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By following the Clary Sage diet created by Dr. Kalish, you will maintain stable blood sugar, feel better physically, have more energy, eliminate cravings, improve sleep quality, and lose weight. It is important to determine the proper balance of proteins and carbohydrates that is right for your unique biochemistry. Some people require more protein, others more carbohydrates. Always choose the highest-quality food, organic when possible.

Food to Avoid for 60-90 Days

Gluten

Gluten intolerance is a very common undiagnosed problem that can be a serious health complaint causing a variety of symptoms, from weight gain and fatigue to Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Although not everyone is gluten-intolerant, everyone benefits from a two-month gluten-free diet, because it forces us to eat less of the processed, refined foods that contain gluten, and more unprocessed foods such as organic vegetables, quality proteins, fats, and healthy carbohydrates. People who are gluten-intolerant need to modify their gluten consumption for life. For everyone else, the two-month period is sufficient, after which gluten-containing grains can be reintroduced into a healthier diet.

Eating gluten-free means avoiding all foods containing gluten, including wheat, rye, spelt, bulgar, semolina, couscous, triticale, and durum flour. Gluten can be hidden, so it is important to read labels carefully. Be wary of modified food starch, dextrin, flavorings and extracts, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, imitation seafood, and creamed or thickened products such as soups, stews, and sauces. Starchy foods that are allowed include amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, corn, millet, potato, quinoa, oats, and rice.

Soy

Approximately half of those sensitive to gluten are also allergic to soy and soy products. Part of this may stem from the ways in which soy has been genetically modified and the frequency with which it is used as a food additive. Avoid all concentrated soy protein products, including tofu, tempeh, soy protein powders, and bars that contain soy protein, for the initial two months,. Most people tolerate the small amounts of soy proteins found in soy sauce or whole soybeans.

Pasteurized Dairy

Food reactions to pasteurized dairy products are the most easily detected. These products are pasteurized milk, cheese, yogurt, and cottage cheese — but not eggs. There are two potential problems with dairy products: lactose intolerance, which is an inability to digest the carbohydrate or sugar portion of milk, and milk allergy, which is a reaction to the protein in milk. Pasteurization and homogenization destroys the enzymes in milk that help us digest it, the healthy bacteria in milk that help keep the gut working well, and the beneficial fats in dairy, rendering what could be a very nurturing and healing food a potentially harmful product.

While pasteurized dairy is to be avoided, raw dairy may be introduced after two weeks of a diet free of dairy. After two weeks, most people will be able to tell if they are sensitive to dairy by drinking a large glass of whole raw milk first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. If you have no digestive symptoms from doing this, then you can likely consume raw dairy products. Raw butter has butyric acid, which along with the healthy bacteria in butter helps heal the GI tract in dramatic ways.

Foods to Include

Protein

It is very important to eat adequate protein at each meal. The variety of protein sources and quality are important factors. Limit protein consumption to sources that are organic, hormone-free, free-range, grass-fed, and “wild” in the case of fish. Use only fresh meats; avoid those that are processed and packaged. It is important to divide the day’s total protein over the course of the day. You may need to increase this amount if you are a protein type.

Choose from the following sources:

Beef, pork, lamb: Eat up to four times a week.

Fish: Eat a variety of grilled, steamed, baked, or poached, but do not bread or deep-fry. Do not eat canned tuna; it is very high in mercury. Ask for wild fish over farmed.

Poultry: Eat a variety of chicken, turkey, Cornish game hen, in a mix of dark and white meat. Do not bread or deep-fry. Acceptable cooking methods are grilled, steamed, baked or roasted.

Eggs: Eat as often as three days a week. The yolk has nutrients that are denatured when cooked through, so eat eggs soft-boiled, sunny side up, or over-easy when you can.

Nuts: These may be used as a protein snack source. Raw and organic tree nuts are preferable.

Cheese: All cow’s milk products must be eliminated for the first two weeks. Choose goat and sheep cheeses and goat’s milk yogurt as alternatives if your specific plan allows. After two weeks, you may introduce raw (unpasteurized) dairy into your diet.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates include vegetables, fruits, grains, and beans. The best carbohydrates are plant-based, nutrient dense, and rich in vitamins.

Vegetables

Nutrient-rich vegetables provide an abundance of the vitamins and minerals that sustain your body. Again, quality and variety is key. Your body is best nourished by high-quality organic produce. Many therapeutic nutrients such as antioxidants and flavonoids are associated with the properties that give vegetables their color, so make sure you are eating a good range. Eating vegetables raw or lightly cooked helps maintain vitamin and mineral content and makes them easier to digest.

Green vegetables: Eat an abundance of greens. They are high in minerals and low in calories. Good examples include Swiss chard, kale, collard greens, mustard greens, bok choy, beet greens, spinach, and salad greens. Dark-green steamed vegetables are superior to salad greens.

Yellow and orange vegetables: Eat these in smaller portions and always balance with green vegetables and protein. Some examples include yams, winter squash and carrots.

Onions, garlic, and tomatoes: Eat these as desired, unless allergic.

Fruits

Whole, fresh fruits are allowed in moderation. These include berries, citrus, melons, apples, and pears. Your best fruit choices are berries – strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries – or melons and grapefruit. Avoid bananas and grapes because they can play havoc with your blood sugar, as will dried fruit, which may contain harmful preservatives.

