Tag: gluten intolerance symptoms

celiac disease · food allergy blogs · food sensitivities · gluten intolerance · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms

Celiac Symptoms

kristenannLeave a comment

This feels a little like a PSA, but I thought this was a really nice list that one can go through and then take to their doctor because it covers some things not everyone would think of to talk about with their GI doctor.

Here’s the link where you can actually submit your answers and (I believe) then print out the symptoms in a handy take-to-your-doc sheet: Celiac Checklist

And here’s the checklist if you just want to browse through it:

Anemia

YesNo

  • Fatigue or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
    YesNo

  • Failure to Thrive
    YesNo

  • IgA Deficiency
    YesNo

  • Malnutriton or Vitamin Deficiency
    YesNo

 

 

Behavioral or Central Nervous System Conditions

  • ADHD
    YesNo

  • Anxiety
    YesNo

  • Brain Fog or Foggy Mind
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Depression
    YesNo

  • Developmental Delay
    YesNo

  • Headache or Migraine
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Irritability
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Lack of Muscle Coordination (Ataxia)
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Seizure
    YesNo

Gastrointestinal Conditions

  • Abdominal Pain
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Acid Reflux (Heartburn)
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Bloating
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Constipation
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Diarrhea
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Gas
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Lactose Intolerance
    YesNo

  • Lymphoma or Intestinal Cancer
    YesNo

  • Pale, Foul-Smelling Stool
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Unexplained Liver Problem
    YesNo

  • Vomiting
    NeverDailyWeeklyMonthlyOnce in a WhileUnsure

  • Weight Loss or Weight Gain
    YesNo

Muscular Skeletal Conditions

  • Arthritis
    YesNo

  • Bone or Joint Pain
    YesNo

  • Fibromyalgia or Muscle Pain
    YesNo

  • Numbness or Pain in Hands and Feet (Peripheral Neuropathy)
    YesNo

  • Osteopenia or Osteoporosis
    YesNo

  • Short Stature
    YesNo

Reproductive Conditions

  • Delayed Puberty
    YesNo

  • Infertility
    YesNo

  • Menstrual Irregularities or Missed Periods
    YesNo

  • Miscarriage
    YesNo

Skin and Dental Conditions

  • Discolored Teeth or Enamel Loss
    YesNo

  • Eczema
    YesNo

  • Itchy Skin Rash (Dermatitis Herpetiformis)
    YesNo

  • Loss of Hair from your Head or Body (Alopecia)
    YesNo

  • Recurrent Mouth Canker Sores/Oral Ulcers (Aphthous Stomatitis)
    YesNo

Other Conditions and Autoimmune Disorders

  • Please mark any conditions that apply:
    Autoimmune HepatitisAddison’s DiseaseCrohn’s Disease; Inflammatory Bowel DiseaseChronic PancreatitisDown SyndromeIdiopathic Dilated CardiomyopathyIgA NephropathyIrrtitable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)Juvenile Idiopathic ArthritisMultiple SclerosisPrimary Biliary CirrhosisPrimary Sclerosing CholangitisPsoriasisRheumatoid ArthritisSclerodermaSjogren’s DiseaseThyroid DiseaseTurner SyndromeType I DiabetesUlcerative Colitis; Inflammatory Bowel DiseaseWilliams Syndrome

Family Member

  • 1st Degree Relative with Celiac Disease (Parent, Sibling, Child)
    YesNo

  • 2nd Degree Relative with Celiac Disease (Aunt, Uncle, Grandparent, Niece, Nephew, Cousin or Half-Sibling)
    YesNo

Diet

  • Currently Eating a Diet Containing Gluten (Wheat, Rye, Barley)
    YesNo
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celiac disease · food · Food allergies · food allergy blogs · food sensitivities · gluten free · gluten free lifestyle · gluten free symptoms · gluten intolerance · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant

New Research on Gluten and Brain fog

kristenannLeave a comment

This is the worst part when I accidentally ingest gluten and absolutely the hardest thing to explain to people who don’t have a gluten issue~ the ‘brain fog’. This article adds to growing research into an often cited but hard to study complaint of brain fog in celiacs and those gluten intolerant. They liken the brain fog to a .05 blood alcohol level, which is an interesting attempt to try to wrap some definition around something as hard to grasp as ‘fog’ but I would classify it as that feeling when you are getting sick and feverish and your brain just feels like it needs a nap before computing, but maybe that’s because gluten makes me tired, oh so tired, and so all I think about are naps. Probably everyone experiences it a bit differently, but it certainly points to early detection being more and more important if we want our children to have the best experience as possible in school. The article notes that they are still not sure why that happens since one theory was a lack of micronutrients making it to the brain when the digestive system is impaired, but that did not in fact seem to be the case. Another theory has to do with the gut bacteria, always super important when talking about brain health, but it could also be the gluten itself. Whatever it is, I’m just glad enough people have cited the issued that it’s being studied.

celiac disease · food · Food allergies · food allergy blogs · food sensitivities · gluten free · Gluten free eating · gluten free food · gluten free foods · gluten free lifestyle · gluten free symptoms · gluten intolerance · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant · health

