Valentines Day Candies Boy Did I Blow It

[poodlethree]

Ok...I was doing so good...being new at this, I have been so careful with what I eat. Well this week at work a wonderful co-worker who always remembers all of us on any special day....well she brought in little baskets of Valentines candies. You know the kind that have the little sayings on them, bubble gum, sweet tarts,and other assort. hard candies. I just thought ...this stuff must be safe..after all its hard candy. Well I had to leave work today doubled over in pain. Do you think I am just going to have to stay away from anything that I dont absolutly know everything that is in it? I Dont mean to be having a pity party but this is not fun at all!

Does hard candies contain gluten also? One more question...

When you try to remain gluten free...and somehow come in contact with it for the first time....does the reaction seem to get worst and worst?

[KaitiUSA]

You have to check the labels to make sure they are gluten free. You should make sure they are safe before eating them. Some candies are safe and some are not.

Do you know what candies that you ate?

When I was first diagnosed I didn't have a bad reaction. Now if I have even the slightest bit I get feeling really bad. When your body gets used to being gluten free and you then put gluten into your body again you will probably have a worse reaction.

[MySuicidalTurtle]

You shouldn't eat anything unless you know it's glutenfree. A lot of hard candies are not gluten-free. Sorry to hear about your pain!

[Maggie1956]

It's a real minefield out there when we start, isn't it? I'm three months gluten-free, and I'm always missing hidden gluten and suffering for it.

I ate marshmallows two weeks ago and was so disoriented...like I was drugged...I could hardly walk for a couple of days. Plus the pains came back with a vengence.

I hope you feel better soon.

[flagbabyds]

They could have also disted the conveyer belts w/ gluten flour so it doesn't stick... Check on everything that comes in contact with your body!

[mela14]

I've been sick for years with GI problems and feeling "ill" after food. Only recently did I discover the gluten and other intolerances. anyway, I clearly remember having hard candy and gummy bears while on vacation and getting soooooo sick. I couldn't figure out what it was! My husband and I were going crazy scrutininzing everything I ate. Who knew? Of course we dismissed th candy as being the culprit!

so yes, lots of candies have gluten....read everything! don't beat yourself up though as you are learning a new way to eat and trying to teach yourself discipline.

I am still trying to get it figured out and struggling with slip ups.

[lovegrov]

Do you know the specific brands? Most of these types of candies are in fact gluten-free but it takes just one that isn't to contaminate the whole bunch of them. You just can't eat these things without checking.

For years and years I've heard we have to be careful because they might have dusted the conveyor belt with flour to keep things from sticking, but I can't name product where they actually do that. They're much more likely to use cornstarch or cellulose.

richard

[poodlethree]

Thanks everyone.....you are all always such a great help, and I am so thankful for this message board. Kathy

[whimsygirl]

Okay, I have to say something because I'm new at this and still figuring everything out but, a lot of candies don't have gluten. Believe it or not I thought of this as a little comfort when I was feeling soooo overwhelmed at the thought of all the foods I would miss and the complications with restaurants, etc. A LOT of the Nestle candies are gluten-free and Hershey's too. So, tell me because I have been wondering this anyway. Do any of you enjoy those things, or do the factories produce sooo many things that may have gluten that you avoid it for possible cross contamination? I mean I even went to buy a bag of plain puffed rice cereal the other day and because there was a bag of puffed wheat cereal made by the same company right next to it, I passed on it figuring it was probably contaminated anyway. As minimal as the gluten-free diet can be, I could probably still get fat on Baby Ruth's or Hershey bars or something. And since I hadn't heard any of you mention that I thought I'd ask.

