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2nd Month Gluten Free And Terribly Constipated

Nancym

By Nancym
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted

I don't have an official diagnosis yet of Celiac, probably never will other than the Enterolab testing I'm doing right now. But I have had IBS for years and years. Usually it was cramping, terrible gas, bordering on diarhea and really nasty, messy bowel movements. I have had thyroid disease and a few other things that made me perk up when someone mentioned Celiac. So I read all I could and jumped on the diet, think I'm being quite good with it so far. The IBS cleared up instantly. But now I'm having constipation that takes a LOT of effort (mucho psyllium, magnesium in high quantitites) to make a dent in.

Has anyone else had this happen?

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tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

I found that going gluten free made my issues with dairy more obvious - and one of the main symptoms I get from dairy is constipation.

par18 Apprentice
par18
Posted
I don't have an official diagnosis yet of Celiac, probably never will other than the Enterolab testing I'm doing right now. But I have had IBS for years and years. Usually it was cramping, terrible gas, bordering on diarhea and really nasty, messy bowel movements. I have had thyroid disease and a few other things that made me perk up when someone mentioned Celiac. So I read all I could and jumped on the diet, think I'm being quite good with it so far. The IBS cleared up instantly. But now I'm having constipation that takes a LOT of effort (mucho psyllium, magnesium in high quantitites) to make a dent in.

Has anyone else had this happen?

I eat fruit every day and it really helps. Usually 1 apple (skin on) and 1 banana or other fruit. I try to get fiber through naturally gluten free foods like raw or cooked veggies. Check labels on foods for fiber content.

Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted
  • Author
I eat fruit every day and it really helps. Usually 1 apple (skin on) and 1 banana or other fruit. I try to get fiber through naturally gluten free foods like raw or cooked veggies. Check labels on foods for fiber content.

Maybe I should try some fruit. I've been eating tons of veggies, huge salad at lunch with spinach, asparagus, artichoke hearts and then usually a large serving of veggies at dinner too. Plus I've been making some bread with corn bran and flax. But it all is for naught! I'll give the apples a try.

aikiducky Apprentice
aikiducky
Posted

You could try raisins and dates, as a natural source of magnesium.

I also second the stop eating dairy suggestion, if you haven't already. At least it's worth a try.

Pauliina

card-carrying member of the Sunmaid fan club, lol! :D

eeyor-fan Contributor
eeyor-fan
Posted
I don't have an official diagnosis yet of Celiac, probably never will other than the Enterolab testing I'm doing right now. But I have had IBS for years and years. Usually it was cramping, terrible gas, bordering on diarhea and really nasty, messy bowel movements. I have had thyroid disease and a few other things that made me perk up when someone mentioned Celiac. So I read all I could and jumped on the diet, think I'm being quite good with it so far. The IBS cleared up instantly. But now I'm having constipation that takes a LOT of effort (mucho psyllium, magnesium in high quantitites) to make a dent in.

Has anyone else had this happen?

I have the same problem so every day, along with lots of Fruits and veggies I have a snack of some "gluten-free Rice Bran Crackers" from Health Valley and drink lots of water. Rice Bran is a godsend to celiacs with constipation.

Hugs

Bridget

I have the same problem so every day, along with lots of Fruits and veggies I have a snack of some "gluten-free Rice Bran Crackers" from Health Valley and drink lots of water. Rice Bran is a godsend to celiacs with constipation. 1 last thing...don't give up dairy unless you test positive for casien or intolerance because as it is, us celiacs get deficencies so easily so there is no need to promote it. I's recomment you see your doctor about being tested for intolerance to dairy if your problems continue. We have to understand that we all just lost one big part of the food pyramid when we went gluten-free so it will take our bodies a while to adjust.

Hugs

Bridget

carolse Newbie
carolse
Posted

Hi Nancym,

I also had problems with constipation and I use Natural Calm magnesium powder and that made all the difference no more constipation. I had to adjust the dose too much can cause diahrea. It works so much better than the capsules I was taking.

I hope this helps...

Carolyn

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Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted
  • Author
Hi Nancym,

I also had problems with constipation and I use Natural Calm magnesium powder and that made all the difference no more constipation. I had to adjust the dose too much can cause diahrea. It works so much better than the capsules I was taking.

I hope this helps...

Carolyn

I'm taking magnesium too. 500mg a day. It isn't working. :\ Well, maybe it needs to build up in the system a bit, I've only been on it a couple of days.

I've been eating a lowish carb diet (not much in terms of grains) for years but with lots of veggies. I'm experimenting making some kind of a pumpkin bready thing with psyllium husks and flax seed. Maybe over the course of a few days I'll perfect the recipe and it'll do some good for my innards. Hope so!

  • 3 weeks later...
Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted
  • Author

I got my results back from Enterolab. Looks like I'm casein intolerant as well as gluten intolerant. I celebrated on NY's eve with a huge amount of ice cream and my gut reacted badly to that! NY's day was my first casein free day and today I notice that the big bloating in my belly is going down. I might have a flat stomach again someday! Gosh, to think all this time these things were giving me problems with my stomach and I just never really noticed. Utterly insidious! But this makes me wonder if there is anything else that I can't digest.

