10 NEW Tips for How to Succeed on the GAPS Diet

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This post shares 10 tips for how to succeed with your wellness goals on the GAPS Diet.

My three children and I adhered to the GAPS Diet for over six years. We were among the first patients to follow the diet. We started the diet at a time when there were very few resources or recipes available to support our process. So we created recipes ourselves (see my cookbook here) and learned and researched along the way.

That segment of time was filled with healing, learning, yearning, rebelling, quelling and, thankfully, no yelling. 😉 Humor, deprivation, mistakes, successes, lots of family … and a few regrets. What a bonding experience!

I cooked a little like a pioneer woman — making homemade meat patties for breakfast, roasted chicken for lunch and beef stew for dinner, with homemade (grain-free) gentle baked goods on the side … and usually a mug of bone broth.

We ate a lot of soup. We still eat a lot of soups and stews. (See my newly published cookbook of soup and stews here.)

Plus lots of cucumbers, sauerkraut, homemade yogurt, sprouted nut butter, or grain-free granola at times, and gummies.

We reached some of our goals, but I share here Why We Stopped the GAPS Diet.

In this post, after years of consulting with GAPS patients and guiding my own family, I share with you some of the tips and insights I continue to learn about How to Improve on the GAPS Diet.

A little bit about me

I am self educated (although in school to become a nutritionist). My consulting career started when local doctors began referring their patients to me for the food side of their patients’ wellness protocols.

I taught Weston A. Price/ancestral cooking classes and was/am well versed in a variety of wellness diets. I also owned and ran a bone broth GAPS Diet café for many years, and have authored two GAPS cookbooks.

I do not claim to be a medical authority or have all the answers. But I hope this post is helpful to you.

Tip 1. Read the book(s). But also look beyond the book

The task of creating a healing diet that encompasses all obstacles and all nutritional insights is impossible. Since Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride wrote her first GAPS book many years ago, she has gained even more clinical experience. Ten+ years of seeing new patients and training new practitioners to help patients around the world deepened her knowledge.

I used to hope Gut and Psychology Syndrome would be updated and edited at some point. Dr. Natasha ended up seeing that need and wrote her second GAPS book. While the first book provided most of what we needed to begin, those of us with complex healing journeys can benefit from (require) so much more.

If you work with a GAPS-trained practitioner (find one here), they have some knowledge beyond the books. If you don’t, just remember to reread the books and have a network to further your research: friends, blogs, Facebook groups (here’s one for Full GAPS, and here’s one for Intro.) and the willingness to research, ask questions and try new things.

Healing not only our own bodies, but often our children’s at the same time, rivals the work of a detective. We need updated and expanded resources.

Tip 2. Know about lectins, and consider eliminating them

Years after writing the first book, Dr. Natasha added information about lectins in her second book. Unfortunately, that was too late for us.

Recently made famous by Dr. Steven Gundry, lectins, not too dissimilar from other anti-nutrients you may have learned about, are plant compounds that cause leaky gut and prevent it from healing. Many of us learn about phytic acid and how to reduce it in nuts and seeds; now, more people are also discovering the effects of lectins.

Lectins could be a main thing standing in the way of healing. That’s because lectins are in many GAPS Diet staples: winter squash, zucchini, cucumbers, bell peppers and beans. The easy way to recognize a lectin-containing food? Is it a seed, nut or does it contain a seed? (There are some exceptions.)

While I embrace most truths that will get me well, I must admit, even I closed my eyes to lectins when I first learned about them. As in: Not another thing, please! I know you can relate. But if you get or have symptoms that won’t disappear, it may be time for you, too, to eliminate or significantly reduce lectins, to see what kind of progress you can make through their elimination.

Personally, I had stomach aches I couldn’t account for and a rash — until I eliminated most lectins. Removing those seedy foods finally allowed a new stage of my healing to happen.

Low lectin resources

Here’s a good place to start learning more about lectins and how to remove them from your diet. 

I also lost eight pounds when I eliminated foods high in lectins.

For a low-lectin grocery list combined with a low histamine diet, see this article … which includes the nuts and seeds that you can still eat on a low-lectin diet.

