Gluten Free Help

SavingFaith65

A few weeks ago I went to the ER to get my appendix removed. Today I had another procedure, EGD (esophagogastroduodenoscopy) because I was still having pains in my stomach. Basically what they did was put me to sleep, put a scope with a camera and clamp down my throat to my small intestine.

When I woke up the nurse went over what was found, they ended up taking a biopsy to check for Celiac disease (something to do with gluten).

They also found that I have a yeast infection in my esophagus, weird... but apparently due to the anti biotics from my surgery.
Annnnnd I have ulcers so now I have to take medication for that...

My question here is, where do you go for gluten free stuff? I read if you have celiac disease and continue to eat gluten you can potentially get stomach cancer.

My store just recently brought in gluten free products but not a large selection.

Anyone know where to go and what to eat?

melaniecheeks

Well, there's a lot of natural foods that dont have gluten in them! Meat, fish, dairy, fruit and veg etc.

And for starchy carbohydrates, rice and potaotes are OK.

The big problem is wheat products, including pasta and bread. If you cannot eliminate those from your diary, then you need to find gf alternatives. But you shouldnt need to shop exclusively in that one expensive section of the supermarket.

Ann1964x

google gluten free and you will get lots of good info.
I am gluten sensitive,and eat meat, rice, potatoes, veggies, fruit, eggs,and buy co**** flour from amazon.
Amazon has tons of gluten free cookbooks too.

A few weeks ago I went to the ER to get my appendix removed. Today I had another procedure, EGD (esophagogastroduodenoscopy) because I was still having pains in my stomach. Basically what they did was put me to sleep, put a scope with a camera and clamp down my throat to my small intestine.

When I woke up the nurse went over what was found, they ended up taking a biopsy to check for Celiac disease (something to do with gluten).

They also found that I have a yeast infection in my esophagus, weird... but apparently due to the anti biotics from my surgery.
Annnnnd I have ulcers so now I have to take medication for that...

My question here is, where do you go for gluten free stuff? I read if you have celiac disease and continue to eat gluten you can potentially get stomach cancer.

My store just recently brought in gluten free products but not a large selection.

Anyone know where to go and what to eat?

nfgchick79

I don't know if you have a Wegmans where you live but they have a whole gf section. I don't buy a lot of the stuff though because it's processed. I basically buy gf oats and gf pasta. The rest of my food (for the most part) is meat, veggies and fruit. I do eat sushi (rice is gf) and recently found out that soy sauce has gluten. They make a gf soy sauce though (and yes I know soy sauce is high in sodium). Just try to stay away from processed foods because there's gluten hiding in a ton of them.

rm7161

A few weeks ago I went to the ER to get my appendix removed. Today I had another procedure, EGD (esophagogastroduodenoscopy) because I was still having pains in my stomach. Basically what they did was put me to sleep, put a scope with a camera and clamp down my throat to my small intestine.

When I woke up the nurse went over what was found, they ended up taking a biopsy to check for Celiac disease (something to do with gluten).

They also found that I have a yeast infection in my esophagus, weird... but apparently due to the anti biotics from my surgery.
Annnnnd I have ulcers so now I have to take medication for that...

My question here is, where do you go for gluten free stuff? I read if you have celiac disease and continue to eat gluten you can potentially get stomach cancer.

My store just recently brought in gluten free products but not a large selection.

Anyone know where to go and what to eat?

Did they give you the test results of the biopsy for celiac yet? Stomach cancer is not as far as I know a major risk of celiac, colon cancer is however, along with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma and anemia due to the inability to properly absorb vitamins. They do a gastroscopy (same thing you got) to obtain a biopsy of the small intestine. It can seem like stomach problems though. I had abdominal cramps a lot when I was undiagnosed.

They should have done antibody tests too. Antibodies to tissue transglutaminase (ATA or anti-tTG) and anti-endomysial antibodies particularly, which are specific to celiac.

Anyway, good news is that treating celiac disease with a gluten free diet will allow the body to repair itself. I am strict gluten free for 10 years and the abdominal symptoms resolved. Gluten free is not a magic bullet for weight loss though, as I can well attest. Replacement foods (gluten free baked goods and pastas) usually have higher glycemic index and more calories than their wheat based equivalents, and you have to pay attention to the nutritional value as that is often lower too. (wheat flour is usually enriched while gluten free flours are often not) I gained weight eating them after going gluten free so be careful to limit these high caloric food items on your diet just as you would if you were eating their gluten based cousins.

Gluten sensitivity is a different thing from celiac disease, you may still get relief from abdominal symptoms from a gluten free diet and not be celiac.

Most important, make sure your general practitioner understands celiac if it turns out you have it, it will make all the difference in your health care.

As far as eating out, I find the internet is very useful to identify restaurants that cater to gluten sensitivities, many post menus and many large food corporations have lists online of their gluten free products which can oftentimes save you money over buying expensive specialty items. It is a lot easier now than it was 10 years ago when I was first diagnosed.

I try to stick to foods that are naturally gluten free and limit consumption of replacement foods like pasta to proper serving sizes. I bought a food scale to be more accurate in calorie counting these items and it has really helped.

Good luck!