BRUMI1968

Another interesting thing about nightshades, is that they require calcium for metabolizing. This means that if you eat nightshades and don't have enough calcium around in your meal, you'll suck it out of your bones to digest the nightshades.

SWEET POTATOES are not a nightshade; they are in the marigold family.

If you're worried about missing out on the healthy stuff in tomato, there are plenty of alternatives. One thing about them is the vitamin c, and that is pretty easy to replace. But another thing is the lycopenes. Also in watermelon, grapefruit, and apricot. Another thing is that these bioflavinoids are often grouped by color - eat lots of deep red foods like beets or berries and the like to get similar goodness to tomatoes.

Yeah, I make raw burgers. Sunflower seeds, celery, carrot, onion, cilantro, etc., plus some flax seed; then dehydrated for about 5 hours. Pretty good.

I would say:

1. include winter squashes and sweet potatoes (not nightshades)

2. eat plenty of avocado and coconut oil, if you can handle either/both

3. nut milks can really help keep on weight. Homemade are best if you have a high speed blender; but storebought will do.

I don't know. Hopefully someone else has some ideas as well. I'm in the same boat -- I think I bottomed out though at 122 (5'9) which was too thin - but at least the scale didn't go down past that. I think it evened out after a while to 125 or so.

I know the raw grainless diet makes me feel hungry all the time. It is harder to get 2,000 calories a day from veggies and fruits, unless they're dried. So it's the nuts and meat and avocado and coconut where you're getting the calories.

I have to add in sweet potato or something to feel full.

My friend just read in mother jones that lots of regular supermarket beef is actually fed garbage from garbage dumps. I only eat grass fed beef from a local place. It's expensive, though.

I'm not able to eat the dried fruit - this causes me to be very gassy, and in a not-so-rosy-smelling way. This is especially true if I eat it in conjunction with nuts, but either way, I can't comfortable do it. It also makes me bloated.

I wonder if I am having residual yeast problems, or if my system just doesn't tolerate it.

I think lots of vinegar is acid - but apple cider vinegar is not. It could be the acid that they are not wanting us to eat, because the meat and nuts are already acid. The veggies and fruits are alkaline. We definitely want to be on the alkaline side of things.

I was grain free for a while and felt great. Best I've ever felt. For some reason, i started eating corn. I don't feel bad - but not as good. I think it was just pressure watching the rest of the family eat corn tortillas which we make hommade and which taste so good. But anyway, I'm trying to go back to grainfree and mostly raw.

Is it open? If not, you can open it (I assume it's air sealed) and use it promptly. You're better off griding your own though, because it goes rancid which is tough on your intestines - causes inflammation. I've had flax that was turning - you can taste it.

However, it's hard to find unmilled AND not in the bulk section. I don't know how strongly you react -- I don't buy anything from bulk that I can't wash. Flax would be very hard to wash and rinse and let dry because it makes a mucus coating when it gets wet.

But Sunshine is the only soy free one, to my knowledge.

I can't help but notice, Nyxie, that you tested somewhat allergic to soy in your intradermal testing (in your signature). Soy is one of the top allergens (wheat, corn, soy, dairy) and I wonder if you wouldn't be better off staying away from it.

There are also many drawbacks to soy that have nothing to do with allergies/intolerances, and one of the most important one of those for celiac sufferers is that it blocks the absorption of minerals. It is also extremely estrogenic, so it mimics estrogen in the body. If you have any hormonal imbalances from years of celiac, this can make things worse. (Soy as a health food is the product of a huge marketing campaign - kindof like margarine, which has proven to be terrible for you.) Just some thoughts.

I've noticed I tend to get more bloated before my period - I mean intestinally bloated, not water retnetion. But it usually has a cause other than that - like I'm just less able to cope with little bugaboos (non-gluten ones I mean) near my period. I also tend to get a tender tummy during that time, though I've also noticed that seasonal allergies to tree pollen seem to be triggering a tense stomach. Go figure. Good luck.

p.s. I did read somewhere (Ann Marie Colbin actually) that if we ladies refrain from eating the reproductive byproducts of other animals (milk, eggs, etc.), that our periods might improve. Worked a bit for me, though not thoroughly.

