Is this you??
Do people keep accidently offering you pasta??...
And then realize that although pasta may be a very tasty friend of theirs, it is MOST DEFINITELY not a friend of yours.
I would like to document here that this is simply my experience. My family doctor who is a Celiac taught me how to eat.
This is him and huge list of his accomplishments. He offers a free initial lecture that he makes his patients attend before they are allowed to make an appointment.
http://pro.osu.edu/profiles/aukerman.1/
Here are some ratings.
http://www.healthgrades.com/physician/dr-glen-aukerman-ychgk
So is a gluten free diet as simple as cutting out gluten?
For some yes, but unfortunately not for everyone. Most definitely initially not for me.
Can you just go to your local whole foods store, buy gluten free items, and expect to heal properly?? Not always...
Number one you have to listen to your body, it will always lead you to the right direction.
Ok so number one here is cutting out gluten. What is gluten?? Gluten is a whey protein that when ingested causes an autoimmune reaction. It is not an allergy, but it can create other allergies and intolerances because of the autoimmune reaction that occurs in the gut when ingested. Ingesting gluten destroys the villi which are the part of your small intestines that absorb nutrients. On the tip of one's villi is the part of the digestive system that digests lactose. So second thing someone should do after cutting out gluten is to cut out dairy. This is not forever, this is just until the gut heals.
Ok so everyone is different, but this is what a lot of people that I have talked to find is best to do when trying to figure out what is bothering them.
Soy. There is something about soy. A lot of people with gluten issues have problem with soy. Also according to my doctor it has been found that soy can increase the risk for certain types of cancer. This may be controversial.
I would cut it out for now.
Also a lot of people have trouble with raw vegetables. I did. I suggest cooking them.
Honestly according to my doctor the best way to start off gluten free and to not be including what other foods bother you is to do an elimination diet. There is a lot of controversy in how to go about an elimination diet. What foods are people less likely to be allergic to and such. My doctor has found that beef and rice that is labeled gluten free usually fares people well. Also cooked vegetables seem to fare people well, so if one is a vegetarian possibly they could go that way. I have to eat grassfed beef. I would suggest starting with that over just regular beef. Also a lot of people fare well with potatoes. Life is not forever going to have to be like this...eating the same foods over and over again. But for a month or two this is generally the best bet to get the kind of improvement and healing that you want the quickest.
I would suggest not eating at a restaurant for a while. It is hard to know where the items are coming from. And their white rice most likely is not made in a special gluten free facility to avoid cross contamination.
Something else to seriously consider as I have mention before is to choose to eat foods that naturally decrease inflammation in the diet. This is the omega 3 and 6 diet, which deserves and a few blog posts on its own about it. To aim at having a better omega 3 and omega 6 ration in your diet. There is a lot of research backing this up in treating a variety of disorders, including autoimmune disorders. Celiac disease causes one's gut to be inflamed, but by balancing out this ratio naturally you may heal quicker and fuller. My doctor really is all about this. He uses it for all of his patients and suggests it to people who are not currently sick as more of a preventative medicine kind of thing.
Here's just one really great study to get the interest peaking. But don't take my word for it, do some reading and discern for yourself.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12442909
And this woman's blog is very well done and is very helpful when it comes to balancing the omega 3's and 6's.
http://paleozonenutrition.com/2011/05/10/omega-6-and-3-in-nuts-oils-meat-and-fish-tools-to-get-it-right/
He is also big on eating homegrown vegetables and when out of season frozen fruits and vegetables, less chemicals and latex to potentially react to and such. I will be getting into that at a later date.
Here is some reading on the latex in vegetables theory.
http://dmd.nihs.go.jp/latex/cross-e.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11031347
You should expect to have stomach pain and other abdominal symptoms for a little while. It takes time. Don't expect improvement right away, but also if you are not improving for quite sometime what you are eating may still be bothering. You may be accidently ingesting gluten or you may be eating something that you are allergic to.
Once you do not have stomach pain any longer it would be good to continue on with your elimination diet by adding one food at a time and eating on that food for a couple of days before adding in another food. Sometimes people do not react to something they have eaten the first time around.
Now there is more to pay attention to. Be weary of drinking water from restaurants because one can get glutened from pop and water running through the same hose. I was running into this. There is a lot of controversy of what kind of water to drink. I was having trouble with certain bottled waters, so I just drink water from the tap that goes into my water bottle.
Something else that I had problems with was kissing. I was getting cross contamination from kissing. I was also getting gluten from my toothpaste. I use gluten free toothpaste and dental floss. Some people get diagnosed with celiac through their dentist. Make sure you brush your teeth after every meal. Celiac disease being the autoimmune condition that it is can weaken one's immune system making them less able to fight off the bacteria in food. It can cause the gum lines to recede. So be sure to floss and brush those teeth while you are healing. Plus why not forever? It's a great habit to get into.
Also when it comes to a partner as I have mentioned before to be sure that you do not ingest gluten through them it can be helpful to ask them to bath in gluten free products as you are. I did not initially do this. But I find it to be bothering me. I became quickly improved back to my previous level of health when the other's products were change.
I also use separate utensils and gluten free dishwashing liquids.
I've never experienced this myself by being glutened because I always take the precaution, but when cooking one's food in an oven it was suggested to me to wrap your food in aluminum foil and to place it in a container with a lid on it to avoid any cross contamination.
Some people recover without changing their products, but others do not. I wash my hair with gluten free shampoo and conditioner. I also use a gluten free soap. Anything on a product that says "fragrance" has gluten in it. My doctor suggests buying extracts, things like lavander and such. Something that does not bother you. There is also gluten in makeup. So I purchase gluten free make up as well.
To be honest being a Celiac has made me aware of the world around me. Every single product I use has thought put into it.
I actually enjoy it because I am using products that have few ingredients. I am not having all sorts of chemicals being put into my body. Everything is a lot simpler.
It is definitely a lifestyle change, but a very worthwhile one.
Here's a start. Good luck.
If you cheat and have a hard time getting disciplined accept it. Don't be afraid to start all over again. It's really tough, but it gets much better.
I enjoyed reading this post about taking care of oneself.
http://thequestforagoodlife.wordpress.com/2010/02/08/not-taking-care-of-ones-self/
"I long have been struck by the observation that, as Stephen Covey put it, “Common sense is not common practice.” For example, in my informal and occasional inspection of relevant medical research, it seems to me that scientists generally agree that health typically comes from (1) good nutrition, (2) regular exercise, (3) adequate sleep, and (4) stress management. I’ll save the details regarding these for another day. But, I am intrigued by a couple of things: (1) How many people get distracted from these basic truths and (2) how many people simply cannot motivate themselves to do what they know would lead to the best outcomes in their lives, such as good health."
