Re: Typical menu for a GF day - Thanks

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the very informative responses!

My daughter wasn't having too much diarrhea, but strange looking, odd smelling

stools after

I started her on some organic whole grain baby cereal. She developed a terrible

diaper

rash which was bleeding and blistered. She was also waking up a couple of times

a night crying.

I took her off the cereals and things improved. She has always been plagued by

skin rashes

which look like small dots. I was told it was a form of eczema. It worsens

when I eat dairy

(except for raw cheese or organic butter). Does this sound remotely like a

gluten issue?

I don't have some of the typical gluten issues like weight loss and diarrhea,

but I have the opposite

extreme! I gain weight and have a hard time digesting things when glutenous

grains are involved.

When I eliminated most grains from my diet, I ended up losing a lot of weight

(I've lost 81 pounds

since last October when I gave birth) and it felt like a cloud was lifted from

my brain. I remember

eating a dinner consisting of steak and salad, and suddenly having a sense of

" well-being " I hadn't

had in a long time. Could all of this be related to gluten?

Thanks,

Holly Whittemore

[Guest guest]

At 03:46 PM 9/27/2004, you wrote:

> Could all of this be related to gluten?

>

>Thanks,

>Holly Whittemore

yes!!

[Guest guest]

>My daughter wasn't having too much diarrhea, but strange looking, odd smelling

stools after

>I started her on some organic whole grain baby cereal. She developed a

terrible diaper

>rash which was bleeding and blistered. She was also waking up a couple of

times a night crying.

>I took her off the cereals and things improved. She has always been plagued by

skin rashes

>which look like small dots. I was told it was a form of eczema. It worsens

when I eat dairy

>(except for raw cheese or organic butter). Does this sound remotely like a

gluten issue?

Yeah, I'd say it's a good bet. The diaper rash problem is one we had (and I had,

for

that matter). " odd smelling " stools are typical too. The little dots can be

dermatitis

herpetiformis, which look like TINY little blisters that itch like crazy and are

often often confused with eczema. Tho some kids

just get little dots that are something else in response to some foods, and some

kids get eczema from gluten too. Dairy can cause similar problems (the casein,

not

the same as lactose intolerance).

>I don't have some of the typical gluten issues like weight loss and diarrhea,

but I have the opposite

>extreme! I gain weight and have a hard time digesting things when glutenous

grains are involved.

>When I eliminated most grains from my diet, I ended up losing a lot of weight

(I've lost 81 pounds

>since last October when I gave birth) and it felt like a cloud was lifted from

my brain. I remember

>eating a dinner consisting of steak and salad, and suddenly having a sense of

" well-being " I hadn't

>had in a long time. Could all of this be related to gluten?

Yeah, it probably is. A LOT of people seem to gain a lot of weight with celiac,

then when

the celiac gets really bad, they lose it all and get really skinny. You read

the biographies, and they are ignored by the docs when the are fat,

then when they get malnourished and are down to 90 lbs and on an IV

drip they finally take a biopsy to find out what kind of cancer it is,

and end up finding celiac (tho celiac causes gut cancer too, so they

might end up with both).

And a lot of people seem to lose weight when they drop the gluten. My own take

on it is

that the gluten attaches to the villi in the upper intestine, which keeps

food from being absorbed, leading to bacterial imbalance ... also since

the villi " sample " the food to determine when you've eaten enough, they

are basically dysfunctional and you can eat way more than you need. Plus

with the lack of absorption you end up starving for nutrients and are

always hungry. My family wasn't sick when we dropped gluten, but

they all got skinnier and healthier eating GF.

The " cloudy brain " thing is typical too ... the people who get it though often

get it ALSO from casein, so you want to keep track. Raw milk and fermented

milk seem to be less problematic ... I can eat some kefir and some kinds of

cheese, but butter and raw milk don't work at all. However, since avoiding

dairy I've had ZERO migraines, after having 5 a month for 20 or so years.

Steak works for me too ... I started this venture by tracking what meals

made me 1) feel good and 2) not hungry 3 hours later. Steak and

hashbrowns and salad are THE best foods for me! Esp. rare steak with

lots of fat on it. I've lost a good deal of weight also, though I had to

work at it a little (I do the Warrior Diet feast/fast plan). I really, really

love being on a diet that includes coconut-oil fried hash browns! Something

about good beef though is really good for your brain, maybe it's the

good fats or the proteins or those Paleo brain cells going " ugh, meat good! " .