Thanks

[KLTerry]

whimsygirl:

I've gained four pounds since my last weigh in at my doctors six weeks ago. I know it's because of those darn McDonald's M&M Frostys . . . or could it be the two a day Snicker bar habit I have? The Doritos probably aren't helping either. It seems that once I found out that I could eat these things, I decided to splurge daily, and now I'm paying for it. Before my diagnosis, I was on Weight Watchers and eating logs of grains and slimming down nicely, but now that I'm still trying to figure out what it is that I can and cannot eat, I've given up on the whole dieting thing. I figured once I get used to this gluten-free stuff and adjust to my new way of eating, then I can try to eat more healthy like I used to (minus the gluten, of course). But for now, I'm enjoying my chocolate. In fact, I'm going on a trip around my office to see if anyone has chocolate at their desks.

[celiac3270]

Any candy can contain gluten--in terms of hard candies, Jolly Ranchers are gluten-free. I know that some conversation candies are gluten-free--not sure which ones--Russel Stover lists gluten on the package and I made a post somewhere with many lists from common Valentines Day companies.

[minnie]

Not to be mean but - what's with everyone forgetting that the "SOY" ingredients in the chocolates and candies are a huge problem for us celiac humans, it is a "NO-NO" like most celiac's I went from cake to chocolate candy and any kind of candy till I started to figure out spells... NERVE NEUROPATHY! NO... GLUTEN, WHEAT, NUTS, MALT RICE, FOOD STARCH, FOOD FLAVORINGS, FOOD COLORING and no VEGTABLE STARCHES, which again translated means.... NO CANDY BAR'S etc.

Although I found out that Heath bars, Reese's pieces and only plain Hershey bars are Gluten free but remember they have Soy Lecithin. Hershey Cocoa in power form is Gluten free.

Oh!... please no Doritos either!

Reminds me of a song:

"There was an old lady who swallowed some gluten-

I dunno why she swallowed the gluten

Perhaps she'll die.

There was an old lady who swallowed soy,

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten -

Perhaps she'll die.

There was an old lady who swallowed dairy;

How absurd, to swallow dairy!

She swallowed the dairy to catch the soy

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten -

Perhaps she'll die

There was an old lady who swallowed a nut.

Imagine that, she swallowed a nut.

She swallowed the nut to catch the dairy ...

She swallowed the dairy to catch the soy

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten-

Perhaps she'll die

There was an old lady who swallowed a fish.

What a hog! To swallow a fish!

She swallowed the fish to catch the nut...

She swallowed the nut to catch the dairy ...

She swallowed the dairy to catch the soy

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten-

Perhaps she'll die.

There was an old lady who swallowed an egg.

Just opened her throat and swallowed an egg!

She swallowed the egg to catch the fish ...

She swallowed the fish to catch the nut...

She swallowed the nut to catch the dairy ...

She swallowed the dairy to catch the soy

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten-

Perhaps she'll die.

There was an old lady who swallowed a vitamin.

I don't know how she swallowed a vitamin!

She swallowed the vitamin to catch the egg...

She swallowed the egg to catch the fish...

She swallowed the fish to catch the nut...

She swallowed the nut to catch the dairy ..

She swallowed the dairy to catch the soy...

That wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her.

She swallowed the soy to catch the gluten.

But I dunno why she swallowed that gluten-

Perhaps she'll die.

There was an old lady who found out that Celiac was the source -

She's alive, of course."

:X

-Written by Minnie & Jazmin Ospa

[celiac3270]

What a song .......builds, kinda like the 12 days of Christmas.

[mela14]

hey........... i love your jingle!

the reality of it all really hit home after reading it!

I'm still adjusting to all of it and having a rough time. not for lack of trying ...but just because I have sooooooo many health issues....so each day it is something else! I know they're all related but knowing it and trying to feel better are 2 different things.

today was a bad day............

terrible allergies,vertigo and sinus headaches forced me to take some meds. I scrutinized before I took them and even decided not to take one particular allergy med because it had gluten........the meds still got me! my gut is destroyed. Must be one of the many other fillers they use....I guess celiac makes us less tolerant.

Avoiding the DEVIL that we know of is easier than the ones that we're not hip too. NO CANDY OR CHOCOLATE for me this Valentine's Day! The roses were just fine and the pleasure from them lasted even longer.

