Strange food interactions!!

[Foggyat52]

I realize that being diagnosed with Celiac Disease at 52 meant an entire lifestyle change was necessary, but I feel better now than I have in 20 years by being gluten-free, so it has been worth it.  I am curious though about whether anyone else has experienced weird changes in their digestive system?  Specifically, foods that I couldn't eat before (milk/dairy) I can eat as long as I do so in moderation; but foods that I have eaten all my life now cause gastric distress (apples and some nuts).  I grew up in central Ohio where apple orchards were the main agricultural commodity.  I spent my teen-age years picking apples for orchard owners, running cider presses, etc. and apples have ALWAYS been a staple of my diet.  Now they do not digest either in my stomach or small intestine, and essentially rot in my colon where they mix with bacteria and cause hydrogen gas.  I can clear a room out with the noxious vapors.  Other fruits, such as oranges, peaches, pears, tangerines, etc. I have no problems with, but I miss my apples   Does anyone have any suggestions???

[RMJ]

It makes sense that you can now eat dairy products.  When the villi are damaged by celiac disease they don’t make the enzyme lactase which is needed to digest the sugar in milk. When the villi heal, lactase can be made again. (Note:  some adults without celiac disease still don’t make lactase, which is why lactose intolerance is common).

Can’t help you with the apples!

[Wheatwacked]

congratulations on creating a gut environment that lactobacillus is happy in. Most mammals after weaning do not make enough lactase to process large amounts of milk. Some lose the ability to create endogenous lactase entirely and some have a genetic persistence to continue drinking the larger amounts we drink as larger than infants. Fortunately, as a species, humans have created a symbiotic relationship with some microbes that make lactase for us in exchange for room and board.

For the apple thing, it sounds like SIBO. The apple and nuts may just be the extra fiber to exasperate the gas (I am guessing methane SIBO.) You might want to get an Ultrasound to check that you have not developed three extra stomachs (like a cow) that are producing the methane 😎.

For the limit on milk products. It may be that the higher omega 6 in commercial milk vs. pasture fed is causing inflammation. I know that if I drink commercial whole milk at bedtime, I awake about two hours later with indigestion, requiring an Original Alka Seltzer whereas if I drink 100% pasture fed at bedtime I do not. Grass-fed cows produce healthier milk

A mild antibiotic food like oregano or garlic may help control the bad bugs. Purdue Chicken used to advertise that they stopped using antibiotics in their feed by adding oregano to the chicken feed they use. I've had success recently by adding Red Leaf lettuce and Tart Cherry Juice to my diet. Their polyphenols and vitamin A content is exceptional compared to other lettuces and fruits, and it has been helping with my gut and peripheral neuropathy.

Edited May 9, 2022 by Wheatwacked