Safe Foods When You're A Beginner

[kathyl2552]

Hi everyone. I was diagnosed 3 months ago with celiac disease after 30 years of suffering and being diagnosed with other things. My symptoms are incapacitating migraines and terrible fatigue. I am excited to maybe have relief and have actually enjoyed some very good days. 11 so far out of 3 months. I am having trouble, of course, with finding the foods without gluten. I know now that foods that say gluten free are probably not for a celiac. I love chicken and I hope you all can tell me what I need to know. Can you have store bought chicken? I've read they inject chicken broth. I bought a "natural" whole chicken from BJ's and now feel terrible. What have you all found is always safe. Right now I eat tons of salads and fruits. Is there anything else I can trust so I can heal? I am 54 and have had this as long as I can remember.

[dani nero]

Hi everyone. I was diagnosed 3 months ago with celiac disease after 30 years of suffering and being diagnosed with other things. My symptoms are incapacitating migraines and terrible fatigue. I am excited to maybe have relief and have actually enjoyed some very good days. 11 so far out of 3 months. I am having trouble, of course, with finding the foods without gluten. I know now that foods that say gluten free are probably not for a celiac. I love chicken and I hope you all can tell me what I need to know. Can you have store bought chicken? I've read they inject chicken broth. I bought a "natural" whole chicken from BJ's and now feel terrible. What have you all found is always safe. Right now I eat tons of salads and fruits. Is there anything else I can trust so I can heal? I am 54 and have had this as long as I can remember.

It sadly has to do with a lot of trial and error and what the board members told me was the "learning curve". If you buy something that made you feel bad you'll know to avoid it, and in time you'll learn what you want to avoid and what's ok. Also you've only been gluten-free for 3 months after 30 years of having your body damaged, so it might not be the BJ chicken that caused you to feel terrible, but just residue symptoms. It takes a long time to heal sadly.

Are you taking any supplements, enzymes or probiotics, and are you keeping a food journal? All these things are the tools of the trade for celiacs haha :-)

I find that the best thing to do when there is a new type of food I want to try is: First of all I don't try lots of new things at one time so that I know which new thing caused the reaction, and secondly I contact the company by calling them to ask if their products may contain even hints or traces of gluten because I'm super sensitive (even though I'm not really :-P).. but just to make them know that I don't want any amount of traces in my food. If they say it's free of traces I try it, and then I wait the next two days before trying anything else. If all is well after two days, then I know it was ok :-)

As for the anything else things you can eat, I'll leave that for the others to suggest because I myself am currently not very creative in that department. I'm hung on a few specific foods atm!

Good luck and welcome by the way!

[mamaw]

Welcome to the group.

Meats, veggies, fish, fruits in there natural state are gluten-free ( no seasoning, marinades, sauces, or rubs) just plain & naked. I do not buy meats from the local grocery store but prefer farm raised, grass fed, free range meats. For fish I mail order wild caught Alaskan Salmom , shrimp, halibut. I just prefer the texture , taste & go more for natural.. I know there is a better taste & healthy to these better raised products..

There is a learning curve to the gluten-free lifestyle.. Just take your time & learn for instance the naked meats, ect regime then once you got it down to I don't even think about it I just know process then move on..

You will soon learn whether you are going to be a very sensitive celiac that can't eat out , or eat foods that also processes wheat things in the same place.... When you are like the last sentence it does limit even more your food intake..

But majority is that most can eat gluten-free foods labeled gluten-free or ones that do not contain any wheat sources...remeber there are hidden gluten in such things as soy sauce, malt & so on..

Do you like to cook & bake? There are some yummy mixes available while you are learning, then once you get confident in the gluten-free you can do your own baking if that is something you enjoy...

Just don't over-whelm yourself while learning , & never intentionally cheat. Once you do cheating it is alkie to smoking , Very hard to stop ; the process..

Many things on the mainstream store shelf is gluten-free IE: progresso , contadina, corn chips, snacks many clearly label..

Become a label reader & always check as food companies will change the ingredient list when they find a cheaper ingredient.So what may be gluten-free today may not be in 3 months..

Dining out options is growing all the time:

Red Robin. Chili's, Applebees, longhorn steakhose, Olive, Garden, Red Lobster, Wendy's, Burger King, Chipolte, Uno,s, Carina's, dairy queen & hundreds more.

Do a google search for a support group in your area as they usually have great listings of where to dine, shop& so on...

If you are missing a food just let us know & one of us can help you find it or a recipe for it...

Suggestion is to have protein bars for your purse & a gluten-free bag of goodies in your car, office at all times for those unexpected happenings...

hth

mamaw

[ciamarie]

If they add a broth or anything, it should be labeled. Or was it one of the pre-cooked chickens? In that case there may be spices on the skin that aren't gluten-free. I've been doing fine with Foster Farms chicken, it's one of the few things I've been able to eat reliably while I figure out what else works for me. I've also found a local store that carries pork with no added broth or anything, as well as a line of 'natural' beef that I've been able to add. In the case of beef, 'natural' means it doesn't have any additives or dyes, etc. I think another term used in chicken is 'minimally processed' when they haven't added anything to it.

Other safe foods for me are lundberg rice cakes, green beans and rice and peas and carrots and most beans and eggs and butter and real maple syrup. Those are the things I fall back to if I get too adventurous and I start having bad reactions, though not necessarily gluten reactions.

[IrishHeart]

Welcome to the fold!

Most people eat a plain whole foods diet at first, but many incorporate certified gluten-free foods right away without trouble. You may need to give up dairy for a few months.

May I direct you to this thread for newbies so you can read through it? There are food suggestions, as well as other links for practical advice.

The chicken is probably fine. They do not inject wheat into the chicken and if they did for some strange reason, it would be labeled CONTAINS WHEAT.

I was almost 54 at DX myself and you will see this age group--and even people in their 60's, 70's and 80s ---being diagnosed more frequently now.

Best wishes to you!

[GFinDC]

There is lots of food to eat. Some ideas below:

FAQ Celiac com

https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/forum-7/announcement-3-frequently-asked-questions-about-celiac-disease/

What's For Breakfast Today?

What Did You Have For Lunch Today?

What Are You Cooking Tonight?

[kathyl2552]

Thank you all for the replies. All the links are amazing and a great help.