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New To celiac disease/gluten-free Diet - Hungry!

kris10h

By kris10h
in Coping with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

kris10h Newbie
kris10h
Posted

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease last Wednesday, so I'm coming up on about a week gluten free now. After the initial shock (and some depression over foods I would miss), during which time I almost stopped eating entirely, I'm finding now that I'm eating gluten-free, I'm hungry much more often. I never used to snack, but now I'm way too hungry between meals to just wait for the next one. My only theory (and it's not based on anything scientific) is that the carbs I used to eat led me to feel fuller, and now that I'm not eating crackers or pasta or the like, my body is feeling hungry faster. I'm trying to choose apples or other fruits for snacks so that I'm not adding excessive calories to my diet... But it's not doing much to quell the hunger. Just wondering if anyone else had experienced this, or had tips for managing hunger when you're new to the gluten-free diet. Thank you!!

Kristen

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squirmingitch Veteran
squirmingitch
Posted

Yup Kristen, it's an old familiar tune. It's like almost everybody goes through it. RAVENOUS! Protein, protein, protein, fat with the protein for digestive purposes. Nuts (certified gluten-free of course). You're going to need more complex carbs so you don't get that sudden drop. You may (probably will) feel like you have blood sugar issues, get an "out there" feeling. It's all part & parcel of gluten withdrawal. Read posts on the site here & ask questions. sometimes it gets a little overwhelming & you may feel a little or a lot freaky. Not trying to scare you, just prepare you okay? You need to get some gluten-free multi vitamins. Might want to avoid dairy until your gut heals enough to deal with it --- many have problems with dairy for a while. Soy is a big problem for many celiacs so be aware of that. Stick to whole foods for at least the first 3 months. No processed stuff, not even gluten-free processed. Your body needs time to heal.

squirmingitch Veteran
squirmingitch
Posted

I'm sorry Kristen, I didn't answer your question very well did I?

Before I forget, I do want to warn to to stay away from oats for now. You can try certified gluten-free oats in 4 or 6 months maybe.

There is a very steep learning curve to this diet.

Shop the perimeter of the store & stay away from going down the aisles.

My best advice to you now is forget worrying about calories --- forget it for now. Your body needs nourishment it hasn't been getting. You're having gluten withdrawal. You don't need to worry about such things as calories for now. You can worry about those later when you level out. For now just EAT. Eat between meals, eat anytime you're hungry. Fresh or frozen fruits & veggies. No canned goods. Meat. Nut butters, nuts, rice, quinoa, amaranth, fruits, Larabars are great to stick in your purse & glove compartment for quick gluten-free snacks when you get caught away from home.

You will level out & this gnawing hunger will subside. It took me about 3, maybe 3.5 months but it will happen. It seemed like I was walking around eating all the time. I would eat with one hand while vacuuming with the other.laugh.gif

And spend hours reading posts on this forum. You will learn MUCH. There are cross contamination (cc) issues you need to learn about. Just because it's in the grocery store & says gluten free on the box doesn't mean it's always safe for you. There are no laws YET governing the gluten-free labeling in the US; there are "suggestions" only. You need to learn what to watch out for so you don't get cc'd. It can be completely overwhelming to try to learn all in a week or two.

kris10h Newbie
kris10h
Posted
  • Author

I'm sorry Kristen, I didn't answer your question very well did I?

Before I forget, I do want to warn to to stay away from oats for now. You can try certified gluten-free oats in 4 or 6 months maybe.

There is a very steep learning curve to this diet.

Shop the perimeter of the store & stay away from going down the aisles.

My best advice to you now is forget worrying about calories --- forget it for now. Your body needs nourishment it hasn't been getting. You're having gluten withdrawal. You don't need to worry about such things as calories for now. You can worry about those later when you level out. For now just EAT. Eat between meals, eat anytime you're hungry. Fresh or frozen fruits & veggies. No canned goods. Meat. Nut butters, nuts, rice, quinoa, amaranth, fruits, Larabars are great to stick in your purse & glove compartment for quick gluten-free snacks when you get caught away from home.

