[Calla9880]

Hi Everyone,

After a year and a half of trying, we just found out this week that we are expecting.

I was diagnosed with Celiac three years ago and was gluten free for about one year but then I started eating it again. It really hasn't bothered me, but I am wondering if I am not eating gluten free if it will hurt the baby.

At this point, I dont know where to start again to go gluten free. Would someone be able to offer any advise/suggestions? I would greatly appreciate it!

Sincerely,
Melissa
Philadelphia

[NicoleAJ]

Melissa,

It is so important to be gluten free if you have been diagnosed as a celiac, but especially if you are pregnant. Just because you may seem asymptomatic doesn't mean that you are not hurting your body and your nutrient levels by eating gluten. You will need to absorb as many nutrients as possible to pass on to your newly developing fetus. I'd start going through your house and tossing anything that contains wheat, rye, barley, oats, soy sauce, dressings and other things that seem questionable. I don't want to frighten you, but not maintaining the gluten free diet during pregnancy can cause a host of problems for the fetus. I would go gluten free right away. How were you diagnosed? Did you trust your doctor's diagnosis?

[Emmysweet]

Hi! I am in my fourth pregnancy but its my first since being diagnosed. From what I have read on the internet....it appears that it you eat gluten the baby might have a low birth weight and also might not get the nutrients he/she needs. I would search and read about it. My ob does not know anything about it and he poo-poos everything. Good luck!

Calla9880, on Oct 11 2009, 05:33 AM, said:

Hi Everyone,

After a year and a half of trying, we just found out this week that we are expecting.

I was diagnosed with Celiac three years ago and was gluten free for about one year but then I started eating it again. It really hasn't bothered me, but I am wondering if I am not eating gluten free if it will hurt the baby.

At this point, I dont know where to start again to go gluten free. Would someone be able to offer any advise/suggestions? I would greatly appreciate it!

Sincerely,
Melissa
Philadelphia

[tarnalberry]

If you are celiac, you really do need to eat gluten free. The fact that you were not may have contributed to it taking a year to get pregnant, as untreated celiac disease is linked to infertility and miscarriage.

If you have celiac, regardless of what you *feel* in your body, damage is done every time you consume gluten, and it make take a decade or two or three for you to find out that you have developed another autoimmune disease (like Hashimoto') or a deficiency (like anemia or deficiency induced osteoporosis) or intestinal cancer, but untreated celiac is not only potentially problematic for your little one (not necessarily, but it's a risk) but decreases your life span by 10 years on average.

I am also pregnant (11.5 weeks) and am being even more careful than I usually am about contamination.

Start simple - whole, unprocessed foods. Whole meats, vegetables, fruits, nuts, eggs, dairy (if you're good with dairy), and so on. Processed foods have long ingredient labels to read through, which can cause you to miss a gluten-ingredient, and have a higher chance of contamination (in many, but not *all*, cases).

It'll mean a bit of cooking, but it doesn't have to mean a lot, and it doesn't have to be difficult cooking either. Stuff I've made (from scratch) in the past when friends come over that takes around half an hour from start to finish: chicken rice soup, beef stew, tacos, chicken shawarma (ok, this one needed to be marinated in advance, but that can be done the day before), stir fry, grilled meat and sauteed veggies, and so on. It's all quite tasty, naturally gluten free, and fairly simple to make (and make in big enough batches to have leftovers for the next day's lunch and/or dinner).