[lovegrov]

"Not to be mean but - what's with everyone forgetting that the "SOY" ingredients in the chocolates and candies are a huge problem for us celiac humans, it is a "NO-NO" like most celiac's I went from cake to chocolate candy and any kind of candy till I started to figure out spells... NERVE NEUROPATHY! NO... GLUTEN, WHEAT, NUTS, MALT RICE, FOOD STARCH, FOOD FLAVORINGS, FOOD COLORING and no VEGTABLE STARCHES, which again translated means.... NO CANDY BAR'S etc."

Excuse me, but what the heck are you talking about???

Soy is NOT a huge problem for most people with celiac. I'm not saying some don't have a problem, but most of us are just fine. No candy bars??? I beg to differ. Maybe not for you, but for most of us -- no problem.

I'm sorry about all of your allergies and health problems, but the vast majority of us have one major problem -- we have to avoid gluten.

richard

[cdford]

Soy seems to only be a problem for those with a specific allergy or neurological problems associated with the celiac. Those with neuropathy should avoid the soy like the plague since the doc says many of the recent studies are pointing to soy as the culprit.

For me, soy was harder to avoid than the gluten. I had to rethink my whole diet AGAIN. Suddenly all those gluten-free chinese style meals I had been cooking at home were out. It had been such an easy way to stick to simple veggies and keep my weight under control. The soy problem also meant cutting out the few candies I allowed in my diet. Many of the gluten-free foods also contain soy.

Now that it is done, it is just like before. I made the adjustment and am doing much better.

[mela14]

Unfortunately, Soy is a big NO-NO for me too! along with nuts, eggs and dairy! I was not diagnosed until a few months ago but the problems has been going on for more than 15 years! I guess as the damage was getting worse I became intolerant to a lot of other things. I have noticed that food colorings in medciations are also problematic as well as many preservatives. I avoid as much as I can and sometimes something still gets in there which sets me back and is difficult to deal with physically and emotionally. I am hoping that once there is some healing done to my intestines that I will be able to tolerate SOME of those other things....just to be able to have a greater variety of foods.

Soooooooooooo for now chocolate is out....and keeping it simple is in!

[cdford]

Mel, I hope you find the same thing that many of us have found...over time your immune system gets its act together and you don't react to as many things other than the gluten. After two years, we are down to just a couple of things outside gluten that cause any significant problem. Just don't try them too quickly. Allow your body time to really heal before you risk any other complications. You will probably wind up realizing you didn't react when you got into something you did not realize was in a dish and go Wow, I didn't get so sick. Let's hope it works that way anyhow.

[mela14]

Donna,

from your mouth to God's ears...........I am trying so hard and watching what I eat. it has to pay off in the long run. I guess it is just too soon.

I went to a neighbor's house for dinner last night. She know's I have dietary restrictions and I have eaten there before with no problem. She asked if I could eat pork and I said yes....just plain....nothing on it.

Well, she had prepared pork shishkebobs....and they looked great but she said that she had them marinating all day in italian salad dressing(bottled)!! I had a mild anxiety attack and kicked my hubby under the table. I got the courage up to tell her I couldn't eat it. She said to wash it off before we BBQ'd it.....I was still freaking out . I ran it under the water for like 5 minutes and was stressing the whole time. Finally I told her that marinating all day problably went into the meat and that I shouldn't eat it but I was sure it was good. I ran home and defrosted piece of chicken and borught it there to BBQ along with white rice. Then sahe said that she made white rice but added chicken broth for flavor just for me! OH well.........I was ready to just drop. In the end the dinner was nice but it was the first time I had confronted something like this. usually when I say simple or plain...nothing on it..I have food allergies people get it.

Appetizers were whole wheat crackers with marinated chopped mushroom spread and mixed salted nuts!!

Of course I didn't eat them. What a night!

But I survived!