Step 10: Clean Food

What to eat/drink

Healthy choices in foods and drinks play an important role in reversing many disease symptoms and increasing overall life expectancy. Follow these tips below as part of your overall treatment plan for any disease.

1) Proper hydration

• Try to drink at least one half ounce per pound of body weight per day.
• First thing in the morning you are dehydrated from the night. Many functional health professionals suggest you drink 16-32 oz of water before consuming anything else.
• Consider adding the juice of 1/2 organic lemon to that first glass of water. This will help alkalize your body (the lemon turns alkaline in the body)
• The Big Berkey gravity fed filter is recommended by many practitioners since it get out 99% or more of most contaminants.
• If you use reverse osmosis water you must add a mineral supplement such as ReMyte or Aussie Minerals.
• If swallowing is an issue (Bulbar ALS)
  • start drinking carbonated water until your throat heals enough to drink regular water again. Carbonated water can severely deplete minerals, so make sure you are taking plenty of minerals and trace minerals if you have to drink carbonated water.
  • consider getting a feeding tube as soon as possible
  • if you are unable to drink 1/2 oz per pound of body weight, request IV fluids until a feeding tube can be placed.
  • If you are not getting enough hydration you are impairing your ability to heal. Review Step 45: Feeding tubes for details.
• Review Step 8: Clean water to make sure you are getting the best water to heal.

2) Avoid Processed and UltraProcessed Foods

• Anything in a package is a processed food
• Most food items in a package are ultraprocessed.
• Read ALL ingredients on the package. Avoid seed oils, all kinds of sugars, any artificial ingredients.
• Many ingredients are GRAS – Generally Recognized as Safe. This means there is NO testing of the food and the effect on the body.

3) Eat Real Food, Non-GMO and Organic whenever possible

• Look up the “Dirty Dozen” and the “Clean Fifteen” to determine which are the most important fruits and vegetables to always eat organic. Link to dirty dozen and clean fifteen.
• Buy local, freshly picked food will have more nutrients.
• Grass-fed and grass-finished beef, bison, lamb has the most nutrients.
• Organic pasture-raised chickens, if possible
• Organic pasture-raised eggs are best, Omega 3 eggs are second best
• Wild-caught smaller fish (larger fish have more toxins)

4) Eat lots of healthy fats

• Coconut oil, MCT oil, avocado oil if organic and olive oil if organic and not cooked
• Ghee, beef tallow are excellent fats. The latest research is showing that clean grass fed animal fats are good for the human body. This is opposite of conventional belief.
• Many nutritionists are suggesting as high as 70-90 percent fats for a person with neurological impairment.
• For cooking coconut oil is best since it has a higher smoking point – resists oxidation at high heat
• Eliminate vegetable oils such as corn oil, canola oil. Most oils are GMO (genetically modified).
• Unless organic, avoid avocado, safflower and sunflower oils

5) Meat

• Meat is an extremely nutrient-dense food. It has B-12, Vitamin D, vitamin C, ideal copper/zinc ratio ideal. Therefore, for those with limited appetites it is a good option and can be ground in a blender with water or bone broth for a feeding tube.
• Make sure all meat is grass fed grass-finished, organic, and hormone and antibiotic free
• Most areas you can find ground (mince) grass-fed, grass-finished beef, bison, lamb and more.
• Beef, bison, lamb, elk, venison, goat all have four stomachs, so the digestive process reduces the number of toxins if conventionally raised is your only option. Chicken and pork only have one stomach, so are much more likely to be allergenic.
• Check for any additives to the meat. For example some hot dogs and 100% beef and some sausages are 99.9% real meat with the .01% spices. Avoid any form of sugar or processed oil additives.

6) Fish

• Needs to be wild caught
• Only eat smaller fish, salmon, cod or smaller
• Farm raised fish has too many antibiotics which is contraindicated for ALS.
• Do not eat shark or swordfish or other large fish because toxins are bio-concentrated in them. 
• Do not eat most shellfish because they live mostly near the bottom of the water where heavy metals accumulate.

7) Vegetables and low-glycemic fruits

• Read about lectins and consider low-lectin vegetables and fruits. Lectins can be reduced significantly by soaking overnight.
• Read about oxalates. Avoid high-oxalate foods. Many people are sensitive to oxalates.
• Google which foods are high in oxalates and high in lectins. Look up the ways you can reduce the lectins in your favorite foods.
• Get food sensitivity testing. You can also use the coca pulse test as a way to see which vegetables and fruits you may be sensitive to. Google Coca Pulse test.
• Eat low-glycemic index vegetables and fruits. Google what the low-glycemic vegetables and fruit are.
• Consider low carbohydrate, keto or carnivore (13 below).

