I Have Questions

[agnostic]

hi everybody, I have been on gluten free diet for two weeks, my questions:

1- how long will it take until observable heal?

2- how damaging is it when eating a gluten food rarely? in visits & invites I find it hard to refuse eating while I am a guest! or I will just sit and look at them while they are all eating? that's inappropriate!

thanks

[bluelotus]

At dinner, bring tea (I bring my own b/c some aren't gluten-free) or get coffee (find out what brand) or wine. That's the easiest thing. Just wait, after you've been gluten-free a while then try gluten again, you'll get sicker than you've ever been. Seems to happen to some of us. You'll be ill enough that you won't want to do that anymore. A little will hurt. Its poison to your body if you have celiac disease. Crumbs and cross contamination are enough for me to get ill and I have only been gluten-free for several months. And, just as an aside, you can still be "poisoned" or experiencing damage without feeling the outward symptoms. Then again, all of this is a personal choice. If you choose to do that to yourself, its noone's business and only your decision.

[nettiebeads]

hi everybody, I have been on gluten free diet for two weeks, my questions:

1- how long will it take until observable heal?

2- how damaging is it when eating a gluten food rarely? in visits & invites I find it hard to refuse eating while I am a guest! or I will just sit and look at them while they are all eating? that's inappropriate!

thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

1 - You WON'T heal unless you are totally 100% gluten free. When you do finally go gluten-free the healing time depends on many variables - length of time before being dx'd with celiac disease, amount of damage incurred pre-dx; and your own body's naturally healing rate.

2 - eating non-gluten-free is damaging, period. How damaging is a little amount of arsenic or anthrax? Why risk it? If you are eating with others, nibble on veggies, cheeses, or other gluten-free food to be polite, but if in doubt, do without. What is appropriate is to take care of your body and stop damaging it. I've had celiac disease for 9 years and do social functions. When food is involved it's a simple 'I can't eat that'. If questions are asked, I give a brief explaination. After awhile, you'll find it easier to stay gluten-free because you will feel so much better.

[rmmadden]

I had Celiac & cheating explained to me this way.........It's like trying to say that someone is a little pregnant. You either are or you aren't. If you cheat you won't heal and it just opens the doors to a variety of other problems.

It's tough at the beginning but it does get easier. Hang in there!

Cleveland Bob

[FaithInScienceToo]

Hi, Agnostic!

Welcome.

I am not sure that you said you want to cheat...it's just that you used an exclamation point about 'it being impolite' to watch others eat and not partake...so, 'we' want to be sure that you know that cheating is simply 'not an option'...as another member said, "When in doubt, do without!"

ALSO...try to think of it THIS way...it is not only impolite of, but MEAN FOR OTHERS to expect you to eat something that will make your own immune system attack your own organs...

So...you MUST TALK about your disease - educate others, without being 'graphic' at the dinner table - because you CAN not only make it VERY clear, in a polite fashion, that you simply cannot partake (but appreciate the offer to), but you may also end up helping another person get diagnosed...because someone is bound to ask you later for more details about your 'illness,' and they will know someone who they think may also need to be tested...

It's amazing how many people I have come across who thank me for telling them about it, and about my misdiagnoses...because their mom is sick, or a friend was also told "IBS", etc, and most end up asking for the spelling of the disease even.

Anyway...If 'they' act offended when you say that you cannot eat something, or even imply that YOU are being impolite...find new friends!

When people love you, they do NOT want to see you be self-destructive, AND good friends will even help you talk to waitpersons, to get something you can safely eat/drink, if need be! :-)

With love, Gina

PS - I carry individual packets of Amy's gluten-free dressing...you can then ALWAYS have a salad, and add cheese for protein and/or garbanzo and kidney beans. You can put some in your glove compartment, or even one in a jacket pocket. If you are female, purses can carry ALL sorts of gluten-free stuff ;-)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Added on:

THAT SHOULD HAVE SAID "Annie's gluten-free dressings" ...see link below for on-line stores that carry those individual packets -

[KaitiUSA]

hi everybody, I have been on gluten free diet for two weeks, my questions:

1- how long will it take until observable heal?

