Gluten Free For Health
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Isa_Bbott
Posts: 41 Member
I have been feeling very anxious, lethargic, and have been having stomach problems lately. I decided to switch to a gluten free diet, after talking to a family member with celiac disease.
If you have any tips, helpful information or suggestions, I would be happy to hear it!
If you have any tips, helpful information or suggestions, I would be happy to hear it!
1
Replies
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If you think you actually have celiacs get tested before you go gluten free. To be tested to need to have been eating gluten for 4-6 weeks before the test.
Other than an actual diagnosed intolerance or allergy, glowing gluten free won't make a difference.12 -
Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.7
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My advice would be to avoid most of the items in the grocery store that are labeled "gluten free". Most of them are full of junk and insanely overpriced. Eat naturally gluten free foods such as vegetables, fruit, meat/fish without gluten added in the seasonings, gluten free grains, etc. If you want pasta, Tinkyada is the best tasting brand. Trader Joe's pasta is a good second choice for about half the price. The best store bought gf bread is Udi's millet chia or whole grain. I've never found another gf bread at the grocery store that's even close to edible, although my local bakery has a delicious one.
Also, if you do find you have celiac, you'll need to be very careful of cross contamination which means getting rid of a lot of your kitchen pans and utensils, and buying new ones. It's also difficult to eat in restaurants, even ones with gluten free menus because of the cross contamination issue. If you're just intolerant rather than true celiac, that probably won't be such an issue.
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
Celiac isn't the only thing that can cause gluten issues. I am not celiac, but allergic to wheat, so I basically have to follow a gluten free diet if I don't want constant stomach issues.8 -
And yes, if you want to find out if you have celiac, you have to get tested while still eating gluten. The test is notoriously unreliable and gives false negatives, however. If you just want to eat gf and see if you feel better, I say go for it. Who cares what the blood test says if eating that way resolves your health concerns.5
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Best solution eliminate all gluten for 30 days the reintroduce if you notice any reaction after reintroduction then eliminate it from your diet3
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Okay, my advice.
Although it's likely your family's doctor never said a word (probably because they have not kept up with celiac research, which is the norm at this point) ALL relatives of celiacs should get tested for celiac disease, based on experts' recommendations (this being experts in celiac disease, not just specialists who are supposed to diagnose this). This is because the disease can trigger at any age, can do damage for years without major symptoms, may cause NO gut symptoms at all (for about 1/3 of celiacs), and if you have a close relative with celiac disease, you are in a risk category where about 1 in 26 people will develop the disease. And if you do NOT have it, if you are not gluten free, it's recommended that you get tested every 2-5 years, or if you develop symptoms, because it's so likely you'll develop it.
As you HAVE a relative with celiac disease, and symptoms that are found with it (fatigue/lethargy, stomach issues), I would HIGHLY recommend that you go get tested. If you are gluten free, you'll need to go back ON gluten, and stick to it, for the test to work, though. Because the test looks at accumulated biomarkers of gluten damage, so if you stop eating gluten, you don't make these markers. And if you haven't been eating gluten - and getting damaged - for at least 4-6 weeks, you don't have ENOUGH biomarkers produced for the test to record them accurately.
If you've only been GF for a week or so, you could schedule the test and eat a ton of gluten and likely be fine. But if it's been longer, you might need to eat gluten for a while.
The reason I would recommend getting tested, rather than go gluten free, is this: it's a right pain to go gluten free enough for celiac levels of safety. It's not like just avoiding the ingredient. It's avoiding the ingredient, plus any cross-contamination that happened in the factory or during preparation at home. It's not sharing certain cooking equipment because of cross-contamination, buying more expensive brands of freaking everything that can be contaminated, not eating out most of the time because most restaurants are STILL not safe for a celiac, due to cross contamination. It's like avoiding a peanut allergen, for the peanut allergic, if you only had to worry about what you ingest (which includes makeup, for you or anyone kissing you, as well.
You do not want to go this gluten free if you don't have to, you know? but you can get gluten free enough to make symptoms less, but still cause damage to you, if you are a celiac, so it is really good to know just HOW gluten free you should be, you know?
As for going gluten free, when it happens - as whether you have celiac disease or not, sounds like you wish to try it, I'd say this: I have 4 celiacs in my family and 1 gluten intolerant, and all of us improved on this diet, not just the celiacs, so I'd recommend at least trying it out, because it does no harm and might do good. So go for it, IMHO.
Here's some realities that might help.
1. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's gonna be between 2-4 times more than your usual grocery bill (depends on how many processed foods you usually eat).
2. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's good to remember that you are not eating simply the same foods with one ingredient changed. There will be usually MANY ingredients changed. This is important because the thing is, you won't be getting the same nutrients in your new diet as you did in the old, so assuming that you will can lead to bad places, especially as wheat is fortified with many vitamins artificially, but GF products are not.
3. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's also good to know that it's gonna be sort of like torturing yourself with foods that look kinda like the food you used to have, and taste worse than the food you used to have, so it just kind of makes you think of and wish you HAD food you used to have. Seriously...it sucks.
So, that said.
- if you can find foods that have always been GF and eat those, they tend to taste better than GF substitutes, as well as being affordable (french fries, steak, roasted chicken, posole, Socca bread, Injera bread - all sorts of fun stuff, if you make it yourself and do it traditionally without wheat added). I include Asian food in this, because soy sauce is only full of gluten because the original soy sauce was replaced with some soy and a lot of wheat filler because it's cheaper. So originally, Asian foods with soy sauce are gluten free, and gluten free soy sauce is actually simply gourmet soy sauce, so doesn't taste worse than the original.
- best success I've seen has been folks who start out just replacing one meal or snack at a time. Start trying new GF dishes and snacks, and when you find one you like, add that one in, and start to work on a second one. That way, you are not feeling, hmm, like you are losing out? Because by the time you are fully GF, you have foods you LIKE that you can eat, you know?
- After a few months of this, if you have GF substitutes like a sort of special occasion food - like, say, a GF doughnut or something - it works okay. Because not only is an occasional one not going to break the bank, if you haven't had gluten for a while, you kind of forget the exact taste and texture, and GF substitute foods taste MUCH better that way, LOL.
Good luck!9 -
I have been feeling very anxious, lethargic, and have been having stomach problems lately. I decided to switch to a gluten free diet, after talking to a family member with celiac disease.
If you have any tips, helpful information or suggestions, I would be happy to hear it!
Having with a serious gluten condition, then you should take care of gluten free diet.
But that doesn't mean Gluten grains are not healthy to eat , they are healthy because they are naturally plant-based foods. Wheat, rye, and barley all contain gluten. Oats don’t contain gluten; however, they may be contaminated from the processing plants of gluten grains.
When gluten grains are added to processed food products such as granola bars, cereals, or breads, they transform into very unhealthy food products. If you have gluten problems, grains you should avoid include bulgur, seitan, wheat starch, wheat bran, wheat germ, couscous, cracked wheat, durum, einkorn, farina, fu, gliadin, graham flour, matzo, and semolina.
Here are list of Healthy Gluten-Free Foods1 -
JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
I'd like to state that I'm not presuming that I have celiac's. I know for certain that I do not, but the family member I was talking to mentioned that her whole family switched to a gluten free diet after her diagnosis and they all felt better.
I'm not trying to get into a discussion about the benefits and need to see a doctor when considering a change of diet, this is something that I decided to try on my own for my health in general. I was reaching out for tips and support of others who have switched to a gluten free lifestyle, hoping for actual food substitution ideas, personal experiences, etc.
Negativity is not helpful, nor are assumptions that you have the whole story. I hope my clarifications have made it easier to form an opinion that may be of actual use.3 -
If you think you actually have celiacs get tested before you go gluten free. To be tested to need to have been eating gluten for 4-6 weeks before the test.
Other than an actual diagnosed intolerance or allergy, glowing gluten free won't make a difference.
This. I have celiac and it is a pain to completely avoid gluten.1 -
Okay, my advice.
Although it's likely your family's doctor never said a word (probably because they have not kept up with celiac research, which is the norm at this point) ALL relatives of celiacs should get tested for celiac disease, based on experts' recommendations (this being experts in celiac disease, not just specialists who are supposed to diagnose this). This is because the disease can trigger at any age, can do damage for years without major symptoms, may cause NO gut symptoms at all (for about 1/3 of celiacs), and if you have a close relative with celiac disease, you are in a risk category where about 1 in 26 people will develop the disease. And if you do NOT have it, if you are not gluten free, it's recommended that you get tested every 2-5 years, or if you develop symptoms, because it's so likely you'll develop it.
As you HAVE a relative with celiac disease, and symptoms that are found with it (fatigue/lethargy, stomach issues), I would HIGHLY recommend that you go get tested. If you are gluten free, you'll need to go back ON gluten, and stick to it, for the test to work, though. Because the test looks at accumulated biomarkers of gluten damage, so if you stop eating gluten, you don't make these markers. And if you haven't been eating gluten - and getting damaged - for at least 4-6 weeks, you don't have ENOUGH biomarkers produced for the test to record them accurately.
If you've only been GF for a week or so, you could schedule the test and eat a ton of gluten and likely be fine. But if it's been longer, you might need to eat gluten for a while.
