Blades, If you suffer from regular heart burn, diarrhea, or other general indigestion, I have some advice. Stop eating wheat. I recently found out that I'm allergic to gluten, and after having quit it, I feel so much better that I feel like a new person. I was unknowingly sending my body into immune-attack mode for YEARS and by simply editing gluten from my diet, I changed my life. Something like 1 in 100 people are allergic to gluten, and so many of you Blades might be part of this group. It takes such a small amount of time to notice a difference that if you suffer from ANY indigestion, it's worth cutting wheat from your diet for a couple days to see if you notice an improvement. Hope this helps some people
I never had any problems but I read up on how gluten is similar to lactose with respect to the human body. While some people may not feel any negative effects from gluten; it's attacking our digestive system in the same way except the majority of people are able to cope with it. It's just people that that don't have celiac disease have a digestive system that responds better to the 'attack'. I stopped consuming gluten maybe two weeks ago, but haven't noticed much of a difference other than a small increase in endurance and energy. However I have noticed that I don't get these bloated feelings from my diet anymore. Now if I eat a lot food, it just feels like I have a lot of mass in my stomach. Before I could eat less calorie per calorie than a meal without gluten, but be more bloated because of the gluten. However I wouldn't recommend anyone to stop eating gluten if they don't need to, but at the same time I would also reassure anyone that it is completely fine to remove it from their diet if the said person is curious/planning/thinking about removing it from their diet.
I'm not trying to argue, but you seem like the kind of Blade that will appreciate learning some nutrition stuff. Lactose intolerance arises from a lack of lactase, the enzyme that breaks down milk sugar (lactose) into other simple sugars. Without enough lactase, the milk sits in your gut and ferments. Ew... Gluten allergy occurs because for some unknown reason, some bodies recognize gluten as an antigen, so the microbe flag is sent up and your body gets ready for an attack. For me, that means inflamed small intestine and instant, horrible diarrhea. Like ^he said, don't stop eating gluten unless you need to. Grains are a good addition to a balanced diet, and without them many people wouldn't get the nutrients they need in a day. If you decide to stop, make sure you compensate with other healthy edibles.
No I know the differences between both intolerance, but the someone who can tolerate lactose and gluten still may benefit from not consuming it at all. I found this to be true when experimenting with my body.
Uhg...at times I get burning in my stomach and throat. Now I've been drinking milk heavy here and there, and its not that...and I have been consuming large amounts of wheat and I don't think its that either... How do you diagnose lactose intolerance or a gluten issue exactly? Growing up I had never EVER heard of someone with a gluten deficiency until I was about 19 and started working at a restaurant...now I have witnessed at least 15 people with this and It's just so sad to me. It seems like foods in todays society are causing people to have such poor diets, and eventually cause problems like this.
So the myth that brown bread is better than white isn't true? Or are both types of bread bad? Does wheat have any benefits?
OP, did you discover your gluten allergy by working with an allergist.? Or is this a self diagnosis? Just curious.
I didn't think it was the wheat either, and chose to not believe it for a while. It sucks, but it's worth not having stomach issues. Nah, bread's great if you can handle it. I just don't have the gut for it. It's a self diagnosis, but I have no doubt that it's accurate. I just recently stopped eating gluten, and after seven days or so, I decided to eat just a little bit of wheat, and it was once again instant discomfort, and then the next day right back to the old symptoms of diarrhea and awful heartburn. Gluten-free for life I guess
Thanks. I definitely experience something similar, but not 24/7. Was wondering if it was worth going to the dr. for.
There's no conclusive test for gluten intolerance, so it's kind of just hit and miss with a doctor. I didn't have it 24/7 either, but had it often enough to want to change it. All it took was a few days of no wheat to notice a difference
Celiac disease is not really a "disease" - some people do not have the genetics to digest wheat, rye, barley and related grains, but they are usually able to recover once gluten, which is in Wheat, Rye, Barley, Spelt and related grains, is removed from their diets. Gluten is not a natural food for mammals, including humans. Man started eating gluten grains some 10,000 years ago, and people from some areas did not consume it at all, thus some of their descendants today suffer from Celiac, about 1 in a hundred people as was already stated. But about a third of all people have a gene for Celiac, which usually does not trigger the autoimmune response of Celiac in the vast majority of them. Scientists do not know why most people with Celiac genetics do not get full blown Celiac, while some do. A wheat allergy is not the same as Celiac Disease. Celiac in autoimmune condition, not an allergy, although it is possible to have both the wheat allergy and Celiac. There is no such thing as a "gluten deficiency", gluten is not an essential nutrient. As long as you're getting enough nutrician, you can live healthy without gluten grains just as your ancestors did in ancient times. Celiac Disease is not new, but it only was discovered in the 1940's, although descriptions of it's symptoms go back to ancient Roman times. Over the past few decades, gluten grains like wheat have been artificially enhanced by food manufacturers to have more gluten, and this may have made more people with Celiac genetics sick, or sicker. If you have an unexplained digestive problem you can get tested for Celiac. If the test is positive, then it's conclusive and you should give up gluten. A negative result, however isn't conclusive regarding not having Celiac. You can then try avoiding all gluten and see if there's an improvement- many people say that they felt better even though the lab tests were negative or inconclusive. But, again, a positive test result is almost 100% accurate. Some people have gluten intolerance, but not Celiac - which means that the intestinal damage is not present, but they still have health problems from wheat, rye and barly products. Almost any doctor can order the blood tests for Celiac but for an endoscope, to check for damage to the villi (small projectiles in the small intestine which are damaged by gluten), you'll need to see a gastroenterologist. Celiac Disease is much more dangerous than lactose intolerance or certain allergies. Left untreated, Celiac can cause many serious problems, including cancer.
Awesome bunch of information! Thanks I have been having stomach issues for a long time. The earliest instance I can remember is 3rd grade. Now that I'm gluten-free, I honestly can't believe how much better I feel. It's like my issues were never there. I feel terrific, and it's even cleared up my depression. It's amazing what nutrients can do for you when you actually absorb them.
According to my grandmother, who was an R.N., I resisted eating some foods even as a baby, probably gluten grains, and I remember having digestive problems as young as four years old. I did not get diagnosed with CD until about six and a half years ago, well into middle age, after it got so bad my ferritin (iron stores in the blood) was down to zero. We then found out that Celiac can cause this, and my other symptoms including digestive issues, vitamin deficiencies, depression, low weight, fatigue, dental problems and more. I am now healthier than I have ever been in my entire life, thanks to the gluten-free diet.