Goodbyes are never easy, but sometimes they are necessary or at least in our best interest. I know, I know… you love bread and you love pasta and you just can’t wrap your head around life without them. Matter of fact I’ve heard people say they’d just die without them because they love them so much. Food is addictive and just down right tastes good…I get it… but I can promise you that you won’t die without bread or pasta {or at least I’ve never heard of anyone dying because they gave up gluten containing foods!}
I’m pretty sure you are going to be ok…just sayin’!
So how did the whole Gluten free thing start at our house? You may have read a quick little blurb about the health struggle I was having about 6 years ago in my {homeschool} blog post. But I’ll go a bit more in detail here.
When I turned 40 I pretty much was feeling like someone just needed to put me out of my misery. I just wanted to sleep, I had extreme fatigue, very low energy, total blood sugar crash mid-afternoon, experienced dizziness during the afternoon “crash”, stomach upset, acne {like 30+ years’ worth} and was just blaaa! Yes, of course I still got up each day and did life, took care of my family, etc. but I was thinking that if this was what 40 felt like I’d prefer to just be with Jesus. I got tired of going for my yearly checkup and them saying “your numbers are all within the normal range” and “you’re just tired because you’re a mom”, yadda yadda yadda! UG.. I hated to hear that. So I finally headed to a Naturopath at a practice that also had MD’s so it was an integrated approach. The first thing they asked is if I was eating gluten. I was like, “Come again…of course I am eating gluten…I’m Italian…it’s necessary for my survival”. Without running a single test he looked at me and told me to stop eating it. After I climbed back in my chair from falling out and picked my jaw up off the floor I gave him many reasons why I was sure that wasn’t the problem. So I got forced {ok, no handcuffs or threats of bodily harm} to do a 30 day “vacation” from gluten, cow dairy, sugar, etc…. while they ran A LOT of tests. I already was what I would have considered a healthy eater since most of what I bought had that good ol’ “organic” label on it so I felt confident their fancy tests would come back that gluten was not an issue.
So I survived the 30 days. I ate baked goods that contained brown rice flour, had brown rice or quinoa with dinner, forced down almond milk products {I was seriously craving a REAL toasted bagel smothered in cream cheese by the way} and didn’t die {although if you asked hubby he may add that my mood wasn’t exactly stellar}. But, what DID happen is that within 3 D.A.Y.S. my acne cleared up and my stomach bloating and upset was gone… a few more days and the afternoon crash had improved greatly and it all continued to get better during the 30 days. When I got my test results I seriously was not prepared… I had an intense case of Leaky Gut {thank you gluten and 10+ years of antibiotics for acne}, was in the red zone for gluten sensitivity and all gluten containing grains, had heavy metal toxicity {thank you vaccines, dental fillings and the environment}, my adrenal glands were shot, cortisol levels elevated, and so on and so on and so on. I get it… my regular doctor knows what he knows… his training was different…he’s not familiar with all these other tests…not familiar enough with nutrition… my numbers were normal to him and he certainly couldn’t get any kickbacks off of just telling me to change what I eat {#hatebigpharma}. My symptoms screamed anything but normal and finally someone listened and knew what to look for. This integrated approach was THE way to go! The insight from the MD and Naturopath working together to get to the root cause of my symptoms was awesome!
So, where do we go from here, doc? Hello gluten free diet, my name is Mandy and I’m not very happy to meet you! Hello 6 months of IV chelation to start to rid my body of the heavy metals…it’s great being attached to a pole with a needle in my arm 6-9 hours per week for 6 months. Hello all sorts of supplements to swallow to start to repair my gut that has been torn to shreds from this undetected food sensitivity and all those years of antibiotics. Hello cleaning out my health & beauty products {yes, many contain gluten!!!}. I love to cook, peeps, so it was time to get my game on and take this bull by the horns!
