The AIP Diet: The Best Foods to Eat for Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are on the rise. As we see more people diagnosed with them, more research is being uncovered so they aren’t quite so difficult to work with. Although they are still complex conditions, considering how they affect the immune system and body, new research is showing that there may be a fairly simple way to manage symptoms. In this article, we will talk about how diet affects autoimmune disease and the best foods to eat for autoimmune disease control.

The AIP Diet

What are autoimmune diseases?

You’ve likely known someone with an autoimmune disease. Diseases like postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), lupus, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis (MS), and others are considered to be autoimmune.

Autoimmune diseases are strange because the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues. Each condition affects the body differently and the cells that are attacked determine which condition you have.

Often, there are genetic aspects to autoimmune disorders and this is usually how they become diagnosed — through genetic testing.

How does the gut affect autoimmune disease?

Recent years have exposed that there is a gut aspect to autoimmune diseases of all kinds. The gut is responsible for so many different processes within the body.

Approximately 80% of our immune system resides in and is controlled by the gut microbiome. The gut microbiome controls our inflammatory biomarkers as well which plays a role in autoimmunity.

Metabolites that are released from the food we eat help to repair damaged tissues and cells. When we have a diet that is unhealthy it can promote inflammation and disease.

Any breaches in the intestinal barrier can lead to autoimmune disease onset. If the intestinal barrier is not strong, it allows gut bacteria to escape the gut microbiome. As these bacteria float freely throughout the body it causes an immune response. If this happens repeatedly from a leaky gut, the extra inflammation can confuse cells so they begin to attack what is actually a healthy cell.

While the gut is not 100% to blame for autoimmune diseases, it can play a role in their onset and it is especially important for autoimmune symptom control.

Most autoimmune disorders have an overlap of gastrointestinal conditions (some of the GI conditions are autoimmune in nature) like ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, IBD, and IBS.

Many autoimmune diseases have a distinct microbial profile — meaning the bacteria that reside in the gut is similar in all patients with that same condition. This in and of itself is proof of the gut microbiome’s hand in autoimmune disease.

How does diet affect autoimmune disease?

While diet isn’t the only way to affect the microbiome, it is one of the biggest influencers of what microbes are living there. How the microbes use our food can be affected by the strains inhabiting the microbiome, but by consistently introducing foods that feed the good bacteria, we can begin the slow road to recovery.

Dietary interventions for autoimmune disease can be somewhat complicated when it comes to people with food allergies or sensitivities, which autoimmune patients often experience.

Working closely with your doctor or a registered dietician can help you rule out what foods are causing flare-ups and what are actually beneficial to your individual state.

As a general rule, eat healthy foods and avoid unhealthy ones. This sounds simple but sometimes foods we think are healthy might not be. Fortunately, doctors and researchers came together to create guidelines for people with autoimmune diseases and what they should eat or avoid.

Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet: The best foods to eat for autoimmune disease control

The AIP diet is similar to the paleo diet in that you really focus on only eating whole foods. There are two main phases to the diet: elimination and reintroduction. Anyone with IBS or other gut-related issues will be familiar with this model.

During the elimination phase, anything that could be a food sensitivity is removed from the diet. This will include foods like nightshades, gluten, grains, nuts, seeds, dairy, and other potentially inflammatory foods. (These foods are not inflammatory to everyone and should not be restricted unless under the careful supervision of your doctor.)

You’ll also be avoiding processed foods, high-sugar foods, unhealthy fats, alcohol, nicotine, and any unnecessary medications.

This phase isn’t just about eliminating foods. It’s about focusing on making healthier lifestyle choices as well. So there will be a high focus on eating nutrient-dense foods, sleeping schedules, exercise routines, and stress management.

The goal of this phase is symptom management. Once you begin to feel better, the reintroduction phase can begin. The timeline for this differs from person to person; it can be as short as 3 weeks but sometimes takes up to 90 days for noticeable differences. This is absolutely a be patient and trust the process time.

You’ll start with one of the eliminated foods and introduce it back into your diet. Pay attention to any symptoms you may experience. When you are reintroducing these foods, don’t do so if you’re experiencing stress or poor sleep as these variables can affect your symptoms as well and you don’t want to mistakenly avoid a particular food when the symptom flare is due to stress or sleep.

Once you’ve determined if that food is a trigger or not, you can move on to the next food to reintroduce. This period will take several weeks or months but will be well worth it when you’re feeling back to yourself.

Foods to eliminate during the AIP diet include:

Grains
Legumes
Nightshades
Eggs
Dairy
Nuts
Seeds
Caffeine
Alcohol
Processed food and oils
Refined and processed sugars (some doctors may even have you limit fruits so they can rule out fructose as a trigger)
Food additives
Artificial sweeteners

That sounds like nearly everything you probably eat. But don’t worry, the list of foods you can eat while on the AIP diet is just as long:

Vegetables (that are not nightshades)
Fresh fruit in moderation and as long as your doctor hasn’t eliminated it
Tubers
Free-range meats (avoid highly processed meats)
Fermented foods that contain natural probiotics
Minimally processed vegetable oils (olive, avocado, coconut, etc.)
Herbs and spices
Vinegars that do not have added sugar
Natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup (as long as your doctor has okayed them)
Tea
Bone Broth

Cutting out carbs can be hard for a lot of people because they are what fill you up. But if you focus on getting more tubers and protein this can help reduce the hunger feeling and keep you feeling fuller for longer.

The goals of the AIP diet are to help you heal your gut and single out food sensitivities you may have.

If you need some help finding recipes that adhere to these strict guidelines, check out our blog for some ideas. Keep in mind that we have a focus on IBS-related diets, but since the low-FODMAP and AIP diets are fairly similar, you can very likely find some new recipes to add to your rotation.

The AIP diet is still in its infancy and though research is promising it is not completely in favor of the diet. However, many people are seeing results from dietary changes for their autoimmune conditions. As long as you are approaching it carefully alongside your trusted physician, trying the AIP diet has a strong potential to give you relief.

**Since the AIP diet is a restriction diet, it can cause certain levels of food anxiety to arise in some subsets of people. If you feel anxiety around food, you should bring this up with your doctor so you can work through this. Restrictive diets can become dangerous if there is a psychological barrier to the reintroduction phase. Healing your relationship with food and knowing how to use it to heal your body rather than a fearful relationship with it is the best way to help your condition. Not adhering to the reintroduction phase can lead to nutritional deficiencies that can cause further problems.**

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