And, another article on gut microbes causing RA.
Is is possible that fasting also resets the microbiota proportions?
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-07-02/health/sc-health-0625-rheumatoid-arthritis-20140702_1_gut-bacteria-rheumatoid-arthritis-prevotella

there have been numerous threads around here on the leaky gut/gut immunity causing RA thing. as it has in the past, i'm sure this will become a hot topic.

fasting can be dangerous for many people. always check with your doctor(s) before deciding to begin a fast.

additionally, any of the info i can find on this study does not specify what type of fast - was it a simple water fast? liquid fast? was there a period of time each day where eating clean foods was allowed? 'fast' can have many different meanings.

from what i understand, RA damage/pain is caused by an overactive immune system (very simplified explanation, i know). that is why immunosuppressive medications help alleviate pain/slow damage (again, very simplified). i was advised to stop taking supplements i took in the past to boost my immune system because of this. so i am unsure why doing something to strengthen our immune system would be beneficial; just doesn't make sense to me.

when we talk about fasting to 'rid the body' of anything, i don't buy it. our bodies are amazing machines and are capable of getting rid of the crap our body doesn't need - literally. without getting too graphic, we all know that our body doesn't need or digest the outer shells of corn kernels. our body doesn't need it, it gets rid of it. if we eat healthy, balanced diets with lots of color and fresh stuff, and drink adequate water, our bodies shouldn't be filled with crap.

i believe certain types of short-term fasts can help people positively affect their metabolism or jump start a new, healthier diet. i also believe certain types of fasts can make people feel more in control of their diet/health. these are positive things. i do not believe that fasting is the be-all end-all that so many people are touting them to be.

I guess you are passing on the coffee enemas this week Steph?

Depot

"Scientists first need to figure out whether the microbes are a cause or a consequence of the disease, said Yasmine Belkaid, senior investigator and chief of the Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases' Mucosal Immunology Section at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases"

Aggie, the above quote, cut and pasted from the Trib article, is critical. They have seen that at least some folks with newly diagnosed- NOT chronic, long-term- RA have more of this particular bacterium than the general population. No one has any idea what that means. It could well be that new inflammation in the body causes an overgrowth, which then rights itself with time. Who knows? No reputable scientist will say that the microbiome of the gut is known to, in any way, cause RA.

As Steph points out, anything thought to strengthen the immune system is the exact opposite of what we want. Our immune systems have the tendency to work too hard, rather than not hard enough.

I had H1N1 about three years ago. I was so sick, I couldn't eat a thing for a week. I made myself drink water. By the end of the week, I noticed that my RA had subsided and that began a lengthy new remission for me. I always felt sure that the "fasting" was what caused the remission.

I am hungry every couple of hours and can't imagine going without food, so I won't be fasting anytime soon, even though my RA has been active for the past year. But if I got the flu again, I wouldn't mind so much, because I would be able to test my theory.

One more note: in my case, it also occurred to me that the H1N1 "distracted" my immune system - moving it away from my joints. If that was the case, the "fasting" didn't have anything to do with it.

There was a study done using fasting. The results were fairly positive for symptom reduction.

70% of your immune system is in your gut. If you have developed food intolerances which are causing your inflammation - fasting would eliminate many of the allergens from your system in three days. (A few like gluten can take weeks). More and more research is linking what happens in your gut with developing autoimmune diseases.

I would chech with GP first and pick three days when you're not at work. You're gonna be grouchy :)

I may actually have to do something similar myself to Identify whatever my body's decided is it's new trigger food. But I'm going to do black/green teas with honey. I never drink that - so it's not a suspect. And I tend to go hypoglycemic, so I need the sugar source.

Good luck and tell us how it goes!