BRUMI1968

I thought of something else, actually. I'd really look into trying raw sauerkraut. It has some of the same good intestinal bacteria as yoghurt, but it's dairy free. It also helps to digest proteins, and is really good, for some reason, for your skin. It's relatively expensive in the store (healthfood store), but you can make it yourself i you have a food processor. I eat it almost every time I have meat - it's good in meat rollups and with chicken, it's good on a hamburger with carmelized onions and avocado. I like it. It does stink though...and your friends/family will doubtlessly make fun of you.

I haven't seen the Paleo book exactly - I bought one for athletes because at first I was having a bit of trouble with energy levels, and I was starting to play tennis. I think I either adjusted or finished with some yeast die off or something, because I got much better with the energy and the muscle cramps.

I, therefore, am an example of someone who has done it from the Internet, and from common sense.

The gist is, if paleo man could not have eaten it, neither should you. Thus, grains would not have been feasible (can't be eaten raw, and are extremely difficult to harvest if you have hunter/gatherer society), nor legumes of any kind (goodbye hummus), and probably not starchy vegetables, though there is some contention in anthropology circles about this one.

NOT TO EAT:

dairy, beans (including soy), grains, starchy veggies, super fatty meats, sugar, lots of table salt

TO EAT:

veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, lean meats, fish.

I EAT ALSO:

winter squash (a bit starchy, but frankly, the paleo diet has nothing that feels creamy in it, except nut butters, so I like to whip up some squash soup with apple); ocassional sweet potato.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

sugar - it'll hit you like a ton of bricks on this diet. You should avoid sugar. Try stevia, and eating sweet veggies like carmelized onions, summer squash, winter squash, etc. Also, if you eat a lot of dried fruit (which Paleo chick/dude would have), you want to watch out you don't have any yeast problems. It'll feed the yeast. If your yeast is under control, and you don't have diabetes, dried fruits are probably fine. I think you could well get a lot of natural sugar on the paleo diet.

salt - you should use either himalayan crystal salt (which is ultra delicious but spendy) or sea salt. table salt has problems. (this is true for all, not just pelo dieters)

water - you'll get more in the veggies, but you'll need more with all the protein. i'm usually a bit dehydrated - this is some advice of mine I wish I would take myself.

It takes a bit of getting used to. Snacking is perfect, you've got tons of choices on snacking. And if you like veggies, you won't be sad at dinner or lunch either. Breakfast is a bit tough because we're used to having special breakfast food...I have yet to master breakfast, because I think I eat too many eggs.

Also, the only "milk" that works if you put "milk" in your coffee/tea, is almond milk, and it's a bit odd. Again, be careful to get gluten-free almond milk if you do choose to do almond milk.

As to weight gain/loss - watch the nut butters. They're yummy, and they'll help keep the pounds on if you need that (or they have me anyway), but if you want pounds off, you might want to take it easy on them. Lots of calories.

If I think of anything else I'll tell you. But I would google paleo diet and see what you come up with. And then experiment.

  Kathy Ann said:

What was the final straw that made you decide to make your kitchen completely gluten free? That is my next difficult planned step. Why didn't the shared plan work for you?

Ironically, it was putting my husband on a mostly grain-free diet that seemed to mess up our process. I think we all stopped being very careful since there was hardly any gluten in the house. It is just too confusing to have two sponges, two scrubbies, a separate cutting board, etc. We have a friend who cooks at our house once a week or so for family dinners, and he can't keep it straight. He has some short term memory problems due to lifestyle choices.

So, I'm going to get rid of all the gluten in the house except beer. We can all keep track of that, and since beer glasses don't have to get scrubbed B4 the dishwasher, the spong should stay safe.

I think what happened is that I used my mustard on meat roll-ups for Joe and his meat ins't gluten-free. So I started to feel crappy again. But I'm not sure if I was glutened at all.

Anyway, it'll be better for Joe and my friend Don anyway - eating gluten-free is healthy for all.

Thanks all about the spices. I'll look into McCormick for most stuff. Thanks.

