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Gluten Free, Still Gaining Weight, Still Bloated


LisaGF

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LisaGF Newbie

I was diagnosed as gluten intolerant about 6 weeks ago and have been totally gluten free since.

Unfortunately, I have not noticed much difference.

I'm still bloated (though not as painfully), still unable to lose weight.

Its incredibly annoying and discouraging.

About 7 months ago, I cut out gluten for about a week on a whim and instantly felt better, lost weight, etc.

Not quite sure why its not working this time.

For those who felt better and lost weight when going gluten free, how long did it take?

Thanks.

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frustrated09 Newbie

I have been gluten free officially for 6 months and have not lost any weight. watch what you're eating carb wise.... try more fruits and veggies and protein. bloating might be from something you're still eating.

marsha

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Reba32 Rookie

you may have other food intolerances that are causing the bloating and discomfort. Have you tried eliminating the other "usual suspects" like dairy, and soy, etc?

Are you sure you're completely gluten free? Are you reading ingredients and allergy information on every food label? How about your shampoo, body lotion, cosmetics, pet foods etc?

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LisaGF Newbie

I've been vegetarian for years, eating unprocessed foods, low carbs, etc. Did extensive food allergy testing and there are no other allergies. Soy and dairy don't seem to be a problem. But maybe...

I'm 100% positive about the food I'm eating but not about my cosmetics and things like that. My doctor didn't think my intolerance rose to that level. Perhaps it does.

Will definitely look into that.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Dace Rookie

Lisa,

I woudl up your water intake to 64 oz if it is lower than that. Up your veggie intake, drop your fruit intake to no more than one per day.Cut out all sugar and simple carbs. Stop the grains other than once or twice a week (small serving). You will see a weight drop.

If you want to post what you typically eat, I would be happy to look at it for you.

Dace

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digmom1014 Enthusiast

I was diagnosed as gluten intolerant about 6 weeks ago and have been totally gluten free since.

Unfortunately, I have not noticed much difference.

I'm still bloated (though not as painfully), still unable to lose weight.

Its incredibly annoying and discouraging.

About 7 months ago, I cut out gluten for about a week on a whim and instantly felt better, lost weight, etc.

Not quite sure why its not working this time.

For those who felt better and lost weight when going gluten free, how long did it take?

Thanks.

As far as the bloating goes, are you still drinking milk? Some newly diagnosed people initally have trouble digesting dairy. I believe that the tips of the villi are the last to heal. For me I could re-introduce milk at about the 6 mo. mark.

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Bev111 Newbie

I was diagnosed as gluten intolerant about 6 weeks ago and have been totally gluten free since.

Unfortunately, I have not noticed much difference.

I'm still bloated (though not as painfully), still unable to lose weight.

Its incredibly annoying and discouraging.

About 7 months ago, I cut out gluten for about a week on a whim and instantly felt better, lost weight, etc.

Not quite sure why its not working this time.

For those who felt better and lost weight when going gluten free, how long did it take?

Thanks.

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Bev111 Newbie

It takes time for your small intestine to heal. For me it took 5 1/2 months before I felt 99%.

I was also dairy intolerant and after 5 1/2 moinths I can eat dairy now. So Good luck , its a waiting game but worth it.

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AliSha097 Rookie

I have been gluten free since the new year, new to being celiac since last year and from time to time I notice I still have some bloating and stomach irritation. In total, I have lost approx. 28 pounds (since August) from switching up my diet. I try to avoid eating too much gluten free pasta, bread, and other carb foods all the time. They tend to maked me gain a lot. My doctor suggested snacks like Larabars and THINK THIN PROTEIN bars...both have been decent. Hope this helps.

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  • 3 weeks later...
JMS72186 Newbie

Make sure your not intentionally eating gluten! I found a good number of spices, cream based soups, and even salad dressings (namely ranch and caesar)contain trace amounts of gluten- soy sauce as well!! Also these things take time to "heal" think of the bloating as inflammation and it WILL get better! I am having a hard time losing some weight- once I went gluten free and started getting the nutrients from food that I wasn't before my eating habits caught up with me! Good Luck!

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  • 2 weeks later...
farmwife67 Explorer

Have you tried eating completely grain free? (no corn or rice) I would encourage you to visit www.(Company Name Removed - They Spammed This Forum and are Banned) and watch his videos about grains and how all grains have gluten in them and we shouldn't eat any of them, it isn't just gliadin that bothers most of us. It has really opened my eyes and my weight is coming off slowly too. (about a pound or two a week)

Good luck,

Lori

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LisaGF Newbie

Thank you all so much for your replies.

Been eating a lot of Larabars and other such gluten free bars but I realize I've been eating too many corn and rice-based products. Have to cut them out for sure.

Thanks again and I'll report back soon!

