Introduction

[Odysseus]

Hello all, I am new here to the forum. I believe that I have self diagnossed myself with celiac disease. After almost two weeks I have to say I feel so much better. I am 40yrs old and it seems that I have been fighting this most of my life. I hope to learn all that I can from this site. Any start off pointers would be very helpful. Such as where to buy food from, what web sites etc. Things that I wouldnt normaly think not to eat, that kind of stuff. Thanks in advance.

[eatmeat4good]

Welcome and congratulations for saving your own life! I wish I had figured it out at 40 like you did! Having said that, the first mistakes I made were eating in restaurants and thinking I could order "gluten free." I couldn't. Kissing someone who has eaten Gluten WILL make you sick, it's sad, but true. Lipstick either has wheat germ oil or CC issues and can make you sick unless you specifically buy gluten free. Change your toothbrush...now and frequently. Check medicines and vitamins. Soy sauce is "wheat sauce" unless you buy gluten free. There is a mainstream brand that is not gluten/wheat, but I don't remember the name. Read all labels. If you hand a cookie to a child, wash your hands. Hand sanitizer will do nothing to gluten except make sure that the gluten you eat is very clean, but it will still make you sick. Breathing flour in can make you sick because it hits the mucous membranes and makes it's way to your stomach. These are a few of my favorite mistakes. Glad you are feeling better. It sounds like you are off to a good start! Oh, and Udi's bread is pretty good. I didn't buy any other after reading all the reviews.

[krystynycole]

welcome! I as well am self diagnosed, which can be hard because there is no doctor to help you out through the process in any way. However you've found the right place, I've learned so much just from reading other peoples questions and responses.

First, I'd advise starting to eat just naturally gluten free food. It's the best way to stay positive about your new diet. Stick to the outside of your grocery store eating fresh fruit, veggies, and meats. Then slowly add in other "adapted" gluten-free foods.

Second...check out different food blogs (many on this site) for meal ideas. Also, I enjoy many recipes at www.bettycrocker.com. They make gluten-free bisquick and have a lot of recipe ideas that my non gluten-free husband even raves about!

[sa1937]

Welcome, Odysseys! In addition to what others have said, there are some books that you might find helpful:

Celiac Disease: A Hidden Epidemic by Dr. Peter Green and

Living Gluten-Free for Dummies by Danna Korn

The First Year: Celiac Disease and Living Gluten-Free by Jules Shepard

And if you shop the outer rim of the store (foregoing processed foods), it's much easier and better in the beginning. Pretty soon we get really good at label reading and can spot ingredients at a glance that we need to avoid. My first shopping trip was a nightware and took forever. After awhile It becomes almost automatic to know what we can and cannot have. (We still have to read labels though as ingredients can change in a heartbeat.

And keep reading this forum as I got so much good info as I was in the learning process. Plus check out the Gluten-Free Recipes section and post any questions you may have.

[BaldurBen]

Congrats on what sounds like correct self-diagnosis! Eating naturally gluten-free foods such as fruits and veggies is good advice. Read all labels and get familiar with the Safe and Unsafe lists on this site. When starting out, I was surprised to learn that mustard, soy sauce, and black liqorice for example can contain gluten.

One of my favorite ways to start the morning is to make a smoothie from rice milk, fresh fruit juice, frozen blueberries and strawberries, plus one scoop of Thorne MediClear protein powder. Toasted Udi's gluten-free bagels plus fresh cream cheese is another favorite.

Picazzo's is my favorite gluten-free pizza place, and whatever I can't get at my local supermarket I get from Whole Foods or Sprouts. Glutino and Udi's are two of my favorite gluten-free food labels. Also, you can get a lot of recipes, articles, and other good advice by following gluten-free people on Twitter. Finally, if you drink, even in moderation, you might consider giving up alcohol altogether. I never have as much energy as when I do my annual three-week detox course, which excludes alcohol.

Good luck!

[Loey]

Hello all, I am new here to the forum. I believe that I have self diagnossed myself with celiac disease. After almost two weeks I have to say I feel so much better. I am 40yrs old and it seems that I have been fighting this most of my life. I hope to learn all that I can from this site. Any start off pointers would be very helpful. Such as where to buy food from, what web sites etc. Things that I wouldnt normaly think not to eat, that kind of stuff. Thanks in advance.

Welcome to our wonderful group. I joined in October 2010 and I have to say I have never met a more supportive, intelligent and kind group of people anywhere in my life. I don't know what I'd do without this forum. I'm copy and pasting two links you might find useful. Remember, regardless of what a package says ALWAYS check the ingredients!!! I hope these help.

Loey

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

[Odysseus]

Thanks again everyone for all the encouraging words and good ideas. I never would have thought of about breathing in flour or touching cookies or lipstick. Yesterday my daughters and I took my wife out for her birthday to eat at Red Lobster. Wasnt sure what I would be able to eat. I asked the staff if they had a gluten free menu and to there credit they gave me an allergen menu that showed what contained gluten and what might be cross contaminated. There were a few things on there but I read wrong and ended up with something that was cc. I picked wood grilled fresh fish with broccoli and mashed potatoes. Along with a cesar salad. Oh well, I am on the learning curve. Afterwards we stopped by the store and found some gluten free items. We bought King Arthur and Gluten free pantery flour. Some cookies, bisquick and Betty Crocker chocolate cake which was really good. Also thanks for the books ideas and the links. I will def. check them out. One last thing...where does everyone get the udi's bread. Online order???

[notme]

if you have an earth fare, they sell the udi's bread. i have a little specialty store that carries it as well. recently i have tried (o my gosh trying to get pasta that is 'right'!!) tinkyada pasta - another brand that is AWESOME!!! 'against the grain' makes baguette bread that is pretty good, i use that to make any kind of sandwich that needs a roll like cheesesteak or cubanos. food tastes so much better when it doesn't hurt

[Odysseus]

if you have an earth fare, they sell the udi's bread. i have a little specialty store that carries it as well. recently i have tried (o my gosh trying to get pasta that is 'right'!!) tinkyada pasta - another brand that is AWESOME!!! 'against the grain' makes baguette bread that is pretty good, i use that to make any kind of sandwich that needs a roll like cheesesteak or cubanos. food tastes so much better when it doesn't hurt

Thanks for the info. I have never heard of a earth fare so I'll have to google that. Yeah, it does tastes so much better when it doesn't hurt. I always thought "thats just the way it is". Not anymore.

[eatmeat4good]

Most health food stores carry Udi's I think.