I've decided that my attempt to segregate our kitchen to gluten and non-gluten isn't working perfectly, so have decided to degluten the whole kitchen, having hubby and friends eat gluten out and outside only.

So I need to clean out the spice cabinet, and am wondering if there are any BRANDS that are all gluten-free - especially nonirradiated organic stuff.

If there's no brand that is all gluten-free, I'll get on the telephone and figure out which ones i can keep and which I have to give away.

Thanks.

Figs are good for fiber, if fiber is still an option to try for a fixer. I've always had bad C until I quit wheat two years ago. WHen I quit gluten six months ago or so, I got it back for a while...who knows why...maybe stopping the oatmeal. Anyway, figs are good since they are small but pack a fiber punch.

Hi. I don't eat grains at all. Here's an example of my day's food intake:

BREKKERS:

2 or 3 poached eggs over sauteed veggies like chard, beet greens, asparagus, etc.

OR

scramble with onions, brocoli, etc.

(in other words, veggies and eggs)

LUNCH:

meat rollups. Okay, lunch meat is not the best meat, but it's organic and gluten-free, and I'm new back to meat as well, so it's a good compromise. On it I put mustard, sometimes raw sauerkraut which is really great for your skin and your bowels, avocado, onion, lettuce, whatever you like.

(in other words, meat and veggies)

DINNER:

salmon or hamburger patty or chicken or grass-fed beef or something

and veggies --

OR

protein source (see above) and salad.

Now granted, all day long I'm also eating trail mix that I make at home from walnuts, sunflower seeds, dried cherries, raisins, prunes, figs, etc. I also snack on apples with almond or walnut butter; bananas; and more meat rollups.

The interesting "problem" with the diet is that we're used to feeling "full" or some kind of starchy pasta type full. You can handle this by eating sweet potato, though I eat very little of it at this point (makes good french fries) and making winter squash soups, or "cream" of cauliflower soup type things. You get used to having the feeling of full being different - more like a lack of hunger than a sensation of full.

When I started on this diet, I was losing 1/2 pound a day, probably - well, that is with also having zero sugar - I was only using stevia. For a while I went off fruit altogether to try to kill off yeast, and that took the weight off even faster (Body Ecology Diet) - but the goal there is to kill yeast and then get back to eating fruit and such.

To me the challenges are feeling bored after a while - not having things to "soak up sauce" like we're used to (though spaghetti squash works there), and eating out. Eating out i just get a piece of fish grilled with salt and pepper on top of a huge salad. I actually like it, but sometimes the wait staff look at you funny.

I've had really good luck with this. Oh, it also includes not eating beans, and obviously no dairy. the only milk substitute without beans/grains/or dairy is almond milk. It's pretty good, though once you're off grains, what would you eat it on (besides tea lattes)? Watch for gluten - pacific makes gluten-free.

You can ask me more if you like. I did just get back from vacation in Montana where I ended up cheating on the grains thing a bit (in the form of rice milk tea lattes - which meant I was also cheating on the sugar), and it did not adversely affect me - so it's not like I lost the ability to digest the stuff. Now that I'm home, I need to get back on track.

If you have a library near you that has the book "Paleo Diet for Athletes", you might check out the part where it shows the vitamins and minerals and which foods they're richest in - almost exclusively, it's vegetables. Most of the book is annoying and about hard core athletic training, but the part about the nutri3ents was interesting. I should just dig it up and type it out for you. I'll do that this weekend. So not eating grains, though against the "grain" of what most folks think is right, is probably not too dangerous, so long as you're making sure you're eating really intelligently.

-Sherri

It is hard sometimes to feel full, but you do get used to it. I was losing weight like crazy, and I don't have it to lose - once I added nut butters and some almond milk in there, my weight evened out.

To be honest, I haven't read the books. I read the principles: fruit, nuts, seeds, non-starchy veggies, and relatively lean meats. I did get his book on Paleo diet for athletes, because I was starting to play tennis...but it didn't mention the fat stuff too much. His approach is overly wordy and scientific when it needent be, in my opinion. I like to understand the way I am eating, but political argument about fat or cholesterol or salt or whatever I find ridiculous - those are the kinds of things that individuals work out for themselves.