Gluten Intolerant Symptoms

kristenann1 Comment

Schar just shared this infographic on their Facebook page. If you don’t already follow them, I heartily recommend doing so if you like nice visuals along with your gluten-free tidbits. And if you are planning a visit to Italy, this is definitely a company to know because as I understand it, they have played a major role in making the land of pasta a safe place for Celiacs and the like.  As far as the picture below goes, I can check off more than half those symptoms myself~ how about you?

schar

celiac disease · food · Food allergies · food sensitivities · gluten free symptoms · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant

Celiac Awareness Month

kristenannLeave a comment

Did you know all children in Italy are automatically screened for Celiac? They, as a society, are much more aware of gluten issues in general which is about reason number 172 that I would like to be there right now, although with the sun warming up around here Washington feels pretty good. It’s been a long grey winter though and I just don’t trust this sunshine to stick around long. Whatever the weather where you are, check out this infographic that Gluten dude is kindly sharing:

celiac-disease-symptoms-500

I’ve never been tested for celiac but as a gluten intolerant person, I can attest to a very large proportion of these.

celiac disease · Food allergies · food allergy blogs · food sensitivities · gluten free · Gluten free eating · gluten free food · gluten free foods · gluten free lifestyle · gluten intolerance · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant

Brain on Gluten cont.~ News from Living Without Magazine

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Neurologic Effects of Celiac Disease 
A study featured at the International Celiac Disease  Symposium looked at neurological dysfunction in celiac disease. More  than half of the study’s 73 participants—newly diagnosed  adults at a celiac clinic in the U.K.—had neurological symptoms.  These included frequent and intractable headaches, balance problems and  sensory symptoms. White matter abnormalities were spotted in the brain  scans of a number of these participants and some had TG6 antibodies.  (TG6 antibodies have been linked to neurological dysfunction in celiac  disease.) Findings suggest that neurological dysfunction is common in  newly diagnosed celiacs, write researchers.
A U.S. study, also featured at ICDS, found that  neurocognitive effects like brain fog are common after exposure to  gluten in those with celiac disease and non-celiac gluten sensitivity  alike. A whopping 89 percent of celiacs and 95 percent of those with  non-celiac gluten sensitivity reported experiencing neurocognitive  effects due to gluten, specifically, difficulty concentrating,  forgetfulness, grogginess, detachment and mental confusion. Symptoms  often began 30 minutes to an hour after gluten exposure and lasted  several days. Results were based on a preliminary online survey  completed by 1,143 individuals with celiac disease and 253 with  non-celiac gluten sensitivity. More work is planned.

This is the exact article I found in my email box this morning from Living Without. Fascinating.
gf foods · gluten free · Gluten free eating · gluten free food · gluten free lifestyle · gluten intolerance · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant · organic

Brain on Gluten

kristenannLeave a comment

This is an interesting article about one neurologist’s belief that gluten and carbs are responsible for many brain ailments, such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, ADD and such. He talks about inflammation being caused by carbs which in turn is the root of many brain diseases, with gluten being especially damaging because of blood brain barrier issues. The part I found most personally verifiable is where he says many gluten intolerant symptoms are not felt in the digestive track at all, but in other parts of the body, and I can readily attest to that. Other foods majorly affect my stomach and such, but when I eat gluten I feel it almost immediately in my head. I had a low-grade headache from childhood until my 20s when I began to figure out the wheat connection. It is like clockwork, eat something with gluten and I start to feel ‘off’, like maybe I’m coming down with something and need to sleep it off, but then I slowly realize it isn’t just fatigue, but the a headache that is different from a normal headache, which incidentally I rarely get now that I don’t eat gluten. My whole body feels fatigued, I feel slightly depressed, and my head hurts for 3 days, and then it all fades into feeling good again. Very predictable. As for Doctor Perlmutter’s assertion that gluten and carbs are innately bad for us, I tend to disagree. It seems he’s stumbled upon some truths, (carbs cause inflammation, inflammation is bad for our brains, gluten causes the worst problems, etc) but he made some suppositions that go to far. There has long been a link between brain and gut health~ this has been long-established and shows up in products such as MindLinx, a probiotic that emphasizes the link between a healthy intestinal tract and the mind, hence the name, and before gluten intolerance was recognized it was thought that all carbs were equally responsible for digestive troubles. People have singled out gluten, sugar, PH balance (remember that craze?), blood type, fat, and many other things as the be-all-end-all deciding factor in health, always just until the next thing comes up. Granted, they usually have at least a nugget of truth in them, but they are never the golden nugget that they are made out to be. If you look at the world’s healthiest populations with the least amounts of disease you find communities that focus on whole foods~ fruits and vegetables, grains and vegetable fats, with small amounts of meat/fish/poultry. A fantastic book (with recipes!) about these healthiest cultures and their diets is The Jungle Effect by Dr.Daphne Miller. Real food, despite valiant efforts, could not be improved, and in fact has only deteriorated in nutrition and taste since the industrial revolution. We live in an age of amazing medical technology and knowledge, and goodness knows I’m happy to not be living in the middle ages with leaches being the latest and greatest, but sometimes the old ways, the jungle ways, can teach us more than any doctor.

