trents

I think something cyclinglady said bears repeating and that is the absence of overt GI symptoms such as pain or "D" is not a reliable indicator of something being gluten free. Many Celiacs are largely asymptomatic but gluten is still damaging their bodies.

Yes, as you mentioned, adding an apple very day is an excellent move. Apples not only are a good source of fiber but they also help with GERD and settle stomachs. There is some truth to the old saying, "an apple a day keeps the doctor away." And instead of prune juice I would use whole prunes.

9 hours ago, cristiana said:

That's interesting, trents.  Do you supplement B12 too?   I do wonder sometimes if I need to look at that again as I get tingling and find it responds quite quickly to a dosing of B12, but I'm now concerned to take that too as I imagine that can affect the hemaglobin, too?

 

Yes, I do take a sublingual B12 supplement and B complex as well. Those are water soluble vitamins so no danger with overdose. The B vitamins play a role in iron absorption. People with pernicious anemia must get B12 injections. They lack an enzyme called "intrinsic factor" that enables them to assimilate B12 from the gut. I think folic acid comes into play there too.

It may take awhile for your ferritin levels to catch up. If your hemoglobin level has responded so well to iron therapy it could be that going on a gluten free diet has allowed your gut to heal and now it's absorbing iron from your diet adequately. Just keep an eye on your iron levels. It could be that you just need a lower dose supplement. Chronically high iron levels can damage organs.

Personally, I have taken an over the counter iron supplement for years with 60 mg of elemental iron and it keeps my hemoglobin in a nice range. If I stop the supplement then it will drop. I'm a 65 yr. old male celiac so I can't blame it on menses. Our bodies are all different.

I don't know about the pyloric stenosis but the others are all auto immune conditions. One theory about pyloric stenosis is that it is an allergic reaction.

Since going gluten free I have considerably fewer colds than I used to as well. There are days, though, even now, when I feel run down and ache all over. Maybe its just being 56 but maybe it has somenting to do with a body whose immune system is on edge.

Steve

I had pluerisy almost a year ago on the left side and probably a little pneumonia at the same time. I am 56 years old now. It was excruciatingly painful for a couple of days. I was put on anti inflamatories and an antibiotic. It got better after a few days but the pain persisted to some degree for about 2 weeks.

Steve

I've read a lot about this. I'm assuming you read an article and recipe by Sally Fallon, who is the chairman of the Weston A. Price organization. I think that the reason we have so much trouble with Celiac and gluten intolerance is that we don't soak and then ferment (sourdough is basically fermented grain) our grains like traditional cultures did. That said, I don't think I'd eat gluten-filled sourdough bread at this point. There are people who believe, based on research, that no one should eat unsoaked grains, whether they are sensitive to gluten or not. We're too busy to prepare food in the traditional ways, so we're suffering the consequences.

It would be interesting to do a study on this.

Yes, the article was from the archives of the Weston Price Foundation but was actually authored by a Katherine Czapp. If we moderns have traditional ways of preparing our food, less healthy though they be, then that must make us a traditional culture, but I think I know what you meant.

Have any of you read or heard that the microbial process involved in producing sourdough bread renders it safe for consumption by Celiacs? I ran across this idea this summer on the internet. Here is an excerpt from a sourdough noodle recipe where the author makes the claim:

"The digestibility of these dumplings was also a noticeable virtue; they were very light on the stomach while at the same time satisfying to eat. For this toothsome aspect we can thank the lactic acid bacteria at work on the flour from the whey. Not only are anti-nutrients such as phytic acid neutralized by the acidic long soaking period, but recent research has shown that the lacto-bacilli present in sourdough cultures effectively neutralize the toxic components of the wheat gluten molecule responsible for the allergic reaction in celiac-sprue sufferers.1 Mere soaking with the addition of acetic acid showed no effect on the gluten molecule. This discovery is truly exciting for those who are gluten-intolerant, as it may be the door to food that is traditionally prepared and safe to eat, with the welcome bonus of being both tasty and extra-nutritious. The lacto-bacteria in a sourdough culture can be boosted by the addition of whey (in place of water) for baking bread, and as the liquid component of noodle dough, as we see in this traditional recipe for pel’meni." http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/s...gg_noodles.html

I thought it was just anecdotal quackery but found the article she referenced and found it to be a scientific abstract supporting these claims: http://aem.asm.org/cgi/content/full/68/2/623

Can anybody shed some light on this idea?