Why Do I Swell?

[Noomers]

I've been gluten-free for 2 months. I've noticed in the last month or so that I swell when I eat gluten-free baked goods. Pamela's bread mix (which is delicious) is the worst offender but other products are problematic as well. I tried cutting gluten-free baked goods out of my diet for a while and that seemed to help until I made muffins for my kids yesterday and ate 4 of them . This morning the scale says I've gained 7 pounds (in 3 days) and my rings are so tight I can't get them off. Does anyone know why this is?

[ravenwoodglass]

My best guess would be that you are intolerant to something that is in them. Perhaps you could try different mixes while noting what is in each of them and getting ones with different ingredients to try and pinpoint what you are reacting to in them.

Have you noticed this with ready made gluten-free products? If not are you using the same baking utensils you used pregluten free? If you are maybe you are getting a small amount of CC from the mixer, spoons or pans.

[maximoo]

Read the labels for sodium content. The 7 lbs you gained is water retention not actual fat. Have you had yr blood pressure chkd lately?

[Noomers]

My best guess would be that you are intolerant to something that is in them. Perhaps you could try different mixes while noting what is in each of them and getting ones with different ingredients to try and pinpoint what you are reacting to in them.

Have you noticed this with ready made gluten-free products? If not are you using the same baking utensils you used pregluten free? If you are maybe you are getting a small amount of CC from the mixer, spoons or pans.

I'm pretty sure it's not due to CC b/c I'm not having this problem with non-grains. I make all of my food from scratch except for these baking mixes and nothing else is causing me problems. The only ready-made gluten-free stuff I buy is animal crackers for the kids but I rarely eat those. It's the muffins and breads that make me swell. I'll have to check the labels and see if I am intolerant to a certain grain or xanthan gum.

[Noomers]

Read the labels for sodium content. The 7 lbs you gained is water retention not actual fat. Have you had yr blood pressure chkd lately?

I'll check the sodium but I also don't think that's the problem. I'm thinking it is somehow grain related. I am curious about the blood pressure though. I usually run low but maybe not right now. I've had it checked within the last 2 months. It's always been fine, even when I lived off processed foods for years.

[mommida]

My blood pressure usually runs low. If I have gluten free restaurant food the same thing happens to me. My fingers will swell so quickly that I'm afraid one of theses times I will have to get the ring cut off.

I do think it has to do with sodium levels.

[GlutenFreeManna]

You might also consider the milk or the oil you used (if you use those for both the bread and the muffins--I know Pamela's mixes have milk in them). Soy (i.e. Vegetable oil) makes me swell and milk did too before I was seriously allergic to it (now it makes my throat swell shut instead).

[Takala]

I will do the same thing with some of the gluten free commercially baked goods.

This is one of the reasons why I tend to make my own a lot. For me, it seems to be tapioca that makes me puff up, or perhaps the zanthan gum or guar gum. Soy, also. It gets my feet and ankles the worst.

A way to test this is to repeatedly make the bun-in-a-cup microwave breads with various gluten free ingredients until you hit the right combination of gluten free flours or nut or seed meals that doesn't do this. I rarely use gums anymore in my own baking. Buckwheat, amaranth, and almond meal are all stickier and less crumbly than rice flour.

Some use flax or chia seed in boiling water to make a gum substitute.

I've also made a flatbread nearly every day, on the stovetop with a cast iron pan, experimenting away, and quinoa seems to be another culprit. I cannot tell if it is cross contaminated, or if my body just does not care for it. I started with a flatbread with just a few ingredients I knew I was already good on, and kept adding something.

If you like the Pamela's, you can also make up a "Pamela's Clone" Mix that doesn't have the offending ingredient, once you figure it out.

______

Pamela's Clone

1.5 c brown rice

1.5 c white rice

2/3 cu dry buttermilk powder (or sub like vance's dari free)

1 c almond meal

3/4 c tapioca or arrowroot starch

3/4 c sweetrice flour

1/2 c potato starch

3 tablespoons baking powder

2 tablespoons baking soda

1 tablespoon salt

(leave out if this is the problem, and use something else) 1 tablespoon xanthan gum

[GFinDC]

You could be reacting to some ingredient or ingredients on those mixes. Start by making a list of all the ingredients and then look for the ones that are common among them. That should give you a clue of what might be causing it. Then you can test yourself by trying those ingredients in isolation.

Of course there is a possibility it is caused by more than one ingredient. So test all the common ingredients, don't stop on the first one that causes a reaction.

Soy, nightshades, dairy, are pretty common problems for people.

[Noomers]

Thank you all for your responses. We are already a milk-, soy, and nut-free family so it's not any of those. I notice that I'm okay if I eat something small (like a few animal crackers) but if I have a whole sandwich or piece of cake then I start to puff up. Could it just be starch overload?

I also wonder about tapioca and the gums. I know I can handle rice, corn, potato, so that really just leaves tapioca, xantham gum and guar gum.

I'm having a hard time losing some weight so I might just go low-grain for a few weeks and see how that helps.