Has anyone gone gluten free?

MrA

Well-Known Member
Feb 8, 2012
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Or a similar controlled diet?

I frequently get an upset stomach (twice a week approx) cramps and bloating etc.

Thinking its probably ibs (dad and his mum are severe sufferers) but thought maybe its worth cutting out gluten first to see if that helps?

Anyone done it? Felt any different?
 
If I were you I'd keep a food diary for a couple of weeks and include a note of any upset stomachs, headaches, bloating etc, in fact I'd keep a note of your activities too. I think "food intolerance" is the go-to thing now-a-days for lots health complaints. I'm not saying that you don't have any issues but I think that before you start ruling certain things out of your diet you need to look at the overall picture. It could be there are other things that you are eating on those days that make you feel bad. If you were to go to a GP about this they'd probably ask you to do the same thing and then rule out different food groups/ingredients one at a time to establish the cause.
 
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my OH cut out Gluten and Cows Dairy pretty suddenly - he wouldn't recommend doing it but gradually reducing the intake of Gluten would be ok. But agree with Rubic, do a diary to try to identify the possible culprit of the cramps and bloating.

My OH has IBS and Cows Dairy is the bigger issue for him. He has Goats everything and is much better. Excessive wheat can cause bloating for him, so he keeps it to a minimum. He has Wheat free pasta, he avoids bread but does have normal wraps - he doesnt find they cause as much bloating. He needs to avoid anything spicy as such as that causes problems too
 
I've kept diaries before but there seems to be no correlation. One day I have fruit and cereal then another day crumpets set me off, or having fish and chips for dinner and then suddenly get ill. Or a salad and still get ill. Sometimes I get it in the middle of the day when I havemt eaten since morning too. But I will try a diary again and see how it goes
 
If you suspect you are intolerant to gluten you really should go to your GP before you start a gluten free diet. It's possible you may have coeliac disease and that can only be diagnosed while you are actually eating gluten. What happens is that gluten sets up an auto-immune response that can be detected by antibodies in your blood and damage to the lining of your stomach. Once you stop eating gluten the antibodies are no longer produced and the damage heals so there is nothing for a test to pick up. GP's normally just do a little blood test.

It's worth having it ruled out before you start any new diet. I think a food diary is a good idea too.

ETA - the only problem with diaries is that some foods can have an effect within 20 minutes (eg dairy if you are lactose intolerant) and some foods it can be a lot longer, maybe 24 hours, so spotting a trend isn't always easy! I had a really good book on allergies and intolerances by some professor. It was hard going and I didn't read all of it but the section on how to diagnose and deal with food intolerances was excellent and very practical. When I get home I'll see if I can find it ...
 
I found that by simply having better packed lunches (no sandwiches/crisps but rice, chicken, pasta veggies etc), and stopping all fizzy pop, chocolate, sweets and crisps suddenly my skin was better, no cramps or upsets, no mouth ulcers and more energy - it took me a few days to adjust, but then i reaped he benefits of it.
 
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I had terrible IBS for 7 years, went on the slimming world extra easy plan and have not suffered since day 2 of the diet, that was 7 months ago.... and over 3 stone...

I went from nearly 100 codine a month to 0....
 
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3 stone Nat? Huge respect:eek:, do you feel the weight loss as such has helped or is it the actual diet that has helped with the IBS do you think?
 
It was the diet and still is, I went on it to lose weight but didnt realise it would help my IBS, if I have a cheat day or two like I just did (my birthday) I pay for it so I know its the plan and my choices within it,

But yep, just over 3 stone lost, still going as well, 1 more stone before xmas so I can have xmas off... already dreaming of mince pies...
 
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I had terrible IBS for 7 years, went on the slimming world extra easy plan and have not suffered since day 2 of the diet, that was 7 months ago.... and over 3 stone...

I went from nearly 100 codine a month to 0....
I have said this before but that is amazing nat !! I really admire your determination.
 
I have been slowly getting worse, probably ad I am stressed at the moment. There seems to be absolutely no pattern. Last night I had some egg noodles and a salad (which I have eaten so many times before) and was ill all night and still bad stomach this morn. I have started living off chocolate now as that seems to be the only thing that has never upset me. That and wholemeal bread! Think I will cut my diet back to basics eg wholemeal bread and some fruit and then introduce other food slowly. Been feeling so rubbish though and lost weight now which people at work
have nnoticed. If not better soon I will go GP
 
I don't have IBS but suffer hugely with bloating and cramps to the point I have to take pain meds, it took me ages to work out it wasn't so much what I was eating but when, my life is a bit manic so like yesterday I was up at the crack of dawn so ate breakfast before 5am, then didn't eat again until gone 5pm, cue belly ache after eating. If I eat regularly, every few hours even if its only a biscuit then my belly doesnt go into melt down when it does finally get food :) I am intolerant to a lot of foods (diagnosed as a kid at Great Ormand Street) but I can manage eating all of them in some form in small quantities, I do avoid white bread and pasta but I'm good if I stick to brown, I can eat cheese but full milk makes me sick, red top is tolerable in small ammounts.
 
I can't suggest a solution Ale but I do feel sorry for you. I can eat anything and never suffer and I know how many people do - in the cafe we get loads of requests for "something-free" food and we try to do what we can.

I think your idea of cutting back to what you know doesn't upset you and then adding to it is very sensible. But you have been to your GP, haven't you? If it could be something serious like coeliac then you ought to get it ruled out.
 
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