--- In Autism-Mercury@yahoogroups.com, Michele <calif.michele@s...>
>wrote:
> And, at this time, I am beginning to have problems from consuming
>cilantro. It
> worked well for me for a long time. But now it isn't working so
>well. I can make guesses as to why but I can't really know why.

Michele,
Thanks for sharing your story with us. I always appreciate your
thoughtful posts and your attention to detail.
I am wondering what happens when you use cilantro now. Have you
stopped using it completely now?
Thanks
-----------
Linda,
I am consuming less of it and I often have a metalic taste in my mouth from
doing so. I believe that means that my body has cleared enough of the metals
that the cilantro is now pulling from the remaining amalgams in my mouth, thus
putting more metals into me, sigh (AGAIN: I have never had a hair test! -- so I
have no objective measure of any of this). What I order for lunch has changed
several times in the last 16 months. I am reluctant to stop eating at this
restaurant because the high quality of the organic food, low cost, and other
factors have made this such a good fit for me. This has been a cornerstone of
my diet for 16 months and my genetic disorder means that eating has always been
a real hassle for me. So I am afraid that I am kind of being dragged away
kicking and screaming. :-(

I believe that there is cilantro in some of the food other than the rice. Most
days, I no longer order the rice. I think I am still getting SOME cilantro, but
a lot less -- but, again, I have no means to measure how much since I don't make
any of this food.

Last year in the summer, I would feel obviously a LOT better on days when I ate
at this restaurant and obviously a lot worse when I skipped it. As I grew
stronger, the degree of difference was less severe as long as I *usually* had
lunch there -- ie skipping one day wasn't a real big deal but skipping two days
meant I could really feel the difference. And when I first began eating there,
I would usually come home and take a hot bath within the hour and then nap. And
I could tell I was sleeping the way you sleep when you heal. It was really
apparent that the food had a big impact on me. And gradually, it became
less...um...pronounced. The impact was there but subtler.

As I grew healthier, I ordered smaller portions of things and I think that
gradually reduce the amount of cilantro I was eating. I used to order EXTRA
rice with my food. Initially, I believed it was because I have always had
trouble eating and I tend to eat bland food. After I joined this list and
realized cilantro was a chelator and the rice was the main source of cilantro, I
realized that the extra rice might be a desire for more cilantro, not simply a
desire for something bland to fill up on when I had difficulty eating and was
just picking at the meat and veggies and struggling to eat enough to feel full.
I can't really say when I stopped ordering "extra" rice. I think it must have
been some time earlier this year, in the spring.

In (roughly) the last two or three weeks, I have begun not liking the food as
much and have begun having this metallic taste in my mouth. I would like to get
the two remaining amalgams removed at some time but I do not think that is
feasible any time soon (I am in the midst of a divorce, recently moved, etc).
So, in the last week (or two?), most days, I do not order the rice. When I do,
I have a metallic taste again for at least 48 hours -- which really discourages
me from ordering it again. I have not felt well the last couple of weeks and
with my genetic disorder, allergies, etc. it gets really tricky to figure out
which problems come from where. I KNOW some of my symptoms are due to pollens
and other things I have been exposed to outside but it seems to me I cannot
fully account for all of it, so I have to wonder if some of it is from metals
being redistributed. I do not think this is a big health crisis (yet!) --
except that I am really upset at the idea of no longer eating
lunch at this restaurant! But I am leaning more towards working on an
alternative because I am beginning to feel that I am less well for eating there
here lately, not more well. Changing habits like that is always a big deal for
me because of my disorder. (whine, whine). And this change was relatively
sudden. With the hurricane and everything, I don't think I really thought it
all through until I tried to answer your question.

I have begun having headaches here lately. Usually that is from an allergic
reaction and when that is true, antihistamines usually resolve it. The
antihistamines seem insufficient, so it seems increasingly likely that on top of
whatever allergic reactions I am having, there may be another cause.

I think I have just talked myself into not eating lunch there tomorrow. Bummer.
:-/

So, in short: in the last two weeks or so, I am not well and can no longer seem
to chalk it all up to "pollen" (etc); I am having "new-ish" symptoms that are
not my normal problems; I am having a metallic taste in my mouth which is worse
in direct relation to how much cilantro I have consumed; and I seem LESS
energetic after lunch rather than MORE energetic. I think that about covers it.

Now I feel like sucking my thumb. I want my blankie. :-P

And thank you for asking. I really had NOT thought it all through. I was aware
of some of this but had not drawn any clear conclusions -- in part because it
takes time to observe a clear pattern. My health issues are complex and things
creep up on me and can take time to sort out. So I think I really need to stop
eating at this restaurant, if only to see what the result is.









Michele in California

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