Raw greens do something neat too, sometimes I just pile good lettuce

on a plate and munch it.

Anyway, there is a good deal of info on the Web. Katja put together

her list of sources and I added a few of my favorites too:

websites:

www.celiac.com

http://www.friendsofceliac.com/

www.gluten.net

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients:

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ISW/is_2002_Dec/ai_94538644

summary info from the book dangerous grains

http://www.dogtorj.com/pages/556762/index.htm

a lighter all-around guide

http://www.healthwell.com/delicious-online/d_backs/mar_04/women.cfm

American Family Physician, March 1, 1998

Celiac Disease

http://www.aafp.org/afp/980301ap/980301b.html

Detecting Celiac Disease

http://www.aafp.org/afp/980301ap/pruessn.html

books:

dangerous grains - james braly, ron hoggan

against the grain - jax peters lowell

breaking the vicious cycle - elaine gottschall

incredible, edible gluten free foods - sheri sanderson

raising celiac kids - dana korn

summary of related disorders:

IBS

chronic fatigue syndrome

anemia

ulcers

allergies

thyroid disease

multiple sclerosis

depression

psychological disorders

lactose intolerance

abdominal pain

gastric disorders

ADD/ADHD

autism/asperger's

joint pain

fibromyalgia

connective tissue disorders

sleep disorders

psoriasis

rheumatoid arthritis

crohn's disease

infertility

kidney and liver disorders

skin rashes

colon cancer

hair loss

The best rundown of the issues is the book Dangerous Grains

(we agree we don't like the title: it's a very well thought out

and scientific book though).

http://www.aafp.org/afp/980301ap/pruessn.html

That link is one of my favorites ... good one to hand to a doc

if you want to get tested too. Lists the symptoms and why

one gets those symptoms. It is older though ... they prevalence

they say is 1 in 300, it is now more like 1 in 100 have celiac,

and 1 in 10 folks are gluten intolerant by blood test, probably

1 in 3 by gut test. It has been shown though that one's life

will be shorter if you have this and still eat gluten, so it

is worth treating! Not to mention it makes life rather painful.

Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

At 03:41 PM 9/27/04 -0700, Heidi wrote:

>Something about good beef though is really good for your brain, maybe it's

the

>good fats or the proteins or those Paleo brain cells going " ugh, meat good! " .

Okay, sorry, but this made me absolutely CRACK UP when I read it. I

don't think any of the neighbors are home, though, so maybe I'm safe this

time.

But please don't be scared if it ever shows up as a sig line.

*runs off giggling again*

MFJ

Everything connects. The Universe is not THAT chaotic. Beauty can

still be found in the most amazing places.

[Guest guest]

Wow!

Thanks Heidi!

I am so grateful for your input. And thanks to the others who did as well.

I have a lot to learn about celiac and am so grateful to be hooked up with

those who posess this knowledge.

God bless you,

Holly Whittemore

[Guest guest]

>Okay, sorry, but this made me absolutely CRACK UP when I read it. I

>don't think any of the neighbors are home, though, so maybe I'm safe this

>time.

Ya see, I'm fortunate ... my neighbors couldn't hear me even if I fired

a shotgun or two, so my insane cackling doesn't affect them. Or

maybe they think it's the chickens ...

>

>But please don't be scared if it ever shows up as a sig line.

Hmmm ... that's a thought! I don't think I could be scared

of a sig line after Katja's WHEEEEE !

Heidi .... ugh, meat good!

[Guest guest]

At 10:35 PM 9/27/04 -0700, you wrote:

>>But please don't be scared if it ever shows up as a sig line.

>

>Hmmm ... that's a thought! I don't think I could be scared

>of a sig line after Katja's WHEEEEE !

>

>

>Heidi .... ugh, meat good!

Hmmmmmm .... I think Katja might be slackin' off a little here. *ahem*

MFJ

Fank you. Fank you very much.

[Guest guest]

At 08:04 AM 9/28/2004, you wrote:

> >Hmmm ... that's a thought! I don't think I could be scared

> >of a sig line after Katja's WHEEEEE !

> >

> >

> >Heidi .... ugh, meat good!

>

>

>Hmmmmmm .... I think Katja might be slackin' off a little here. *ahem*

oh god, i know - it's true!

but fall (and spring and summer) is the busiest time on a northern

farm...it's crazy over here!!!

but it's fun! wheeeee!

-katja