There are large families of foods that many folks are allergic or reactive to:

1. GRAINS: gluten (obviously), corn, rice (not so much in the "west"), tapioca (grain?)

2. SOY

3. DAIRY

4. NIGHTSHADES: potato, tomato, eggplant, peppers/chilies, and tobacco

5. EGGS

Eggs, soy, dairy, and wheat are the top allergens. So it makes the most sense to start there. But nuts bother a lot of folks too, and I would not think they belong on a "basic" diet. THat seems like something you would want to add back once you found some stability. Or at least do in smaller amounts - they are great for fat and protein as long as they don't bother you. Never eat them with dried fruit, which you probably should not be eating at all right now anyway, to check for sugar problems.

IF you were to do meat and veggies but are worried about weight loss, be sure to include squashes and sweet potatoes (not related to potato), which will give you some sweetness, some starch, and some calories. Also fatty protein fruits like avocado and if you can tolerate it, coconut. If you want you could add some "grains" to the diet, mostly quinoa (actually a seed) and millet I think as to low reaction potential. If you can afford it, I'd stick to grass fed beef (just way better for you and better for the cow as well) and buffalo for red meats, and organic chicken. I just read an article that talked about how much mainline supermarket beef is fed garbage from the garbage dump (Mother Jones). I eat only grass fed beef from a local farm, and buffalo. Tried ostrich, but didn't like it too well - tastes like chicken-basted buffalo and very lean.

I have lost weight on meat/veggie diet, and I don't have it to lose either. I do think that it evens out a bit as your body adjusts and gets better. Right now if I eat millet bread once a day or so, I gain 5-8 pounds. If I don't, I lose it. (But I'm not eating it since I have an overall itching problem I'm trying to get to the bottom of and I'm testing out the bread first.) I have bottomed out at 123 or so (5'9 woman) which is too light...but it seems to stay around 125-127. I'm just lean I guess.

Now I'm blathering. Keep us posted and best of luck to you.

Look for coconut bliss ice cream. And check out Enjoy Life brand for soy-free stuff. Coconut blissssssssssssss.

It sounds like folks have given you great answers/experiences. I was bloated and uncomfortable from about 2 years old to about 38 years old. I would go from a 28 inch waist to a god-knows-what waiste, definitely pregnant looking, doubled over in pain, have to unbuttton pants, etc.

These are the things that helped me:

1. quitting gluten

2. quitting dairy (the biggest culprit for me, along with constipation)

3. quitting dried fruit - especially when mixed with nuts

Other things that help are walking. Lots of fiber works for some folks, makes other folks worse. I'm a high fiber person myself. I eat lots of raw veggies and avocados, figs, and flax meal sometimes as well.

It took a while to get this under control - it was quitting all sugars/fruits that finally solidified it...and if I eat dried fruit today I will definitely end up bloated tomorrow. (If I eat dairy today, I'll be constipated for a week.)

Good luck.

Well, I don't know anything about the growth part. I'm pretty tall myself. My stepdaughter who just turned 19 is only 4'11. She is always the shortest gal around, and she won't get any taller we figure. Her grandma is also only 4'11. I can't tell by your username if your male or female...so it's hard to know the social stigma attached to not being very tall -- I know it can be rough for boys. The average in the WORLD for men is only 5'7...so Americans (and probably Candians) tend to be a bit taller than average.

There is no cure for Celiac disease, that is for sure. AS to the armed forces, if you're in America, it does mean you would not pass the medical exam (or so I figure based on tiny internet research). But you could always go for the FBI or the police force, or government in general. I don't know if it was flying that attracted you to the AirForce, but you could of course get your private pilots license. I know the planes aren't quite as exciting or go quite as fast, but maybe aerobatics or something.

