Confused About What I'm Reading...

[Rachel--24]

As I mentioned in a previous post I found a new doctor knowledgeable in the area of gluten sensitivity. I visited the clinic's website and they had a special section dedicated to learning about gluten intolerance. I read something that I'm confused about regarding Amaranth, Quinoa and Teff. This is what it says....

Foods which mimic gluten in the body:

There are foods which do not strictly contain gluten (gliadin is the actual name of the offending protein) but still trigger the same unhealthy response as gluten. How? These foods contain proteins which are so similar to gliadin that people whose bodies are sensitive can’t tell the difference.

For example, soy is considered an OK food for those who are gluten intolerant. But when soy protein is concentrated in the form of tofu, tempeh or soy protein isolate (founds in soy-based protein powders and protein bars) that concentrated protein appears so similar to gluten that your body reacts to it the same as if you were consuming gluten.

Oats is another example. There are gluten free societies which will get quite impassioned when defending oats. Others don’t recommend oats due to a problem of unacceptable levels of contamination. We all agree that oats has a different protein from wheat, rye and barley. But the problem is that when a gluten intolerant person consumes oats they react to it the same as if they were consuming wheat! So please be cautious when reading other materials or consulting other web sites which say that oats, amaranth, quinoa and teff are fine. From a chemical standpoint they do have a different protein but from a practical, clinical standpoint they still create reactions which is ultimately what we are trying to avoid.

The science behind the above statements has been proven by measuring an inflammatory enzyme which gets elevated in gluten intolerant people who consume gluten. The experiment took gluten intolerant patients who had been off gluten and measured the enzyme to get a baseline. The baseline was normal. The patient then consumed one of the supposedly “OK” grains listed above. When the enzyme was retested it was found to be high, confirming a reaction to the grain.

So while we all like the sound of being able to eat oatmeal please remember that it is not okay and the above proves why.

What do you guys think? Is this why some people get gluten-like reactions from soy but others are ok with it? What about the other grains...does anyone get gluten-like reactions from them? I'm confused because although I have come accross websites saying to avoid all these...most sites say they are OK.

[nikki-uk]

Regarding Oats-well my husband has steered well clear!

I always think that oats would be contaminated anyway as it's grown with wheat.

Of course some coeliacs do eat oats with no apparent ill effects.

As my hubbie has been so very ill it's not worth the chance.

Scientifically,I think the jury is still out on oats.

I found this thread about soy further down the board-certainly some coeliacs do have a problem with it-but scientific proof? Open Original Shared Link

[Rachel--24]

Regarding Oats-well my husband has steered well clear!

I always think that oats would be contaminated anyway as it's grown with wheat.

Of course some coeliacs do eat oats with no apparent ill effects.

As my hubbie has been so very ill it's not worth the chance.

Scientifically,I think the jury is still out on oats.

I found this thread about soy further down the board-certainly some coeliacs do have a problem with it-but scientific proof? Open Original Shared Link

I definately wouldnt try eating Oats...even if they are pure. I'm really curious about the amaranth and quinoa though. This past week has probably been the worst for me since going gluten-free. I've had alot of the symptoms I havent had in awhile and I've lost 4 lbs. The only new thing I've eaten is Amy's rice bowl which contains soy...I think it had tofu. I ate 3 of these in the past week but I never suspected the rice bowl. I felt fine after eating them. The only other thing thats happened is that last week at work I was on my knees stocking (I work in a grocery store)...it was before the store was open and the janitor was cleaning the floor with a machine. He accidently ran into my foot and when I turned around to look I was hit in the face with a cloud of who knows what from underneath the machine. The scrubbing pad had come off when he ran into me so everything flew into my eyes and face. Since he was cleaning the floor I thought maybe there was flour in that "cloud" but who knows....my reactions started that night. That was 9 days ago.

[nikki-uk]

Probably stating the obvious here but could it be a lactose or casein problem?

It's so hard constantly trying to work out where you've gone wrong(if at all)

Obviously,if you continue to lose weight you will have to discuss this with your new doc(great find by the way!).

Hope you're feeling better soon-I know my hubbie get's really disheartened when the little bit of weight he manages to put on one week,falls off twice as quick the next.

Keep us posted on your progress,sorry I can't be of more help

[Rachel--24]

Thanks Nikki,

I'm already casein free so its not that....that was one of the first things the doc asked.

He'll be putting me on an elimination diet so hopefully we'll figure some things out.

I'm definately going to ask him more about the soy, amaranth, quinoa thing though.

[celiacat35]

Probably stating the obvious here but could it be a lactose or casein problem?

It's so hard constantly trying to work out where you've gone wrong(if at all)

Obviously,if you continue to lose weight you will have to discuss this with your new doc(great find by the way!).

Hope you're feeling better soon-I know my hubbie get's really disheartened when the little bit of weight he manages to put on one week,falls off twice as quick the next.

Keep us posted on your progress,sorry I can't be of more help

Hi all

I visited a holistic practioner under the pressure of a friend of mine, and she tested me to all kinds of grains and soy. THE scary part I was allergic to soy as bad as to glutin and wheat , she even said I should stay away fro megg youlks. She apractice that utilizes meredian and allergy elimination technique.

Iam certain was not eitch craft lolY, but I didi not belive in it fully. I would stay away from oats and other shady grains like barley and malt .

The consiquences of celiac are so bad and severr that is not worth it . the thing about soy is that some people may be okay with it while others are not.i for example when I eat I feel like tired and heavy,but no GI symptoms it is almost like my body is working extra to digest it.

all the best to all

Celiac at35

Hassan

[CMCM]

Thanks Nikki,

I'm already casein free so its not that....that was one of the first things the doc asked.

He'll be putting me on an elimination diet so hopefully we'll figure some things out.

I'm definately going to ask him more about the soy, amaranth, quinoa thing though.

In addition to my suspected problems with wheat/grains, I know I have problems with dairy...whether or not it was connected to the untreated gluten issue remains to be seen. Soy is something I've really never eaten at all. However, I've been dairy free since Thanksgiving, and I was horribly missing my cappuccinos, so I read on a coffee site about how to froth soy milk. I wanted to give it a try, and I got a horrible digestive upset from that ONE coffee drink (with about 1/2 c. soy milk in it) and it lasted for several days. So I can see I don't do well with soy either. On the other hand, I was regularly eating Irish oats from McCanns and I really didn't feel I was reacting to that in particular, but again, I can't tell at this point because everything can be so interconnected, and what you posted from that website seems plausible. Sigh....

[aikiducky]

I wonder if it isn't possible that those grains might indeed cause a reaction in some individuals, but not all? Because I know so many celiacs who happily consume teff and quinoa and so on and seem fine with it. I'd really like to see a second study about it for sure.

I've tried oats, in Finland, btw, and didn't react in any way as far as I can tell. I probably wouldn't start eating them regularly though, just to be sure.

BTW I think you might very well have been glutened by the cleaning accident. Maybe see how you feel in a couple weeks? Hope you feel better soon in any way...

Pauliina