theory still stands as a co - factor and this is how poorly broken down proteins get out into the body?).The solution is to try and heal the GI ala Sally Fallon's very good nutritional theories.The theory - plus more - is very well presented. Are they right or wrong? No-one knows yet but this is a super book.

You should also consider the US reviews.This is a diet approach which is well researched, founded in science and worth researching. My only complaint is actually too much science before telling u what to try. 2 months on me and my wife are free of some medical issues and very happy. In context I am a post grad educated therapist, and my wife is a nutritional therapist. This is a real and lasting solution.