Has anyone given up bread and found it improved their health issues?

[Strawberryflavoureddogbiscuits]

I've struggled with IBS for decades.

I was managing well with medication, hypnotherapy and various other IBS strategies and a low fodmap diet. Then came the dreaded perimenopause which hit me like a truck 6 years ago.

Amongst many other issues I found that it appeared to exacerbate my gut issues to the point that I've ended up having 2 colonoscopies, a bile acid malabsorption scan, a pill camera endoscopy and various blood and stool tests.

I continue with the low fodmap diet and have eliminated my known trigger foods (dairy, greasy food, certain fruits/veg, eggs, chicken, high fibre and artificial sweeteners and alcohol). I know bread is often the first thing IBS sufferers eliminate but I have very much struggled to give it up as it's my absolute favourite food and life without bread makes me weep so I stick to low fodmap levels and sourdough but my gastroenterologist has suggested I give it up and see how it goes. The thought makes me want to weep tbh especially as all the gluten free breads taste vile to me (I've tried them all).

I have been really struggling with awful gut issues though so really should go for it. I wonder if anyone has given it up and was pleasantly surprised just how well you felt? Not just digestively but did it make you feel over all better? I've been feeling dreadful in general recently.

I have been tested for coeliac disease several times btw.

Honestly, it's worth a try. I gave up gluten to try and help a thyroid disorder a few years back... I don't know if it helped my thyroid, but suddenly I realised after a couple of weeks that my lifelong IBS-C and gut pain had resolved about 90%! It was a lovely side effect.

I do occasionally forget how bad it was and try to eat bread again, because I adore real bread, and I agree that the GF stuff is rubbish (from both a taste and a nutritional point of view)... but I soon find I'm desperate to get back off it...

I find things like oat crackers are a better replacement for bread. Maybe give it a few weeks and keep a diary. And I've had two negative coeliac blood tests but still find I'm sensitive to gluten.

I did for a few years. Had things like crackers and ricecakes instead. Then discovered sourdough, and haven't looked back!

I am being to think I'm very sensitive to wheat and gluten but have been in such denial as it feels like such a loss to even contemplate giving it up but I do need to try.

Do you remember how long it took to feel better digestively?

I do eat sourdough as it's low fodmap, I have tried all kinds but I really don't enough it at all tbh.

I did. I have gone from severe stomach pain every day to feeling fine

I'll add that I find white mass produced bread quite rubbery and gross now. I avoid things like bread buns entirely as they're just not appealing.

Bread makes me feel absolutely awful.

Definitely worth cutting out. It causes issues for many people.

Cutting out bread, pasta and potatoes makes me feel SO good that I don’t miss them anymore and really notice if I’ve overdone it.

I haven’t cut them out completely - just a few days can help me feel better, and then if I make sure to only eat a bit, or toast bread, balance out pasta meals with a plate half veg etc then it’s no bother.

It feels like it’s overindulging that’s the problem for me. If I don’t overload my system, it can cope with digesting it all.

I’ve cut a lot of bread out and only eat approx 4 small whole meal slices toasted a week now.
since doing so I feel less bloated and have started to lose weight.
Definitely makes me feel stodgy.

I think a couple of weeks, but just gradually getting better before I noticed it... maybe try a No-Doughvember and see how you get on?! 😄

I'd suggest keeping a diary - not obsessively, but maybe note your main symptoms, then check in occasionally to update and compare - it's easy to forget how bad it was when you feel better...

I got a cheapie toaster for doing my own toast, but generally I don't think I need to be as strict as a real coeliac, and will sometimes have a splurge and know I'll pay the consequences for a few days; but if it works for you, it's a real incentive to keep it up.

It's a lot easier these days than it used to be - all supermarkets have a GF section, and lots of things like crisps and sausages, some soups and ready meals are GF outside that section (read the labels). But I prefer to eat real food, cooked from scratch, than rely on processed food. And you can't go far in the GF world without running into Becky Excell...

You have my sympathy! Intractable IBS is a misery-maker! Good luck!

I don’t have any IBS type symptoms but I have up gluten 5/6 weeks ago and the difference I have noticed in my anxiety levels is so distinct I don’t think I even want to try to reintroduce it. I also don’t feel tired in the afternoon, no brain fog or fuzzy head, and I no longer have such a sensitive bladder. I actually gave it up to try to improve the symptoms of Bell’s palsy which I am left with after having it at Christmas and I have noticed small improvement in my facial numbness.

No-Doughvember haha!

I do already keep a food and symptoms diary so it will be interesting to see if I notice any changes.

I love Becky Excell, she comes from my town so I've been following her success over the years, she's doing amazingly well.

That's very interesting because I suffer from awful anxiety and as I have ADHD I'm forever angsty and jittery, it would be an added bonus if it could help to dampen down those issues too.

I hope it continues to help you, good luck with it.

I saw my GP (former gastric) about some digestive issues and straight away he said bread! He said there’s so many people wheat intolerant these days. I did give up what a call crap bread (hovis/Robert’s etc) but I do eat Jason’s sourdough & I’m fine with that strangely!

I've had IBS since my teens, in my 50s now and being careful about what I eat is the only way to control it.

With bread, It totally depends on the type for me - supermarket bread is a no, artisan bread/sourdough I can tolerate in small quantities.

i suspect it's not the gluten/wheat that sets off my ibs, but rather the yeast. I can eat pasta with no problems but delicious soft, fluffy white bread is, tragically, a problem. If I am disciplined I can have the odd slice or two but I really have to be strict.

If you haven't tried them, I'd recommend digestive enzymes, I take one with every meal and it seems to keep everything calm on the inside.

I did used to take a digestive enzyme but I didn't find it helped much but maybe I needed to try a different brand. Can I ask which one you take?

I found that making my own bread (in a bread maker cos who’s got time otherwise?!) made a huge difference compared to shop bought stuff. You only put a few ingredients into the bread maker as opposed to all the preservatives and what might as well be wallpaper paste in shop bought stuff. Might be worth giving that a try?

That's my long term goal. I'd like to give it up completely first to see if I can start to feel better then add in a little homemade bread eventually.

I can't imagine the rest of my life without bread tbh.

I did for a while, and after a few years tried as an experiment to see could I cope with Spelt, and I could. So I can make my own bread or cakes or batter or bechamel, and buy pasta that has the right texture.

I haven't eaten wheat for at least a decade and will never go back - giving it up transformed my life.

@Strawberryflavoureddogbiscuits I think there is quite a lot of literature available linking non coeliac gluten intolerance with a variety of neurological conditions, including adhd and anxiety. It’s definitely worth considering and to be honest, rather than seek out reliable sources, the most efficient way I have found is to simply go cold turkey for a few weeks, you’ll know soon enough if it helps you. The turning point for me was after a week or so I was walking the dog and I thought to myself, something is weird. What’s different? And it was just that my head was quiet. The constant chatter of anxiety was just Gone. Like Magic ✨

I will look into this a little more. I was diagnosed with ADHD earlier this year, at the age of 52 and I'm still working my way around all of that.

My constant chatter of anxiety is louder than ever these days, if going gf could dampen that down it would be bloody marvellous.

My main symptom was asthma, the so-called 'wheat cough', and not having that any more was such a relief. But all sorts of other little things - gut problems resolving, insect bites becoming a mild annoyance for a few minutes rather than days-long torment, tonsil stones ceasing to be a trigger for sore throats - probably other stuff I don't even realise. Worth trying.

Yes! No gluten products but I’m not replacing with other bread type products. I’ve lost weight and I no longer have arthritis in my legs.