Coeliacs/ strictly gluten free people..please look in here

[Dowser]

I’ve read some old threads and now started my own
After a day when I really hit the skids as I felt as dreadful as you could possibly be with bloating, diarrhoea, awful pain in back, fatigue, headache and so emo
I’ve done it. I’ve completely cut all gluten out.
I haven’t done pasta, bread for years but I’ve cheated along the way and I haven’t taken note of rye, barley or oats either or what’s been sneaked I to other stuff.

I’m on day 6 . Still a long long way to go.
I haven’t done a recent gluten test at the docs as I don’t fancy the 6 weeks of eating gluten.

Is life always going to be this grim?
I’ve been lactose free for ages...but then I haven’t been strict with that either.

Where do I start to make life/ socialising a bit more palatable.
Although feeling good/ better will be a start.
Maybe mentioning brands that are ok

Thank you

DD is a Coeliac, suddenly developed in her 20's so quite a tough learning curve food wise. she eats lots of fish and rice, and fruit. Her favourite brands for bread are Schar and Morrison's. You can get lots of GF free food in supermarket. Tesco finest sausages are GF but honestly plain meat and veg are easier.
For breakfast she has GF cornflakes (kellogs) or porridge, also lots of eggs.
Strangely, and the GP isn't sure why but DD has put on lots of weight since going GF

Also most restaurants do gluten free menus now. And watch Beer/Ale as that contains wheat

Life is sooo much better without the pain, diarrhoea, vomiting etc. The extra energy, the clearer brain (especially if you get stricter about lactose).

Most of the chain family restaurants have good gluten options (pizza express are specifically aiming options for ceoliacs). More and more restaurants are doing gluten free stuff - Las iguanas is my favourite chain, because gluten and dairy free deserts that aren't sorbet. Turtle bay is the same. It's always worth asking.

If you ever go to Devon there's a cafe in Dawlish which specialises in gluten free, everything on the menu has a gluten free option, the vinegar is cider and he even told me what I could safely eat on my kids plates.

Genius cupcakes are gluten and dairy free and frequently stolen by my gluten eating husband. I have yet to find a bread I love, toasted is better. Schah part baked rolls are probably the closest.

What food do you miss most?

My dd was diagnosed as coeliac aged 10/11 and is now 20 , things have vastly improved with availability particularly in restaurants . Dds diet is quite limited as she doesn’t eat veg or salads unless they are in / on things but she manages quite a variety . She generally has cereal for breakfast , she likes gf Rice Krispies and the Dove chocolate stars mixed for variety . She likes the Schar ff bread if it’s toasted so often has toasted cheese and sausage sandwich . Tesco finest sausages are excellent as are the meatballs and they do lots of gf burgers . Due to having CFS she can’t move much and had through her teens become overweight however in the last year she has lost over 3 stone and is now a size 10 .

A lot of coeliacs will put on weight when they go gluten free because the body heals and can now absorb the vitamins and minerals etc that it couldn't before. Unfortunately (we'll, fortunately in some cases) that means absorbing more fats as well

Oh my, I never knew that about putting weight in..was hoping to lose it.

I’ve bloated out a bit these last couple of years
Good if I absorb all these expensive supplements I’ve had over the years.
I don’t miss bread, pasta pies etc as I haven’t had them for years.

Think it’ll be the things it’s sneaked in that I haven’t been aware of..some crisps with maltodexdrin, a sneaky bit of birthday cake now and then
At the moment I’ve paired it right Back to organic egg omelette for breakfast
Rice cakes and banana for lunch
Protein veg and quinoa, rice, buckwheat, sweet potato for dinner

Eating out I’ll have the salmon dish at Bella Italian..when it’s meerkat day ha! Ha!

I drink water and herb tea

Just feeling my way at the moment but knowing I can’t stay on that plan for ever

I have coeliac, I rarely eat out, I've had too much cross contamination.

