Brenda Khan
The Wahls Protocol is a diet designed by Dr. Terry Wahls to help manage her multiple sclerosis (MS). It involves eating nutrient-rich foods, including meat, fish, brightly coloured fruits, and green leafy vegetables, while avoiding dairy, grains, legumes, sugar, and other foods. The diet is approached in three levels that ease a person into new eating behaviours. While the exact number of grams of carbohydrates consumed per day on the Wahls diet is unclear, low-carb diets typically include less than 20 to 120 grams of carbohydrates per day.
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What You'll Learn
- Dr. Wahls' diet focuses on nutrient-dense foods, meat, organ meat, and vegetables
- The diet is divided into three levels, easing people into new eating behaviours
- Level one involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables, while avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs
- Level two is a paleo version of the diet, allowing organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed
- Level three is a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting, limiting fruit to one serving per day
Dr. Wahls' diet focuses on nutrient-dense foods, meat, organ meat, and vegetables
Dr. Terry Wahls is a medical doctor, a functional medicine practitioner, and a board-certified internal medicine physician. She developed the Wahls Protocol, a diet to improve health and manage multiple sclerosis (MS). The Wahls Protocol is a three-level diet plan that focuses on nutrient-dense foods, meat, organ meat, and vegetables.
Level one of the Wahls Protocol involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day, including leafy greens, deeply coloured vegetables, and sulfur-rich vegetables. It also involves avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs, as well as sugar and most legumes. This level focuses on consuming a variety of plant-based foods to get a range of nutrients. Dr. Wahls herself consumes a lot of vegetables, greens, and fruits, especially in the summer.
Level two of the Wahls Protocol is a paleo version of the diet, allowing organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed, while eliminating grains, legumes, soy, and potatoes. Dr. Wahls follows the Wahls Paleo Plus version of the diet in the winter.
Level three of the Wahls Protocol is a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting, limiting fruit to one serving per day, preferably berries. This level extends the eating practices of levels one and two, focusing on nutrient-dense foods, proteins, and vegetables. Dr. Wahls follows a low-glycemic-index version of her diet plan in the summer.
The Wahls Protocol is a restrictive dietary approach for people living with MS. It involves eating meat, fish, brightly coloured fruits, and green leafy vegetables while eliminating dairy, grains, legumes, sugar, and other processed foods. The diet is similar to the paleo diet, which emphasizes an increased intake of lean meat, fish, fruits, and vegetables. The Wahls Protocol is more restrictive and involves long periods of daily fasting to achieve ketosis. It is thought to ease inflammation in the brain, which drives the progression of MS.
While Dr. Wahls credits the diet for slowing and even reversing the progression of her MS, helping her go from using a wheelchair to biking and horseback riding, it is important to note that her experience may not be representative of everyone who follows the Wahls Protocol. There is limited research on the effectiveness of the Wahls diet in managing MS, and larger studies are yet to be conducted.
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The diet is divided into three levels, easing people into new eating behaviours
The Wahls Protocol diet is a nutrient-rich, paleo-style approach to eating, created by functional medicine doctor Terry Wahls. It is designed to improve health and reduce symptoms of autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The diet is divided into three levels, easing people into new eating behaviours and helping them develop a more sustainable and nutritionally balanced way of eating.
Level One
The first level of the Wahls Protocol involves eating three meals per day and excluding gluten, dairy, eggs, sugar, and most legumes. People following this diet are advised to consume nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day, focusing on "greens, sulfur, and colour". Dr Wahls recommends working towards three cups of each of these categories, providing a good source of vitamins, antioxidants and fibre. Meat and fish are also included in this level, with an emphasis on grass-fed and wild-caught sources.
Level Two
The second level of the Wahls Protocol is a more restrictive paleo diet. It allows the consumption of organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed, while eliminating grains, legumes, and soy. This level continues to emphasise the importance of non-starchy vegetables, nuts, and seeds, ensuring a well-rounded and nutrient-dense diet.
Level Three
The final level of the Wahls Protocol introduces a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting. This level extends the practices of the previous levels, with a focus on limiting fruit intake to one serving per day, preferably berries. Intermittent fasting involves eating twice daily and fasting for 12 to 16 hours consecutively. This level aims to further enhance the potential health benefits of the Wahls Protocol.
The Wahls Protocol is a gradual process, allowing individuals to adjust their eating behaviours and develop a sustainable, healthy diet. It is important to note that while Dr Wahls has had positive experiences with this diet, the evidence supporting its effectiveness remains largely anecdotal.
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Level one involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables, while avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs
Dr. Terry Wahls is a medical doctor, a certified practitioner of functional medicine, and a board-certified internal medicine physician. She developed the Wahls Protocol, a diet to improve health and reduce multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms. The Wahls Protocol is a restrictive dietary approach for people living with MS. It involves eating meat, fish, brightly coloured fruits, and green leafy vegetables while eliminating gluten, dairy, eggs, grains, legumes, sugar, and other foods.