2- how damaging is it when eating a gluten food rarely? in visits & invites I find it hard to refuse eating while I am a guest! or I will just sit and look at them while they are all eating? that's inappropriate!

thanks

Well everyone heals in different times but you have to be 100% gluten free for that to take place. For symptoms to go away it also varies. Took me 8 months to get back to normal but for some people it may take less time then that and for some it may take longer.

Even eating the smallest bit of gluten as frequent as once a month is just like not following the diet at all!!

Would you feel bad if you were at a friends house if you were a diabetic and you couldn't eat certain things?

They need to understand this is a matter of your life(not following this diet eventually leads to premature death and very life threatening and disabling things) and you can explain you have dietary restrictions...maybe bring something to share that you can have so you can at least eat something.

There is alot we still can have so hang in there you will find it easier as time goes on. There are many lists you can get on mainstream brands that won't hide anything and a huge list (79 pages)on gluten free status of products like cosmetics, medications and foods.

It's not rude to look out for your health and if they do not understand then that is their problem..not yours.

[jenvan]

what's inappropriate is eating foods that harm you. you may have to start being creative--bring snacks and food with you to friends houses and out to restaurants if people are not accomodating. they should understand. either way--etiquette isn't worth your health!

healing really varies from person to person. my experience is it takes longer to heal the longer you have had the disease. but you should begin to notice some changes relatively soon i would think--whether in your energy levels or BMs... you may just not start feeling "normal" for a while. but stay the course--the diet will help!

[floridanative]

Gina - where do you get Amy's gluten-free dressing? I know some of Paul Newmans dressings are gluten-free but I don't know where to buy packets to carry around. What about reg. balsamic vinegar and olive oil? Aren't they both gluten-free? Any nice restaurant would have these available. I have not been told to go gluten-free yet but I'm trying to prepare so I'll be ready if that time comes.

Tiffany M.

[FaithInScienceToo]

Gina - where do you get Amy's gluten-free dressing? I know some of Paul Newmans dressings are gluten-free but I don't know where to buy packets to carry around.

Tiffany M.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

OOPS - I typed Amy's, but meant "Annie's" - my 'ADD' at work...glad you asked for more info on these...

Here are links to on-line companies that you can buy Annie's dressing from in individual packets - these are the direct links to the pages that have the individual packets listed for sale - they are about 50-70 cents a piece, depending on which site you buy from.

I buy a lot of them at a time - the Ranch dressing is the only one that hasn't gotten good reviews, but I have yet to try that one - I like the Roasted Red Pepper best, but so many of her dressings are great, and I also buy many of the bottled dressings on sale when I see it, and use it in marinades.

Best wishes, Gina

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

[Claire]

hi everybody, I have been on gluten free diet for two weeks, my questions:

1- how long will it take until observable heal?

2- how damaging is it when eating a gluten food rarely? in visits & invites I find it hard to refuse eating while I am a guest! or I will just sit and look at them while they are all eating? that's inappropriate!

thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I cannot say this forcefully enough - if you have celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity DO NOT EAT GLUTEN - not the smallest amount. I will not bore you with my personal experience but just take it from me - damage is being done to your body whether or not you have an immediate reactions to a small amount of gluten. You risk your future health each and every time you take gluten into your body.

Quote: The smallest amount of gluten which has been shown by a biopsy to cause damage to a celiac is 0.1 gram per day (Catassi et al.). This is approximately the amount of gluten contained in 1/48th of a slice of bread! The biopsies in this study showed an increase in intraepithelial lymphocyte count, one of the earliest signs of damage.

My neurologist told me that a grain of gluten put in a petri dish with a drop of blood from a celiac disease patient started a reaction within minutes that could be sustained in the dish for days - even weeks. Translated to your body that is cell damage going on while you don't even know it! Claire

[tarnalberry]

2- how damaging is it when eating a gluten food rarely? in visits & invites I find it hard to refuse eating while I am a guest! or I will just sit and look at them while they are all eating? that's inappropriate!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

it's not inappropriate to just sit there, because the food will make you ill and will damage your intestines. but you can also bring your own food, and ask your hosts if they have any fresh fruit or something that is safe for you to eat.

[Tychsar]

Hi, I was just diagnosed. I don't think I have had any symptoms. But I will have symptoms after being gluten-free for awhile if I eat gluten?