Grains

Only gluten-free grains are allowed. Acceptable grains include include amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, corn, millet, potato, quinoa, and white or brown rice. There are now rice breads and millet breads available for toast and sandwiches, as well as rice, corn and quinoa-based pastas.

Beans

Beans and legumes are an excellent source of carbohydrate and can be eaten frequently.

Fats

It is important to have some fat at each meal, and as with all food groups, it is important to give your body a variety. Choose from walnut, extra-virgin cold-pressed olive, sesame, cod liver, coconut, and real butter. Raw butter is ideal because it possesses healing qualities. Avoid all margarines, hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils, as well as canola oil and processed mayonnaise. Butter, coconut oil and olive oil are the most stable with heating but temperatures are still best kept as low as possible when cooking.

Beverages

Water is the best beverage to drink. Our bodies are 70 percent water, and it is considered a nutrient, optimizing digestive function and elimination of toxins from your body. Always choose filtered or pure spring water. It’s best to avoid caffeine, fruit juices, and alcoholic beverages, especially beer, which contains gluten. If you are a daily caffeine consumer, don’t quit right away. Start by making improvements in your diet and exercise patterns, and the need for the extra boost caffeine provides will fade over time.

Snacks:

• 1–2 oz Goat or Sheep Cheese and ½ &ndash 1 cup vegetables
• 1 piece fruit and 6–10 nuts or 1 Tablespoon nut or seed butter
• Sunflower seeds, Pumpkin Seeds
• Hardboiled or Deviled Eggs along with ½ &ndash 1 cup vegetables
• 1–2 oz piece of Chicken, Fish, Turkey, Beef, Lamb along with ½ c. vegetables
• Nuts — almonds (a higher protein content), walnuts, brazil nuts and pecans (6–10 nuts per snack) raw (for their enzymes) and organic are preferred, be sure to chew all nuts thoroughly
  • Almond butter, tahini (sesame seed butter) — 1 tablespoon per snack
  • Eliminate peanuts for a minimum of two weeks (they are a potential allergen and more difficult to digest).
  • Cashews, pistachios, pine nuts and macadamia nuts are higher in fat content and best left out until weight and food cravings are properly managed

Sample Meal Plans

Breakfast:

• Eggs — poached or over-easy are preferable cooking methods. Eat with sautéed vegetables or mixed greens.
  • Sauté veggies (onions, tomatoes, basil, rosemary, spinach, etc.) in olive oil, push to side of pan and proceed to cook eggs in the vegetable/oil/juice sauces.
  • Add yams, rice, potatoes as appropriate for your specific food plan and always in balance with the protein and vegetables.
  • Enjoy the creative process and all of the smells of the vegetables and herbs!
• Omelets &mdash lots of sautéed veggies, avocado and salsa, feta or goat cheese if allowed on your specific diet plan. Be creative! Enjoy with çhicken sausage, sautéed vegetables, rice/potatoes/yam (as appropriate for your specific plan).
• Turkey, Lamb, Chicken Sausages — with sautéed vegetables, Rice/Potatoes/Yam/Beans/Lentils (as appropriate for you). Find best quality at Whole Foods or comparable store.
• Dinner Leftovers — chicken, turkey, fish, meats with vegetables or salad.

Lunch:

• Salad with çhicken, tuna, eggs, turkey, lamb, beef, sausages. Use balsamic-olive oil dressing, or any olive oil based dressing.
• Chicken, turkey, fish, lamb, beef with sautéed vegetables or salad *
• Omelets with vegetables, feta or goat cheese if allowed on your specific food plan *
• Dinner leftovers — chicken, turkey, fish, meats with vegetables or salad *

*with appropriate portions of rice/potatoes/yam/beans/lentils

Dinner:

• Beef, turkey, seafood, chicken, lamb — marinated, grilled, steamed, poached, herbed, spiced, baked with salad, vegetables and appropriate portions of rice/potatoes/yam/beans/lentils.
• Example: poached or over roasted fish topped with herbs and olive oil alongside steamed kale and brown rice.

Eating Out:

• Meat, chicken, fish, turkey, lamb &mdash grilled, steamed, poached, stir-fried with salad, vegetables and appropriate rice/potatoes/yam/beans/lentils.
  • Ask for substitutions of vegetables or salads in place of starches.
  • Make it easy on yourself — ask them to hold the bread basket.
• Rice Bowls or rice noodles (protein, vegetables, rice) save for evening meal.
• The Bunless Burger — ask for protein wrapped in lettuce.

Restaurants:

Any restaurant that serves grilled, poached or sautéed fish, chicken, turkey, beef and lamb — ask that bread basket not be delivered to table and ask if your menu choice has any hidden flours (see below). Accompany your meal with a Salad, Vegetable, Rice or Potato. Our culture has become very bread/pasta oriented. Do not hesitate to break the cultural rules.

Hidden Glutens:

Read food labels carefully. Glutens can be hidden under such names as hydrolyzed vegetable protein, modified food starch, dextrin, and natural flavorings. Gluten might also be found in the alcohol used in flavorings such as vanilla and in distilled vinegar and veined cheese such as Blue Cheese and Roquefort. Even the smallest amount could be enough to keep you from feeling the best that you can.

Intolerable Foods/Drinks	Tolerable Foods/Drinks
Wheat Rye Kamut Teff Spelt Soy	Corn Rice Wild Rice Oats Buckwheat Millet Arrowroot Amaranth Quinoa Wheat Grass Tapioca Taro Barley Grass Barley Malt Vinegars Bean Flours