See here my lectin intolerance recovery tips, as I no longer have to worry about lectins.

Tip 3. Be willing to give up nightshades

Nightshades cause inflammation (often in the form of joint pain, bloating, puffiness and rashes) for many patients. Nightshades include not only the most well known produce items — tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes and peppers — but also goji berries, herbs like ashwagandha and well loved spices like paprika and cayenne.

Find a full list of nightshades here, and consider alternatives to these favorites. (For example, try delicious and healthy Nomato Sauce or Nomato Soup.)

Tip 4. Be willing to give up GAPS Diet foods, while on the GAPS Diet

Just when you think your diet can’t be any more restrictive, it can. Of course, if you’re not ready emotionally, then wait. 

Alternately, if you’re READY to be well and beyond your symptoms or to really help your child, then focus on the good things you CAN eat to get you through this/any period of deprivation.

I was down to just three foods for one stage of my healing process, but it was helpful and worth it; otherwise I had horrible rashes and stomach aches! I gave my body a break and was able to find healing modalities that put me back on the path to healing.

Ultra-restricted diets can reduce inflammation and give us time to research or gain new insights. They don’t last forever. Breaks from aggravating foods offer a potential path for new progress and breakthroughs.

Eliminate fermented foods?

Fermentation, while producing beneficial compounds, can also generate aldehydes like acetaldehyde. Aldehydes are reactive compounds found in our environment and foods.

The body relies on a crucial enzyme called aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) to metabolize these toxic aldehydes into less harmful acids for excretion. However, if there’s a constant or excessive exposure to aldehydes, such as from certain foods, it can overwhelm the ALDH enzymes and deplete the body’s resources needed for detoxification, including antioxidants like glutathione.

Aldehydes can negatively affect the body’s detoxification processes, even from sources like fermented foods, due to their inherent toxicity and the way they interact with detoxifying enzymes.

Fermented foods can contribute to a burden that slows down the body’s ability to eliminate toxins. People with genetic predispositions or those facing other stressors on their detoxification system might be more susceptible to these effects.

Consider using a probiotic that has noticeable benefits to your body in place of fermented vegetables or yogurt.

Tip 5. Be aware of too much vitamin A

This insight is the most important one I’ve learned since graduating from GAPS to wellness. While a profoundly surprising concept when I first read about it, too much Vitamin A is toxic and can actually exacerbate and prolong leaky gut conditions, including eczema, low stomach acid, an imbalance of gut flora and mental health issues — especially for those of us with compromised detoxification pathways or, unbeknownst to us, sick livers.

You can read more about the Vitamin A Detox diet here. The VAD diet can be combined with GAPS. I have multiple clients combining VAD with GAPS or AIP, seeing encouraging progress for skin and gut conditions as well as mental health issues and more. Personally, the first benefits I saw were mental health related and then skin and gut.

Examples of high vitamin A GAPS foods

Be aware that many GAPS foods are high in vitamin A; this silent danger exists for anyone doing the GAPS diet. If you’re eating winter squash, carrots, mangoes, oranges, watermelon, organ meat, tomatoes, bell peppers, kale or any other leafy greens, you’re taking in large amounts of vitamin A. I’m afraid I harmed myself by eating these ‘super foods’ for six years. Beware, and consider doing the Low vA version of GAPS.

One GAPS diet goal is to reduce the overall toxic burden on the body. But unknowingly, people load up on a toxin that the diet encourages, now also linked to osteoporosis in many medical studies. The GAPS diets forgets the importance of balance when it tells us to load up on certain foods.

Tip 6. Consider gentle bouncing for lymph flow

Consider doing The Big 6 to support lymphatic drainage. You follow the quick daily ritual with a brief period of gentle bouncing.

“Bouncing” refers to a rhythmic up-and-down movement, often performed on the balls of the feet, to stimulate lymph flow. This action helps pump lymphatic fluid, especially from the lower extremities, back towards the heart.

The lymphatic system acts as a “waste management system” in the body. It helps filter out toxins, waste products and cellular debris from the soft tissues and transports them through lymph vessels and lymph nodes.