[KaitiUSA]

Hi, I was just diagnosed.  I don't think I have had any symptoms.  But I will have symptoms after being gluten-free for awhile if I eat gluten?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You could. Alot of people get more sensitive but some people just never get symptoms. I personally got more sensitive.

[happygirl]

Many on this board are more sensitive after going gluten free.

[jerseyangel]

I too find that the longer I am gluten-free, the more sensitive my digestive system seems to be. The emotional symptoms (anxiety and mild depression) have gotten better but it does not take much to set off my stomach. I was feeling better than I have in a long time for about 3 weeks but since Monday I've been having D on and off with bloating and a general feeling that my intestines are sore--almost like I've done 100 situps--and believe me I haven't!! Has anyone else felt like this after a period of feeling better? It is so depressing because I was hoping I had it figured out. I have mentioned this in another topic, but on Monday I also used a new soap which I found out was at the least questionable (Cetaphil Facial). If this is what caused the reaction, How long does it generally take to get back on track? I'm still kind of new at this.

[agnostic]

thanks everybody, I never expected it would be that harm to eat small amounts of gluten food! this is really shocking!

I am from Syria , here gluten food is more spread than anywhere in the world, and here there's nothing called gluten-free foods or even whole food markets! no body knows about this disease - even doctors- , and those few people I told them about my disease were very shocked that I wont be able to eat bread! my brother sayed that even poeple with cancer can eat bread!!

bread is the most common food in the middle east, it's present in all meals of the day! in some local accents they call 'bread' with the same arabic word that means 'life'!

dropping this 'life' has been the most difficult to me until now besides the more time I spend on preparing food after excluding fastfoods.

anyway, thank you very much, glad to be with this non-bread community:)

I would like to ask also about the corn flakes is it safe enough??

there is a dressing pronounced "Kari", it's from east asia , colored yellow.

I dont know if it's common in your country , but anybody has an idea if it's gluten free or not?

[jenvan]

so sorry you are really on your own in syria! i'm sure that gets lonely and discouraging at times! do you know any of the ingredients in kari? i have a friend from the middle east--maybe he would know what is in it.

[Guest BellyTimber]

On this site is a section of the forum called "International".

If no-one has posted there about Syria yet, you are our pioneer! (Difficult)

There are general principles but in practice it depends what ingredients and products you can get in Syria.

In the UK there are several makes of corn flakes that use fruit juice, corn malt etc to sweeten them and not the usual barley malt. They are more expensive and not in most shops.

By kari do you mean curry - in the UK this is taken to mean a combination of spices, the ingredients can vary and sometimes flour is added.

So check the ingredients list, that may be difficult or impossible if you are buying them loose.

I like to add a little plain powdered cumin to some dishes, without any added flour. That I think is the most attractive component of the curry taste. The yellow colour will be from turmeric.

As far as bread is concerned, my friend showed me how to mix some chickpea (gram) flour with water and drop it in the frying pan - hey presto, a slice of bread whenever you need it. There are also many other marvellous kinds of flour and grain we may have, I don't know if you can get them near you but keep searching and researching and keep us updated on your news ...

[Guest BellyTimber]

I too find that the longer I am gluten-free, the more sensitive my digestive system seems to be.  The emotional symptoms (anxiety and mild depression) have gotten better but it does not take much to set off my stomach.  I was feeling better than I have in a long time for about 3 weeks but since Monday I've been having D on and off with bloating and a general feeling that my intestines are sore--almost like I've done 100 situps--and believe me I haven't!!  Has anyone else felt like this after a period of feeling better? 

.....

How long does it generally take to get back on track?  I'm still kind of new at this.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't feel much healthier after almost 3 years going as much gluten-free-WF as I possibly can.

Some people get better quicker. It's also possible we will refine the art in avoiding contamination better with the progress of time.

People do say I am more relaxed than before I went gluten-free-WF, and have had periods of communicating better.

After having a spell of bad innards it can take me days or weeks to get as much back on track as I would expect - usually days.

Best of wishes,

[Guest nini]

welcome... I always carry an insulated bag with my own gluten-free goodies whenever I am invited somewhere...

you can find easy enough recipes for gluten-free breads that you could make from local gluten-free flours, I understand that the Middle East has been devoted to bread (the supposed staff of life) for longer than the rest of the world, so you do have your work cut out for you, but I'm a believer that it can be done!