The switches I did is pasta got switched to red lentil and you can make a pretty good fresh pasta with xantham, gf flour and egg.
Schar for my bread, bfree for pita and wraps. I like Japanese and Korean food so changed from soy sauce to Tamari.

That’s scary nerno.
Was cold, ,starving and had only had a small lunch so headed to toby carvery

A slice of each meat and carrots,vegetarian gravy,, peas ,red cabbage, mash and roasties
Hit the spot
Hopefully all will be well

We eat out a lot so we need to nail this down.
What do you do about fish and chips... have s batter free fish

The gravy contains gluten, but otherwise you'd have been OK at Toby - they have an online allergen list which you can check.

Fish and chips - theres a FB group for gf fish and chips, but it can be restricted to a couple of days a month.

I'm coeliac and I do eat out a lot - but you need to check the menu and in chain places you can usually get the allergen info online, or ask. For instance, often non breaded fish will be lightly dusted with flour. Or a flourless choc pudding will have the mould floured or 'just a bit' of flour

I'm coeliac too, but a silent one Dh might contest that bit I'm never quiet I get hardly any symtoms, but was diagnosed through blood and gastroscopy. It's a friggin pain, I'm always worried about eating out.
I'd get the official dianosis, that way you may get prescriptions for bread and pasta etc as it's all so expensive.

I had a test and it came back negative...no one told me to eat gluten beforehand ☹️

Seems like Bella Italia is our best bed..especially on meerkat days
Had chicken wings and the salmon
Do had meatballs and gluten free spaghetti

I was assured Toby veg gravy was gluten free..hope so

Can anyone recommend a good gluten free beer for DH please
We are at a beer festival on Saturday.
He’s tried cider and didn’t think that agreed with him.

Asda and Morrisons are imo the best for free from foods

I use a lot of buckwheat flour for baking, biscuits, brownies and pancakes etc. Love buckwheat pasta as well that you can get from Tesco in the pasta aisle (own brand).

Pizza Express is my favourite place to eat out - they're coeliac accredited and great with dietary needs.

Schar pizza base is great as are the baguettes and panini rolls.

Why does your DH need a gluten free beer?

Re the bloating, are you looking at your biome? Eating pickles, sauerkraut etc? You can also make a difference just eating 2 apples a day. You could also look for lactose free live yoghurt, to get your digestion a bit speedier.

Like a PP I find bread better toasted, and the Genius toastie loaf is the best. For gravy, the Bisto best onion gravy - don't know about the others as I'm vegetarian.

I'm working on my food at the moment though - I'm also fighting chronic fatigue - and I think it's key to avoiding bad choices to plan good food choices in advance - including emergency snacks, and e.g. taking a gf brownie to eat when everyone else is having birthday cake.

Also supermarket own brand GF oats are all great.

And yes as @DameFanny says never leave the house without snacks and a lunchbox!!

Yes we need to organise ourselves re snacks. I need to restart my kefir and the sauerkraut. Although I prefer it made with peppers.
I’ve got some good probiotics.
I take concentrace for fatigue. That’s pure minerals.
Also coral calcium from the Caribbean.
Dh wantssome gf beer as he doesn’t want to drink ordinary at the beer festival.
I like Morrison’s and we have a store so will look in there
They might have a gf beer

Just ask for the gluten free menu OP, the majority of chain restaurants do them. I'm coeliac and don't really have any issue eating out (although I'd rather not risk it generally) - just google for GF friendly restaurants in the area.

If you aren't actually sure its gluten I'd have a rethink, or see a dietitian- GF dedicated items are not usually healthier than their non GF counterparts, or as nice.

There are always GF beers in the free from aisle at the supermarket, but why does your DH need them if it is you who is restricting gluten? Is he also?

Remember not to share a toaster with anyone using normal bread due to cross contamination, also separate butter etc, no soy sauce in anything, use the tamari soy sauce only.

I'd try prebiotics if you haven't OP.

Which beer festival is it? They may have their beer listing online already, but from previous experience gluten free beer at a beer festival will probably be limited to one or two beers if any.

