A mum-of-two who only eats fruit says her strict diet has cured her chronic arthritis leaving her feeling "like Forrest Gump". Pam Johal, 44, switched to her fruitarian lifestyle after suffering from rheumatoid arthritis in her hands and legs three years ago.
Her condition was so bad, she was unable to get out of the bath on her own and was often bed-bound with the pain. But the former NHS administrator says she now has the energy of “Forrest Gump” and never needs makeup or take painkillers.
Everyday she munches through a selection of fruits, including oranges, kiwis, pomegranates and blueberries. Incredibly, Pam has even stopped drinking water and says she receives all the liquid nutrients she needs from fruit.
Pam, from Southampton, now consults other fellow fruitarians across the globe who are keen to copy her diet. She said: “I went from being in pain and not even being able to get out of the bath to running around after my kids and never getting tired.
“I’m like Forrest Gump and I have no arthritis now. I don’t even wear makeup and I don’t have a single grey hair or wrinkle. Arthritis is such a difficult disease to fix.
“When I was at my worst after being diagnosed in 2020, my fingers were swelling, and I had bad inflammation levels. I got depressed and I felt like I couldn’t properly look after my children who were younger at the time.
“Since changing to this diet, I feel amazing, and I can run after my kids and never struggle with anything. My mental health is great and I have such a positive outlook on life and it makes me feel stronger inside.
“In the winter I will always try to maintain a 90 per cent fruit diet and anything else I eat will be vegan and I will avoid dairy and meat. I hardly drink any water as I get all my nutrients from the fruit.
"I was never really a big dairy or meat eater so the transition wasn't too bad. I don't take supplements and I am just fuelled by fruit. I believe we are designed to eat nothing but fruit and I am thriving.”
Pam says she spends hundreds of pounds each week on fruit but buys in bulk from a supplier to cut down on costs. She added: “I love oranges and I usually by a big box for £8 which lasts quite a long time.
“I’ve had to cut down on mangoes because they are very expensive and I can’t help myself but scoff three in one go. I’ve worked out I’ve eaten 1,008 since January and during the summer I was going through two 20kg watermelons a week. It actually doesn’t cost lots to be fruitarian. I buy a lot in bulk from a supplier which helps cut the cost.”
Pam became a full-time fruitarian in March 2020 in a bid to tackle her arthritis which runs in the family. She sourced tips off the internet and now gives advice online through her RawPower Facebook group to other budding fruitarians.
She has lost a stone, now weighing 9st stone. Despite being a strict fruitarian, her husband Simon Pinckney, 43, and their sons Henry, five, and four-year-old Georgie eat a varied diet.
She said: “People tell me I don’t look like I’ve had kids, and I had two back to back in the space of year. There are so many benefits to this diet and everyone needs to start following it. On Christmas Day I’m going to eat a vegan roast dinner, without any meat obviously with as much fresh fruit and vegetables as I can find.”
Next year Pam hopes to start growing her own herbs and berries in her back garden to help with the enormous amounts of fruit she consumes daily. The stay-at-home mum added: “My husband will eat anything but does eat fruit too. For my kids, they really enjoy smoothies and bananas and I encourage them to eat lots of fruit.
“Kids will always turn vegetables down but never fruit so it easy to get them to eat it. From this diet, I have discovered a way to feel good every day of my life and there are no negatives. I really enjoy it and I am working on my future health now so I can live a long life.”