What foods/drinks to avoid

1) Avoid processed foods.

• A processed food is a food packaged with multiple ingredients.
• ultra-processed foods are even worse. They undergo extensive processing and are often left far from their original natural state
• If there are any words you don’t recognize in the ingredients list, stay away from.
• Avoid any artificial flavors. Be careful with “Natural flavors” can include MSG and other things that are known to be dangerous for those with ALS
• NO artificial colors, flavors and sweeteners

2) Avoid energy drinks, gatorade, soda including diet, sweet tea, etc.

• Most drinks are high in sugar, corn syrup and other known
• If they do not have a form of sugar almost all will have artificial flavors, colors and sweeteners.
• Avoid fruit juice (eat the whole fruit instead). All fruit juice contains concentrated amounts of sugar, which without the fiber, is absorbed too quickly and suppresses the immune system.
• Limit carbonated water or flavored carbonated water since they leach minerals from the body.
  • These can help transition you to water.
  • If you consume these, supplement with extra minerals.
  • If you are drinking carbonated water because of Bulbar ALS swallowing symptoms, make sure you have even more minerals and celtic or Redmond salt under the tongue.
• Limit coffee. Coffee has a lot of good properties. It is a diuretic and pulls magnesium from the body. If you drink coffee.
• If you are drinking RO Reverse Osmosis water, remember these have NO minerals so you need to take electrolytes, additional minerals and Celtic/Redmond/Himalayan (clean source). See Step 7 Water.

3) Watch for food sensitivities and allergies

• Most important is observing reactions to foods.
• You may notice a change in your gut, your stool, mood or energy level
• The Coca Pulse test is a great FREE tool for checking for sensitivities. Google Coca Pulse test.
• Muscle testing each food is a great way to see if that food makes you strong or weak
• The AO Scan has a food sensitivities category in the Vitals Scan
• There is a skin patch test that is covered by most insurances
• The LRA test Lymphocyte Reactivity Assay is also a measure of sensitivities that are not detectable in other tests

4) Sugar Free

• Sugar causes inflammation and weakens the immune system.
• Now brand Monk Fruit tincture Nutramedix Stevia are good substitutes for sugar
• DO NOT use aspartame, advantame, Neotame, acesulfame-K, saccharine, sucralose, erythritol or other “alcohol sugars

5) Dairy Free

• In our experience ALS Patients do better on a dairy free diet.
• There is medical literature to support dairy free is best.
• Some people are able to handle eating butter which is mostly good fat.

6) Gluten free

• Gluten containing foods are bread, crackers, pasta and many more. All of these are irritating to the gut and cause inflammation.

7) No corn/wheat consider grain-free or limited grains, avoid GMO and non-organic grains

• All grains are inflammatory and harder for the body to digest and turn into sugar which in turn weakens the immune system
• Corn, soy, wheat and many other grains are doused with Glyphosate or Round Up. These containing BT. BT Crops are transgenic crops that are genetically engineered from the DNA of bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. BT Crops produce the same toxin as the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis in the plant cell, thereby, protecting the crops from pests.
• It is important to know that GMO soy and corn are BTGMO which basically means you are producing antibiotics and pesticides in your gut.
• Wheat and cotton seeds are Cotton seeds and BTGMO corn are used to feed livestock in feedlots, which then contaminates conventional meat.
• Limit rice. Rice is one of the safest of the grains. It often has aresenic and lead. Always soak or rinse your rice prior to cooking.
• Limit quinoa. Quinoa is high in oxalates and contains allergens that many are sensitive to.

Transitioning to a new way of eating

Go slow. Do it gradually.

