33 replies to this topic

[Aly1]

I don't know if I'll even get a reply to this one because I'm so sensitive right now that maybe there just isn't anything out there that's processed that I can have! I eat mostly whole foods but need some processed stuff to fill in the gaps. I'm relatively new to gluten-free and am discovering I am sensitive to so many things. I want to find flours (I already have some leads there), muffin mixes, anything that would make either a great breakfast food or snack food to add in between meals (trying to gain weight).

Problem is I also have issues with:

Oats cc
Eggs
Corn
almonds (maybe all tree nuts? I am not up to challenging those yet to see)
Sugar / sweeteners

I am also avoiding dairy though my only "reaction" is to get very bumpy on the backs of my arms. So I am a little flexible on that one.)

I thought maybe here on the Sensitive board some of you might know some tried-and-true gluten-free products I could try. If there are any, given my list above! I am tired of picking products that end up making me sick.

[dilettantesteph]

I'm sorry I can't help you there. I go whole foods all the way. You can make your own snack foods. I make potato and greens chips with the food dehydrator, for example. It also helps to cook extra and freeze so that you can thaw and eat when you are in a hurry.

I wish you luck though.

[sa1937]

Aly, when you're new to eating gluten-free, you can react to most anything and everything. I don't know that it's because you're super-sensitive though. At 18-months gluten-free, I was still having problems and could never pinpoint what I was reacting to.

At that point IrishHeart suggested I start taking a probiotic (specifically Culturelle) and it's helped tremendously. Now I'm doing great. I figure I was still healing and it does take quite awhile for some of us (I was diagnosed at an older age and that may make a difference). Every now and then I will have a problem...but then even people without celiac do. We just spend time trying to figure out what zaps us and maybe there is no one answer to that.

I pretty much eliminated dairy products right away, which were much harder to give up than gluten. When I was gluten-free for 9 months, I started slowly adding in some hard cheeses and am now doing well with dairy products.

You're best right now to stick to a whole foods diet and skip searching for processed gluten-free products. What works for one person may not work for another. That's probably not the answer you want to hear, but this is a case where one size does not fit all. Hope this helps a bit.

[Aly1]

No, that's not the answer i wanted to hear, I want quick easy nutritious gluten-free foods that I enjoy eating. But I appreciate the replies.

I will get a probiotic, it can only help! Thanks

[IrishHeart]

Nutritious gluten free foods are meats, veggies, fruits, seafood, nuts, eggs, cheese (if you can tolerate it).

If you mean you want some GOODIES, that's a different story.

CHEBE mixes are free of most everything that could bother you right now.

I think it was MarilynR and Kareng who suggested this brand to me as I do not normally eat prepared foods but I wanted SOMETHING quick to prepare one day.

Enjoy Life Brand is free of the top 8 allergens.

Google "allergy free dedicated bakeries" and see what you find.

In the beginning, though, a whole foods diet is best for healing the gut and seeing how you feel.

And yes, a probiotic is very helpful for a celiac gut.
Best wishes!

[a1956chill]

Sorry I wont be much help either
The only prepared products I eat are Udi's bread on occasion,Hot Kid rice crisps (I GOT to have crackers).
Every thing else I make my self.It is safer that way ,and it tastes better

If you are going with prepared products, I agree with Irishheart, go with Enjoy Life products.

[mushroom]

Rice chex or crispies and almond milk with fruit for breakfast.

Some sliced swiss cheese and make cheese roll-ups with lettuce, and your favourite veggies tucked inside for lunch.

Grated parmesan cheese "crackers"(yeah, you do have to make thse yourself) or try Mary's Gone Crackers (oh, wait, think they have nuts)



Gosh, it's only been four months and I have forgoten everything

[IrishHeart]

One more thing...try So Delicious Coconut milk and Ice Creams.

tasty alternatives to dairy.

[T.H.]

Okay, a few junk foods, heh.

My daughter seems to be able to tolerate Kettle brand salt and vinegar potato chips. That flavor does have citric acid (which can be a corn cc issue if you are really, really sensitive), but if you can tolerate citric acid, it's pretty good. It's one of the only flavors that doesn't have sugar cane or sweeteners added or dairy.

Another thing you might enjoy is popped sorghum. It tastes like popcorn but it's about a third the size. There is a farm called Twin Valley Mills that sells whole grain sorghum (you have to google them and then contact by email, as they only sell the flour on the website). They sell in bulk, but the price is very good.

We would just pop it in the microwave in a microwave popper. Pops in like half the time that popcorn would. Nice snack, and pretty nutritious. And you could grind your own flour from it, if you like.

[dilettantesteph]

There is a farm called Twin Valley Mills that sells whole grain sorghum (you have to google them and then contact by email, as they only sell the flour on the website). They sell in bulk, but the price is very good.

