Topic: Celiac disease

[livo]

I recalled reading this a few years back and found it again, even though the thread title is spelled incorrectly. Can that be remedied?

I have been struggling with a "respiratory" or "allergic" problem for over 15 years now.  Nothing serious and just an annoyance really but it has been getting progressively worse.  I've been to allergy specialists, ENT specialists, had cameras fed up my nose and down my throat.  Nothing!!  I was told in the early days it was GORD or GARD.  My GP at the time (no I don't go to them anymore) tried to put me on Nexium (bad stuff) and suggested I sip water every time I had a feeling of needing to throat clear or cough.  I would have drowned within a week.  The ENT told me I most likely have Chronic Globus.  This condition used to be called Globus Hystericus, meaning it was a psychosomatic condition created in the head and not really a physical ailment.  (utter rubbish)  When I asked him what to do about it, he looked at me with blank eyes and shrugged his shoulders.  (utter BS at the cost of Specialist medical fees).  When I told him I'd already been to an allergy specialist he straight out declared it was not an allergy. The allergy specialist had been inconclusive, so what could I say?

Anyway, a few distinct episodes have occurred over the last few years, where I basically had an immediate reaction to eating certain foods.  A few years back on a long road trip it was a Bacon & Egg Roll (bread).  More recently I've reacted immediately to fast food Burgers (bread) and in particular Brioche buns.  Possibly wheat or other preservatives or food additives.  So I decided about 2 months ago to stop eating wheat products.  Not completely, but no bread at all and seriously watching everything I eat and paying attention to the symptoms and speed of onset after eating certain things.

My wife and I have come to the conclusion, I'm allergic to wheat.  Not necessarily gluten intolerance (ie: coeliac) but if I eat wheat based snacks, bread, toast, buns, etc (naan, oh no!!!),  I pretty quickly have a serious problem in my throat.

This is not psychosomatic.  It is a fact that I have developed an intolerance to wheat products or the other ingredients included in them.  I know realise how much of the stuff I ate.  Cutting down to next to none has been a challenge.  It's very difficult in fact, so I feel for those who have full blown coeliac condition.  I guess for me now it is just working out how much I can have on the rare occasion.  Chickpea flour rotis (still with wheat flour) over the last few curry nights have been tolerable.

I can't imagine the misery of not having real pizza on our next pizza night.   

[tempest63]

Hi Livo, sorry to hear of your problems and I sincerely hope you find an agreeable way around your dietary issues. I have had Crohn’s disease for 50 years and am currently going through the worse flare up since 1987. I have always suspected that there is a food trigger but have never nailed it down. Shop bought bread bloats me and makes me rough, but home made doesn’t.
I have always made our food from scratch to eliminate a lot of the chemicals that go in the processed stuff.Today I cooked a braised Thai pork dish that we had with Jasmine rice, a yellow Thai curry which is in the fridge for tomorrow night and a 500g bag of dried chickpeas for a few dishes during the week.
Avoiding processed food helps keep my condition on an even keel but it doesn’t guarantee that I will avoid all effects of the illness.
I wish you well with your food journey!

[livo]

Thanks T63.  I still have symptoms but avoiding bread and pasta has made a noticeable difference. On a few occasions recently, when I have eaten something flour based, I have had pretty quick reactions so there must be some correlation.  I used to bake bread so I'll give it a try.  My wife has been insisting I only eat gluten free which is really quite a challenge.  It's in everything.

I feel for you as well. I used to work with a lady who had your condition.

Another thing is that I've recently had discussions with 2 acquaintances (a friend and an extended family member), both males and the same approximate age as myself.  They are not known to each other.  Both had recently been experiencing health difficulties with digestion, lethargy, exhaustion at work, headaches and prolonged periods of "brain fog".  Both have now been diagnosed with LGS or leaky gut syndrome.  Drastic changes to diet has helped both of them.

Is it just an age thing for all of us in our 60s or is our food causing these problems?

[bhamcurry]

honestly, livo, a lot of current health Big Issues could be resolved by changing diets. I don't mean "go on a diet", I mean do a 28 day "clean diet" where you cut out all potential allergens, then slowly re-add them on a schedule - this allows you to track down what it is that is triggering your reaction.

[tempest63]

Thanks T63.  I still have symptoms but avoiding bread and pasta has made a noticeable difference. On a few occasions recently, when I have eaten something flour based, I have had pretty quick reactions so there must be some correlation.  I used to bake bread so I'll give it a try.  My wife has been insisting I only eat gluten free which is really quite a challenge.  It's in everything.

I feel for you as well. I used to work with a lady who had your condition.

Another thing is that I've recently had discussions with 2 acquaintances (a friend and an extended family member), both males and the same approximate age as myself.  They are not known to each other.  Both had recently been experiencing health difficulties with digestion, lethargy, exhaustion at work, headaches and prolonged periods of "brain fog".  Both have now been diagnosed with LGS or leaky gut syndrome.  Drastic changes to diet has helped both of them.

Is it just an age thing for all of us in our 60s or is our food causing these problems?

Sounds like your associates may need to look at the Sibo diet if they have leaky gut. Something I have considered on more than one occasion but have never got round to implementing it.

[livo]

The surprising recommendation made to both of them was to stop eating fruit.  Full of sugar.  Eat low GI food whenever possible among other things.  They both essentially stopped drinking any alcohol, eating chocolate, carbs etc.  Life without beer or wine???  No chocolate???  Is it really worth it?   

Here I am learning to cook authentic Balti and I can't cook fresh naan!!!  What's the point?   

[tempest63]

The surprising recommendation made to both of them was to stop eating fruit.  Full of sugar.  Eat low GI food whenever possible among other things.  They both essentially stopped drinking any alcohol, eating chocolate, carbs etc.  Life without beer or wine???  No chocolate???  Is it really worth it?   

Here I am learning to cook authentic Balti and I can't cook fresh naan!!!  What's the point?   

Could be to limit the amount of sugar that would be feeding any bacterial overgrowth in the gut.

As I mentioned earlier I never tried the Sibo diet but from memory you follow it for a period of time before reintroducing foods previously excluded during the diet.