Not Feeling Well Again!

[Walter S]

Hello everyone! I was hoping you all might have some advice on what could be making me sick (glutened). Yesterday, I went to a friend's house about 40 miles away from my house. It was his son's 6th birthday and my friend and I dressed up as mad scientists and put on a show with science experimants for the kids. We used the following things, (though I came in contact with them I did not eat any of these) cornstarch, green food coloring, water, oil, vinegar, and alka-seltzer. The kids and adults ate pizza, chips, chocolate cake with icing, beer, wine, and soda. However, I brought my own food. I brought a piece of chicken that I marinated in gluten-free balsamic dressing (the brand name was Annie's I think) and grilled, a couple spoons of gluten-free risotto, and a small handful of gluten-free pretzel sticks. I drank a mug of decaf tea on the way there and had 2 bottles of water at the party. During the party I had some of the famous "brain fog" and diziness. On the ride home I got a BAD stomach ache and had to stop at a rest area on the highway to use the restroom. I had severe stomach cramps and diarrhea for quite a while. Being in a public restroom and feeling/being so sick simply added insult to injury becasue I had to deal with the discomfort I have with using public restrooms which I have mentioned before. I just barely made it to the bathroom in time. Today I am still having bouts of diziness, diarrhea, and a sore neck??? And this afternoon I have a christening to attend and they are having the food catered for it afterwards. I am not really sure what I am going to do then. I may decline all food that does not seem "safe" and just have a tiny bit of something and say I am not feeling well? Any ideas what could be making me sick? If it's CC does that mean I have to throw out all of my food and get new stuff??? Thanks in advance if you have any information. I am so sick of getting these stomach aches!!! It's a rough life like this.

[Lisa]

Sorry you're feeling bad. My thought might be Annie Balsamic Dressing. Some of Annies are gluten free, but many are not. I don't have it in may house and I love Balsamic Dressing,which makes me think that it may not be gluten free.

Can you list the ingrediences?

[happygirl]

according to their website, the balsamic vinagrette dressing is gluten free. Open Original Shared Link

Walter, I'm sorry to hear that you had a reaction. I'm not sure what it is that you could be reacting to...did you touch any unsafe food (pizza, etc?) Did you rill your chicken at home or did someone else do it? When you grilled, was it on a safe grill?

I hope you are feeling well enough to attend the christening. I would just decline the food anyways, regardless of if you were feeling ill or not. Tell them its more important to you to enjoy the occassion than risk getting sick. Bring your own food.

By the way, how long have you been gluten free?

Get some immodiums to ALWAYS keep with you...in your car, your wallet, etc for those moments. It is a lifesaver.

Hope you feel better soon...let us know how you are doing.

Laura

[Walter S]

Thanks for the response. I am going to see if I can find the empty bottle and list the ingredients. I wondered if just breating in corn starch or touching food coloring or something like that could have somehow been the problem. I am probably just stretching to find a reason with those. I also find it hard to know if I am sick becasue of this condition (or Crohn's, becasue I have been diagnosed with both Celiac and Crohn's) or maybe I am just plain sick. I wnder sometimes (like this one) if just maybe I have a plain old stomach ache or stomach virus or something just plain didn't agree with my stomach like it could for somebody without these conditions. How would we ever know. I just assume it's glutening becasue of the severity and urgentness of the diarrhea as well as the dizzy spells that come with it. Perhaps many of the times when I got a stomach ache, etc. in the past it was becasue of gluten. Who knows? It's just something I find myself thinking about often so I thoiugh I should mention it.

[Walter S]

according to their website, the balsamic vinagrette dressing is gluten free. Open Original Shared Link

Walter, I'm sorry to hear that you had a reaction. I'm not sure what it is that you could be reacting to...did you touch any unsafe food (pizza, etc?) Did you rill your chicken at home or did someone else do it? When you grilled, was it on a safe grill?

I hope you are feeling well enough to attend the christening. I would just decline the food anyways, regardless of if you were feeling ill or not. Tell them its more important to you to enjoy the occassion than risk getting sick. Bring your own food.

By the way, how long have you been gluten free?

Get some immodiums to ALWAYS keep with you...in your car, your wallet, etc for those moments. It is a lifesaver.

Hope you feel better soon...let us know how you are doing.

Laura

[Walter S]

according to their website, the balsamic vinagrette dressing is gluten free. Open Original Shared Link

Walter, I'm sorry to hear that you had a reaction. I'm not sure what it is that you could be reacting to...did you touch any unsafe food (pizza, etc?) Did you rill your chicken at home or did someone else do it? When you grilled, was it on a safe grill?

