GF Diet
Has anybody tried the gluten free diet? I am suspicious of anything that claims to be "the answer" to all our health problems. My brother suggested The China Study to me a few months back, and I tried eating vegan, which became quite expensive, and I found I did not feel any better for being on it. I got bored with the way most of the recipes starting all tasting the same, and I dropped it. They claimed to be "the answer" for all the Western health problems, like cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart disease, mental illnesses, etc.
After that experience, I'm kind of leary of any diet that claims it is "the answer" for all the above problems, which the GF diet has made those kind of claims, too. I imagine it's fine for people with Celiac Disease, but I'm not sure it's necessary for people without it. My husband thinks it's a bunch of bunk, like he did the vegan diet. That's his opinion, of course. He feels that any diet that makes one kind of food "the villain" and others acceptable is suspect - like the Atkins Diet with it's low carb feature.
I tend to be too gullible to these kind of diets, thinking that this or that diet is the answer to faster weight loss or my health concerns. I'm slowly losing weight doing what I'm doing, gluten or not, and my health issues have improved with a visit to the allergy doctor yesterday. I found out I was allergic to four things: 1) cat dander, 2) dust mites, 3) ragweed, and 4) all kinds of grasses. I started taking steps to alleviate these problems (including the medicines for me he prescribed), and already, I'm sleeping better at night. I don't feel western medicine is such a bad thing, because it's helped me alot in the case of my mental illnesses (schizoaffective disorder with depression). Also, I've been helped by the CPAP machine and the allergy medicines.
Denise Phares/kitties4
After that experience, I'm kind of leary of any diet that claims it is "the answer" for all the above problems, which the GF diet has made those kind of claims, too. I imagine it's fine for people with Celiac Disease, but I'm not sure it's necessary for people without it. My husband thinks it's a bunch of bunk, like he did the vegan diet. That's his opinion, of course. He feels that any diet that makes one kind of food "the villain" and others acceptable is suspect - like the Atkins Diet with it's low carb feature.
I tend to be too gullible to these kind of diets, thinking that this or that diet is the answer to faster weight loss or my health concerns. I'm slowly losing weight doing what I'm doing, gluten or not, and my health issues have improved with a visit to the allergy doctor yesterday. I found out I was allergic to four things: 1) cat dander, 2) dust mites, 3) ragweed, and 4) all kinds of grasses. I started taking steps to alleviate these problems (including the medicines for me he prescribed), and already, I'm sleeping better at night. I don't feel western medicine is such a bad thing, because it's helped me alot in the case of my mental illnesses (schizoaffective disorder with depression). Also, I've been helped by the CPAP machine and the allergy medicines.
Denise Phares/kitties4
Truemans_Mom
on 5/20/09 5:29 am - Edmonds, WA
on 5/20/09 5:29 am - Edmonds, WA
I am not on the GF diet but my boss is. She does have Celiac disease and it has made a huge difference for her. I had a family member years ago try to get me to that way without a diagnosis and I just didn't see the point. I still don't. If you have a sensitivity to wheat sure, but if you don't why go there? It is not the hard to have a test for the Celiac disease now, if you think it might be an issue.
I think you are on a reasonable path with treating known allergies and using the CPAP has to help at night with the filtering of air.
Jan
I think you are on a reasonable path with treating known allergies and using the CPAP has to help at night with the filtering of air.
Jan
no have not tried it. And like Trueman's mom says...why would a person unless you did have celiac issues.
Having said that, I might try it somewhere along the line. I don't think i have symptoms of Celiac, so won't waste my time to go check it out.
In my research of eating better/weight loss, more than one alternate medicine type has suggested that some fat people may have yeast overgrowth (caused by too many grains or other sensitivities), or actual allergies to very common foods that are in a lot of things: wheat, eggs, dairy being the top three. The suggestion is that these sensitivities will cause digestion, cellular level functions to fail, thereby inducing obesity or glucose intolerance.
I do have gut issues - possible irritable bowel or as simple as sensitivity to wheat, perhaps. It was Atkins and eating way less grains that have showed me that i do feel better when i eat far less bread (in particular). Can't say it did wonders for me weight wise, but certainly it contributed to my most recent 35# loss. I feel FAR less bloated when I eat less bread.
The "gift" of Atkins was to show me that I do feel satisfied when i eat higher fat/protein, so i stop short of bashing other plans. SO.....there may be a lesson when i try things that are off the conventional path; i may stumble on the answer for me. Certainly I feel now that I have taken the best ideas from WW, Atkins, South Beach/Zone/SugarBusters.
Having said that, I might try it somewhere along the line. I don't think i have symptoms of Celiac, so won't waste my time to go check it out.