• When transitioning from one type of diet to another, it is usually advisable to change slowly so you can observe how your body reacts to the new foods
• For example if you are stopping sugar, eat more fats to help with the cravings. You may get headaches and can eat a piece of fruit to alleviate symptoms. Usually within a week, sugar cravings disappear on a no-sugar diet.
• When transitioning to a low carbohydrate or ketogenic diet, go slowly. For example if you are usually eating 200 grams a day of carbohyrates, transition 175 for a week, then 150 for a week, then 125, 100, 75, etc.
• Monitor your weight.
  • With ALS maintaining weight is very important. If you are overweight or underweight, it is not healthy, so you want to work slowly towards your ideal weight.
  • If you are over your ideal weight, you do not want to lose weight too quickly. Toxins are stored in fat and your body can only handle a certain amount of toxins released at a time.
  • if you are under you ideal weight and want to gain weight, consider increasing protein and healthy fats first, then slowly reduce carbohydrates. If you lose weight when trying a particular diet, stop, and go back to what was working. Then re-strategize so you can move to healthy alternatives without losing weight.

Other Diet Options

There are many diet options including Ketogenic, Paleo, Medical Medium, Wahls, Carnivore

General

• It is important to remember that ALS reversals have used a wide variety of diets and still healed.
• We do not recommend any particular diet since some people do well on mostly vegetables and some protein, while others do very well on mostly meat.
• You need to figure out what diet works best for YOUR body. Everyone is different.

Modified Ketogenic

• A modified ketogenic diet is often recommended for ALS by functional practitioners
• This diet is than 50 grams of carbohydrates per day
• It has no sugar or starches yet allows vegetables and some low glycemic fruits.
• This is important since sugars feed the fungi and the other microbes that are in your body.
• Grains turn into sugar in the body, which makes them often as harmful or even more harmful than sugar.
• You need to eat plenty of fat and protein or you will lose weight
• Transition slowly to avoid detox reactions

Ketogenic

• Many people do well on a ketogenic diet.
• A ketogenic diet is less than 20 grams of carbohydrates per day.
• A ketogenic diet is recommended for those with seizures (Johns Hopkins research).
• A ketogenic diet has no fruits, no fruit juices, no sugars, no starches, no vinegar products that can be easily converted to something that the microbes can use as energy.
• If inappropriate weight loss is occurring, you many not be eating enough fat or you need digestive enzymes to help absorb the fat you are eating.
• Transition slowly

Carnivore

• It is strongly recommended that you start with low carbohydrate, then transition to modified keto, then keto BEFORE trying carnivore. This allows you gut microbiome to adjust and allows you to detoxify slowly.
• A Carnivore diet is zero carbohydrates.
• More and more of those diagnosed with ALS are doing a version of the Carnivore diet with good success.
• Consider a carnivore diet temporarily, since this is a good “elimination” diet to see what foods you are sensitive to. Start with beef only, then add things to see if you have adverse reactions.
• Do NOT continue this diet if you are losing weight.
• You need to have enough fats, salt, electrolytes, potassium and magnesium or you may lose weight.
• Do NOT continue this diet if you have detox symptoms, instead stop then do a modified keto diet first and slowly transition.

Whole Food Plant Based Low Carbohydrate diet

• A whole food, plant-based low carb diet is often recommended for those who do not eat meat for religious or philosophical reasons.
• Some people find the Medical Medium diet helpful. Others have had bad reactions and feel more meat is necessary. This diet is based on the original book Medical Medium and also the Medical Medium book series by Anthony William and consists of a lot of fruits and vegetables.

Terry Wahls diet

• Some PALS have had some success on a modified Terry Wahls diet. Google for more info.

If you have Candida or fungus

If you have candida or fungus in your body (white tongue or yellow toe nails are one indication of this)

• make sure that your HERTSMI mold test is close to zero (See Step 6)
• make sure you are drinking mold-free coffee and mold-free nuts (avoid peanuts since they almost always have mold. Other nuts should be kept in the freezer.
• a ketogenic diet for 10-12 weeks is recommended (If you are living in mold this will have only limited success).
• nasal irrigation (Step 31) for 10-12 weeks is recommended at the same time as you are living in a mold-free environment and doing a ketogenic diet.
• If you have been diagnosed with metabolic syndrome consider a ketogenic or modified ketogenic diet. A ketogenic diet has been proven in the scientific literature to be more effective against metabolic syndrome than any drug. Most doctors and conventional nutritionists are unaware of this.

Tube Feeding

Never hesitate to get a feeding tube.

• It can be removed once you heal.
• You need strength to heal ALS and food gives you that strength.
• You also need adequate water and hydration and the feeding tube allows for that.
• Supplements can easily be given in a feeding tube.
• A decision to get a feeding tube is a decisions to give yourself adequate nutrition to heal.
• Are you:
  • losing weight?
  • having trouble drinking plain water?
  • choking on food or water?
  • unable to eat a main meal in less than 30 min?
• If yest any to any of the above, see Step 45 immediately for more details about feeding tube.

