Can I Cheat?

[jat237]

I just had an endoscopy today to confirm Celiac. The biopsy results aren't back, of course, but the doctor told me my esophagus, stomach, and intestines were all inflamed. He's pretty positive I'm celiac.

I'm almost completely asymptomatic. It would help me face the overwhelming thought of going gluten-free if I knew that I could splurge just once in awhile on freshly baked bread or a piece of cheesecake or a slice of pizza.

Given that gluten doesn't make me feel sick at all, what are the risks of an occasional cheat?

[Mother of Jibril]

Don't do it!!!!!!!!!!

The major risks of cheating if you have celiac disease are cancer and other autoimmune disorders. Be grateful that you're not debilitated by your symptoms and move forward on the road to health!!

And by the way... it's not that hard to make gluten-free pizza. This forum has TONS of great ideas for alternatives to any food you might be craving. Plus... gluten is addictive. Once you've been gluten-free for a while you might find that your cravings are greatly diminished.

[Lisa]

  jat237 said:

Given that gluten doesn't make me feel sick at all, what are the risks of an occasional cheat?

The potential risks could be life threatening eventually. No, you won't die from a piece of cake or slice of pizza.

If you are officially diagnosed with Celiac, it's an autoimmune disorder. It's not the amount of gluten that will hurt you, it the fact that the gluten make your body attack itself, thereby causing damage.

You may not be symptomatic when you consume gluten, but I can assure you that there is a major war going on in your intestines.

There are many disorders associate with uncontrolled Celiac. Diabetes, lymphoma, fibromyalgia or any type of arthritis. Gluten can cause ataxia which can cause neurological damage and some pretty serious malabsorption can make you talk funny and walk into walls or forget where you're driving.

SO...it's your choice to weigh the risks

Welcome and read some posts here. It will be helpful to learn from other's experiences.

[Takala]

Why would you want to cheat, when there are good gluten free versions of all the foods you just mentioned ? You can either bake them or buy them. I just made myself some quick pan flatbread for lunch for a treat.

There is so much other stuff to eat, you won't feel deprived or hungry.

The risks are, once you go off, as you readjust, you might then feel much differently when you do deliberately eat a large amount of gluten. I consider myself on the low end of reacting, as I don't react with the violent gut issues from a crumb as some do, but as I became more acutely aware of my reactions as I became stricter with my diet. ( I get neurological symptoms and it flares my arthritis and gives me kidney and vision problems )

My physical discomfort and resulting brain fog is acute enough that I am highly motivated to stay away from other people's food !

The risks are you will very likely develop a secondary condition that will make you miserable, but what condition we don't know.

[jat237]

Thank you all for the quick and helpful responses. Your optimism is encouraging, but at the moment I'm having a hard time coming to terms with the lifestyle change. I am a MAJOR foodie and absolutely adore whole grains. The fact that I can make or buy substitutes for some of my comfort foods is encouraging. But I just can't imagine that a gluten-free pizza is going to rival Papa John's. My family is steeped in food traditions, almost all of which are going to become taboo, and I fear the substitutes will just make me miss the real thing all the more.

I guess I'm experiencing the early stages of grief! Can others relate?

[happygirl]

  jat237 said:

My family is steeped in food traditions, almost all of which are going to become taboo, and I fear the substitutes will just make me miss the real thing all the more.

I guess I'm experiencing the early stages of grief! Can others relate?

Yes - we can all relate. We all went through this too!!! No one is born knowing how to cope and adjust to the diet. But, with trial and error, a good attitude (and yes, pity parties are allowed), and support, you can do it.

I think you'd be hard pressed to find a good amount of families on this board who AREN'T steeped in food traditions. You learn to substitute things and it will become second nature. You will still have pastas, cookies, birthday cakes, pizza (okay, maybe not exactly like Papa John's), stuffing on Thanksgiving, etc. Truly. We all do.

I would highly recommend a great book to help explain Celiac - "Celiac Disease: A Hidden Epidemic" by Dr. Peter Green.

[lizard00]

I don't know, the pizza I made over the weekend was better than Papa Johns to me. (Maybe I should mention that I never liked Papa Johns! )

You are not alone, we all had to go through this. But committing to it and absolutely not cheating is really the only way you are going to be well and stay well, whether you have symptoms or not.

[cat3883]

The longer you go without it the less you want it. Obviously you have some symptoms or you wouldnt have had an endoscopy done. Feel lucky you don't feel terrible. I think my symptoms started slowly but by this October I was very ill. I will never intentionally eat gluten again. Never Never Never

[puggirl]

Hi there... Yeah i wouldnt recommend cheating.. Let me tell you, on thanksgiving I ate a BREAD ROLL a small little bread roll and havent been the same since...... My body did not like it. it wasnt worth it. From now on Im going to be stronger and resist the urge to eat the "Good Stuff" I need to find a good gluten free bread. and I really want to make a home made pizza someday. DONT CHEAT its not worth the agony.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Believe it or not, there really are recipes for gluten-free versions of the things you love that are JUST AS GOOD as the gluteny originals.

These include pizza, cake, bread, cookies, muffins, biscuits, pancakes, and brownies.

The premade gluten-free ones you buy at the store taste like styrofoam. The homebaked ones take much less effort than you'd expect, especially the breads (no kneading required, just mix, dump, and bake!), and really do taste fantastic.

And the best part is, they are NOT addictive the way the gluteny ones are for us. REALLY. They totally answer the craving, but they don't make you want more and more and more.

Hang in there, and heal. It gets much, much better than you'd ever dream.

And if I can do it, anybody can.

[Green Eyes]

Really it isn't so bad once you get started eating gluten free. I too wasn't having big issues. It was a total fluke (well maybe not totally) that I was even diagnosed. Talk about a blow, it was.

You will also find that once you go gluten free you will have a reaction to eating gluten. If it is small amounts over a period of a few days (like taking vitamins once a day for 3 days) I finally get a little upset stomach. If it eat a larger amount of gluten - I "react" in about 30 minutes.

There are advantages to this, but also big disadvantages. Sometimes you don't know you have gotten a little bit of gluten but it still does the damage. That's why I'm insisting on getting re-testing to see if I am doing okay.

Best Wishes,

Jennifer