The Wahls Protocol is approached in stages called "levels" that ease a person into the diet and gradually change their eating behaviours. Level one involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day, while avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs. This level focuses on consuming a variety of plant-based foods to get a range of nutrients. It includes three cups of raw or cooked leafy greens, such as kale or collard greens; three cups of deeply coloured vegetables and fruits, such as berries or beets; and three cups of sulfur-rich vegetables, such as broccoli or cabbage. In addition to these plant-based foods, level one also includes meat and fish.
Level two is a paleo version of the diet, allowing organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed, while eliminating grains, legumes, and soy. This level builds upon the eating practices of level one, gradually reducing or eliminating all non-gluten grains, legumes, and potatoes.
Level three is a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting, limiting fruit to one serving per day, preferably berries. This level extends the eating practices of levels one and two, involving longer periods of daily fasting to achieve ketosis. It eliminates potatoes, beans, legumes, and most fruit, while still emphasising the consumption of nutrient-dense foods.
Dr. Wahls credits the diet for slowing and even reversing the progression of her MS, helping her go from using a wheelchair to biking and horseback riding. However, it is important to note that her experience may not be representative of everyone who follows the Wahls Protocol. While some people with MS who followed the Wahls diet reported improvements, there is limited research on its effectiveness in managing MS symptoms.
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Level two is a paleo version of the diet, allowing organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed
The Wahls Protocol is a diet designed to improve health and reduce symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). It is named after Dr. Terry Wahls, a physician who used the diet to heal herself from MS. The Wahls Protocol is approached in three levels or stages, which ease a person into the diet and gradually change their eating behaviours.
Level two of the Wahls Protocol is a paleo version of the diet, allowing organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed. This level builds upon level one, which involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day, avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs, and consuming meat and fish. In level two, in addition to maintaining the eating practices from level one, organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed are introduced. Organ meats include liver, while examples of fermented foods are sauerkraut, pickles, and kimchi.
Level two of the Wahls Protocol also eliminates grains, legumes, and soy. This is because the Wahls Protocol is more restrictive than the paleo diet, from which it is adapted. While the paleo diet emphasises an increased intake of lean meat, fish, shellfish, fruit, vegetables, eggs, nuts, and seeds, the Wahls Protocol is more restrictive in the foods that can be eaten. For example, the Wahls Protocol eliminates eggs, grains, legumes, cereals, and dairy.
Dr Wahls credits the Wahls Protocol with slowing and even reversing the progression of her MS, helping her transition from using a wheelchair to biking miles at a time. However, it is important to note that her experience may not be representative of everyone who follows the Wahls Protocol.
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Level three is a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting, limiting fruit to one serving per day
Dr. Terry Wahls is a medical doctor, clinical researcher, and author who developed the Wahls Protocol, a nutrient-rich diet to improve health and reduce multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms. The Wahls Protocol is approached in three levels or stages that ease a person into the diet and gradually change their eating behaviours.
Level three of the Wahls Protocol is a ketogenic approach that incorporates intermittent fasting. It eliminates potatoes, beans, legumes, and most fruit, while still emphasizing the consumption of nutrient-dense foods. This level extends the eating practices of levels one and two, which involve eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day, avoiding gluten, dairy, eggs, sugar, and most legumes, and gradually reducing or eliminating grains, legumes, and potatoes.
For level three, individuals are advised to eat only two meals per day, fasting for 12 to 16 hours consecutively every day and night. This level of the diet eliminates most fruit, limiting it to one serving per day, preferably berries. It also eliminates potatoes, beans, and legumes. The Wahls Protocol diet also recommends staying away from gluten-containing grains, refined carbs, sugar, artificial sweeteners, and processed foods. Instead, it encourages the consumption of non-starchy vegetables, nuts, and seeds. It also suggests swapping out dairy for coconut milk or almond milk and using healthy fats like avocado and coconut oil.
Dr. Wahls credits the diet for slowing and even reversing the progression of her MS, helping her go from using a wheelchair to biking and horseback riding. However, it is important to note that her experience may not be representative of everyone who follows the Wahls Protocol. While some people with MS who followed the Wahls diet reported improvements, there is limited research on its effectiveness in reducing the number of MS relapses or altering brain lesions.
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Frequently asked questions
The Wahls diet is a protocol to improve health and reduce MS symptoms. It is a restrictive dietary approach that focuses on nutrient-dense foods, meat, organ meat, and vegetables.
The Wahls diet recommends eating meat, fish, brightly coloured fruits, and green leafy vegetables. It also recommends consuming vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fatty acids.
The Wahls diet eliminates dairy, grains, legumes, sugar, and other processed foods. It also involves long periods of daily fasting to achieve ketosis.
The Wahls diet does not specify a specific amount of carbohydrates. However, it is a low-carb diet that recommends avoiding refined carbs and processed foods. Generally, low-carb diets contain less than 20 to 120 grams of carbohydrates per day.
Yes, there are three levels to the Wahls diet. Level one involves eating nine cups of fruits and vegetables each day while avoiding gluten, dairy, and eggs. Level two is a paleo version that includes organ meats, fermented foods, and seaweed. Level three is a ketogenic approach with intermittent fasting, limiting fruit to one serving per day.