I eat meat, usually lean but sometimes not - like bacon - and I eat beef but only grass fed for the omega balance and the fact that it doesn't make cows eat corn which they weren't meant to digest. I actually think right now I'm having a hard time digetsting fats altogether - so my liver must be clogged or something. All of my bm's are floating, and if I mix avocado and beef together, something I loved doing two months ago, my stomach is unhappy like crazy.

I guess my point in suggesting the diet was that it bears a vague similarity. When I quit all grains and all beans, lots of my digestive problems disappeared. I wanted to do the SCD, but don't want to add back any dairy, whether or not it has lactose in it.

Another diet that helped me out quite a bit was the BODY ECOLOGY DIET. It's meant to restore flora and balance in the digestive tract, and she does suggest, after about a year, adding kefir to the diet, which is like yoghurt. I found the diet difficult to maintain for lack of energy, but it did seem to decrease my bloating and get me off sugar entirely.

Hey! I moved from Woolley to Bellingham about three years ago, after two years in Woolley (before that Whidbey, Capital Hill/Seattle, Monroe, Port Townsend). Anyway, we JUST sold our house in Sedro in Rolling Ridge - about half way to Sedro from Burlington between 20 and Cook Road.

Anyway, nice to have you on the board. Your co-op is cheaper than our coop, for produce anyway...but I think Bham caters a bit more to gluten-free. You can also try Terra Organica in Bham for gluten-free stuff. Of course, Fred Meyers actually does a good job.

We also have a group; I've never gone.

Anyway, welcome. by the way, aren't you tempted to call Sedro "Bug", like the founders wanted to? I always thought that was a nice name. BUG.

-Sherri

You might look into the Paleo Diet as an alternative. I didn't want to do specific carb because of dairy either. I think the Paleo diet works pretty well, though sometimes it can be tough to get enough calories, and not eating ANY grains can be difficult out at restaurants (if any of us even go out to restaurants at this point).

there's a book called The Paleo Diet, one called Neanderthin...and some more I don't know the names of. I do it losely and am happy to talk to you about it more if you're interested.

  Doll said:

If fluoride simply confused the immune system, EVERYONE exposed to it would develop autoimmune thyroid disease.

This isn't true. The "germ" theory doesn't get everyone sick who is exposed to flu germ, for example. EVERYONE can not be used in a sentence talking about science or health. The same is true for ecological toxins; fluoride is one; and other toxins.

One thing I would add about fluoride, is that you can be politically active in your community and get your municipality to STOP fluroidating your water. Our community was attacked by a national group aiming to fluoridate all communities that are not and we defeated it, for the THIRD time. People here don't want it. They run a hard campaign full of all sorts of propaganda, but they can be defeated.

Lastly, too, the green tea you mentioned I know can be an issue. I wrote emails to several green tea makers asking them about it, but no one knew anything. I think organic tea would be best since there won't be any added fluroide in the soil that the green tea picks up. But if you don't know the soil qualities of the place your tea comes from, you are a bit in the dark. I drink so much green tea it is ridiculous. But I don't drink fluoridated water at all, so hopefully it evens out. If I go to my parents' house (they live in a fluoridated town) I do not drink the water, and I bring my own to cook with. Sound paranoid? Well, maybe.

I read a book called The Flouride Deception; pretty good compelling stuff.

thanks!

My hubby and I are riding motorcycles to Montana in early/mid September for 8 days. We'll go from Bellngham to Winthrop (both in WA), then to Sand Point Idaho, then to WhiteFish Montana. All those places have co-op type stores where I can buy gluten-free organic lunchmeat and the like. Once we past there, headed to Glacier, then the Beartooth Highway to Cook City, also to Yellowstone, Lewistown, etc....I don't know what's out there.

any ideas?

Also, which lunch meats that are sold at regular stores are gluten free?

Thanks guys.

I don't want to notch this fascinating post back, but I thought we should mention that sublingual B12 is the best. You chew it slightly and let it dissolve in your mouth. If your gut is leaky and damaged, you might not get much benefit from swallowing your B12. You can get them at any healthfood store or food Co-op. I use Enzymatic Therapy, and they are about 9 bucks for 30 of them.

