2 Yrs Gluten Free, Still Ill

[Garth]

Hi All, I was diagnosed (blood and biopsy positive) as a Coeliac 2 years ago and have been following a Gluten free diet ever since but I'm still having bad digestive problems.

I was wondering if Corn or Rice may be to blame as like most Coeliacs I've probably switched to eating food with alot of rice and or corn products. I know that if I have popcorn my system goes crazy and I've also noticed I get quite bloated from eating corn crackers.

I did get a positive test for Grass allergies as a child if this has any relevance.

The problem is I'm an absolute carbohydrate junky. I don't know what I'd eat if I had to cut out corn and I'm not even sure about rice products (Is there such a thing as rice allergies?)

I'm going to try and cut corn out of my diet as well for a while but has anyone got any hints on what I CAN eat?

This whole thing is driving my wife nuts trying to find things I can eat, it's bad enough with the Gluten intolerance, but if I have to avoid corn as well then the only solution I can see is to do my shopping and cooking seperately from the rest of the family.

Anyone advice would be greatly appreciated.

[ShayFL]

Hi Garth and welcome!

I did some research for you (but you will probably wish that I hadnt). There are fruits that cross-react with grasses that can cause symptoms in people allergic to grass pollens. Here they are:

Grass Fruits

melon, watermelon, tomato, orange, kiwi

And this information will be hardest for you to digest:

Food production

Agricultural grasses grown for their edible seeds are called cereals. Three cereals

[ShayFL]

Scratch Teff...it is a grass too.

So you have buckwheat and quinoa for grains and all those yummy tubers to eat.

Yucca is also good with garlic and butter. Very carby.

[Rachel--24]

Its my understanding that while the immune system is under stress (before diagnosis) it is less capable of fighing off infections.

One of my Dr.'s had told me that 100% of his patients who continuned to have problems after removing gluten (including additional food intolerances) tested positive for infections...such as yeast, parasites and bacteria. They continue to cause inflammation in the gut....and this spills over into new food sensitivities.

We are all exposed to "bad bugs" ....but when we are ill and the immune system is weakened....we are more susceptible.

[home-based-mom]

In addition to what ShayFL suggested, have you eliminated all possibilities of cross contamination? What concerns me is this paragraph:

This whole thing is driving my wife nuts trying to find things I can eat, it's bad enough with the Gluten intolerance, but if I have to avoid corn as well then the only solution I can see is to do my shopping and cooking seperately from the rest of the family.

If your family is eating gluten, the cc from utensils or from them touching anything else in the house after they eat is certainly possible.

The other possibility that jumps out at me is that you spell "Coeliac" the European way which makes me wonder if you are in Europe. Foods there can be labeled "gluten free" but be made with wheat starch and contain as much as 200 ppm of gluten, which means of course that they are not "gluten free" at all.

I hope you figure it out soon. Two years is a long time to be trying without success.

[nikki-uk]

....and of course don't forget dairy is the No1 cause of ongoing probs in coeliacs....closely followed by Soya (or Soy depending where you're from!)

Also - (as mentioned) do you eat foods with Codex wheat starch???

[ericjourney]

Garth--

Congratulations on completing that big step to gluten-free!

You mentioned the possiblity that you might have to do your shopping and cooking separate from the rest of the family. Does your family currently eat a gluten-free diet? Also, are you 100% certain that all of your cooking equipment (pots, utensils, toaster, etc) is completely free of any trace of gluten?

You asked about corn, and yes, many people are allergic to corn. Even for those not allergic, popcorn is well-known to cause gas, bloating and discomfort. It's unlikely that you have an allergy to rice, though, as rice allergy is quite rare. It is perhaps more likely that there's an imbalance in your gut, such as the ratio of good- to bad- bacteria, or an overgrowth of bacteria or fungus.

The solution is a difficult one for a carb addict: increase your consumption of lean meat and vegetables, decrease your consumption of grains and sugars.

Are you currently taking digestive enzyme supplements and pro-biotics?

[curlyfries]

I don't do well with rice but I believe it is because of my problem with sugar.....candida possibly? I also can't handle fruit because of this.

[April in KC]

Hi Garth!

I sympathize! It took me a little while to nail down that corn really messes with me, too. It seems that I can tolerate rice - but even with that, I don't eat it every day. AFter finding that corn was a problem, I grew a little suspicious of all the grains.

Here's what I suggest...fulfill your carb cravings with some nice baking potatoes. You can poke fork holes and microwave one in 6-7 minutes (or until it gives under pressure). Or, if you're patient enough, just toss a couple in the oven and bake for an hour and a half. You don't have to preheat the oven to start them....just poke with a fork, toss them in and go about your business. Just set a timer so you don't return to a charry mess!