Strolling through the aisles of the grocery store reading labels… Seriously, the chili starter and the enchilada sauce contain gluten… the “crab” in the California Roll contains gluten? Soy sauce contains gluten? No more yummy licorice? Gluten here, gluten there, gluten everywhere! And the “gluten free” items contained nothing but empty calories like starches that cause blood sugar spikes and have NO nutritional value {yes sometimes we need to use some of them in making gluten free mixes but we need to limit them!}. The ready-made gluten free products were nothing but c.r.a.p…. sorry… let’s be real. The options were limited, lacked nutrition and they were tasteless. Yes, of course I know the drill…shop the perimeter of the grocery store… fruits, vegetables, meats, deli (skip the bakery)… 6 years ago the options were SO limited and like I said, what was available was just c.r.a.p., but I adapted and stayed clear away from every speck of gluten for a year. The changes were amazing! I went from suffering from cystic acne for 30 years to having CLEAR SKIN. All my supplements became my new norm and I settled in and I didn’t die from it. Once I got past the first 2 months I honestly wasn’t even craving it anymore {and we further got rid of anything in the house with artificial flavors, colors, preservatives, no refined sugars or corn syrup, no soy… but kept my organic cow dairy as a souvenir for now}. The IV treatments were exhausting as the heavy metals were pulled from my body and then in addition I went and had my mercury fillings changed out {note…you can’t go to any ol’ dentist to do this… do your research!}. Within a year I was feeling like I should feel….. healthy…with more energy…no stomach issues…clear skin…. Thank you God. It was all about the right foods for my body and high quality supplements and essential oils to support my body.
Now let’s move on to #1 son…. 11 years old… thinking back he was that kid that always complained about eating this or that and I was that awesome mom that told him to stop complaining and finish his dinner…because what kid doesn’t want to finish their pizza????? When he got older, he also complained of itching… like crazy itching under his skin but there was never anything there to address {no bumps or rash or dry skin, etc}. Anyway, he went off to summer camp. Ok, so he’s a bit spoiled in the way I cook… OK, he’s very spoiled and he likes mama’s cooking. He hated the camp food and so he chose to eat Snickers Bars and drink Dr. Peppers for a week {I know this to be true because I logged in to see what he was buying at the camp store}. Let’s just say that he came home sick and like a good mom I had ZERO sympathy and reviewed his camp store account with him just in case it had slipped his tweenage brain that he consumed sugar for 7 days. A week later he was still sick to his stomach. A little detective work (aka scale) and saw that he had lost 4# since his checkup 4 months earlier and for a kid that already wears the slim style of the slim jeans and needs the adjustable waste so you can make them even slimmer, it’s not such a good thing when the numbers on the scale are going down. He looked pale, low energy, emotional and itching {like using a fork to scratch his scalp}. So we headed to the pediatrician who ran a blood test for Celiac {negative… but that test is notorious for false positives and false negatives} sent us to a Gastro doctor who is lucky I didn’t haul off and punch him!! Why you ask? Because he stated, “mom, the test is negative so there is no concern for any issues with gluten” and “I’d like you to give him an adult strength dose of Mylanta 3x per day for 3 weeks then come back and see me” and “I think he is just stressed out about starting middle school”. I went on to tell him that I tested positive for gluten sensitivity last year {non-celiac} and that maybe that was the issue and he responded, “Mom, if it makes you feel better you can take him off gluten, but there is no medical reason to support doing that”. Thanks doc… we WON’T be back.
I took him to the Naturopath/integrative practice. We walked in, he took one look at his pale face, his boney frame and the fatigue written all over his face and said “He’s gluten intolerant”. Matter of fact he said we didn’t even “need” to spend the money on the test because it was crystal clear. But anyway, we chose to run a bunch of tests to get a really big/clear picture of what we were dealing with. Drum roll please… Tested in the red zone for ALL GLUTEN CONTAINING GRAINS. His gut was a MESS, beyond “leaking”… years of an undetected sensitivity, candida overgrowth of epic proportion, weakened immune system… The week at camp was just the straw that broke the camels back.
I thought back to taking him to the allergist when he was around 4 due to tummy issues… results were negative… you know, that skin prick test? That test is looking for “allergies” like the kind where your throat closes up and you need an EPI pen or you break out in hives… the immediate food reactions. I’m talking about delayed food sensitivities… the kind that show up 2 minutes to 2 weeks later. The kind that don’t cause you to stop breathing. Allergists…have no understanding of this or don’t think it’s legit…Just because your throat doesn’t close up when you eat something doesn’t mean you don’t have a sensitivity to it! H.E.L.L.O….food sensitivities are R.E.A.L. and they destroy your gut then your gut is leaking and you start reacting to foods you really are not sensitive too, it’s just that your body is all of a sudden viewing it as an intruder and it tries to fight it off……… it’s really quite fascinating and not understood enough in Western medicine. But again, Big Pharma doesn’t make money off you changing your diet!
