The Hidden Wonders of...Turmeric?

During one of my crazy internet-searching frenzies last month, I came across a message board hosted by the American Foundation for the Blind.   Here I found some folks who also suffer from MFC.  Most of the posts were full of confusion: Why was this happening to me?  What is your life like now?  Should I keep going with the prednisone?  

Then, like this little gem, I found a post from a woman who claimed to have been cured!  By turmeric!  She went out and got turmeric supplements as a natural remedy to her MFC.  In as little as a month (!!!), this woman halted her MFC and even regained some vision.  This was and is a little incredible.  I sat on this bit of information for a couple weeks, vowing to stick with the new diet for now before involving supplements.

Then I found myself in front of a Vitamin Shop and the next thing I know, I'm purchasing a 30-day supply of turmeric supplements.  A bit of research into this spice revealed that it's famous for its anti-inflammatory properties.   I found another article that connected turmeric to the remedial effects of Indian cuisine, which is great because I love Indian food.

However, I've always been lousy at remembering to take daily pills (apologies to all those forgotten antibiotics), so this could be tough.  The pills are large and smell strongly of turmeric but they don't taste strong.  So, here's hoping.

A New Year, A Lifetime Resolution?

Hello and welcome to my blog! I hope that this will be a meaningful attempt to keep track of and reflect upon my experiences with an anti-inflammatory diet. For approximately five years, I have been suffering from Multi-Focal Choroiditis, a poorly understood condition which produces inflammation of the retina. It is my hope that this new eating lifestyle will decrease and manage MFC.

Much of my battle with MFC has been very passive, waiting for doctors to prescribe prednisone, laser treatment, or Avastin injections directly into my eye. When symptoms flared up, I went to the doctor and recieved some type of drug. The drugs would usually keep the inflammation and leakage under control for a few months...and then I would repeat the cycle. I resigned myself to living this way for the rest of my life. Eventually, I knew the inevitable would occur: full blindness in my affected right eye.

Part of me did not worry too much. In 2004, when all this began, I told myself that technology and research would advance in the coming years. For now I would be a medical mystery but one day, there would be a "cure".

In December 2008, I had a disheartening appointment. The inflammation in my eye was flaring up again...something it had not done in years. My doctor admitted that he had no answers for me, and the appointment ended with yet another Avastin injection. I went home and immediately began researching everything I could find on MFC and found helpful community support groups. A small handful of posters mentioned the remedial effects of an anti-inflammatory diet. The basic philosophy guiding an anti-inflammatory diet is that our body's ability to produce anti-inflammatory hormones has been thrown out of balance with the introduction of pro-flammatory foods. By restoring our body's natural balance through the introduction of healthy food, inflammation could be kept at bay. I was intrigued.

Here it was: potentially a way for me to take this condition into my own hands. Almost five years after my diagnosis, I knew I could no longer wait for a medical miracle to fall out of the sky. It was hard not to wonder: was this trick--eating healthy--something I could have done so long ago?

Curious, hopeful and above all desperate, I rang in the New Year with a lifetime resolution to eat healthy. As someone who generally shuns resolutions, this one should be interesting. I invite you to read my blog and share your own experiences. I extend an especially warm welcome to my fellow MFC-sufferers...perhaps we can begin answering our own questions about this very serious condition.

I will use this blog to not only report out on my reflections but also to share information about helpful books, recipes, and websites.

Happy New Year!