CMCM Rising Star
CMCM
Posted
I got my results back from Enterolab. Looks like I'm casein intolerant as well as gluten intolerant. I celebrated on NY's eve with a huge amount of ice cream and my gut reacted badly to that! NY's day was my first casein free day and today I notice that the big bloating in my belly is going down. I might have a flat stomach again someday! Gosh, to think all this time these things were giving me problems with my stomach and I just never really noticed. Utterly insidious! But this makes me wonder if there is anything else that I can't digest.

I've got my Enterolab pick-up scheduled for noon tomorrow, and I'm half worried that I won't be able to produce a stool sample by then....I seem to be constipated at the moment. I took a couple of magnesium, maybe that will help. I'm sure I will also turn out to be casein intolerant....I've had trouble with dairy as long as I can remember, and in fact, most of my life I didn't eat a lot of it for that reason. I'll be glad to finally get some sort of confirmation about what's going on....I ordered the full test panel (gulp!) and figured I might as well find out everything at once. This sounds a lot better than a shot in the dark blood test, plus I've mostly been gluten free for 5 weeks now, and before that I didn't have much either, so blood tests would never show anything with me.

GC1 Rookie
GC1
Posted

People being different, some things work good while others can be a real problem... years ago, I tried the bran, flaxseed, fish oil, etc, and I thought I might die from the "cure".

:-)

For some, Juniper berries work well, the cooked juice of collards (not too much), apple/berry/beet juice... but avoid raw fruit with other foods, as well as starchy grains, potatoes, rice, meat, cheese, dairy, etc, when constipated. Also helpful; massage, walking/lite jogging in place, warm/hot baths, warm water enema with raspberry tea, eat small meals, don't drink with food, don't eat late, etc. Also very important is the effects of 'food combining', and the 'blood type' diet... as well as eating an [individual] appropriate 'acid/alkaline' balance in one's diet. Too much fiber can upset the balance, as can coffee, alcohol, etc.

GC

jenvan Collaborator
jenvan
Posted

Are you positive you are gluten-free? Not until I was completely gluten-free, no accidents did my constipation begin to go away. Dairy also makes me constipation too. Go here to read several posts I made last week on constipation and helping get rid of it: Open Original Shared Link It's a lot of info, so easier to post thread.

Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted
  • Author

You might want to cancel that pickup of your stool. Here's what I did, it'll take the pressure off you. I followed their instructions, got the stool sample, wrapped it thoroughly inside a couple of plastic bags (inside the container, of course), then I stuck it in the freezer. I found out where there was a DHL drop box, verified it was ok to drop my lab samples in the drop box, and just dropped it off shortly before they pick up the box contents.

If you stick with pick-up service, I'd wait until after you produced the necessary item and freeze it until they come.

I did freak a little about having a poopsicle in my freezer, but reasoned it out there was no way anything was going to get contaminated. Now I kind of laugh about it all.

key Contributor
key
Posted

Being 100%gluten-free has helped me. Also I drink Citrucel about once a day. It works well, without gas problems and is gluten-free. Also eating apples, pears and grapes would help maybe. Drink plenty of water if you are not already doing that and exercise daily. I have also used prunes and flaxseeds ground in applesauce, but these things can cause horrible gas, so caution!

Monica

GC1 Rookie
GC1
Posted

I forgot to add this from some info a fantastic young lady at the health department sent me:

*Be wary of imported foods labeled 'gluten-free', because they may contain wheat starch. *Initially a low fiber intake may be necessary due to a flattening of the intestinal villi. *Protein: adequate intake is essential... and attention should be paid to B-vitamin rich foods. *These include legumes, nuts, seeds, green veggies, dairy, meat, fish, and poultry.

But, for some; dairy, red meat, and certain nuts/seeds can cause constipation... I ate more eggs, blackeyed-peas, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, chicken, collards, etc, to balance nutritional needs.

GC

CMCM Rising Star
CMCM
Posted
You might want to cancel that pickup of your stool. Here's what I did, it'll take the pressure off you. I followed their instructions, got the stool sample, wrapped it thoroughly inside a couple of plastic bags (inside the container, of course), then I stuck it in the freezer. I found out where there was a DHL drop box, verified it was ok to drop my lab samples in the drop box, and just dropped it off shortly before they pick up the box contents.

If you stick with pick-up service, I'd wait until after you produced the necessary item and freeze it until they come.

I did freak a little about having a poopsicle in my freezer, but reasoned it out there was no way anything was going to get contaminated. Now I kind of laugh about it all.

Success! Sample produced at 10:00 a.m., pickup promptly at 12:00. Whew! That was cutting it close...I thought I might have to cancel! I too was kind of freaked about the freezer part...but I'm laughing now too about that. No one knew at home, and I think I'll keep it that way!

debmidge Rising Star
debmidge
Posted

Nancy,

When having constipation trouble I use stool softeners.

Where do you get the corn bran? Been looking for this for a couple of years.

D.

Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted
  • Author
Nancy,

When having constipation trouble I use stool softeners.

Where do you get the corn bran? Been looking for this for a couple of years.

D.

Honeyvillegrain.com rocks for interesting baking ingredients.

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