Anyway… I won’t go further off on that rabbit trail…….. it suffices to say that within 3-5 days of taking gluten out of his diet he was 100% symptom free!!!!!!! He’s going on year 6 of being Gluten free. Is it hard for a kid? Yes it is because they get left out of so many things at parties, etc but I did my best to ask questions ahead of time and made sure he had something special, called ahead if we were going out for dinner, etc. As time went on he didn’t even care because he just didn’t want to feel sick. We have retested him yearly… his gut lining is good to go, so when we re-run his food sensitivity panel it still shows gluten in the red zone. Once your gut is healed if any food is still showing red then you know it’s a true sensitivity and not just a leaky gut issues.
#2 son then pops up on my radar. I always refer to him as “little dude”. The Naturopath suggested we get all the kids tested because if I have a gluten sensitivity and #1 son has it, then it is very likely #2 has something going on. Truth be told, we ALL have food sensitivities but unless we feel physically sick or uncomfortable we don’t address it or we ignore it because we like what we are eating!
So he was always the kid with puffy eyes… when he smiled you could barely see he had eyes and when he wasn’t they were just puffy underneath. Didn’t really think anything of it and the pediatrician never mentioned it so we marched through life. As he got to be 7-9 years old he would complain at bedtime that he didn’t feel “good” but couldn’t say exactly what was wrong. Like any good mother I assumed he was just using it as an excuse to stall bedtime so I tucked him, kissed him goodnight and was out the door.
So…test results came in {he was 10 years old}… in the red for gluten and egg whites! Remove from diet and no more “not feeling good” and swelling under his eyes was G.O.N.E. He was really diligent about staying 100% clear of the allergens and within 3 years his test results were clear. He dabbles in a bit of gluten or egg containing products now and then but is wise and doesn’t over indulge because he doesn’t want to go back to feeling how he used to. Wise little guy!
#3, the princess of the family. Around age 8 our adopted daughter was suffering from severe migraines. She would come home from school in 2nd grade complaining of severe headaches and put an ice pack on her head. At school she was seeing stars and having quick blackouts. Not cool for a 2nd grader and we had no medical history to go by. We went to the pediatrician who said to go have an eye exam. All was fine. They referred us to some world renown neuro-ophthalmologist who ran all sorts of tests and confirmed they were certainly migraines and were pretty bad. He wrote an RX for some drug that would require constant blood pressure monitoring and monthly bloodwork. Mama didn’t have a warm and fuzzy feeling about this and told the doc I thought I’d have her tested for food allergies. He looked at me and said “That is not the issue. Only 2% of patients suffer from food induced migraines and I’m sure she’s not one of them”. See ya later doc!. What do you think popped up? Casein and Gluten. Goodbye dairy! NO.more.migraines. NO.rx. NO trip back to that doctor. Never to have one again…unless…she decided to indulge in a milk shake or some other decadent milk product.
Our journey with foods and nutrition has continued and involved. I was determined my kids (and I) would still get to enjoy our favorite foods without the empty calories of the store bought gluten free goods. I researched egg replacement options {hello chia or flax eggs}, goat milk products {much more easily digestible}, nut flours, etc. I was never a baker, but with the addition of the grain mill I swore I would never get {read here} I became a baker and everything was made from scratch…bagels…waffle sticks…pancakes…muffins…cakes…cookies…rolls…crumb cake… you name it, I baked it and I packed it with chia seeds and flax seeds to boost the nutritional value. I use only raw organic honey, unsweetened organic applesauce or organic maple syrup as a sweetener, pasture raised eggs, etc. {NOTE: If you have the option to buy LOCAL RAW HONEY then go for it! If not the link I provided is an excellent one!)
We did implement a monthly “cheat” so each of us got 1 item each month that we shouldn’t have. The kids took this seriously and would plan it out and give me plenty of notice! One of our favorite cheats is a loaf of fresh baked Einkorn bread or Einkorn bagels. Einkorn is another gift from God that I learned about when I was in Italy and this Einkorn cook book is amazing! The first thing I tried my hand at was a loaf of crusty bread. Amen.
It’s the original wheat that hasn’t been hybridized or genetically modified, etc. It’s as close to biblical wheat as you can get! As time progressed though they gave up more and more of their “cheats”. They didn’t like being reminded of that feeling they had and honestly, a cheat is a cheat and it can trigger the side effects and symptoms as fast as flipping a light switch… not really worth it. {OK, maybe the Einkorn bagels are worth it!}
As my kitchen has further evolved and we introduced a good percentage of our diet to be paleo, I have learned to cook with coconut and nut flours when we do indulge in baked good. My favorite paleo recipes come from Danielle Walker’s Against all Grain, Against All Grain Meals Made Simple and Danielle Walkers Celebrations. I’ve learned to use coconut amino’s instead of tamari and other little cool substitutions, coconut milk instead of goats milk, raw cacao powder for chocolate baked goods and still nothing but raw honey, unsweetened apple sauce or organic maple syrup for sweetener. And you’d never guess how easy it is to make fruit roll-ups…another wonderful thing I learned from Danielle’s cookbooks.
Through being introduced to an amazing cookbook called Nourishing Traditions when I was on my trip to Italy, I now make my own bone broth {recipe}, soak and dehydrate my own nuts to make them more digestible, make fruit leather and so much more in my newly acquired food dehydrator. I also learned how simple it is to make nut milks and regularly make almond or cashew milk! They are so much tastier than store bought!
So, let’s wrap this up… surely you’ve heard the saying, “You are what you eat” and it is so true! We can’t put garbage in and expect to live vibrant, healthy lives. Cooking from scratch takes a commitment, but it is possible for everyone. We all have the same amount of time in our day and we all eat so it’s all a matter of priorities. Organic or natural foods are becoming so mainstream so whether you are shopping at Aldi’s, a local farmers market, at Costco or at Whole Foods you can probably afford more natural or organic versions of items on your shopping list and if not you just do the best you can.
Here are a few tips:
- Create menus for the week that use like ingredients which causes less waste so it’s easier on your wallet.
- Spend a few hours on the weekend to prep, chop, mix as much as possible to make weekday dinners so much faster to throw together and makes throwing lunches together for school a breeze.
- Double recipes and throw one batch in the freezer to save time and money.
- Get your kids {or spouse} in the kitchen to help make it go faster and teach them valuable life skills.
- Read ingredients on all labels and if it has more than 5-8 ingredients and there are any you can’t pronounce or you don’t know what they are, then you put it back on the shelf.
- Say goodbye to gluten and limit, if not, eliminate grains if you suffer from any type of inflammatory disease or auto-immune disease {which most of us do}… i.e. acne, thyroid, arthritis or any unexplained symptoms and so on and so on.
- If you are single or have a small family you can still save money but sharing purchases at big box stores like Costco.
Yes, it is so tempting to just cruise through the frozen entrees section of the store or down the boxed food aisle and it’s not the end of the world if we are in a pinch and make a meal of it now and then.
Let’s go a step further…what if you tried the Whole30 cleanse? NO grains, no sugars of any type {real or artificial}, no nuts, no dairy, no soy, etc for 30 days. What if while you were craving potato chips or chocolate, you grabbed some carrot sticks instead? What do you think that does? It retrains your brain. It’s like a factory reset! Most of our eating issues stem from cravings and it’s usually craving the food we needs to avoid the most. Funny how that happens!
So whether you think that a food sensitivity may be the underlying cause of any symptoms, disease, autoimmune or inflammatory issues, or discomfort you may be having or are just ready to take your health to a new level, know there are a gazillion resources out there to make it so much easier than you imagine!
Fyi, the {growing} collection of recipes on my blog are all Gluten free but they can easily be adapted to serve any dietary needs. Check them out!
Don’t be shy…share some of your food triumphs or struggles here…share recipes… let’s chat!
The links I am providing for sourcing these ingredients are the exact products I use in these recipes. I’ve tried other brands and have found these to be high quality and work the best. I also feel they are a fabulous value. By purchasing these ingredients through clicking on these links you are helping to support the cost of hosting my blog so thank you SO much!
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