My kids haven’t really been sick since we converted to vegan in October of 2011. Even with all of the bouts of really nasty sickness they’ve come into contact with at our homeschool co-op or church. They’ve had the occasional runny nose or low grade fever, but it never turned into anything, and was gone within hours.

Well, the 15 year old went on a youth retreat recently, where very little vegan food was served. He did the best he could, but still ended up eating some meat and dairy… which I totally believe compromised his immune system. I could tell something was up when he got home. He was way too subdued. I asked if they’d stayed up really late. He said, “not really”. I should have started the “sick war” immediately. I should have made him rest, but I thought he was just tired from a full weekend. He resumed his normal schedule Monday morning (5:30am spinning class, 8am college class, TKD class…). By Monday evening, he was down. He slept for the better part of 36 hours with a low grade fever and sore throat. By the third day he complained of an ear ache. I finally broke out the heavy doses of vitamin C, juices, green smoothies, and vegetable soups. For his ear, I made an alcohol/grapefruit seed extract concoction. A few hours after the first application, he could no longer hear out of that ear, a few hours after that, a gob of mucus came from his nose. The next morning he noted some blood from his nose… and then he was on the mend.

It’s almost been a week and he’s not 100%, but considering the crud that’s going around (weeks of recovery), he’s come out of this fairly quickly and with rather mild symptoms. The 10 year old woke this morning complaining of a sore throat. I kept her home from church and we started in on the Vitamin C, juices, green smoothies, vegetable soups, and rest immediately. She’s already doing better.

My kids used to get sick a lot. We went vegan, and now they don’t. Yeah, I think there’s a connection.

Are you looking to make some changes in 2013? Check out The Journey for more information.

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What I read: Exodus 30-32

What I ate:

• Breakfast – 7 oranges juiced
• Lunch – Green Smoothie (6oz apple juice, 6oz coconut water, 2 bananas, 2 oz kale, 2oz spinach, 7oz strawberries)
  
• Dinner – 2 bananas, 8 dates, 1 stalk celery, 8 oz coconut water (blended together)
  
• PM Snack – Not sure yet, sort of watching the super bowl
  

What I did: none

Here are the notes I made regarding my symptoms throughout Day 40:

• slowed digestion (gas, abdominal pain, bloating)
  
• headaches
  
• puffy hands, feet, and face
  
• sinus congestion
  
• dry/itchy eyes, skin, and scalp
  
• acne
  
• aching muscles and muscle spasms
  
• foggy brain
• irritability
  
• mood swings
  
• blood sugar fluctuations
  
• fatigue – still having bouts of fatigue, but not as bad
  
• unable to sleep well
  
• unquenchable thirst
  
• cravings
  
• chest pain
• cold sores – last one 1/13/2013
  
• kidney stones – eliminated when we went vegan Oct 2011
• tooth pain