I'm not new to the forums or anything. I actually spend quite a bit of time reading through the posts. It's here that I came across the idea that kp and food allergies are related. Once I cut out dairy, wheat and refined sugar, my kp began disappearing. My energy levels are higher than they have ever been, my hair no longer falls out, and my allergies (As in sneezing every morning) are gone. Now, I am trying to get rid of the keratin that has accumulted over the years.

Everyday, I exfoliate my skin with baking soda and a mildly abrasive loofah in the shower. This is definitely working for me, but it requires persistence; it does not work over night. Everyday my skin improves more and more. After each shower, I pat my skin dry and apply a thin layer of organic unrefined coconut oil (Nutiva). Coconut oil is a great moisturizer, it's not nearly as thick as olive oil (although olive oil is great for moisturizing as well, I prefer to use it in the evenings), so it doesn't make me feel greasy. I can moisturize, get dressed and go to school without feeling bothered by it since its so quickly absorbed.

I've also been taking coconut oil internally, though inconsistently.

From everything that I've read, I am convinced that kp is related to allergies and sensitivities, for me and many others it involves the foods that we eat. And because I developed this condition over time, around the ages of 7-9, and because I know I wasnt born with it, I am convinced that it developed as a result of damage to the lining of the intestine over time. For that reason, I am starting the Coconut oil cleanse. In my experience, kp seems to be a symptom of an underlying problem, or imbalance and I am thankful it was brought to my attention. I have pretty much thrown the idea of biomedicine out the window, I don't see any sense in only treating symptoms and ignoring the underlying causes of health issues. I am seriously considering naturopathic medicine for my graduate studies.

Today, I had 2 eggs for breakfast, white tea with honey and orange juice. A couple of hours later, I had 2 talespoons of coconut oil. I won't count today as day one of the cleanse since I had breakfast. But, I think it's a good start because many people need to adjust to taking coconut oil with food, let alone without.

The cleanse consists of a 7 day fast, where nothing but coconut oil is consumed (14 spoonfuls at the most) and the occassional hydrating drink (recipe: 6 cups filtered water, 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 teaspoon sea salt) or simply filtered water. This is supposed to treat candida and leaky gut syndrome. The cleanse also includes plain yogurt for probiotics. But yogurt never sits right with me, so tomorrow, I am going to get myself some probiotic supplements from GNC.

I will update everyone on my progress through this journal. Notably, I no longer develop new kp bumps and my skin is almost completely smooth save a few areas that need more exfoliation with time. My kp was on my uppers arms, legs (mostly thighs), a bit on my back and chest as well as my behind.

In exactly ten days, I am going to get some food, chemical and environmental sensitivities tests done in Toronto at Red Paw Data Services (isA) as well as a Candida test to see how well the cleanse worked. I will also post my results for these tests here.

People that I know with kp generally have complaints about not feeling well. To me, that means there is something much deeper we need to be treating. In my opinion, kp is curable and I will (isA) prove it.

So, I went and had some tests done at Red Paw Data Services in Toronto. The results where close to what I expected. I had the food sensitivities work-up, chemical sensitivies and environmental sensitivities tests done...this package was $150. I have a bunch of intolerances to wheat (including gluten), cow products (casein, lactose and everything else that comes from a cow), red meat, mangos, pineapples, strawberries, pectin, anything with refined sugar in it...and the list goes on. I didn't even have to have the Candida test for the practiciner doing my tests (btw he's great..he REALLY knows his stuff...he's a certified naturopath in Quebec) to know that I was suffering from Candida.
Long story short, he told me to take olive leaf extract, one 500mg capsule with each meal (so 3 times a day) to kill the candida. And then acidophilus capsule (coated) one in the morning and one at night (with at least 4-9 billion bacteria). I couldnt find the coated ones...so I'm taking non-coated which isn't good since apparently that means very little bacteria actually make it to the intestines....I'll have to keep looking.