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  • 5 weeks later...
kayo Explorer

Next month I'll be gluten free for a year. I haven't lost any weight. My weight has gone down at times (5-8 lbs) but it always springs back up again. It's incredibly frustrating. Doc feels I have fructose malabsorption and/or bacterial overgrowth. I've been on a low fructose/fructan diet for 2 weeks and although I keep messing up (this is even harder than gluten and soy free) I have noticed a difference in how I feel. I'm less bloated and less puffy. I'm less hungry and I feel more satiated when I do eat.I think this might be the key to my issues. I go for testing next week. Perhaps this is what you're dealing with too. I know I increased my intake of fruits and veggies when I went gluten-free to be more healthy. Sadly I think it had the opposite effect.

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Rworthy Newbie

Have you tried eating completely grain free? (no corn or rice) I would encourage you to visit www.(Company Name Removed - They Spammed This Forum and are Banned) and watch his videos about grains and how all grains have gluten in them and we shouldn't eat any of them, it isn't just gliadin that bothers most of us. It has really opened my eyes and my weight is coming off slowly too. (about a pound or two a week)

Good luck,

Lori

Don't you need carbohydrates in your diet? What do you recommend eating instead of corn and rice? Rice and oatmeal are the only carbs I have left!!!

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kayo Explorer

There's quinoa and buckwheat.

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Skylark Collaborator

Don't you need carbohydrates in your diet? What do you recommend eating instead of corn and rice? Rice and oatmeal are the only carbs I have left!!!

Potatoes. :P

This is a good article on grains that lays out which are related to wheat, and which celiacs can more likely eat safely.

https://www.celiac.com/articles/185/1/Gluten-Free-Grains-in-Relation-to-Celiac-Disease---by-Donald-D-Kasarda-Former-Research-Chemist-for-the-United-States-Department-of-Agriculture/Page1.html

We need carbs but I don't know how badly we need starchy ones. Remember that there is lots of sugar in fruits and some sugar and fiber in vegetables.

By the way, as far as weight loss nutritionists have shown over and over again that the only way to lose weight in a healthy, sustainable fashion is to eat fewer calories than you burn. Look closely at the Larabars and other gluten-free bars. They are tasty, but they are pretty high in calories. Perhaps an apple instead?

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Korwyn Explorer

Don't you need carbohydrates in your diet? What do you recommend eating instead of corn and rice? Rice and oatmeal are the only carbs I have left!!!

Actually that is not entirely accurate. You don't need any carb at all. Your body can use one of two fuel sources. Ketones (from fats) or glucose (from carbs). There is plenty of research including clinical studies showing it is entirely safe and healthy to subsist on a protein/fat diet, assuming you have adequate intake of the correct kinds of fats (at least 60% of the caloric intake should be from fats) to provide the fuel for ketosis. The brain and central nervous can burn ketone bodies just fine.

The problem with weight gain is that for most people it is likely a hormonal issue. The entire insulin/triglyceride cycle is screwed up and so the tissues (adipose and/or muscle) develop insulin resistance (aka Metabolic Syndrome or Syndrome 'X').

Read 'Good Calories/Bad Calories' by Gary Taube. There are additional works and studies, but his is the best, most comprehensive, and coherent research book to use as a starting point.

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Jestgar Rising Star

Actually that is not entirely accurate. You don't need any carb at all.

I'm having a hard time believing this. To eat no carbs I think you'd have to subsist on animal products alone. Are there any societies, past or present, that never consume(d) plant products?

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Skylark Collaborator

I'm having a hard time believing this. To eat no carbs I think you'd have to subsist on animal products alone. Are there any societies, past or present, that never consume(d) plant products?

The classic example is the winter Inuit diet. This is an interesting read.

Open Original Shared Link

I'm not ready to switch from my orange juice to muktuk (whale skin) or raw caribou liver for my vitamin C just yet. :lol:

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Korwyn Explorer

I'm having a hard time believing this. To eat no carbs I think you'd have to subsist on animal products alone. Are there any societies, past or present, that never consume(d) plant products?

Yes. The Inuit (prior to the introduction of the first trading post) subsisted almost entirely on a high protein/high fat diet. Less than 5% of their caloric intake was derived from carbohydrates (mostly roots) and most of that wound up being what we refer to as dietary fiber.

Also two south pacific islands were involved in a study from 1960 through 1981. Their diet consisted of coconut, fish, and a limited amount of fruit. 60% of their caloric intake came from coconut oil, and 90% of their caloric intake was derived from fish+coconut.

In the 1950's 20 DuPont executives took part in a high fat/high protein/low carb diet as part of anti-obesity and heart disease study. All of them lost significant weight and had improvements in their blood sugar, heart disease risk, blood pressure, lean muscle mass ratio, and a variety of other issues, with no ill effects of the study. One of the study participants was particularly unique in that he was so sensitive to carbohydrate intake (insulin resistant) that the consumption of an apple per day was sufficient to cause him to begin to gain weight.