If you decide to elimiate dairy, too (I did for a while and might again), then you can always use mild olive oil, salt, pepper and perhaps a bit of gluten-free bacon to season your potatoes.

Try at least a couple of weeks off corn...then if you challenge it by tryinng corn, you'll have a cleaner reaction (or not).

There are a lot of other gluten-free carb options - but my sense was that you don't do a lot of cooking for yourself and were looking for simple ideas.

Oh - and whenever I am starting to feel a little sick...then I back up and only eat things I can wash beforehand...including meats. That quickly eliminates most of the processed foods that are more likely to have questionable ingredients. If you do a couple of days of "pure" eating, you can usually reintroduce the snacky foods and figure out what's bothering you.

Good luck! And don't use any toaster that's been used by your gluten-eating family! Love them, but don't eat after them....

[pele]

You may be a candidate for the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. The book is called Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Although the author says the diet will "cure" celiac, we know this is not true, but hopefully the diet will allow the gut to heal from the damage done by gluten and perpetuated by bad bacteria.

The diet consists of meat, fish and fowl, eggs, veggies, fruit, nuts, honey, yogurt, hard cheese, certain beans and that's it.

No corn, no soy, no potatoes, no rice. No grains at all, no sugar or molasses.

I am on this diet. My husband is a gluten-eater. We cook and eat separate meals. I am very happy eating this way, alhtough I did have a couple of weeks of sugar-withdrawal. Food tastes better and everything I eat is good for me. No more "food substitutes" (grain and sugar). I eat all I want and haven't gained or lost weight. My digestion is much more stable and predictable. Since I am not cluttering up my system with a ton of food additives and highly processed ingredients I have been able to identitfy foods that give me problems (dairy--duh!, and melons-who would have know?)

Here's a link for more info:

Open Original Shared Link

Good luck. I hope things improve for you.

[Rachel--24]

I don't do well with rice but I believe it is because of my problem with sugar.....candida possibly? I also can't handle fruit because of this.

It could be an overgrowth of yeast or bad bacteria...or even both. I dont do well with rice either...and I do have dysbiosis (imbalance of good/bad bacteria). I'm not "allergic" to rice....or any of the other foods that are problematic for me...but because of the gut issues they are a food source for the bad bugs....and as a result symptoms can develop or worsen.

[sallyterpsichore]

Hey Garth,

Why don't you try the specific carb diet and tell me if it works! Grains are so....cheap! I have many of the same symptoms as you and have been gluten-free for 1 year & 9 months. There has been improvement, but it's hard to see when you're still struggling with symptoms.

I'm now (for a few days) off dairy and my daily coffee, so we'll see if that works. Elimination diets are a pain. So much time and trial to figure out whether or not you can eat "normal foods"...ah, well, that's what makes us special.

Sorry, no specific advice, just wanted to commiserate.

~Sally

[sallyterpsichore]

Hi Garth!

I sympathize! It took me a little while to nail down that corn really messes with me, too. It seems that I can tolerate rice - but even with that, I don't eat it every day. AFter finding that corn was a problem, I grew a little suspicious of all the grains.

Here's what I suggest...fulfill your carb cravings with some nice baking potatoes. You can poke fork holes and microwave one in 6-7 minutes (or until it gives under pressure). Or, if you're patient enough, just toss a couple in the oven and bake for an hour and a half. You don't have to preheat the oven to start them....just poke with a fork, toss them in and go about your business. Just set a timer so you don't return to a charry mess!

If you decide to elimiate dairy, too (I did for a while and might again), then you can always use mild olive oil, salt, pepper and perhaps a bit of gluten-free bacon to season your potatoes.

Try at least a couple of weeks off corn...then if you challenge it by tryinng corn, you'll have a cleaner reaction (or not).

There are a lot of other gluten-free carb options - but my sense was that you don't do a lot of cooking for yourself and were looking for simple ideas.

Oh - and whenever I am starting to feel a little sick...then I back up and only eat things I can wash beforehand...including meats. That quickly eliminates most of the processed foods that are more likely to have questionable ingredients. If you do a couple of days of "pure" eating, you can usually reintroduce the snacky foods and figure out what's bothering you.

Good luck! And don't use any toaster that's been used by your gluten-eating family! Love them, but don't eat after them....

I'm stealing the advice you gave to Garth for myself! Good stuff here, thanks.

~Sally

[AndrewNYC]

try digestive enzyme supplements; they are not holistic mumbo jumbo, they really work