I know you didn't ask for this to happen to you, but it is an opportunity at least in some ways. You can focus more on your health than you might've otherwise, get in better shape, be the maximum physical person you can be. You caught it young so chances are the damage to your body is not too intensive -- what a gift! (I was diagnosed at 38...)

Anyway, I hope you don't get too discouraged. Take care.

Sunshine burgers don't have gluten or soy, and are based on beans.

Open Original Shared Link

(I don't eat soy or beans, but used to and remember these being pretty good, especially the black beany/southwesty one. Enjoy!

Also, you can make garden burgers yourself by using nuts/seeds and ground up veggies. Flax would hold them together I think. Try googling Veggie burger recipes.

I have tested positive (blood) for Celiac, but am "allergic" to nothing according to ELISA tests. According to Enterolab stool test, I'm having an antibody reaction to soy, but not yeast or egg to any discernable degree.

there are things I 100% know I can't eat: honey, for example...ooo the tummy ache. Potatoes give me terrible stool problems. Right now I'm testing out various things for itching (eggs? corn? tapioca? millet? etc.)

My conclusions in all of this are that allergy testing is handy, but personal experience and trusting personal experience is the best and most advanced tool we have in medicine. Testing is great, but knowing the self is better.

Trust your symptoms. IF you do have celiac (lots of folks get false negatives), you will be hurting yourself for sure by eating gluten. Probably, in non-celiac cases, you are hurting yourself since your body is begging you not to eat that stuff (via the only language it knows - pain, bloat, agony, etc.)

I'd guess fat...or pcb's....but probably not the latter. fresh salmon gets me sometimes from fat.

I read once that something to try if you have terrible periods - is not eating reproductive products of other animals: milk, eggs ... and probably avoiding other high hormone influencing foods like soy.

I have not tried it myself...well, at least not for long...and I've only every had intermittent cramps. Good luck to you.

I also forgot the symptom of bruising. When I was diagnosd with ITP I hand't realized that I had bruises on either side of my elbow by about five inches each - so a huge bruise on each arm along the elbows - from resting my head in my hands with my elbows on the desk.

Anyway, good luck.

Darnit! I'm so itchy. It works like this. I have a couple spots of really dry skin (excema?) but mostly no markings at all, just crazy itching, mainly when fabric is pressed against my skin. It does not matter the fabric. So for example, I get most of the itching when I go to bed, lean back in a chair, wear tight clothes (long johns), etc. Also, my bony parts itch all the time - down my shins, along my spine, hip bones, etc. Especially hip bones where pants press against. Also, ears itch on the inside - can't scratch them. I know that one sounds like yeast or something. Scalp also itches, though is not flaky. Insides of arms are itchy, like where they bend comes up against the fabric of the shirt.

I have had this before, off and on. WHen I quit gluten it got better. But here it is again. Also, when I quit all grains, it got better...of course now I'm eating millet and corn and quinoa. ARG!

No new fabric softener or detergent. No new soap. Taking showers does seem to make it worse, but even if I cut back the showers, I don't get full relief. I don't usually use soap in the shower. The only soap I do use in the shower is pure olive oil. Lotion makes it feel a bit better, but not cured. Rubbing the back makes it itchier. Scratching it makes it itchier.

I don't eat very much in the way of store bought food so don't really think it could be hidden gluten. Literally I think the only store bought foods I eat are millet bread (Food For Life), corn tortillas (Food For Life), masa flour (masaca brand), and a couple raw things like walnut butter, some "breads" made out of seeds, etc.