I've been strictly gluten free for a few years now. I tend to not have gluten free alternatives to things very often, but rather stick to naturally gluten free foods. Also I tend to eat a mostly low carb diet as this makes being gluten free pretty easy. But if I do have pasta, I've found that the Garofalo brand is the best, and for bread the Schar brand. When I gave up gluten (due to an autoimmune condition not coeliac) I really missed yorkshire puddings, but the Real Yorkshire Pudding company do a good gluten free version :)

What are you finding particularly grim about going gluten free?

Really easy to make a gf Yorkshire pudding , toad in the hole is a staple here

Lots of supermarkets do GF options now. I've found Tesco to be really good. Massive range and even the stuff they don't boldly label as guten free is.

At christmas they had a bunch of stuffed turkey things that weren't explicitly gluten free but there wasnt any gluten in it.

If you're a fan of Mexican, old el paso do gluten free kits now. So they do gluten free tortillas plus he kits to make them. Gluten free enchiladas at Asda too.

Most restaurants do gf too now. Wetherspoons (though I'm not so keen on that grease).
Premier Inns are pretty good.
Bella Italia
Pizza Express
Dominos
Pierres Bistro (love there)

Morrisons, tesco and sainsburys all do gluten free beer/ale. Usually peroni beer. Quite expensive but lovely.

It's hard to suddenly cut it all out I know. I cheated loads in my first few years of partial diagnosis. Awful. I behave now. Not worth the bloating and pain and hours on the toilet (tmi).

Yes definitely good to increase your biome gut health with prebiotics and probiotics. Onions are a prebiotic and your sauerkraut is your probiotic. Combine them together and your gut is going to love it.

Warburtons GF tiger bread is the best I’ve had. GF bread is usually vom but I really like this one.

Eating Nairn’s whole grain crackers at my desk now instead of biscuits

OP I feel your pain. I've been GF for 6 years now after I had become a zombie who could barely get out of bed for the pain in my stomach, back, joints etc.

Anyhoo, it does suck. I won't lie. I crave doughnuts literally every minute of the day. But the world is adapting. Restaurants are doing really well with GF menus, the supermarket ranges are improving (sort of... Morrisons and Sainsburys frozen range is woeful). It takes some getting used to, but you'll manage.

But be prepared for the ludicrous prices 🙄 my weekly shop drains my funds

Thank you all for your help
Sorry I’ve never got back life has got in the way again
After today it’s a month since I’ve been strictly gluten and lactose free.
I think I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel .
I’ve had some good days and some not so good.
I’ve also been doing the Hulda Clark parasite cleanse as well.. I thought that I might as well get all the suffering over in one go

Yes my dh gluten free as well.
I must admit I’m finding it not too bad now we are getting into it.

I have Jan 1 etched on my brain when I woke up looking absolutely dreadful and feeling worse considering I’d had no alcohol and a slice of ordinary birthday cake and vowing I’d never wake up on another jan 1 feeling the same
And July 1 when I felt like I was dying and my cousin was coming to stay and I’d had some gluten over the weekend.

I’ll never forget those days and the ones following ...so that’s it.
I’m on my way to wellness and there’s no turning back

Too much to lose.

Hi there.
I'm a 54year old woman. I'm in the middle of the menopause. I've recently come off oral hrt and on to Everol Conti Patches. I'm getting leg pain and I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this

DDil is gluten free and reckons all of the supermarkets now do a good range. They all do different products well so you need to visit them all.
She reckons ASDA's gluten free pasta is the best, also their extra special pork sausages are truly delicious.
Morrisons stock some gluten free products that none of the other supermarkets do.
If you home bake Xanthan gum is your friend.
Are you sure its gluten that is your problem? I developed an allergy some years ago to onions and leeks, it took a while to realise what was causing the cramps and the runs.
I the last two years I have been unable to drink water from the tap otherwise I get rashes and mouth ulcers, as you can imagine this is a real pain but apparently becoming more common.
Good Luck!