A sluggish lymphatic system can lead to a build-up of toxins and waste, potentially contributing to inflammation, fatigue and other health issues.

Good lymphatic function helps eliminate harmful bacteria and toxins from the gut, reducing the risk of gut infections and inflammation.

Tip 7. Make sure you’re supporting your detox pathways in other ways too

• My favorite way to detox is through the use of our near infrared sauna. We have a two person sauna in our bedroom. The sauna has done wonders for my health and my teenage daughter’s. We bought a scratch and dent/floor model to save money. If your budget is tight, I personally believe they’re worth saving up for. Here is my favorite near infrared sauna site; they offer different models for different budgets.
• My other favorite way to detox is through grounding, or earthing. A vacation to sunny Southern California finally helped me move past the three foods I was stuck on. Connectedness to the beach and sun allowed my body to detox in ways that the Pacific Northwest did not. Read more about this miracle here. I continue to ground regularly even here in Oregon.
• Consider dry brushing. You can practice this ritual in just five minutes, three to four times a week before a detox bath.
• Be sure you’re pooping well. Constipation is a dangerous stagnation to our body’s main form of detoxing.

Tip 8. Include a few supplements

While the GAPS protocol doesn’t initially encourage supplements, most can still consider and benefit from a few of them.

Supplements to consider

• Magnesium plays a role in over 300 biochemical reactions in the body, including regularity (regular bowel movements are a key to detoxing). (My family and I take this oral Magnesium, and we use this topical Mg.)
• Talk to your doctor if you feel any B vitamins might be helpful, but more importantly, consider single minerals. We need zinc, potassium, selenium and molybdenum (in addition the Mg mentioned above). Consider a hair mineral analysis with my doctor (who best understands how to read and interpret the results) to gain insight into your unique body. Avoid all copper supplements.
• Supplements to treat specific conditions: for example, consider zeolite for grabbing onto toxins and building bone mass, diatomaceous earth for pathogen overgrowth and/or worms (read about using it here) or herbal antibiotics for pathogen overgrowth (read more about how-to here).
• Add minerals to your diet with fulvic acid.
• Using apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice) alongside activated charcoal helps with digestion and capturing toxins so they don’t wreak havoc. 

Tip 9. What are other dietary restrictions may be helpful

Learn more about:

• Low-oxalate (learn more here)
• Low salicylate
• Anti-candida (how-to here)
• Low-FODMAP (insights here)
• Low-histamine (combined with lectin-free here, because they’re linked)
• And, as mentioned, the Vitamin A Detox diet.

In my experience, you can overcome most sensitivities by following a low Vitamin A diet combined with a grain-free (for a limited time), sugar-free protocol and a few well-chosen supplements.

Food intolerances

Learn about food intolerances here.

Understanding the difference between a food sensitivity, a food allergy, and a food intolerance can be the key to breaking free from persistent health challenges and making real progress.

My daughter put her asthma into remission when we learned her food intolerance was dairy, and I put my incurable bladder disease into remission when I learned my food intolerance was all fruit (and eliminated it from my diet). I was completely lethargic after every meal I ate on GAPS that included fruit, but didn’t know why. Pulled fruit, got well.

Tip 10. Don’t hurry through Intro, even with the little things

Don’t hurry means:

• Drink meat stock instead of bone broth. Here is how to make both and the differences.
• Wait to sauté, broil, BBQ; use gentler forms of cooking.
• Use an Instant Pot (HERE) to make your life easier.
• Make great soups.
• Use a steam basket (here or the Instant Pot steam basket here).
• Wait on nuts and seeds, even the pancakes with nut butter and squash described in the book.
• Restart Intro if needed; plan on it. Read more about how to go slowly on Intro here.
• Combine Intro with the Vitamin A Detox diet for faster and deeper benefits.
• If you do the no vegetable version of the diet, you still need fiber! Fiber is what pulls toxins out, so they don’t recirculate. Some of the best sources of fiber that are GAPS friendly are: apples and beans. Two kiwi a day and prunes can also be helpful.