Another option is to get shots from your healthcare provider. You should notice right away if you feel better. If you do, you've got B12 issues. If you don't, probably not. I got four shots and they never did much; other people feel instantly better (well, within hours). Make sure you ask for one that has folate in it, otherwise, you can't absorb it as well. They may well also have a B complex shot, which would be better still. They aren't that expensive, but it is cheaper to do them yourselve. So if it turns out they help you a lot, you should ask about giving them to yourself. You can even buy the stuff online.

I definitely felt worse after quitting gluten. I had quit wheat two years earlier and was feeling really good. I've been eating ultra healthy for years, so I don't think I had as much to change or as much built up crap food damage to get rid of. But I immediately got back my bloat and constipation that I'd finally gotten rid of quitting wheat, and I became phenomenally tired. It took a good month to get my digestion straightened out, and I quit other things to help it along. Most folks can't do dairy for a while, and soy, corn, and nightshades are other big ones to watch for. I ended up quitting all grains and beans as well, and I think it helped me quite a bit - but we're all different.

Anyway, try the Vit B12 thing, and make sure you're not eating any of the big nasties: dairy, soy, corn, nightshades. Then just be patient. Your body hasn't been absorbing stuff the way it should, and now it will. Pretty soon you'll feel like a million bucks.

I'm so glad! I miss my kitty. He died a couple years ago of unknown causes. If I get another cat, I'll definitely feed them Innova or raw food.

-Sherri

I know when I was in Hawaii b4 diagnosis but after going wheat-free - and my father in law made fresh bread every day - I ate it like it was going out of style. YUM! That sounds likely to me, too.

I'm making danish squash soup right now and I'm so excited for it to get done. Better go check.

Thanks Leah - I didn't know about the reflux/heartburn thing with peppermint. That's why this board is so great...all together, we're an amazingly genious person!

I used US Biotek as well...I came out as being allergic to nothing. Which was cool...but almost hard to believe after 35 years of Celiac disease. I had some things that did make a mark on the scale, which is delineated like the York one - Kidney beans were at the maximum of no reaction. I did have things I have never eaten (to my knowledge) that got blips in the first "no Reaction" column - like lobster, crab, oysters, etc.

anyway, I guess I'm glad to know I have no clinical allergic reactions to any foods right now.

-Sherri

A really good breakfast is sauteed vegetables with poached or scrambled eggs. With poached I've done: summer squash, asparagus, swiss chard, beet greens; with scrambled I've done nappa cabbage, brocoli, etc. I always use leek or onion or shallot. It is actually quite good. I do worry about eating eggs EVERY day and not taking a break, so I try to go one day a week w/o the eggs. Then I eat some grainless cereal I found at my co-op mixed with applesauce.

I like the fruit idea, but then you're lacking protein, and you might want to snack. When I did the fruit only til noon thing several years ago I was so ultra regular, though - I mean the exact same second on the clock every day I was in the washroom doing my business. That was kindof nice. But it is a lot of sugar first thing in the morning.

Snacks - I use nuts which you say bother you a bit. Some good veggies cold: summer squash (not cooked), asparagus (sauteed the night before), chopped up peppers (though these are nightshades, so only if you tolerate them well [i don't]).

I would definitely elminate all soy and dairy and beans and, if you are willing, grains, to see if that helps you. Nightshades are also a tricky one. Nuts can be tough (I love them!). Corn is a big allergen too.

Good luck.

Just a couple things:

1. peppermint is good for tummy aches

2. chamomile is good for calming down

3. a combo of those is good for tummy aches from stress

4. ginger is supposed to fight gas

those are all pretty safe - ginger can no doubt be overdone since it is "spicy", but I think the taste of it would warn you off.

a couple other things:

cayenne pepper stimulates stomach acid, so if you are low on stomach acid, sprinkle some cayenne over your food. Again, too much is probably no good, but would also taste bad.

black pepper stimulates the appetite, so if you have trouble feeling hungry, use appetitizers with black pepper on there.