I hope you are feeling well enough to attend the christening. I would just decline the food anyways, regardless of if you were feeling ill or not. Tell them its more important to you to enjoy the occassion than risk getting sick. Bring your own food.

By the way, how long have you been gluten free?

Get some immodiums to ALWAYS keep with you...in your car, your wallet, etc for those moments. It is a lifesaver.

Hope you feel better soon...let us know how you are doing.

Laura

[Walter S]

WHOOPS! SO SORRY!!!!! I was trying to quote and respond and instead it seems I quoted TWICE without a response! I did cook the chicken on my grill at home and I made the risotto at home. I seal the meal in a tupperware and I heated i tin the microwave. The only way I may have come in to contact with the pizza or cake is by helping clean up the plates after the kids ate.

[kbtoyssni]

Did you grill the chicken BBQ-style or in a frying pan? If it was BBQ-style, the grill could easily be contaminated from previous cooking. Some charcoal also has gluten in it so I always cook in foil just in case.

[CarlaB]

What kind of grill do you have? Regular charcoal has gluten. When I first went gluten-free and couldn't figure out what got me, it was the charcoal!

I now use natural charcoal. It's actually easier to use anyway!

Also, is your grill completely clean of past grilling residue that may have contained gluten? You can just burn it off.

[Walter S]

I have been on the gluten-free diet for about 3-4 weeks now, I think. Also, I used a George Foreman grill in the kitchen which I always clean after each use. However, I am glad to have learned about the outside charcoal grills and contamination that it can cause. Now I will be prepared and able to head off a future problem when I start grilling outdoors in the summer. I did make it to the Christening today, but I had to leave early becasue I got very sick during the reception afterwards and now I have been painfully running to the bathroom non-stop since I got home. Is there any way to keep a positive attitude and not get frustrated and down when that is going on???

[Mango04]

. I brought a piece of chicken that I marinated in gluten-free balsamic dressing (the brand name was Annie's I think) and grilled, a couple spoons of gluten-free risotto, and a small handful of gluten-free pretzel sticks. I drank a mug of decaf tea on the way there and had 2 bottles of water at the party.

Are you exploring possibilities of other intolerances or are you pretty sure your only problem is gluten? I only ask because gluten-free pretzels usually contain high concentrations of soy flour (which can be really hard on the digestive system). The other thing I wonder about is the risotto. Did your risotto contain dairy? Even if it didn't, I've had reactions from gluten and dairy-free risotto. I'm not sure why...maybe it something to do with the starch?

Sorry you are struggling. It sounds like you are eating good healthy food....I can imagine how frustrating it must be...

[Walter S]

It definitely is frustrating and I certainly am making all efforts to eat healthy food and avoid gluten. I have noticed that diary seems to upset my stomach and so I have been avoiding it. Maybe it was the pretzels or risotto, but I have eaten them on other days without a problem. What might be the best way to find other possible food intolerances I could have? I have called the GI doc, but he has not seemed too worried and does not seem to be much of a help. So I continue to feel sick and suffer. Very annoying and frustrating. I guess I should get a new doc but I don't feel like starting over again.

[happygirl]

If you have Crohn's on top of Celiac, you will probably get sick/have episodes, even if you are gluten free. Your episdoes may very well NOT be related to Celiac.

The other thing---if you have only been gluten-free for 3-4 weeks, you probably haven't healed yet ... so you might be eating gluten free, but you aren't healed, and therefore, your body is still having trouble digesting anything. Add in the Crohn's.....etc etc etc.

You mentioned touching corn starch...that is gluten free and is not a problem.

There are medications for those with Crohn's...are you being treated for it? If not, I would ask for a second opinion.

[NoGluGirl]

Dear Walter,

I am so sorry to hear you have been suffering. I have a feeling the dizziness could be from being anemic. Many people who have Crohn's end up anemic (as do Celiacs). If you have GI bleeding, you are a very likely candidate. Have you been tested? The diarrhea also could be dehydrating you, adding to it further. Electrolytes tend to get low. Drinking a Gatorade Thirst Quencher will help that. Pedialyte is another option. Would someone confirm that Pedialyte is safe, please?

Another thing is you could have been cc'd. Using someone else's microwave could cause that. When you heat your food, other food particles can accidentally get in your food! If it was covered, that should have prevented it. However, you may be like me where only a small amount of certain things is tolerated well. I cannot tolerate dairy products such as yogurt or pudding. I get as ill as I get from gluten if I eat them. However, I can tolerate chocolate with it in there. I am not sure why. Perhaps small amounts of lactose are alright, but not anything else. I also seem to tolerate cheese alright. One day, I ate beans several days in a row, and tolerated them every day but the last day. How odd is that?

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl