What does an AIP diet look like?: A Comprehensive Guide

January 4, 2026 •

4 min read

Studies suggest the AIP diet may help manage symptoms of autoimmune disorders by focusing on gut healing and reducing inflammation. For those living with autoimmune conditions, understanding what an AIP diet looks like is the first step toward exploring this personalized elimination protocol.

Quick Summary

The AIP diet is a phased elimination protocol that removes inflammatory foods like grains, dairy, and eggs, then systematically reintroduces them to identify individual triggers for autoimmune management and gut healing.

Key Points

Phased Approach: The AIP diet is not a permanent restriction but a three-phase process involving elimination, reintroduction, and long-term maintenance.
Eliminate Common Triggers: The initial phase requires the removal of grains, dairy, eggs, legumes, nightshades, nuts, seeds, and processed foods to reduce inflammation.
Focus on Nutrient-Dense Foods: The diet emphasizes consuming high-quality protein, a wide variety of vegetables, healthy fats, bone broth, and fermented foods.
Personalize Your Maintenance: The goal is to identify your unique food sensitivities during the reintroduction phase to create a sustainable, personalized diet for long-term health.
Mindful Eating is Key: Success on AIP requires careful meal planning, food journaling, and focusing on the abundance of allowed foods rather than the restrictions.
Professional Guidance is Recommended: Given its restrictive nature, consulting a healthcare provider or dietitian is advised to ensure nutritional completeness and safe implementation.

The Three Phases of the AIP Diet

An AIP diet is a temporary, two-part elimination protocol followed by a maintenance phase. It is a stricter version of the Paleo diet and is not meant to be a permanent set of restrictions.

Phase 1: The Elimination Phase

This is the most restrictive phase, typically lasting 30 to 90 days, designed to give the gut lining a chance to heal and calm the immune system. It involves strictly removing all foods known to be common inflammatory triggers.

Foods to Enjoy (AIP-Compliant)

Meat and Poultry: Grass-fed, pasture-raised, or wild-caught sources are preferred. This includes beef, lamb, pork, chicken, turkey, and organ meats like liver.
Fish and Shellfish: Wild-caught options are encouraged for their omega-3 content, such as salmon, sardines, and anchovies.
Vegetables: All vegetables except nightshades. Fill your plate with leafy greens, root vegetables (sweet potatoes, yams), cruciferous vegetables, and others like squash, cucumber, and onions.
Fruits: Enjoy in moderation due to sugar content. Berries, apples, pears, and bananas are good options.
Healthy Fats: Avocado, olive oil, coconut oil, and animal fats (e.g., tallow) are staple fat sources.
Fermented Foods: Non-dairy fermented options support gut health, including kombucha, sauerkraut, and kimchi.
Herbs and Spices: Many herbs and non-seed spices are allowed, including turmeric, ginger, basil, and rosemary.
Bone Broth: Rich in collagen and gelatin, it is a cornerstone of gut-healing protocols.

Foods to Avoid (AIP-Elimination)

Grains: All grains, including gluten-free options like rice, oats, and quinoa.
Legumes: All beans, peas, lentils, peanuts, and soy products.
Dairy: All dairy products, including milk, yogurt, cheese, and ghee.
Eggs: Especially egg whites, which contain proteins that can be inflammatory for some.
Nightshades: Tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, and spices derived from them like paprika and cayenne.
Nuts and Seeds: This includes coffee, chocolate, and seed-based spices.
Refined Sugars and Additives: Processed foods, artificial sweeteners, and food additives should be eliminated.
Processed Oils: Vegetable oils like canola, corn, and soybean oil.
Alcohol: All forms of alcohol are typically avoided during this phase.

Phase 2: The Reintroduction Phase

Once symptoms have subsided, foods are carefully reintroduced one by one, with a monitoring period of several days between new additions. This highly personalized process helps identify which foods may trigger symptoms for that specific individual. Foods are typically reintroduced in stages based on their likelihood of being tolerated, starting with safer items like egg yolks and moving toward more common irritants.

Phase 3: The Maintenance Phase

Following reintroduction, individuals transition into a long-term, personalized diet. The focus is on a nutrient-dense eating pattern that avoids specific foods identified as triggers during Phase 2. This phase is sustainable and designed to prevent flare-ups while maintaining a healthy, varied diet.

Sample 1-Day AIP Meal Plan

Breakfast: A simple fruit salad with bananas and berries, served with a side of savory breakfast sausage (made without nightshade spices) and a cup of mint tea.
Lunch: A large salad with mixed greens, wild-caught salmon, avocado, and cucumber, drizzled with olive oil and fresh herbs.
Dinner: Oven-roasted chicken thighs with steamed broccoli and a side of roasted sweet potatoes mashed with coconut oil and sprinkled with cinnamon.
Snack: Sliced apples with a drizzle of honey.

The AIP Diet vs. the Paleo Diet

The AIP diet is often referred to as a stricter version of the Paleo diet. The differences in their initial elimination phases are key.


Feature	Paleo Diet	AIP Diet (Elimination Phase)
Grains	Excluded	Excluded
Dairy	Excluded	Excluded
Legumes	Excluded	Excluded
Eggs	Allowed	Excluded
Nuts	Allowed	Excluded
Seeds	Allowed	Excluded
Nightshades	Allowed	Excluded
Sugar	Refined sugars excluded	All refined sugars and artificial sweeteners excluded
Phase Structure	No formal reintroduction	Structured elimination and reintroduction

Tips for Success on the AIP Diet

Meal Prep is Crucial: Batch cooking proteins and vegetables ensures you always have compliant food on hand, preventing temptation and simplifying meal planning.
Read Labels Carefully: Many packaged foods, sauces, and spices contain hidden inflammatory ingredients. Always check for additives, refined sugars, or seed oils.
Focus on What You Can Eat: The list of eliminated foods is long, but the list of compliant foods is also vast and colorful. Focusing on the abundance of fresh, whole foods can make the transition easier.
Embrace New Ingredients: Experiment with ingredients like cassava flour, arrowroot starch, and coconut milk to recreate old favorites in an AIP-friendly way.
Track Your Journey: Use a food journal to record what you eat and how you feel. This will be invaluable during the reintroduction phase.

Conclusion

What an AIP diet looks like is a temporary, disciplined, and personalized process designed to manage autoimmune conditions by healing the gut and reducing inflammation. By carefully navigating its distinct phases—elimination, reintroduction, and maintenance—individuals can identify their unique food triggers and build a sustainable dietary pattern. While challenging, the focus on nutrient-dense whole foods and strategic reintroduction provides a roadmap for long-term symptom management and improved well-being. Always consult a healthcare professional or registered dietitian before starting to ensure nutritional needs are met. For further reading on the research and rationale behind elimination diets, see this scholarly article: Autoimmune protocol diet: A personalized elimination diet for autoimmune diseases.

Frequently Asked Questions

The primary goal of the AIP diet is to reduce inflammation and manage symptoms related to autoimmune conditions by identifying and removing potential dietary triggers through a structured elimination and reintroduction protocol.

No, the AIP diet is not designed to be permanent. The initial restrictive elimination phase is temporary, followed by a reintroduction phase to determine individual food tolerances and establish a personalized, long-term maintenance plan.

Eggs are excluded during the elimination phase, particularly egg whites, because they contain proteins that can be inflammatory or trigger immune reactions in some individuals with autoimmune conditions.

Regular potatoes are not allowed during the AIP elimination phase because they are a nightshade vegetable. However, sweet potatoes and yams are permitted.

No, rice is not allowed during the AIP elimination phase because it is a grain. All grains are excluded from the initial protocol.

The elimination phase typically lasts for a minimum of 30 days, but some people may stay in it for up to 90 days or longer, depending on their symptom improvement.

Good AIP-compliant breakfast options include sweet potato hash with pasture-raised ground beef, fruit salads, or an AIP-friendly porridge made with ingredients like coconut flour and fruit.