Carbohydrates deplete the body's store of B vitamins and C, and appear to inhibit absorbtion of vitamin C.

Every essential mineral, nutrient, and vitamin necessary for human metabolism is present in meats in varying quantities. Combined with nuts, avocado, and raw coconut oil, the human body can easily (and healthily in most cases I think) exist entirely on NATURAL (non-grain/non-processed) fats and protein.

In 1950 a clinical study was done with a supervisory panel of thirteen physicians, nutritionists, an endocrinologist, and a psychologist. The basis of the study was to test this very theory. The study lasted for 13 months. The two subjects were kept in confined quarters eating their normal diet for several weeks and monitored 24 hours per day with hourly urine tests, blood work, hormone levels, etc, to establish a health baseline. After that, they were kept in quarters but switched to an all meat (meaning ONLY meat) diet. Fish, poultry, beef, fowl, game. They continued the round the clock monitoring for two months. The participants were then release to their home, but provided with only meats for their diet and checked daily with urine samples, weekly blood, etc. At the end of one year on the all meat diet, both subjects were in as good or better health than prior to beginning the study including a case of gingivitis which was present at the beginning of the study but cleared up two weeks into it.

Prior to 1970 it was common to treat diabetes with a diet of meat, dairy, and fat.

Read up on Vilhjalmur Stefansson's firsthand account of his dealings with his exploratory team and the Eskimo all-meat diet.

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Korwyn Explorer

One of the best synopsis of the Gary's book I've seen online is here: Open Original Shared Link

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Rworthy Newbie

I'm having a hard time believing this. To eat no carbs I think you'd have to subsist on animal products alone. Are there any societies, past or present, that never consume(d) plant products?

I don't believe it either. Am I supposed to believe that going on an Inuit diet would be good for me? LMAO. They're full of fat to protect themselves from the cold. I live in south Louisiana. Pff. I'm going to eat rice b/c its the only carb I get. I don't eat much fruit or juice. I am fine with dairy, so I guess it's whatever works for you.

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Rworthy Newbie

Yes. The Inuit (prior to the introduction of the first trading post) subsisted almost entirely on a high protein/high fat diet. Less than 5% of their caloric intake was derived from carbohydrates (mostly roots) and most of that wound up being what we refer to as dietary fiber.

Also two south pacific islands were involved in a study from 1960 through 1981. Their diet consisted of coconut, fish, and a limited amount of fruit. 60% of their caloric intake came from coconut oil, and 90% of their caloric intake was derived from fish+coconut.

In the 1950's 20 DuPont executives took part in a high fat/high protein/low carb diet as part of anti-obesity and heart disease study. All of them lost significant weight and had improvements in their blood sugar, heart disease risk, blood pressure, lean muscle mass ratio, and a variety of other issues, with no ill effects of the study. One of the study participants was particularly unique in that he was so sensitive to carbohydrate intake (insulin resistant) that the consumption of an apple per day was sufficient to cause him to begin to gain weight.

Carbohydrates deplete the body's store of B vitamins and C, and appear to inhibit absorbtion of vitamin C.

Every essential mineral, nutrient, and vitamin necessary for human metabolism is present in meats in varying quantities. Combined with nuts, avocado, and raw coconut oil, the human body can easily (and healthily in most cases I think) exist entirely on NATURAL (non-grain/non-processed) fats and protein.

In 1950 a clinical study was done with a supervisory panel of thirteen physicians, nutritionists, an endocrinologist, and a psychologist. The basis of the study was to test this very theory. The study lasted for 13 months. The two subjects were kept in confined quarters eating their normal diet for several weeks and monitored 24 hours per day with hourly urine tests, blood work, hormone levels, etc, to establish a health baseline. After that, they were kept in quarters but switched to an all meat (meaning ONLY meat) diet. Fish, poultry, beef, fowl, game. They continued the round the clock monitoring for two months. The participants were then release to their home, but provided with only meats for their diet and checked daily with urine samples, weekly blood, etc. At the end of one year on the all meat diet, both subjects were in as good or better health than prior to beginning the study including a case of gingivitis which was present at the beginning of the study but cleared up two weeks into it.

Prior to 1970 it was common to treat diabetes with a diet of meat, dairy, and fat.

Read up on Vilhjalmur Stefansson's firsthand account of his dealings with his exploratory team and the Eskimo all-meat diet.

Ok. I believe you for this, but I think we're a little past 1970s science by now. Here's a good answer for the need for carbs in a diet when trying to lose weight.

