Hello everyone!
I hope you all enjoyed your holidays, and had a wonderful start to the new year!
I have finally decided to attempt to go gluten free. I have been having a flare for about two weeks now, and it is just about impossible to work at this point. I did stop taking the Asacol back in November, as I was losing large amounts of hair, and have fine hair to begin with. I had pretty good luck for a few weeks without any medication, or diet modification, but now, after two harsh colds, I seem to be flaring just as I was last year at this time.
I figure I might as well try the diet, as it seems everyone who has tried it here has had very good luck with it. I have to ask though - should I start with the Paleo diet, or go strictly gluten free? Are the two one and the same? Do any of you who are GF drink caffeinated coffees or teas? A friend at work who did the GF diet last year said that's one item I must give up to do the diet. I am a little nervous about that.
And for the time being, I was thinking about trying a run of Pepto Bismal briefly, just to get things under control. Bathroom runs at work aren't cool... and are very embarrassing, as I am sure many of you know.
Thanks to everyone for your support, insight and tips.
Pepto and Gluten Free
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
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greengirl78
- Adélie Penguin
- Posts: 69
- Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 6:36 am
- Location: Massachusetts
Pepto and Gluten Free
If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace. - Thich Nhat Hahn
Hi Greengirl,
Good for you, for deciding to give the diet a try. It seems to be the most reliable long-term treatment available for MC, and it is definitely much safer than any of the meds, since it does not cause any adverse side-effects, (except for craving some of our old food favorites, at first). It's definitely a healthy diet, since celiacs who follow the diet live longer than the general population, on the average.
The primary difference between the paleo diet, and a plain-vanilla GF diet, is that the paleo diet excludes all foods developed during the period in our history when a shift evolved from a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle, to a lifestyle centered around permanent settlements, where most of the food came from agricultural production. This later period is known as the new stone age, or the neolithic period, and it spans the time period from roughly 10,000 years ago, until about 2,000 years ago. Foods that were introduced during this period are sometimes referred to as neolithic foods. So, on the timescale of the total history of our development, we have been eating neolithic foods for only a minuscule fraction of that time, which is often cited as the reason why some of us have not yet developed the ability to digest gluten.
Anyway, the foods introduced during the neolithic period include milk, (and all dairy products, obviously), and all of the grains, (including wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, spelts, rice, etc.). Therefore, these foods are excluded from the paleo diet, by definition. The paleo diet is automatically GF, since none of the gluten-containing grains were even around during the paleo period, except as scattered primitive ancestors, that didn't even resemble the neolithic grains, and they were not available in sufficient quantities to be able to contribute anything to the diet of homo erectus, and subsequently, homo sapiens.
Most doctors automatically recommend avoiding caffeine, for anyone with MC, (and so do most of the most prestigious hospitals), but most of us here have found that in moderation, it is not a problem with MC. The reason why doctors advise against caffeine, is because it is a secretagogue, (meaning that it stimulates various glands to increase secretions). Since MC involves secretory diarrhea, (IOW, during severe reactions, the colon secretes water into the lumen, rather than removing water, as it is designed to do), it is assumed that caffeine might adversely affect bowel function. In reality, though, we have not found that to be the case. It's certainly possible that it might make the D worse, but if it does, it seems to be an insignificant factor, because no one has noticed much difference, if any. Therefore, IMO, whether or not you remove caffeine from your diet, is a personal choice, and should be based on considerations other than MC.
If you're not allergic to Pepto, there's no reason why you can't use it, as long as you don't take more than 8 or 9 tablets per day, for more than 8 weeks. After that amount, there's a risk of a toxic buildup in the body. Many of us have found that Immodium can be quite beneficial, on those days when a little help is much appreciated. Also, if you haven't tried it, and found that you react adversely to it, Entocort can help to control your symptoms until the diet has time to take charge of your symptoms. Yep, we're all aware that not only are bathroom runs not cool, but sometimes they don't quite get the job done, if we have more than a few feet to go, and then things can really go downhill in a hurry.