Already don't eat: gluten, dairy, soy, processed sugar

Biggest suspects:

corn: corn tortillas, mostly either homemade or sprouted corn tortillas from Food For Life. Cooked in olive oil (can't do coconut oil anymore - gives me tummy ache.)

tapioca flour: in my millet bread, which I eat two slices per day probably from Food For Life. Also in Food For Life Rice wraps, which I only recently bought and tried. Itching was really bad day I ate that for breakfast.

yeast: only in the bread. last ingredient.

eggs: eat 2-4 per day probably. Usually poached, occasionally fried in olive oil.

tomatoes: I never had itching from potatoes, though they wreaked havoc on my intestines. I am not able to eat cooked tomatoes - they disturb my stomach or so remind me of vomiting pizza and spaghetti (gluten) in my childhood, that I can't stand to eat it. But raw tomatoes, so long as they are ripe, seem to do just fine in my digestive tract.

sugars: not too likely, but react very strongly to too much fruit or agave or maple syrup - mostly in the reproductive system (I can tell I'm getting out of balance with the sugar) or in tummy aches. Can't touch honey for the stomach aches. Also sweet stuff makes my teeth ache a bit.

I know everyone is different, but would love to hear what other folks are finding makes them itchy, or if they know if any of the above are more or less likely to cause itchiness.

Lastly, can a person just eliminate one thing from the diet, or do they have to eliminate them all and then add back. If the latter, why?

THanks.

I wonder if you're thinking of the Gluten enzyme one. The digest Gold has nothing to digest gluten in them...they are just a regular digestive enzyme.

Do the pants have any spandex in them?

It used to be we would buy pants that were too big, knowing they would shrink (I'm 40 y.o. - so think levis, and other pants as well). Nowadays, lots of pants have spandex, so they stretch when you wear them.

I have pants that for the first hour out of the dryer are miserable, but by the end of the day might seem too big.

If they have spandex in them at all, and it should say on the label, that may well be what is happening. If so and it disturbs you, look for pants w/o any spandex in them at all.

I used them when first diagnosed and after I visited the nutritionist. At first, they really seemed to help. Then I started feeling really acidy, so I quit taking them, and my digestion stayed fine.

A year later (about a year ago now) I started having big time problems - having to poop quite suddenly, never very friendly ones, usually while walking the dog and nowhere near a bathroom, etc. I went to the doc, nothing wrong. I started taking the enzymes again and got better. Not sure if it was due to that or was just a coincidence. Then I started feeling really acidy and weird again, and quit taking them.

So in general, my experience with them was good. They're strong. They're expensive.

I don't take any enzymes now, but eat about 50% raw, so theoretically shouldn't need them, at least at those meals. Good luck.

p.s. my therapist, who also has celiac, can't take any enzymes - they give him celiac related symptoms.

-Sherri

Also if you have insurance, consider getting a CBC (Complete Blood Count) to get an idea of your platelet count. Think if you have any other "bleeding" symptoms like while brushing your teeth (more than usual) or extra periods in the month or heavier periods, etc. Also, if you have any little red dots on your skin, like where your shoes touch the tops of your feet, or around a tight bra or where your seatbelt hits you. If you have any of those things, for sure get a blood test.

I say all this because I had ITP (Ideopathic Thrombocytopenia Purpura), which is an autoimmune disease where your spleen kills your blood platelets (the things that clot your blood).

It's probably vitamin K or vitamin C, but please be safe if you think you fit the bill for the above symptoms.

-Sherri

I went to Tom Malterre, who was great. I say WAS because I don't think he's taking clients. YOu could call his office to find out who he recommends. He was great because he's celiac intolerant.

I ended up not going the direction he suggested, as I turned to a grain-free diet, then mostly raw foods. But all folks are different. He had good supplements for getting healed, a good attitude about gluten, has published a great cookbook which is 99% gluten free and dairy free for the most part (can find at Coop), teaches classes/has meetings about gluten-free recipes, etc. (again, at the Co-op). I'd try to reach him.

His web address is: Open Original Shared Link

Sorry that the only one I know of is not taking clients. I can't tell you how excited I was that the one I picked basically out of the phone book knew all about Celiac.

Good luck. You can always PM any questions you have too - I live in Edgemoore right by the Fairhaven neighborhood. I'd be happy to help you at the Co-op as well (I love grocery shopping).

-Sherri