gf foods · gluten free · gluten free lifestyle · gluten free symptoms · gluten intolerance diagnosis · gluten intolerance symptoms · gluten intolerant

Olympic Peninsula Travel

kristenannLeave a comment

Traveling with food intolerances to the Washington coast is not something to be done without your car full of groceries. You can always find grocery stores, but they aren’t going to be the kind with a ‘gluten free section’ and restaurants are pretty typical gluten/dairy laden places. We stayed at Seabrook and my sister saw that the menu at the restaurant there did include gluten-free options, but I did not inquire if they were also dairy and egg free. We had enough corn tortillas, rice, and beans to keep everyone fed enough until we hit our next destination on the north side of the peninsula where we knew there would be more to choose from. (The ocean was phenomenal by the way, despite some drizzly days and cooler temps then we ideally wanted. It is called Juneuary here though so I wasn’t too surprised. We enjoyed it anyway.) Between Port Angeles and Port Townsend is Sequim, and we found at least gluten-free options in all three places, plus in Port Townsend there is a great Co-op with which to stock the car back up with groceries, if that be needed. In Sequim we ate twice at the Sunshine Café where there was a great gluten-free, egg free, soy free, dairy free bread from a nearby bakery. I meant to get some bread before heading leaving Sequim but forgot. It was a great place though, for breakfast and lunch. In Port Townsend which is a beautiful Victorian town on the water we ate at the Owl’s Spirit Café which had a great menu and tasty food, but it wasn’t the best choice for children. The adults all had delicious meals though and you can get fresh juices there also while you wait for your food which is a nice bonus. In Port Angeles we ate at  Next Door which boast gluten-free buns and notes foods that are gluten-free. Other than that we ate in our “fake homes” as my youngest called them and although it took a bit more planning, we made it a whole week without anyone being too upset over any food issues. Yay! Another thing I’ve noticed with this whole food intolerance thing is that my both my sons are surprisingly ok with the fact they are for instance the only ones who can’t eat the pizza at a get-together, or the cake at a party. I just tell them I’ll make whatever it is for them when we get home, and that seems to satisfy them, and more often than not they don’t even ask for whatever it was later. It makes me think about how often we just mindlessly eat whatever is in front of us. The other day at a party my son would have eaten pizza, cake, ice cream and rice crispy treats. Instead he ate the protein bar I had packed him and the rice crispy treats. He was a little sad, but I assured him I could make him pizza and ice cream (what he most wanted) at home, and then he happily forgot about it all. Just an observation. Another thing that’s been very obvious is both the boys’ skin issues are clearing up fast.  My youngest has had red bumpies on his cheeks since he was about 4. I always suspected food issues but the pediatrician and dermatologist both insisted it was Keratosis Pilaris, something 1/3 of the population has on the back of their arm, and kids can have it on their cheeks. “It’s hereditary,” they said. “It’ll go away.” It hadn’t by age 7, but now it is indeed going away~ his skin is looking beautiful  and his eyes are even brighter. My other son had bumpies on this arms and back, probably the same thing, and they are going away too. A friend of mine told me this happened to her husband after going off gluten also, plus his asthma completely cleared. Pretty amazing! It makes me wonder if 1/3 of the population has gluten sensitivity…

pink cheeks this winter
pink cheeks this winter
Clear cheeks with his grandfather.
Clear cheeks with his grandfather.
ancient wheat · celiac disease · food · Food allergies · food allergy blogs · food sensitivities · gluten free · gluten intolerance

More on Ancient Wheat

kristenannLeave a comment

Jovial pastas

So I’ve been hearing about this ancient wheat possibly being digestible for us gluten challenged people and have found one company that is making pastas from one of the strands, and selling the flour. It is called Einkorn wheat and the company I have stumbled upon is Jovial. I have liked their gluten free pastas for a while now, and really enjoy their blog and recipes but up until now I have kind of ignored the whole ‘ancient wheat’ thing thinking it wasn’t for gluten intolerant people. Now I’m starting to hear mumblings that perhaps it is. Obviously, a celiac needs to take extra precaution, but for all those people who don’t eat wheat just because it makes them feel awful in one way or another, this just might be a way to enjoy it again. I don’t know~ I haven’t tried it yet myself. Funny how I used to eat wheat nonstop and now I’m stalling about trying this new development of an ancient grain, but I really don’t like feeling sick. (Shocking, I know.) And really I’d like some more evidence before eating it and possibly feeling sick and causing damage to myself. But, if anything is going to lure me in it will be the possibility of a hearty European style loaf of bread to eat. I could eat alternative grains for pasta, pastries, crackers, and just about anything else quite happily for the rest of my life, but a good old fashioned hunk of crusty bread just can’t be made without wheat. Or at least it doesn’t taste nearly as good, in my humble opinion. Of course, that also means I need to learn how to make a good old fashioned European crusty loaf myself, and apparently Einkorn is tricky to work with (which is exactly why it has gone out of fashion while the higher yield, higher gluten wheats have flourished.) As soon as I drum of the nerve to tackle the baking, and the eating, it’ll be documented here first.