In my research of eating better/weight loss, more than one alternate medicine type has suggested that some fat people may have yeast overgrowth (caused by too many grains or other sensitivities), or actual allergies to very common foods that are in a lot of things: wheat, eggs, dairy being the top three. The suggestion is that these sensitivities will cause digestion, cellular level functions to fail, thereby inducing obesity or glucose intolerance.
I do have gut issues - possible irritable bowel or as simple as sensitivity to wheat, perhaps. It was Atkins and eating way less grains that have showed me that i do feel better when i eat far less bread (in particular). Can't say it did wonders for me weight wise, but certainly it contributed to my most recent 35# loss. I feel FAR less bloated when I eat less bread.
The "gift" of Atkins was to show me that I do feel satisfied when i eat higher fat/protein, so i stop short of bashing other plans. SO.....there may be a lesson when i try things that are off the conventional path; i may stumble on the answer for me. Certainly I feel now that I have taken the best ideas from WW, Atkins, South Beach/Zone/SugarBusters.
"The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not." ~Mark Twain
(deactivated member)
on 5/21/09 1:12 am
on 5/21/09 1:12 am
On May 20, 2009 at 12:12 PM Pacific Time, kitties4 wrote:
Has anybody tried the gluten free diet? I am suspicious of anything that claims to be "the answer" to all our health problems. My brother suggested The China Study to me a few months back, and I tried eating vegan, which became quite expensive, and I found I did not feel any better for being on it. I got bored with the way most of the recipes starting all tasting the same, and I dropped it. They claimed to be "the answer" for all the Western health problems, like cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart disease, mental illnesses, etc.After that experience, I'm kind of leary of any diet that claims it is "the answer" for all the above problems, which the GF diet has made those kind of claims, too. I imagine it's fine for people with Celiac Disease, but I'm not sure it's necessary for people without it. My husband thinks it's a bunch of bunk, like he did the vegan diet. That's his opinion, of course. He feels that any diet that makes one kind of food "the villain" and others acceptable is suspect - like the Atkins Diet with it's low carb feature.
I tend to be too gullible to these kind of diets, thinking that this or that diet is the answer to faster weight loss or my health concerns. I'm slowly losing weight doing what I'm doing, gluten or not, and my health issues have improved with a visit to the allergy doctor yesterday. I found out I was allergic to four things: 1) cat dander, 2) dust mites, 3) ragweed, and 4) all kinds of grasses. I started taking steps to alleviate these problems (including the medicines for me he prescribed), and already, I'm sleeping better at night. I don't feel western medicine is such a bad thing, because it's helped me alot in the case of my mental illnesses (schizoaffective disorder with depression). Also, I've been helped by the CPAP machine and the allergy medicines.
Denise Phares/kitties4
As for celiac disease - if you have it, it is serious and not a weight loss diet fad. If you have celiac's then you must avoid all gluten - not even a microscopic fleck of gluten. You have to buy new pots and pans to cook with and be extremely vigilant about shopping. Things like dried spices, condiments and all kinds of things that you don't expect to find gluten has it but not always labeled.
One of the real problems is all the refined foods in the diet - and many of them are bread/pasta/wheat based - just switching to the whole wheat version is so much healthier. Of course eating everything in moderation is important.
I'm certain getting your allergies under controll will make a huge difference in how you feel. Western evidence based medicine is the rght way to go when you have medical problems that they can help. Unfortunately it's not very helpful with losing weight.
Skylar
skylar, i will get those books you refer to! I am also aware of a few of the higher points of the Human Genome project 2003, which changed how science looks at DNA. Simply put, we can change our DNA by eating more fruits/vegetables! Over 2000 additional phytonutrients were identified and it shows the iceberg of information on what each of those newly idenified nutrient's do for our bodies.
Grains are very closely related to veggies being organically grown. We Americans now have a skewed approach: first we over process them, then we eat waaaay too much of them . That is not the food item's problem...it is a human problem.
I am getting more aware of the simple fact that to net out one pound of meat, over 2-10 pounds of grain is fed to the animal! So, here we are, tossing grain down the gullets of animals so that we can slay them and eat them? don't forget the antibiotics and hormones we feed them to further complicate things!
Interesting stuff!
Grains are very closely related to veggies being organically grown. We Americans now have a skewed approach: first we over process them, then we eat waaaay too much of them . That is not the food item's problem...it is a human problem.
I am getting more aware of the simple fact that to net out one pound of meat, over 2-10 pounds of grain is fed to the animal! So, here we are, tossing grain down the gullets of animals so that we can slay them and eat them? don't forget the antibiotics and hormones we feed them to further complicate things!
Interesting stuff!
"The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not." ~Mark Twain
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