Fresh fruits, veggies, rice, beans... these can all become your staples... can you mail order specialty products that you can't buy locally?

oh and yes even the tiniest amount of gluten is poison to someone with celiac, so no cheating ever... sorry.

[kbtoyssni]

Corn flakes usually contain malt, so unfortunately it's a no-no. The first meal I ate when I went gluten free was corn flakes. I was all proud of myself for finding a corn-based cereal and didn't realize until several days and hours of celiac disease research later that I'd messed up!

I like to think of celiac disease as being similar to a peanut allergy. People who are allergic to peanuts can die if they eat even the smallest amount. Luckily I won't die if I eat gluten, but I will get very, very sick. You are not being rude to not eat at other people's houses if they don't have gluten-free food. If you know you're going somewhere for dinner, you could call up and find out what's on the menu and offer to bring something gluten-free so you can eat least eat something. Your friends should understand.

[FaithInScienceToo]

WOW, Agnostic - Syria...

Let's see...what can I say now to help?

...focus on what you CAN have....

Fresh fruits and veggies...raw, steamed...

PURE spices ONLY!

If they are bought 'ground,' you MUST make sure that wheat pwder wasn't added by the 'producer' to prevent 'caking (sticking together of the spice powder)...

Meats/poultry/fish - cooked in clean pans - and not on grills used to cook anything potentially marinaded in sauces with hidden gluten in them...

PURE yogurt - unflavored - which is normal for you, right?

or, with tiny pieces of cucumber and dill in it for flavor? to top certain dishes, or with lamb kabobs as a dip?

I did a QUICK Google search for URLs with the words "Syrian" and "Food"...

Looks like MANY of your recipes are naturally gluten-free, or can easily be adapted...that's lucky! Hummus, kebobs, etc...yummy stuff!

So...maybe you will BECOME A GREAT COOK of gluten-free Syrian foods?! ;-)

And, yes, be sure to get yourself a light-weight insulated cooler to carry foods with you!

Good luck in your gluten-free adventures...!!!! JUST STAY gluten-free & Be healthy!

Gina

[quantumsugar]

my brother sayed that even poeple with cancer can eat bread!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That's one of the hardest things--dealing with family and friends that don't understand.

A good analogy for your brother might be that... if eating the bread caused cancer (in people with cancer) then they wouldn't be able to eat it either. Or you can describe it as being like an allergy to food, except one that causes your body to attack itself.

As for dealing with everyone else, being matter of fact about it and not cheating at all helps other people deal with it, too (as well as helping your own healing). If you cheat on the diet, people won't take your disease or your diet seriously.

Good luck!

[Merika]

Ok, maybe you know this already but the issue of cross-contamination is quite real and serious. From what I know here in the USA, mid-eastern food is typically eaten off shared plates. So if everyone has their bread and is dipping it in the hummus, you cannot eat the hummus (bread crumbs, even if you don't see them).

What you can do is get into the kitchen before anyone else and serve yourself up a plate that everyone else stays out of. (sigh...I LOVE mid-eastern food and used to work at a Moroccan/Tunisian restaurant...)

Merika

[toxemicfrog]

hi there

i, too, agree with the former comments....no gluten at all if you can help it....i get sicker than ever if i have it and i have only been gluten-free for a couple of months. I have days when i cant explain why im sick and i put that down to the slow healing of my stomach.

I live in australia...my dr says celiac disease is the most under diagnosed condition he knows of and subsequently i found it hard in the first couple of weeks because there was not much info in my area (thank god for the net and thank god for this site...could not have done without it).

what i have done is cut nearly all processed food out of my diet and am now on more fresh fruit and veges than ever b4. All in all I have have lost 15 kg and am still not gaining weight.

malabsorption is a huge problem so I try to make what goes into my belly really count...red meat and green vege to keep iron and protein levels up and lots of fresh fruit and salad for vitamins and minerals. I also figure the purer the food the less work my poor stressed out belly has to cope with.

I did find some yummy choc biscuits that i have when i need a treat...they are great but they really are a special treat.

I also find i can not drink very much alcohol these days so we just have the occasional glass of good red wine.

Hope this helps

have a great day