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has a gluten free diet helped any of you?

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Posted 5/22/2009 3:17 AM (GMT 0)
This may have been asked before, but so far I've not read it here.  Has anyone been helped by following a gluten free diet?  How long were you on the diet?  I've just met someone who has only been using a gluten free diet a few weeks but feels much better and am wondering if there is indeed any science to it?

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Posted 5/22/2009 3:30 AM (GMT 0)
I went gluten free for a while but then I switched to wheat free. I do feel better on a wheat free diet; I lose weight, have less pain and fatigue and my digestion is better. I'll go wheat free for months then I always go back. I feel better without wheat but I don't notice a difference when I also cut out gluten.

When I stop eating wheat, I go through withdrawal. I get headaches, muscle aches, mood swings, and almost unbearable cravings. After about 4 days, I feel a lot better. Everyone tells me that the cravings go away after a few weeks but I've been off wheat for as long as 6 months and still had cravings. I just can't stick with it, I slowly start eating more wheat and before I know it, I'm hooked again. I think I need a 12 step wheat program.

Apparently, in sensitive people, wheat increases inflammation, which results in pain and other symptoms.
Posted 5/22/2009 2:24 PM (GMT 0)
I have been extremely curious about this, so thank you for bringing it up. I have been cutting dairy / casein out of my diet (for non-fibro reasons...), but wondered if it would help to try cutting out gluten as well. I figured it couldn't hurt.

Dagger, that is very interesting and helpful information. The fact that you have less pain, fatigue, and experience positive weight loss is impressive. I can certainly understand having difficulty giving up wheat!

I have read that, for whatever reason one may be trying a gf or cf diet, it can take 6 months or so to determine if it is or is not helping. Dagger, how long does it generally take for you to notice any affect?

Drowsy, how about your friend? How long did it take him / her to notice a difference.

I do think it's important to keep in mind that, with any treatment, it will not work for everyone. Sometimes the only way to know is to give it a shot, taking extra care to ensure proper nutrition.
Posted 5/22/2009 3:23 PM (GMT 0)
Hi! I have been on and off the gluten free diet for over six months.
I was told it would help with the inflammation that I have. I do feel
better off of gluten but like the post above me, I almost think it is the
wheat that bothers me the most. Other grains like oats and spelt
seem to be fine.
My husband is our cook (thank goodness) and he has found simple
ways to cut out the gluten. My favorite is brown rice pasta. Whole
foods has a good variety and Trader Joe's own brand is awesome!
We also eat organic and I think keeping the pesticides out of my
diet helps. It can get expensive but finding your local organic farmer
and having a veggie garden yourself definitely cuts down the cost.
I have also tried cutting out milk products and didn't see as much
of a difference. I drink raw milk though so that may be why. It has
all the good bacteria that homogenized and pasteurized mild does not.
Good luck! Eating better will never hurt.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Autumn
Fibro,IC,RLS,Chronic Ovarian Cysts
Requip, Seasonique
Posted 5/22/2009 4:34 PM (GMT 0)
I have started a gluten-free, refined sugar-free diet as my allergies were out of control and I read a couple studies that said eliminating gluten and refined sugar might help. First thing I noticed was almost everything I ate was gluten/sugar so the first couple days were a thought process to change my diet. The inflammation is getting a little better and my IBS is getting much better! My allergies have calmed down also. Not sure if its the gluten or the white sugar but I am going to keep this up and see what happens. I am in week 2.
Posted 5/23/2009 1:43 AM (GMT 0)
Very interesting! The gal I know who has gone gluten free and is feeling better has been on it about a month.
she was really suffering in pain until she tried the gf diet. She is going to continue as it is helping her. As far as me trying it, I may need to get a book on it first as I feel overwhelmed even thinking about it. If you know of any books that would be helpful. please post those as well as any tips or even recipes. I tend to be middle of the road and wouldn't get into shopping at specialty stores often. Just the basics - that's me!
drowsy
Posted 5/23/2009 2:41 AM (GMT 0)
There is a book called "Living Gluten Free for Dummies" ...I have it and I believe it's a great resource. The author is the mother of a child that is gluten intolerant Very good information in the book including recipes. I tried going gluten free for over a year, well... on and off for a year and at first I felt it made a difference, but then after a while, it didn't seem to make a difference.
Miriam
Posted 5/23/2009 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
I have been gluten free for about 5 years. I have to be gluten free for other than fibro reasons. The diet is a lot to figure out at first, but is pretty easy to follow after a while. http://forums.glutenfree.com/ is a great place to start reading for information and they have really good recipes that taste like "REAL FOOD". Lots of snacks and meal ideas there.

If anyone is interested, maybe I could help with problems. (I am not sure if my email on this account is valid, but you can reach me over at the gf forum.)
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