The reason I would recommend getting tested, rather than go gluten free, is this: it's a right pain to go gluten free enough for celiac levels of safety. It's not like just avoiding the ingredient. It's avoiding the ingredient, plus any cross-contamination that happened in the factory or during preparation at home. It's not sharing certain cooking equipment because of cross-contamination, buying more expensive brands of freaking everything that can be contaminated, not eating out most of the time because most restaurants are STILL not safe for a celiac, due to cross contamination. It's like avoiding a peanut allergen, for the peanut allergic, if you only had to worry about what you ingest (which includes makeup, for you or anyone kissing you, as well.
You do not want to go this gluten free if you don't have to, you know? but you can get gluten free enough to make symptoms less, but still cause damage to you, if you are a celiac, so it is really good to know just HOW gluten free you should be, you know?
As for going gluten free, when it happens - as whether you have celiac disease or not, sounds like you wish to try it, I'd say this: I have 4 celiacs in my family and 1 gluten intolerant, and all of us improved on this diet, not just the celiacs, so I'd recommend at least trying it out, because it does no harm and might do good. So go for it, IMHO.
Here's some realities that might help.
1. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's gonna be between 2-4 times more than your usual grocery bill (depends on how many processed foods you usually eat).
2. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's good to remember that you are not eating simply the same foods with one ingredient changed. There will be usually MANY ingredients changed. This is important because the thing is, you won't be getting the same nutrients in your new diet as you did in the old, so assuming that you will can lead to bad places, especially as wheat is fortified with many vitamins artificially, but GF products are not.
3. If you try to recreate your regular diet, but just with GF substitutes, it's also good to know that it's gonna be sort of like torturing yourself with foods that look kinda like the food you used to have, and taste worse than the food you used to have, so it just kind of makes you think of and wish you HAD food you used to have. Seriously...it sucks.
So, that said.
- if you can find foods that have always been GF and eat those, they tend to taste better than GF substitutes, as well as being affordable (french fries, steak, roasted chicken, posole, Socca bread, Injera bread - all sorts of fun stuff, if you make it yourself and do it traditionally without wheat added). I include Asian food in this, because soy sauce is only full of gluten because the original soy sauce was replaced with some soy and a lot of wheat filler because it's cheaper. So originally, Asian foods with soy sauce are gluten free, and gluten free soy sauce is actually simply gourmet soy sauce, so doesn't taste worse than the original.
- best success I've seen has been folks who start out just replacing one meal or snack at a time. Start trying new GF dishes and snacks, and when you find one you like, add that one in, and start to work on a second one. That way, you are not feeling, hmm, like you are losing out? Because by the time you are fully GF, you have foods you LIKE that you can eat, you know?
- After a few months of this, if you have GF substitutes like a sort of special occasion food - like, say, a GF doughnut or something - it works okay. Because not only is an occasional one not going to break the bank, if you haven't had gluten for a while, you kind of forget the exact taste and texture, and GF substitute foods taste MUCH better that way, LOL.
Good luck!
Thank you so much! All of your information has truly helped. I have a dairy allergy already, so I'm used to reading ingredient lists and I wasn't surprised to see wheat and such is included in many products you wouldn't normally associate it with.
As for recreating past recipes, it hasn't been hard as of yet. Zoodles are a great substitution that I found for pasta, and corn tortillas are my friend at the moment. I'm branching out, but it's definitely been good. I feel so much better already!
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
I'd like to state that I'm not presuming that I have celiac's. I know for certain that I do not, but the family member I was talking to mentioned that her whole family switched to a gluten free diet after her diagnosis and they all felt better.
I'm not trying to get into a discussion about the benefits and need to see a doctor when considering a change of diet, this is something that I decided to try on my own for my health in general. I was reaching out for tips and support of others who have switched to a gluten free lifestyle, hoping for actual food substitution ideas, personal experiences, etc.
Negativity is not helpful, nor are assumptions that you have the whole story. I hope my clarifications have made it easier to form an opinion that may be of actual use.
so rather then really know what the problem is, you have already figured it out without any medical advice?
is your family member an MD or have a medical back round? Maybe they felt better because they lost weight or maybe they just felt better because they assumed gluten was bad for them...3 -
I don't want to wade into the arguments. Here is a very helpful link for those who feel the need to go gluten free for whatever reason. If you want further help you can feel free to PM me. I have been GF for more than five years. I did not have a blood test to validate me and I absolutely wish I could just eat whatever I want.
https://glutenfreegirl.com/new-to-gluten-free/brand-new-to-gluten-free/2 -
knittnponder wrote: »I don't want to wade into the arguments. Here is a very helpful link for those who feel the need to go gluten free for whatever reason. If you want further help you can feel free to PM me. I have been GF for more than five years. I did not have a blood test to validate me and I absolutely wish I could just eat whatever I want.
https://glutenfreegirl.com/new-to-gluten-free/brand-new-to-gluten-free/
Thank you!