Anyway, that's my two cents worth. Hopefully, others will have more suggestions, and insight. Good luck with this, and please don't hesitate to ask, anytime you have any questions, comments, complaints, or whatever. The GF diet is not an easy lifestyle change, but it's definitely worth it, to get your life back.
Tex
Good for you, for deciding to give the diet a try. It seems to be the most reliable long-term treatment available for MC, and it is definitely much safer than any of the meds, since it does not cause any adverse side-effects, (except for craving some of our old food favorites, at first). It's definitely a healthy diet, since celiacs who follow the diet live longer than the general population, on the average.
The primary difference between the paleo diet, and a plain-vanilla GF diet, is that the paleo diet excludes all foods developed during the period in our history when a shift evolved from a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle, to a lifestyle centered around permanent settlements, where most of the food came from agricultural production. This later period is known as the new stone age, or the neolithic period, and it spans the time period from roughly 10,000 years ago, until about 2,000 years ago. Foods that were introduced during this period are sometimes referred to as neolithic foods. So, on the timescale of the total history of our development, we have been eating neolithic foods for only a minuscule fraction of that time, which is often cited as the reason why some of us have not yet developed the ability to digest gluten.
Anyway, the foods introduced during the neolithic period include milk, (and all dairy products, obviously), and all of the grains, (including wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, spelts, rice, etc.). Therefore, these foods are excluded from the paleo diet, by definition. The paleo diet is automatically GF, since none of the gluten-containing grains were even around during the paleo period, except as scattered primitive ancestors, that didn't even resemble the neolithic grains, and they were not available in sufficient quantities to be able to contribute anything to the diet of homo erectus, and subsequently, homo sapiens.
Most doctors automatically recommend avoiding caffeine, for anyone with MC, (and so do most of the most prestigious hospitals), but most of us here have found that in moderation, it is not a problem with MC. The reason why doctors advise against caffeine, is because it is a secretagogue, (meaning that it stimulates various glands to increase secretions). Since MC involves secretory diarrhea, (IOW, during severe reactions, the colon secretes water into the lumen, rather than removing water, as it is designed to do), it is assumed that caffeine might adversely affect bowel function. In reality, though, we have not found that to be the case. It's certainly possible that it might make the D worse, but if it does, it seems to be an insignificant factor, because no one has noticed much difference, if any. Therefore, IMO, whether or not you remove caffeine from your diet, is a personal choice, and should be based on considerations other than MC.
If you're not allergic to Pepto, there's no reason why you can't use it, as long as you don't take more than 8 or 9 tablets per day, for more than 8 weeks. After that amount, there's a risk of a toxic buildup in the body. Many of us have found that Immodium can be quite beneficial, on those days when a little help is much appreciated. Also, if you haven't tried it, and found that you react adversely to it, Entocort can help to control your symptoms until the diet has time to take charge of your symptoms. Yep, we're all aware that not only are bathroom runs not cool, but sometimes they don't quite get the job done, if we have more than a few feet to go, and then things can really go downhill in a hurry.
Anyway, that's my two cents worth. Hopefully, others will have more suggestions, and insight. Good luck with this, and please don't hesitate to ask, anytime you have any questions, comments, complaints, or whatever. The GF diet is not an easy lifestyle change, but it's definitely worth it, to get your life back.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I agree with what Tex has said. You have nothing to lose going GF and you might find that it quickly reduces your symptoms. While you are try to control your MC through diet, I would recommend that you also maintain a food/elimination journal. That will help you see a pattern between the foods you ingest and the frequency/type of stools that you have. Many of us find that in addition to gluten, we also have to give up dairy. The third most frequent intolerance seems to be soy. You can read about how to look for these ingredients and how to follow a gluten-free diet here: http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=6
There are many GF recipes in Dee's Kitchen which you can look at here:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=7
Dee is a professional chef and also has a post "To 'Newbies' Starting the GF Diet" here:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7130
It is much easier to be gluten-free now than it was years ago. I just returned from a trip to a local grocery store and noticed that it has a gluten-free section that didn't exist as recently as last year. We are increasing in number and the food manufacturing industry is responding with more products. Rice Chex, for example, was just changed to being gluten-free last year. We are here to help you with any questions you might have.