That's all I can think of. THere are other things, but they are more "processed", such as licorice (I think it's called DGL) and Triphala (an Indian blend of things)...thus I agree somewhat with the last poster - you don't really want to just randomly take everything under the sun to fix your problem before you know what your problem is.

Take care.

-sherri

It certainly sounds possible. I've had problems since I was 3 or 4 years old - always constipation. Originally, folks thought Celiac always presented as diarrhea, but they've found maybe 30% or more folks present with constipation. Anyway, I quit wheat two years ago and felt much better, so got tested for Celiac just to be sure. Turns out I tested positive. So I've quit gluten now as well. At first, it didn't go so well. I got constipated again. But now it's evened out.

Everyone has different symptoms, and of course not everyone goes through a big crisis like the one you're experiencing. I was lucky. I'm sure someone will respond who has gone through similar circumstances to yours.

If you are going gluten free for a spell to see if it helps, remember that it works in molecules of gluten - so even contamination by gluten will give you troubles. If you don't live alone, you need your own cutting board, your own toaster (if you choose to eat gluten-free breads - I don't), and will probably need your own dishtowels. I actually have my own side of the kitchen to avoid any gluten getting on the counters etc.

You should also get the extended list of things to look for, like "natural flavors" and the like. Gluten is hiding every-which-where: vinegar, mayonaise, ketchup, spices, chips.

Good luck to you. I think you'll most likely notice a change pretty quickly if you're able to avoid gluten altogether for a spell. If you don't, it may be something else, certainly.

Take care.

-Sherri

The Body Ecology Diet kills yeast off pretty well. What is the spit test?

You are so lucky to be in Portland. I'm visiting Portland right now as we speak. Staying at Kennedy School, which is neat but too loud for such a light sleeper as myself.

Anyway, here are four restaurants (there are more, but this what I printed out b4 coming down)

Hawthorn Fish House and Corbett Fish House. Really good. WE ate at Hawthorn location last night. Rice flour is used to bread the fish. Watch out for the commercially made condiments, though - they had malt vinegar which is not gluten-free, and heinze which I'm not sure of.

Grolla - 2930 NE Killingsworth Street. Expensive. Supposed to be good. Might eat there tonight. Owner has Celiac.

Andina - 1314 Glisan Street. Peruvian food. Llunch and dinner. Might have lunch there today. Medium priced.

Assaggio at 7742 SE 13th - Italian - have gluten free menu

Anyway, I envy you the Portland location - Portland is so hip about food. Also, check out www.glutenfreerestaurants.org - and make sure to suggest to any other restaurants that have gluten-free menues or are gluten friendly that they get on this website.

Good luck to you...and welcome. Oh yeah, I'm from Bellingham, WA, just about 20 minutes south of the Canadian border.

-Sherri

If you do a search of this site, you'll find an extensive posting on the SC diet.

I do the Paleo diet myself. it is similar to SC in the carb parts, but it has no dairy or beans of any kind. It is interesting, and it seems to be working pretty well for me.

I've also done (and will again) the Body Ecology Diet. It has no grains, beans, dairy - and its main goal is killing yeast and getting your intestinal flora all up and running and happy again. It really did wonders for what I imagine is a lurking candida problem for me. It is the only diet on which I have had ZERO bloating. It is really hard to maintain, though, as it has no sugars of any kind, including fruit, and it leaves out some of my favorite nuts because it seeks to keep the system very alkaline. Regardless, it is worth checking into.

I think the idea behind the SC diet and dairy is that she only allows those dairy products that are lactose free. However, this says nothing about the casein...which would still be there.

Anyway, I'm sure someone has advice on the SC. Consider Body Ecology as well, and Paleo as a life-long diet. I haven't had any grains for two months now and have felt a lot better...especially in the bathroom.

Didn't the food pyramid used to put dairy and eggs together too? Weird. But what would you expect from an organization that doesn't put vegetables on the bottom rung - the biggest one.

avocados

nut butters (walnut, almond)

meat/fish

potatoes (though not particularly nutritious)

good luck!