You will level out & this gnawing hunger will subside. It took me about 3, maybe 3.5 months but it will happen. It seemed like I was walking around eating all the time. I would eat with one hand while vacuuming with the other.laugh.gif

And spend hours reading posts on this forum. You will learn MUCH. There are cross contamination (cc) issues you need to learn about. Just because it's in the grocery store & says gluten free on the box doesn't mean it's always safe for you. There are no laws YET governing the gluten-free labeling in the US; there are "suggestions" only. You need to learn what to watch out for so you don't get cc'd. It can be completely overwhelming to try to learn all in a week or two.

Thank you so much!! I just joined today so I haven't read many other posts, just things I've thought to search -- but it sounds like I've hit on something that's pretty common, based on your replies. THANK YOU for validating that... I went out to lunch today (my first time in a restaurant since diagnosis -- eek) and scarfed an entire plate of eggs like I was some kind of starving creature who hadn't seen solid food in days. It's worse than either time I was pregnant!! Anyway, thank you... It's good advice to not worry about calories and just eat when I'm hungry. Listen to my body, and just get up this "steep curve" (so well put!!)

Thank you again!

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

Some celiacs go through an "eat everything in sight" phase when they go gluten-free. I've always thought it was your body going "Hey, I can absorb nutrients now! Gimme!" It's a good thing. It means your digestive system is healing. :) As squirmingitch says, go for nutrient-dense foods like meat, fish, and poultry, eggs, brightly colored fruits and veggies, nuts, and legumes.

A lot of us benefit from a B-complex supplement, a little vitamin D, and fish oil for omega-3 fatty acids. If you've been on the anemic side, eat red meat, dark leafy greens, and consider an iron supplement for a little while to build up stores as you heal and start absorbing nutrition again.

If you cut way back on carbs, you will need to add more healthy fats. Avocado, nuts, olives, cheese if you tolerate it, a drizzle of olive oil on your veggies or salad, real butter on your rice, or some peanut butter on your apple are all great ways to help fill up. We have been brainwashed in America that fats are bad and carbs good, but it's just not true. Fats are essential to good health and they much better for long-lasting energy. Just remember that they are calorie-dense and avoid unhealthy trans-fats, fat from feedlot beef, refined vegetable oil, shortening, and margarine. Processed and chemically modified fats are what's caused the notion that fat is bad; those are unhealthy, not fat in general.

For the moment, don't sweat the calories unless you have a weight problem. (Which might go away as your metabolism picks up without the celiac inflaming your thyroid.) If you do, try cutting the apple in half and have about ten almonds with it to get a similar number of calories but a more filling snack. :)

pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

Da rules:

1) Always have something with you - nuts, jerky, granola bar.

2) grocery stores are the new fast food joints til you find safe restaurants around you.

3) everyone is different

4) today is today, tomorrow can be totally different

5) generally, it's better to eat a protein with a carb (in this case the fruit is the carb). Toss in a protein and your meals will stick longer.

And welcome!

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

2) grocery stores are the new fast food joints til you find safe restaurants around you.

I laughed out loud when I read this. It's totally true! If I have a grocery store I'm good to go. B)

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pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

I laughed out loud when I read this. It's totally true! If I have a grocery store I'm good to go. B)

It gets annoying having to buy stuff you don't want a lot of...but hey - if I'm stupid enough to wander out without a backup plan I deserve to eat a box of deli ham? I just wish they sold room temperature gluten-free bread at most grocery stores. I can't find it here unless it's a "natural" store. But there are always crackers (but that's messier).

6) keep a picnic kit in your car.

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

I can usually find an apple or banana and some nuts at a 7-11 in foodless emergencies too. Sometimes there is even lunch meat or hard-boiled eggs, and you can usually get safe chips like Kettle or Lay's.

pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

I can usually find an apple or banana and some nuts at a 7-11 in foodless emergencies too. Sometimes there is even lunch meat or hard-boiled eggs, and you can usually get safe chips like Kettle or Lay's.

That's true. But I always see the boiled eggs in packs of 6 or so. Chips aren't enough (no protein) and I have a horrible time finding safe nuts around me (except TJ's).

Every place is different, though.

It's tough in the desert - when it heats up there's no way you can keep anything in the car without a cooler and ice.

7) keep a cooler in your car. You can always buy ice.

