7 Weeks gluten-free - Still Figuring Out It All Out

[BabsV]

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease 7 weeks ago today. I'm still working on the diet issues as I am an American living in Poland and working with food labels in a foreign language! It has been an adventure.

I'm mostly sticking to simple meals of chicken, turkey, cooked veggies, rice, potatoes, some fruits (bananas, pears, cooked apples)...100% apple juice and water, lots of water. Yogurt was making me feel bleh so I am not eating that any longer but I do occasionally have a small piece of hard Cheddar cheese. This seems to be helping as my pain issues have decreased, I am finally gaining weight back (lost more than 20+ pounds in less than 6 weeks which finally made the doctors think it wasn't all just in my head which was the previous diagnosis!) and my mental fog has cleared slightly. Still have fatigue but not as extreme as prior to starting the diet.

I have noticed some problems (mostly increased pain) when eating items that the doctors said I should: nuts, legumes (I picked through the dry beans and washed them thoroughly prior to cooking), corn, raw veggies, raw apples. After I eat them I start to feel miserable...I'm thinking perhaps my system is just not healed enough to handle digesting them at this point? Has anyone else had this experience?

I'm cleaned out my kitchen, replaced my pots and pan, am manic about wiping down surfaces and am washing my hands prior to prepping food or eating. I think the chance of cc is slight...

Does anyone have any ideas?

[GlutenFreeManna]

I have noticed some problems (mostly increased pain) when eating items that the doctors said I should: nuts, legumes (I picked through the dry beans and washed them thoroughly prior to cooking), corn, raw veggies, raw apples. After I eat them I start to feel miserable...I'm thinking perhaps my system is just not healed enough to handle digesting them at this point? Has anyone else had this experience?

Yes, this is really common to not be able to digest beans, nuts and raw veggies in the beginning. Your system is just really sensitve right now. The good news is once you heal you should be able to reintroduce those foods. I could not eat any raw veggies except a few carrots for the first few months and the only legumes I tolerated were chickpeas (in the form of hummus) and lentils. Now 19 months gluten-free I can eat pretty much any raw veggies, nuts and beans I want (so long as they are gluten-free).

[GFinDC]

Adjusting to the gluten-free diet can take some time. Your gut flora can get out of whack and could possibly use some assistance. You could try taking some pro-biotics and digestive enzmes to see if they help.

Also avoiding sugar may help as well. And eating foods your doctor recommends is fine, but not if they make you sick. You may find your digestive system is very unsettled and reacts to lots of foods at first. But after a while things can stabilize. A simple diet can help speed that up.

If you get gassy a lot some peppermint can help, just don't take it every day. Also try a Betaine HCL with your meals once in a while. And limit the amount of water you drink while eating and for the first 1/2 hour to an hour afterward. Less water makes it easier for your stomach to build up a stronger acid concentration to digest the food. The acid also kills off forgien microbes before they get to your gut and multiply.

[BabsV]

Yes, this is really common to not be able to digest beans, nuts and raw veggies in the beginning. Your system is just really sensitve right now. The good news is once you heal you should be able to reintroduce those foods. I could not eat any raw veggies except a few carrots for the first few months and the only legumes I tolerated were chickpeas (in the form of hummus) and lentils. Now 19 months gluten-free I can eat pretty much any raw veggies, nuts and beans I want (so long as they are gluten-free).

Thanks. Nice to know if I give it time, it should get better!

[BabsV]

Adjusting to the gluten-free diet can take some time. Your gut flora can get out of whack and could possibly use some assistance. You could try taking some pro-biotics and digestive enzmes to see if they help.

Thanks for that info. Do you have a pro-biotic you'd recommend?

[GFinDC]

I take a Nature's Bounty brand acidolfilus and Bifida now. I will be looking for Jarrow brand next though as they get good reviews.

Sauerkruat and yogurt are used also.

Here's a couple threads on probiotics:

How Important Are Probiotics And Digestive Enzymes? Rat

Diary Free Probiotic

[The Horticulturalist]

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease 7 weeks ago today. I'm still working on the diet issues as I am an American living in Poland and working with food labels in a foreign language! It has been an adventure.

I'm mostly sticking to simple meals of chicken, turkey, cooked veggies, rice, potatoes, some fruits (bananas, pears, cooked apples)...100% apple juice and water, lots of water. Yogurt was making me feel bleh so I am not eating that any longer but I do occasionally have a small piece of hard Cheddar cheese. This seems to be helping as my pain issues have decreased, I am finally gaining weight back (lost more than 20+ pounds in less than 6 weeks which finally made the doctors think it wasn't all just in my head which was the previous diagnosis!) and my mental fog has cleared slightly. Still have fatigue but not as extreme as prior to starting the diet.

I have noticed some problems (mostly increased pain) when eating items that the doctors said I should: nuts, legumes (I picked through the dry beans and washed them thoroughly prior to cooking), corn, raw veggies, raw apples. After I eat them I start to feel miserable...I'm thinking perhaps my system is just not healed enough to handle digesting them at this point? Has anyone else had this experience?

I'm cleaned out my kitchen, replaced my pots and pan, am manic about wiping down surfaces and am washing my hands prior to prepping food or eating. I think the chance of cc is slight...

Does anyone have any ideas?

Babs, I had a very similar experience to you though I'll never know now if I have celiac as I had -ve bloods and my GI did a colonoscopy and only took large bowel biopsies, which is pretty useless for a small bowel disease! I cannot tolerate gluten at all (severe diarrhea, like food poisoning)and went gluten free after that test. One year on I have just discovered that my youngest son (7) has celiac, he has +ve bloods and we are waiting for endoscopy.

So, like you I have found that I cannot easily tolerate some foods in addition to the gluten, this is still an issue one year on. I stopped dairy as it gave me similar, though not nearly so severe, symptoms. I cannot easily digest lots of raw food,high fiber food. I tend to get reflux and or heartburn. I have the same issues with legumes, so I just don't bother with them any more. I have severly cut back on carbs and sugar and that helps a lot.

I have found white rice easy to digest, but I don't want to eat a lot of it. Also, I bought a juicer recently that juices whole unpeeled fruit and veg. Lots of my friends are into green smoothies, but I know that all that fibre would be a disaster for me, so the juice is much much better for me. The first time it did kind of clear me out though! I have one green juice a day and for the first time I have much more energy and feel much better than I have in a long time.

I've also been consciously trying to eat much much more fruits and vegetable in general, roasting them and so on, I'm sure that's helped too.

Can I make a suggestion? I know you are in Poland, but if you are able to give a call to the Celiac Hotline at the University of Chicago, they would be delighted to answer your questions. If you get the answering machine I suggest that you leave your email address as well as your phone number and they might be willing to correspond with you that way, or perhaps arrange a time that you could call when someone would be there to answer the phone. I can't say enough good things about them,they have been so helpful to me with my sons diagnosis.

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[BabsV]

Thanks everyone for all the info. I've got a friend sending me the probiotics and I'll call that University of Chicago hotline. That is an amazing resource that I didn't know about! You all are awesome!