They sell whole grain sorghum online. Click on express order form:
http://www.twinvalleymills.com/

[shayre]

If you feel that you must have processed foods, then I would recommend looking at labels for Enjoy Life, Lundberg, Kinnikinnick, Namaste and Gluten Free 123. I buy them for baked goods and chocolate. I am very sensitive, and they are the only ones that I don't react to from cross-contamination. I am ok with a little bloating sometimes from other ingredients, but that just gets better with time. Probiotics....can't live without them! I use Metagenics that they sell at my docs office. These food companies test to 5ppm for gluten. I know that gluten-free 123 will provide you with egg alternatives too. I buy these products from Whole Foods and Kroger, but I'm sure that they are also online. I was also very sensitive to corn, and I'm just now starting to tolerate it better. I used to get a rash or boils after eating it...and severe gut upset. Now upset is minimal and no rash or boils. I still react to Udi's, Rudi's, Glutino...etc...they test to 10ppm. I definitely react to any company like Amy's or Food for life...just awful for me. Just pay attention to that if you can. I had to be really clean with my diet, and then gluten myself on purpose a couple of times to figure out what my reaction time is...so then I could figure out what I eat that glutens me on accident. I now know that my reaction time is about 2 1/2-3 days, and the usual series of symptoms follow, with day 4 being the worst. Now when I try a new product...if I get gluten symptoms 3 days later...I can identify it. I am mostly meat and veggies now too, but I still feel the need for carbs to fill in the blanks. I use Lundberg rice cakes for a snack with Peanut Butter and Jelly. I have begun to tolerate Kinnikinnick bread with moderation. Potato starch in anything gives me pain issues, so I have to be moderate with potato starches in baking mixes. I cannot tolerate potatoes straight. Gluten Free 123 has a pan bar mix that is my favorite with added pumpkin from Libby's. Kinnikinnick doghnuts are also a favorite. I eat the Enjoy life dark chocolate, as the other chocolates give me bloating (rice milk). I sometimes eat their cookies too. I have only tried Namaste's cookie mix, but i like it and have begun to experiment with it. Strangly...I don't think that I react to gluten-free bisquik pancake mix, so that can be used for pancakes, breading, thickening or flour. If you are less sensitive, then you might tolerate more companies as well. Also Bob's Red Mill and Nature's Path get me good...and they test at 20ppm.

[IrishHeart]

Also Bob's Red Mill ... they test at 20ppm.

They do??!! How were they tested? I am really curious--- because my husband tested them with a home kit (he is a chemist and curious by nature )--- it tests down to 5ppm. Nothing showed.

Or.... did you mean the company testing policies?

Thanks for clarifying ... for the Newbies among us.

I agree with you about Amy's--ugh!

[Gemini]

They do??!! How were they tested? I am really curious--- because my husband tested them with a home kit (he is a chemist and curious by nature )--- it tests down to 5ppm. Nothing showed.

Or.... did you mean the company testing policies?

Thanks for clarifying ... for the Newbies among us.

I agree with you about Amy's--ugh!

Bob's Red Mill allows no more than 19ppm, according to their website, but as they are a dedicated facility and go to great lengths to ensure their oats are not cc'd, the 5ppm is probably more in line with what they produce. Just because a company tests to a certain standard, does not mean that amount of gluten exists on a regular basis in their product. I am very sensitive and know many other very sensitive Celiacs who tolerate Bob's products well.
It could be the cross reaction with oats that give people a problem, not gluten.

[Aly1]

There have been some *great* responses and I am glad to have some confirmed safe options to try. I do want to eat a mostly unprocessed diet and do - but I find that while I'm fine for lunch and dinner, breakfast time and snacks are hardest. Since I first posted this we have successfully made muffins which I enjoy for breakfast (successfully means, finally after many attempts I have not reacted to any of the ingredients!). I've stopped losing weight and am staying where I'm at so I'll still need to try your various recommendations to add more calories .

And omg I am so excited to try popped sorghum! Hubby and I always ate popcorn on movie night and it's sorely missed since I discovered my corn problem. So big YAY on that one . Thanks again everyone!

[Gemini]

There have been some *great* responses and I am glad to have some confirmed safe options to try. I do want to eat a mostly unprocessed diet and do - but I find that while I'm fine for lunch and dinner, breakfast time and snacks are hardest. Since I first posted this we have successfully made muffins which I enjoy for breakfast (successfully means, finally after many attempts I have not reacted to any of the ingredients!). I've stopped losing weight and am staying where I'm at so I'll still need to try your various recommendations to add more calories .

And omg I am so excited to try popped sorghum! Hubby and I always ate popcorn on movie night and it's sorely missed since I discovered my corn problem. So big YAY on that one . Thanks again everyone!

It is not mandatory for you to eat a 100% whole foods diet initially when diagnosed. I was as sick as sick gets with this disease at diagnosis and weighed 97 pounds, soaking wet. I always ate a lot of unprocessed foods and continued to do so after diagnosis but I needed to gain weight. You don't gain weight easily on a whole foods diet. So I ate gluten-free bread and tolerated it well...it was like I was always supposed to eat that way. After a few weeks, I made some gluten-free brownies and tolerated those well also. I admit I am a fast healer and the only other intolerance I have is dairy.

If you want to try something, go ahead and try it. If it doesn't agree with you, then don't eat it again for awhile. Whatever you do, do not fear food.
There's too much of that going around. If something does not agree with you, it isn't always because of gluten. Just try and stick to dedicated facilities at first until you start feeling better. You will find that you have to eat calorie dense foods or you won't gain weight easily and those aren't the unprocessed ones! Nothing wrong with a good gluten-free brownie! Enjoy!