Source:Open Original Shared Link

Excerpt:



  • Concentrate on carbohydrates
  • The recommendations for a healthy diet suggest 15 to 20 percent proteins, 30 percent fat and 50 to 55 percent carbohydrates. But all carbohydrates aren't created alike. There are simple and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates include sugar, honey, jam, and any food such as sweets and soft drinks that get most of its calories from sugar. Nutritionists recommend that these simple carbohydrates make up only 10 percent of your diet. It's complex carbohydrates you should concentrate on--the starch in plant foods--which include fruits, vegetables, bread, pasta, and legumes.
  • Endurance athletes in particular benefit from fuel-efficient complex carbohydrates because of the extra calories burned each day. You need to aim for even more total carbohydrates than the suggested 50 percent. You can eat (in fact, may need to eat) more total calories without worrying about weight gain. The average runner training for a half marathon and running 20 to 25 miles a week probably needs a daily caloric intake near 2,500 to maintain muscle glycogen stores. As your mileage climbs beyond that, you need to eat more and more food, not less. In all honesty, this is why a lot of runners run, and why they train for marathons. Their common motto is, "I love to eat."
  • Some people seeking to finish their first marathon, however, are more than 15 pounds overweight--or they think they are. So they also attempt to lose some additional weight by dieting. To a certain extent, this isn't a bad idea, assuming you choose your diet prudently. Those who choose a fad diet that lowers carbohydrate intake make a major mistake. That's because most fad diets fail to provide enough energy for endurance activities. Stay away from the so-called "Zone," "Adkins," or "40-30-30" diets Their emphasis on low carbohydrates is merely a short-term fix to losing weight.
  • You don't need to patronize Italian restaurants to ensure an adequate supply of complex carbohydrates. I sometimes choose a Chinese restaurant, because rice is also high in carbohydrates. And Nancy Clark, R.D. director of nutrition services for SportsMedicine Brookline in Boston, and author of Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook, points out that you can get plenty of carbos in most American restaurants. If you eat soup (such as minestrone, bean, rice, or noodle), potatoes, breads, and vegetables along with your main dish, and maybe grab a piece of apple cobbler off the dessert tray, you can end up eating more carbohydrates than fats or protein.
  • Carbohydrates are particularly important the night before your race, and even before your long runs or walks leading up to your race. That's one reason why a lot of endurance races offer "pasta parties" the night before. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids the day before the race, but stay away from diuretics that contain alcohol or caffeine. It's also a good idea to top off your fuel tank with a light carbo snack before going to bed. You also might consider rising early on race day so you can have a light, pre-race meal. Toast or a bagel washed down with orange juice and maybe one cup of coffee works well 2 or 3 hours before the race start--but practice this routine before your long training workouts to make sure this doesn't upset your stomach.

A list of the ranking of carbs can be found here: Open Original Shared Link (See: Choosing the right carbohydrates)

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Jestgar Rising Star

Yes. The Inuit (prior to the introduction of the first trading post) subsisted almost entirely on a high protein/high fat diet. Less than 5% of their caloric intake was derived from carbohydrates (mostly roots) and most of that wound up being what we refer to as dietary fiber.

I was interpreting your statement of 'no carbs' as no carbs. You actually meant very low?

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Korwyn Explorer

@Rworthy: Actually no, we are not past that. If you read and research what has happened in the last 40 years to our food recommendations, along with the AHA, AMA, ADA, and NIH, you'd find that we are so seriously out of whack with our nutritional guidelines, and the money that is being poured into keeping the current 'drug' based solutions to everything, you would see that the two lines of research that came out from 1970 are very different, and the the current 'acceptable' line of recommendations is driven by funding from the AG and pharmaceutical industry. For the most part research grants are only given for research which supports the existing line of 'what we all know'.

I'd suggest you do some research and study yourself on this line, investigating the divergent avenues, and take a look at the congressional hearing records from 1973 when the first NIH dietary guidelines came out. They are eye-opening.

Your statement above basically is parroting the current accepted guidelines without showing any study into why or how we got there, or how wrong they are. That thought process and carb intake is directly linked to the diseases of 'western civilization'. Refined, simple, and complex grains and carbs precede the entire progression of diabetes, atherosclerosis and other heart disease, gout, obesity, scurvy, beriberi, diverticulosis, many cancers, and so many others that did not exist in native populations before the introduction by European traders. The Japanese navy never had any incidence of beriberi until the started adding rice into they navy diet and getting rid of pickled fish and dried meats. The rise of scurvy didn't happen UNTIL the sailors started carrying bread and flour as a staple, no longer subsisting on jerky, pickled herring, and cheeses.

Carbs affect insulin (which is a hormone). This impacts the triglyceride transport mechanism. We disregard the other three types of cholesterol to focus only on HDL and LDL, and don't look at the overall effect of insulin on these processes as well as the affect it (insulin) has on fat storage.

@Jestgar,

No, I'm not explictly talking 'very low carb', though that is true too. There are at least two studies with individuals incorporating a pure protein/fat diet showing that one can live healthy and well on only those two elements.

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