  • 1 year later...
lunaticks Newbie
lunaticks
Posted

i have never been officially tested but a gluten free lifestyle has save me a lot of unnecessary pain and yes i feel starved too ,so in my house i have lots of potatoes so baked potatoes, french fries, make some home made potato chips, etc. pulse a small gorge forman grill so handy  my freezer is full of individually wrapped (witch i sliced and wrapped my self) stakes, pork chops, pork loin, chicken breast, sausage, and cereal lots of cereal most ore made of rice or corn. and if a bread is a must have buy a bread machine and make the kind in the box cause the bread on the shelves are nasty to me. I would like to know my self if their is one of those appetite suppressants that would work that is gluten free. If you are in need o iber prunes are grate. 

NoGlutenCooties Contributor
NoGlutenCooties
Posted

I've always been a firm believer in listening to your body.  When you're hungry - eat.  When you're tired - sleep.  And drink plenty of water.  If you don't get enough water your body stops knowing how to tell you it's thirsty.

C-Girl Contributor
C-Girl
Posted

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease last Wednesday, so I'm coming up on about a week gluten free now. After the initial shock (and some depression over foods I would miss), during which time I almost stopped eating entirely, I'm finding now that I'm eating gluten-free, I'm hungry much more often. I never used to snack, but now I'm way too hungry between meals to just wait for the next one. My only theory (and it's not based on anything scientific) is that the carbs I used to eat led me to feel fuller, and now that I'm not eating crackers or pasta or the like, my body is feeling hungry faster. I'm trying to choose apples or other fruits for snacks so that I'm not adding excessive calories to my diet... But it's not doing much to quell the hunger. Just wondering if anyone else had experienced this, or had tips for managing hunger when you're new to the gluten-free diet. Thank you!!

Kristen

I went through the same thing, but thanks to a recipe I'd seen before ( from Open Original Shared Link) I now make a breakfast of sticky rice mixed with scrambled eggs and bacon. I top it with Aminos (wheat-free soy sauce) and Sriracha. It's taken the place of my morning oatmeal (which I can no longer tolerate).

 

I think the sticky rice is more comforting than regular rice because it has that same thick, gluten-y feel that oatmeal does, but without the small intestine-destroying effect.

 

My newest device in the war on gluten is a mini-rice cooker. I plan to travel with it so I can make my sticky rice breakfast on the road!

pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

I went through the same thing, but thanks to a recipe I'd seen before ( from Open Original Shared Link) I now make a breakfast of sticky rice mixed with scrambled eggs and bacon. I top it with Aminos (wheat-free soy sauce) and Sriracha. It's taken the place of my morning oatmeal (which I can no longer tolerate).

I think the sticky rice is more comforting than regular rice because it has that same thick, gluten-y feel that oatmeal does, but without the small intestine-destroying effect.

My newest device in the war on gluten is a mini-rice cooker. I plan to travel with it so I can make my sticky rice breakfast on the road!

My husband makes that Hawaiian style - spam instead if bacon :). Yum yum!

C-Girl Contributor
C-Girl
Posted

FYI there is a Open Original Shared Link for making rice bars out of the recipe for easy snacking. It was originally intended for feeding cyclists in the Tour de France, but it works great for anyone, really.

pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

FYI there is a

for making rice bars out of the recipe for easy snacking. It was originally intended for feeding cyclists in the Tour de France, but it works great for anyone, really.

When my husband does it he adds raw beaten eggs to the steaming hot rice. The hot rice (in the cooker) cooks the egg, and the grains coat evenly. You can buy a sushi press and make mini nuggets, or hand shape into balls, too.

And that Bijou dude is yummy. I'd cook with him any day.

C-Girl Contributor
C-Girl
Posted

When my husband does it he adds raw beaten eggs to the steaming hot rice. The hot rice (in the cooker) cooks the egg, and the grains coat evenly. You can buy a sushi press and make mini nuggets, or hand shape into balls, too.

And that Bijou dude is yummy. I'd cook with him any day.

:-D I also mix the raw eggs in with the rice, or take leftover rice and mix it in a pan w/ some butter and then add the eggs. If humans ate the same thing every day for their entire life like cats, this would be my choice.

pricklypear1971 Community Regular
pricklypear1971
Posted

:-D I also mix the raw eggs in with the rice, or take leftover rice and mix it in a pan w/ some butter and then add the eggs. If humans ate the same thing every day for their entire life like cats, this would be my choice.

I know what you mean. I beg him to make it!!!!

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