Gloria
There are many GF recipes in Dee's Kitchen which you can look at here:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=7
Dee is a professional chef and also has a post "To 'Newbies' Starting the GF Diet" here:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7130
It is much easier to be gluten-free now than it was years ago. I just returned from a trip to a local grocery store and noticed that it has a gluten-free section that didn't exist as recently as last year. We are increasing in number and the food manufacturing industry is responding with more products. Rice Chex, for example, was just changed to being gluten-free last year. We are here to help you with any questions you might have.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
Greetings;
Just let me chime in here with my support for your decision to go GF!!! Back when I was diagnosed, there was no medication (except Pepto) to help, and I chose to go GF after reading about all the successes here on this site. I agree that you have nothing to lose by using it, it is healthy and, with time and experimentation, you can eat anything you want - you just need to find the source for purchasing it or the recipe you can use to make it.
Also, I agree with others about the caffeine. I have had to reduce my coffee intake as it seems to cause me problems in excess (more like pain and bloating, but no D) but it is not the caffeine. I can safely say that as I get the same symptoms from decaf coffee, but I have no problems with Diet Coke (which is loaded with caffeine!) I do drink coffee, but not as much as I used to. It's no longer a daily "habit" for me, but when I truly want it, I drink it!
Again, good luck with the switch to this diet. You will be on a steep learning curve, but we are all here to help you!
G'ma Mary
Just let me chime in here with my support for your decision to go GF!!! Back when I was diagnosed, there was no medication (except Pepto) to help, and I chose to go GF after reading about all the successes here on this site. I agree that you have nothing to lose by using it, it is healthy and, with time and experimentation, you can eat anything you want - you just need to find the source for purchasing it or the recipe you can use to make it.
Also, I agree with others about the caffeine. I have had to reduce my coffee intake as it seems to cause me problems in excess (more like pain and bloating, but no D) but it is not the caffeine. I can safely say that as I get the same symptoms from decaf coffee, but I have no problems with Diet Coke (which is loaded with caffeine!) I do drink coffee, but not as much as I used to. It's no longer a daily "habit" for me, but when I truly want it, I drink it!
Again, good luck with the switch to this diet. You will be on a steep learning curve, but we are all here to help you!
G'ma Mary
Those who are not part of the solution, are part of the problem.
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Littlekicker
- Posts: 20
- Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2009 7:18 pm
- Location: Ohio
Hi Greengirl,
I started the gf diet the day after Thanksgiving and felt immediately better; not to say that I am following an exacting diet as it takes time to find the sneaky stuff.
I had relief from joint pain, general aches, headaches, fibro-m and my energy levels seem to improve daily (unless I eat something I shouldn't).
For me, I feel it necessary to "test" myself by eating/drinking something I know that I shouldn't. After you see how bad it makes you feel you will probably be hesitant to try it again ;-)
My DH and I went and bought a gf cook book, cleaned out most of the bad stuff from the fridge and spent over two hours at the grocery replacing items and trying new recipes.
Good Luck!!
I started the gf diet the day after Thanksgiving and felt immediately better; not to say that I am following an exacting diet as it takes time to find the sneaky stuff.
I had relief from joint pain, general aches, headaches, fibro-m and my energy levels seem to improve daily (unless I eat something I shouldn't).
For me, I feel it necessary to "test" myself by eating/drinking something I know that I shouldn't. After you see how bad it makes you feel you will probably be hesitant to try it again ;-)
My DH and I went and bought a gf cook book, cleaned out most of the bad stuff from the fridge and spent over two hours at the grocery replacing items and trying new recipes.
Good Luck!!
LOL,
Leslie
Leslie
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greengirl78
- Adélie Penguin
- Posts: 69
- Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 6:36 am
- Location: Massachusetts
Thank you all for your responses. Right now my husband and I are working on cleaning out all the gluten containing foods in our house. I hope to start the diet next weekend.
I'll keep you posted on how it goes.
Thanks again!
I'll keep you posted on how it goes.
Thanks again!
If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace. - Thich Nhat Hahn