Jump to content
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):
  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

St. Thomas/st. John


sunshine264

Recommended Posts

sunshine264 Newbie

I will be going to st. John, USVI in a few weeks. Anyone been there? I will be renting a villa, and doing most of my own cooking, except for a few nights out. Any recommendations for gluten-free restaurants? I do plan on eating a lot of seafood.

Also, anyone know if Starfish Market carries gluten-free foods? Any health food stores? or should I pack my own stuff?


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



wonkabar Contributor
I will be going to st. John, USVI in a few weeks. Anyone been there? I will be renting a villa, and doing most of my own cooking, except for a few nights out. Any recommendations for gluten-free restaurants? I do plan on eating a lot of seafood.

Also, anyone know if Starfish Market carries gluten-free foods? Any health food stores? or should I pack my own stuff?

We were just on St. John in March with the kids...literally the week we put our son on a gluten-free diet. It's absolutely beautiful there. We had one suitcase filled with diapers, wipes and gluten-free foods. :) We hit the Starfish Market a couple of times. Boy is it expensive!! I don't think they had any gluten-free brands per se. (ie, Gluten Free Pantry) However, we stayed at the Westin and were able to find Pirate's Booty at the little deli on their grounds. We were shocked!! I would personally pack a lot of your own stuff. If you're staying at one of the resorts, the concierge should be able to help you. I'd try giving them a call, too.

My brother and sister in-law had a villa down there..that's how we were able to afford going for a week with two kids!! I'll ask her for some resturaunt suggestions. I know we went to Margharita Phil's for mexican (the BEST margharitas ever!), La Tappas, Chloe and Bernards and a couple others I can't remember. They were all very receptive to helping us keep Zachary gluten-free, however I can't guarentee that there wasn't any cross-contamination. You'll be able to get seafood anywhere. We just needed burgers and fries for him!!

Guhlia Rising Star

Just be sure that the seafood, if boiled, is boiled in ONLY PURE WATER. I know some places that do crab, shrimp, etc. put beer into the water and that would contaminate the whole pot. Also, if they're grilling fish or something you may want to ask them to either do it in a clean pan OR clean a small section of the grill AND then do it on top of foil. Be sure they use clean utensils for your food. Good luck!

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):





    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):




  • Recent Activity

    1. - Colleen H posted a topic in Coping with Celiac Disease
      0

      Barilla gluten free pasta

    2. - Known1 replied to Known1's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      2

      Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water

    3. - Rejoicephd commented on Scott Adams's article in Origins of Celiac Disease
      8

      Do Antibiotics in Babies Increase Celiac Disease Risk Later in Life? (+Video)

    4. - knitty kitty replied to Known1's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      2

      Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,446
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    DH Larry
    Newest Member
    DH Larry
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):
  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Colleen H
      Has anyone had a reaction to gluten free pasta ?  I made ground beef pasta and gluten free sauce and I'm having every symptom there is.  Nausea ,  constipated,   burning pins and needles, anxiety...etc   lots of pain 😞 headache 😭  Does this sound familiar?   I'm literally bed ridden.  
    • Known1
      Thank you for your reply.  I read the same thing about distilled water.  Oddly, drinking that has not caused any sort of reaction in my gut.  Nothing I can hear and feel anyway.  🤣  With that said, I have also switched over to spring water for drinking.  My traditional go to grocery store charges the exact same thing ($1.39) for a gallon of pre-bottled spring, distilled, or RO water.  The manual gallon refills of RO water have an attractive price of $0.49 per gallon, provided you use your own container.  Knowing it causes major bubble gut (and likely other issues) for me, I am avoiding all RO water moving forward.  In fact, I will gladly drink tap before RO water. Here is what Google says when searching "European study regarding reverse osmosis water". --Begin quote: European studies indicate that while reverse osmosis (RO) is highly effective at removing contaminants, it strips essential minerals (calcium, magnesium) and creates low-mineral, slightly acidic water.  Research suggests this may have long-term health implications, such as mineral deficiencies, while also negatively affecting the sensory quality (taste) of water. Key Findings from European Research & Reviews: Health Concerns: Epidemiological studies in Europe have associated low-mineral water consumption with increased risks of cardiovascular disease, cognitive decline, and reduced intake of essential nutrients. Mineral Depletion: RO systems can remove up to 95%+ of solutes, including minerals that are vital for health. Sensory and Quality Impact: Studies show that reducing the mineral content (TDS) of water makes it taste bitter or flat, with optimal, "fresh" taste found in water with a TDS between 190 and 350 mg/L, suggesting post-RO remineralization is necessary for better quality. Regulatory & Safety Context: While not banned, European regulations under the Drinking Water Directive emphasize the importance of mineral content, and countries like Germany often favor alternative treatment technologies that retain minerals. Industrial Application: In Europe, RO is widely accepted for industrial applications (e.g., food, beverage, pharma) due to its high purity output, but it poses challenges like membrane biofouling. Environmental Impact: RO is recognized to use more energy and waste more water (up to 15% more) compared to conventional treatment methods, raising environmental concerns in some municipalities.  Recommendations: Due to the loss of minerals, many experts recommend remineralizing RO water before drinking to improve taste and nutritional value.  --End Quote
    • knitty kitty
      I've heard RO water is bad, too.   Distilled water has all the minerals distilled out of it, so it will pull minerals out of your bones, too.  I only use distilled water to fill up my clothes iron so it won't get mineral deposits inside and quit working. I drink mineral or spring water.  
    • Yaya
      Scott.  Thank you for your reply. I'm still having symptoms, but significantly better.  I will go back to batch cooking and freezing vegetables.  I have had success with Pict Sweet frozen, single item (not mixed) vegetables.  My Kroger carries very little Pict Sweet variety. Regards, Yaya
    • Known1
      I am hesitant to post this as I have seen many people here recommending RO water.  With that said, I want to share my experience and how RO water now impacts me.  Three or four years ago a local store installed a RO water refill station.  I had been buying gallons of distilled and spring water prior to that.  I switched over to using the RO water refill station saving money by brining in my own clean empty gallon jugs.  Every 6-months I would replace the jugs by buying new gallons of distilled water.  This RO water is the only water I would drink while at home.  Two huge glasses every morning before work and two more after work.  I would also use the RO water to make coffee and hot coco. This past December, prior to my celiac diagnosis, my gut was making more noise than anything I had ever experienced.  Seriously, it was crazy, almost like fire works going off in my stomach.  I happened to pick up some distilled water for my 6-month jug rotation.  Literally, as soon as I started drinking the distilled water my stomach settled a great deal.  I could honestly feel the difference after the first glass of water.  I thought that maybe the RO water from the store's refill station was contaminated with some sort of cleaning agent.  I swore to myself I would never drink from that RO refill station again.  Instead I went back to buying distilled along with gallon jugs of spring water.  No issues with either of those as far as an upset stomach is concerned.  Cost, well that's a different story all together. After being diagnosed marsh 3c, I went shopping at Aldi's for the first time in my life.  I noticed they also sell water by the gallon.  Over the course of the last few weeks, I have purchased a total of 6-gallons of their water.  (Thankfully they were out on two of my visits.)  After having my stomach starting to make noises similar to mid-December again, it dawned on me, maybe its the Aldi water?  Initially I had contributed my bubble gut to some sort of gluten exposure or cross contamination.  Even though everything I have put into my stomach is naturally gluten-free or has been labeled gluten-free / certified gluten-free.  I had assumed that the Aldi water was spring water.  Come to find out, that was a bad assumption.  Looking close at the label it says purified by RO or distillation (or something like that). Again, I switched to different water.  Just like last December, the non-RO water instantly calmed my stomach and even felt better going down the hatch.  This was earlier today by the way.  Prior to creating this post, I did a few searches via Uncle Google.  I bumped into a thread on Reddit (where I am not a member) that has multiple people complaining of GI issues related to RO water.  So my initial thoughts on a cleaning agent in the refill station RO water were likely not correct.  Unfortunately, it seems the RO water itself causing me problems.  I am not sure if we are allowed to post links to other sites and hopefully I will not get into trouble for doing so.  I did try printing the Reddit thread to a PDF file.  Unfortunately, the file is 2MB in size, which is well over the 500KB file attachment limit here on this amazing forum.  Again, hopefully this is ok.  🤞  Here is the Reddit thread. This may not be a popular opinion here, but personally, I will not willingly drink another glass of RO water for the remainder of my life.  Who knows, maybe drinking RO water for the past several years is part of what activated my celiac?  No proof, but just a thought.  Come to find out RO water is well known to leech minerals from your body.  With people like us often lacking minerals to begin with, RO water does not seem like a wise choice.  As the Reddit thread mentions, there are RO water filtration systems that will inject minerals back into the water.  However, those systems are likely not being used at the grocery store refill stations nor by the bottling companies producing RO water for sale at your local store. Please do not shoot the messenger as I am just sharing my personal experience and letting others know that most RO water will leech minerals from your body. God bless and stay well, Known1
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.