Ideal Feeding Tube Food

Best

• In general best results are from homemade food. We realize that at times we need replacements.
• May families just blend the food that they are eating for dinner: fatty proteins, fats and supplements. Vegetables can me blended too. Avoid sugar, starches, fruit and dairy.
• Meat can be blended in a Vitamix blender with bone broth or water and this is the most nutrint dense way to eat, way better quality than the best feeding tube formulas
• Note: It is find to blend meat, vegetables and supplements. Avoid blending eggs. Instead consider blending squid or octopus. Liver, beef and other meats are also good for replacing the nutrients provided in eggs.

Better

• Health Code has a low carbohydrate meal replacement. https://gethlth.com/shop/
• There are an increasing number of organic meal replacements on the market. Look carefully at the number of grams of fat, protein and carbohydrates

Avoid

• Any formula where any form of sugar is in the first four ingredients.

Organic Feeding Tube Formula

• Avoid Ensure, Jevity and most commercial feeding tube products since they contain mostly sugar
• Homemade smoothies are probably the best option.  You can blend the meals that you serve the rest of the family or make high nutrient smoothies or both. You can add supplements into the feeding tube
• Liquid Hope is the best option among the pre-made formulas, however if you want low-carb you will need the keto formula.
• Health Code (above) is another good option for for feeding tubes and is low-carb.
• Kate Farms is 2nd choice since it has a lot of sugar and carbohydrates.
• Liquid Hope cost is fully covered by Medicare/Medicaid for those who are feeding tube dependent
• Check with Durable Medical Equipment (DME) providers in your area to see if they are currently ordering it for others
• Get a script from your doctor with a prescription for Liquid Hope.
• Your DME should now be able to order it.
• If you are still having a problem getting any of these contact Hope-JG.org and she will walk you through the procedure.

Watch Coco Newton Presentation from the 2019 Healing ALS Conference

We suggest you watch the Video below more than once. There is a lot of great information that you will get the second time through you might miss the first time.

Coco Newton Presentation – 2019 Healing ALS Conference

Watch/Review Food Boot Camp 1 if you have not already.

Boot Camp Week 1 10.18.20 The Basics, Diet, Supplements and Gut Function (vimeo.com)

Check for Understanding and Completion of Step 10:

1. ____I have increased my hydration to 1/2 ounce of water per pound of body weight per day of clean water.
2. ____I eat organic whenever possible.
3. ____ I watch for food sensitivities and allergies.
4. ____ I eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
5. ____ I eat healthy fats.
6. ____ I have started a gluten-free diet.
7. ____I am dairy free.
8. ____I am sugar free.
9. ____I am grain free or limiting grains.
10. ____ I eat clean meat.
11. ____ I eat clean fish.
12. ____ I have reviewed the modified ketogenic diets and am finding the diet best for me.
13. ____ I have HEAL on hand and understand it is a good meal replacement for one meal per day.
14. ____I am finding the right feeding tube formula.
15. ____I have watched Food Boot Camp 1.
16. ____I have watched the Coco Newton presentation from the 2019 Healing ALS Conference.

If you have checked all boxes, Congratulations! You have completed Step 10!

References:

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Cui, F., Sun, L., Xiong, J., et al. (2018). Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy in
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Zhu, Q., Wang, Q., Li, X., et al. (2023). The safety and effectiveness of high-calorie
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Golomb BA, et al. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Associated with Statin Use: A
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(9-fold to 107-fold increase risk of developing ALS if on statins from FDA reported data)

Nabizadeh, F., Balabandian, M., Sharafi, A. M., Ghaderi, A., Rostami, M. R., &
Moghadasi, A. N. (2022). Statins and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A systematic
review and meta-analysis. Acta Neurologica Belgica, 122(4), 979–986.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13760-021-01753-8

Dardiotis, E., Siokas, V., Sokratous, M., Tsouris, Z., Aloizou, A.-M., Florou, D.,
Dastamani, M., Mentis, A. F. A., & Brotis, A. G. (2018). Body mass index and survival
from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A meta-analysis. Neurology: Clinical Practice, 8(5),
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The information we share is for educational purposes and should not be treated as medical advice.

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