Hi everyone, I have just found out I have celiac disease, and I have to go on a Gluten free diet, I have been looking at labels, and I got a feeling there is a lot of hidden gluten under other names, can you help me fiqure out what has gluten in it other than just wheat, and rye, and barley, I pulled up on computor and can"t find list of just foods, they all want to sell you something , Help.Love Irene

-- Irene texas (tkorsborn@cs.com), September 08, 2001

Answers

A couple folks where I work are on it (no gluten) and a friend's father as well but for systemic yeast problems so just wheat free IIRC. Watch out for pre-shredded cheese, they use wheat flour to keep the shreds seperated. Basically the one guy at work went on a total whole foods diet, nothing processed so he didn't have to play guessing games with labels. He was also sensitive to preservatives so basically anything in a can or a jar got to him somehow. I hope this helps, I know it's a very restrictive diet for folks and can be difficult to get used to. It's by far healthier though I would think.

-- Susan (smtroxel@socket.net), September 08, 2001.

Irene, I'm sorry to hear that. There is a mailing list for Celiac- diabetes, you can subscribe with this URL: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?SUBED1=celiac-diabetes&A=1

AFAIK, the diet is pretty much a low carb diet, but more restictive. If you check out some of the low carb lists they will also occassionaly mention celiac disease, I think.

Oh, you were talking vitamin pills the other day and I didn't answer you there. I think you can get away with any good multivitamin, but esp. with celiacs disease, and since you are older, you might want to take more than one a day. Just because you won't be absorbing them so well in your digestive track. I know as we get older our digestion isn't like it was when we were young. You slow down the absorbtion process (this is good) by taking the pills with meals, too. Don't just bolt the pill down with water on an empty stomach, say, if you just get out of bed in the morning.

Check out the listserv above. I think those people will really be able to help you out. :)

-- Jennifer L. (Northern NYS) (jlance@nospammail.com), September 08, 2001.

Definately check everything, even if it seems like there's no way it should have wheat in it. My Mom's allergic to wheat and you'd be suprised what has wheat in it - soy sauce, potato chips, hair sprays (wheat amino acids conditioners!) and so on.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), September 08, 2001.

Irene, I am very sensitive to gluten. I really have to stay away from all wheat products, or my entire gastrointestinal tract from entrance to exit becomes highly inflamed. (Plus other side shows going on that are too embarrassing to mention here.)

I find that staying away from processed foods as much as possible, and cooking from scratch helps, as does aiming to get most carbohydrates from vegetable sources. I dont stick with it as religiously as I ought to, but whenever I stray, I am severely chastened, and return within a few days. And then it takes several days to clear up the chastisement.

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), September 08, 2001.

my girlfriends son has the same problem. She has found a rice bread at the health food store that he loved. I never could find a recipe for it so she had to keep buying it.

-- Teresa (c3ranch@socket.net), September 08, 2001.

Hi Irene, try to find a local Celiacs Association. My Dad and Sister both have celiacs. It is restictive at first but you will get the hang of it. My mom carries a little book(purse size) that lists different food additives that may have gluten and the Celiacs Association keeps her up to date on products. For example Kellogs corn pops are ok if manufactured in the US but here in Canada there may be gluten. She gets friends to send up some once in a while. Dad also gets his own toaster and butter dish in case of crumbs. Also community condiments must be dipped into with a spoon then use your knife to spread(jam, mayo, cheese whiz..) As far as the vitamins are concerned I would concentrate on your diet first as if you have only just been diagnosed your intestinal tract is probably not absorbing much anyway. Don't suppose they would hurt though. Probably your biggest challenge will be fibre, breads etc. My sister finds her bread recipes to bake better in a bread machine. There are some good books -The Gluten Free Gourmet is one I have used, check your library. It gets easier and Dad even has found certain restaurants now which was a challenge before. Good Luck!!

-- Terri in NS (terri@tallships.ca), September 08, 2001.

Irene - If you were the one posting about vitamins, then I would REALLY recommend the spray vitamins (I don't sell them or anything). No worries about absorbtion and gluten-based fillers (a lot of vitamins are bulked up with vegetable starches, possibly wheat or other gluten-based stuff, and the manufacturer might not know what's in it if they buy the filler bulk from different sources with the lowest bids.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), September 09, 2001.

Actually, grains dont add much in the way of vitamins to our diets, mostly just carbohydrates. And America eats way too much carbs. The body is limited as to how much carbs it can use at once, and the excess is shunted very efficiently into storage; fat. If you keep track religiously of what you eat, you probably will find that if you eat enough vegetables and fruits to fulfill your vitamin needs, you will automatically be getting your daily quota of fiber and carbohydrates. Substitute some of those veggies and fruits with bread, however, and you will probably have a natural shortage of vitamins. We dont need bread. Nor breakfast cereal. Nor white sugar of any kind. It is a trojan horse, that sugar is. Stick with your meats, veggies and fruits, and you will be amazed at your energy level!

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), September 09, 2001.

Hi Irene, Boy can I ever sympathize with you. I was diagnosed as a Celiac in 1982. The specialist sent me to see a dietician at the hospital who had never heard about Celiac's disease, so she just photocopied something out of a medical journal & handed it to me & asked if I had any questions duh!!!!! She didn't know what the disease was in the first place so how could she answer my questions!!!!! Enought of this. I was given a name of a contact person in my local chapter of the Canadian Celiac Association. This was a life saver for me & well worth the small membership fee. I highly recommend joining your local chapter as they are a font of info. The following are a list of grains that must be avoided including anything derived from these grains: Wheat Wheat starch flour Rye Barley Oats Triticale Spelt Kamut I have found that a gluten-free diet is a very healthy diet as you tend to eat more fruit & veggies. I was told to take folic acid (vitamins) for a year to restore what was lost in my system. Read all of your food labels before purchasing & if in doubt DO NOT purchase item. I understand that your food labeling regulations in the U.S. are far better than we have but they are working on it. If you are interested I would gladly sent you recipies that are gluten free & also I can photocopy some more info that is too long to print here. Just e-mail me your snail mail address & I will send you info. Blessings, Jan Sears

-- Jan Sears (jcsears@magma.ca), September 10, 2001.

Hi, Irene, I have celiac disease, too, and so does my mother, one of my sisters, and at least one of my daughters. The hardest part is the initial few months as you learn what you can and can't eat, and get used to the new way of eating. I have three cookbooks, all by the same author. The first one is called The Gluten-free Gourmet, by Bette Hagman, and the other two have variations on that title. She gives lists of hidden ingredients to watch out for, as well as good information on gluten-free flours that you can use to bake with if you want to. The advice of just going on a low-carb diet is very good, though. I would have to disagree with the person who said a gluten-free diet is basically the same as a low-carb diet. You can get a lot of carbohydrates in your diet without eating gluten! There are rice flours, potato flour, corn flour, tapioca flour, potatoes, rice, corn (though I can't eat corn, or soy either) -- oh, I almost forgot the soy flour, because we don't use it. Add in all kinds of sugar and dessert recipes, and it is actually rather easy to GAIN weight on a gluten-free diet if you aren't careful (ask me how I know!! ). Don't get too discouraged, keep in mind that there is an adjustment period for any major change in your life, and changing eating habits is probably the hardest thing in the world to do. But eventually it will get easier (though I will never stop craving fresh, home-made bread!).

-- Kate (stonycft@worldpath.net), September 15, 2001.