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
I'd like to state that I'm not presuming that I have celiac's. I know for certain that I do not, but the family member I was talking to mentioned that her whole family switched to a gluten free diet after her diagnosis and they all felt better.
I'm not trying to get into a discussion about the benefits and need to see a doctor when considering a change of diet, this is something that I decided to try on my own for my health in general. I was reaching out for tips and support of others who have switched to a gluten free lifestyle, hoping for actual food substitution ideas, personal experiences, etc.
Negativity is not helpful, nor are assumptions that you have the whole story. I hope my clarifications have made it easier to form an opinion that may be of actual use.
so rather then really know what the problem is, you have already figured it out without any medical advice?
is your family member an MD or have a medical back round? Maybe they felt better because they lost weight or maybe they just felt better because they assumed gluten was bad for them...
Why do you seem to have such a problem with this? It's not your body, so why would you care? If eliminating something from your diet makes you feel better, why not just do that instead of going through all the tests. She said she doesn't have Celiac. I don't either, but I was having a lot of issues and my doctor suggested going gluten free for a month or two to see if that helped. It did. That's all the testing I needed to know I have a problem with it.3 -
JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
I'd like to state that I'm not presuming that I have celiac's. I know for certain that I do not, but the family member I was talking to mentioned that her whole family switched to a gluten free diet after her diagnosis and they all felt better.
I'm not trying to get into a discussion about the benefits and need to see a doctor when considering a change of diet, this is something that I decided to try on my own for my health in general. I was reaching out for tips and support of others who have switched to a gluten free lifestyle, hoping for actual food substitution ideas, personal experiences, etc.
Negativity is not helpful, nor are assumptions that you have the whole story. I hope my clarifications have made it easier to form an opinion that may be of actual use.
so rather then really know what the problem is, you have already figured it out without any medical advice?
is your family member an MD or have a medical back round? Maybe they felt better because they lost weight or maybe they just felt better because they assumed gluten was bad for them...
Why do you seem to have such a problem with this? It's not your body, so why would you care? If eliminating something from your diet makes you feel better, why not just do that instead of going through all the tests. She said she doesn't have Celiac. I don't either, but I was having a lot of issues and my doctor suggested going gluten free for a month or two to see if that helped. It did. That's all the testing I needed to know I have a problem with it.
last time I checked this is still a public forum ...
I am questioning taking advice from a family member who has no medical background and the primary reason for switching to gluten free is "feels"...
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People take advice from all kinds of people that don't have a medical background. (HELLO, this forum?!?!?) Also, people eliminate foods because of the way the food makes them feel, all the time. If it works, then fine. Being rude and condescending to people because they choose this is unnecessary. No different than going vegan, keto, or whatever.3
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Tip: See a doctor. Ask the doctor to determine if or not you have celiac disease. If you have celiac disease, avoid gluten. If not, quit pretending to diagnose yourself.
I'd like to state that I'm not presuming that I have celiac's. I know for certain that I do not, but the family member I was talking to mentioned that her whole family switched to a gluten free diet after her diagnosis and they all felt better.
I'm not trying to get into a discussion about the benefits and need to see a doctor when considering a change of diet, this is something that I decided to try on my own for my health in general. I was reaching out for tips and support of others who have switched to a gluten free lifestyle, hoping for actual food substitution ideas, personal experiences, etc.
Negativity is not helpful, nor are assumptions that you have the whole story. I hope my clarifications have made it easier to form an opinion that may be of actual use.
so rather then really know what the problem is, you have already figured it out without any medical advice?
is your family member an MD or have a medical back round? Maybe they felt better because they lost weight or maybe they just felt better because they assumed gluten was bad for them...
Why do you seem to have such a problem with this? It's not your body, so why would you care? If eliminating something from your diet makes you feel better, why not just do that instead of going through all the tests. She said she doesn't have Celiac. I don't either, but I was having a lot of issues and my doctor suggested going gluten free for a month or two to see if that helped. It did. That's all the testing I needed to know I have a problem with it.
Because people come here looking for help. If we just keep pushing fad diet after fad diet that has no actual basis in reality (no science, no mechanism that makes it work - just a 'feeling'), then how are we helping? At best we are allowing the cycle of trying diet after diet and not getting the results and then falling back into old habits. I'm happy a few folks here say the can sustain such a lifestyle. Most cannot and by pushing fads, we are not helping them.3
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