I haven't been able to tolerate milk since my younger son was about 3 and I have been using soya instead ever since, for years that sorted me and I was fine but maybe for the last year or so the cramps have been back. I have heard about the evils of bread and laughed it off (after all we have been eating the stuff for ever) but Christmas saw me in pain for days but just getting on with stuff so I decided I would just give it a try. No bread, pasta, cake biscuits or anything with wheat, I went out and bought from the gluten free section. I have to say it is very expensive and not much choice in the supermarket but it has made me think about what I'm eating.
There has been no test I must stress but that was on my list, if this didn't work I was going to go to the doctors and insist on a test to see which food was affecting me but so far this seems to have done the trick.
No pain, no bloat and surprisingly I have stopped feeling like I need a nap mid afternoon (which I can't have anyway because I'm at work!) I also think my skin seems to have improved and it's only been a few weeks!
Now my lunch did used to be a very lazy and boring affair with pretty much a white bread cake with either humous or quorn on it every day. Thinking about what I can have means I have taken left over curry, soup, rice cakes, baked potato (cook day before) and salads so the energy could also be due to better food going in. I have just found this blog Gluten free Girl which is full of information and the author is actually Celiac so she has to watch every label or suffer terribly. However she has turned it into a positive and writes books with her chef husband, she also treats food as something to be enjoyed and to focus on what she can eat.
I think cutting out the wheat actually means you do have to say no to an awful lot of the crap that we normally eat, stodge and confectionery most of it. I do love dark chocolate though.
So so far it has not been hard and I thought it would be, I suppose it is just a case of getting out of the habit of reaching for the biscuits or toast when you are feeling pekish.
I have not had a go at baking yet as I was confused by the range of flours and that you need specific ones for different things. I will try this out at some point though for now I am managing without baked goods.
I would be interested to hear how anyone else is getting along who is living wheat free.
This past week I have been reading How to fall in Love by Cecelia Ahern and I am enjoying it.
It is an easy read which is good after I re-read 1984 just after Christmas which was thoroughly depressing! It is well written and a classic but honestly so miserable.
There has also been guitar practise and catching up on Grand Hotel series three so not much sewing going on but I thought I would have a little rest after my Christmas sewing frenzy. Back soon.
I had to go gluten free nearly two years ago after suffering terrible pains which lasted days. The doctor tested me for coeliac but that was negative, so they decided it was gluten intolerance. Life isn't easy being GF, but I have only had the pain return on a couple of occasions when I had gluten by mistake (In the early days I drank some beer without realising it had gluten in it) At home I cook from scratch so it is easy to know exactly what I am eating, but as I am vegetarian and gluten free eating out is a nightmare! I have some GF recipes on my blog if you want to have a look x
ReplyDeleteI have seen your recipes you have some lovely ones on there. I noticed you used rice flour in one cake and chickpea flour in a more bread type recipe it was like a pizza. Do you have lots of different flours? Do you mix any to make an all purpose one? This is something I will have to get to grips with! I have not had any tests but the sudden disappearance of any pain and bloat has led me to believe that wheat is not good for me so I will avoid it. I ate out on Saturday and had a risotto but I do think eating out is going to be very limiting as a no wheat, lactose intolerant vegetarian. I can eat some cheese just not too much or too often. Still I will find variety in other things I'm sure and with each of these challenges comes the chance to learn. xx
ReplyDeleteThe different flour behave in very different ways so you need to use the right flour depending on what you are making. I also use the gluten free plain and self raising flour, but it is not a case of simply replacing ordinary flour with the gf one as it behaves differently. For example when making pastry I add xanthan gum and an egg. Theres lots of recipes and info on line (and on my Pinterest board) My family don't really notice the difference once its made so saves cooking separate things. Some places are really good and have a separate GF menu like ASK and The Lounge if you have any near you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for that I will look into it. I will post when I make something. x
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