The Gluten-Free Life

[YadaYadaYada]

I looked but didn’t see a recent thread dedicated specifically to those on a gluten-free journey.

So far I’m five days in, part of why I’m getting away from gluten is to try to address my rosacea. I’ve had it since my first pregnancy 15 years ago and now I’m trying to permanently get rid of it. At an eye exam last year the doctor suggested I try getting rid of gluten to see if my skin cleared. Of course I forgot to take a picture of day 1 but here is day 3:






And day 5:






Not a huge difference but I do think the skin is less bumpy than it has been.

I’ve also been blessed with PCOS (diagnosed by a doctor years ago) and recently discovered that there are different types, I’m guessing I have the inflammatory type. Essentially on top of eliminating gluten, my diet is low carb, extremely low dairy and as minimally processed as possible. I also do not take any medication for my rosacea or PCOS, I’d rather just fix things with diet and lifestyle change than medication.

Please feel free to share your journey or recipes you have tried. I’ll start with this amazing fish recipe, I omit the capers, but if you aren’t low carb you can put this over some jasmine rice. It’s really good and comes together quick:

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Updated pictures, 16 days so far. If anyone is following along, sorry for being MIA but our dog had to have emergency surgery so it’s been crazy here.





I’m trying not to focus on weight but I have lost a little bit. I also found a really good beef and cabbage recipe that I will share in a bit as well as some store bought items that I was pleasantly surprised by.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

How is your dogo doing ?

 

[YadaYadaYada]

How is your dogo doing ?

She is okay so far but she just had the surgery yesterday, infected uterus….I forget the proper term for it. In a nutshell the infection was trapped in her uterus and it had to come out immediately.

A very expensive and involved surgery unfortunately but we are glad she made it through. Thank you for asking!

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Here is the beef and cabbage recipe, you could also use ground turkey in place of the beef. Simple and very good.







Also, it can get boring eating eggs and berries every single morning, so once a week (Sunday is perfect) I plan to change it up with one of these muffins, a little expensive but very good:

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

She is okay so far but she just had the surgery yesterday, infected uterus….I forget the proper term for it. In a nutshell the infection was trapped in her uterus and it had to come out immediately.

A very expensive and involved surgery unfortunately but we are glad she made it through. Thank you for asking!

Oh dear
that's a lot of unpleasantness
i hope she is feeling better and heals up soon
....
And the bill is a little less than they estimated

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Oh dear
that's a lot of unpleasantness
i hope she is feeling better and heals up soon
....
And the bill is a little less than they estimated

The bill…..oh it is a lot. Now initially they told us $6500-$7800 but the doctor worked something out so we paid $5300 which is still a lot. We are not rich people but how can you put a price on a pet?

 

[foxinsox]

Also, it can get boring eating eggs and berries every single morning, so once a week (Sunday is perfect) I plan to change it up with one of these muffins, a little expensive but very good:

You could make those pretty easily - find a chocolate zucchini loaf recipe, sub in GF flour and tweak to suit. Then you could enjoy them more often if you felt like it and they’d be less processed too. Not sure if you like baking tho?

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

The bill…..oh it is a lot. Now initially they told us $6500-$7800 but the doctor worked something out so we paid $5300 which is still a lot. We are not rich people but how can you put a price on a pet?

Oh look at that face
That's love

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

You could make those pretty easily - find a chocolate zucchini loaf recipe, sub in GF flour and tweak to suit. Then you could enjoy them more often if you felt like it and they’d be less processed too. Not sure if you like baking tho?

Zucchini makes baking so lovelly and moist

 

[stracci2000]

The bill…..oh it is a lot. Now initially they told us $6500-$7800 but the doctor worked something out so we paid $5300 which is still a lot. We are not rich people but how can you put a price on a pet?

Oh, I didn't know your doggie was sick! I hope she recovers right away. But that vet bill! OMG.
I hope the gluten free diet helps your rosacia. I would find it very hard to cut out gluten, because I love bread and pasta.

 

[junebug17]

@YadaYadaYada, I'm sorry you're dealing with rosacia and I hope the gluten free diet helps. Both recipes sound good and I'm going to give them a try.

And I'm sending love and healing vibes to your sweet pup, and wishing her a quick recovery.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@foxinsox that’s a great idea, I don’t mind baking usually (when it’s not scorching of the earth temps!) so maybe I’ll give that a try next weekend. Thanks for the suggestion!

@stracci2000, she got sick suddenly, we noticed she was off on Thursday and by Friday she was lethargic and running a high fever. She had the surgery late Friday night and came home last night.
I’m kind of dying about the vet bill because I JUST paid off nearly all of our credit card debt and now in one swoop it all undone again! I felt defeated on Friday but we are just going to sell and save to get it paid ASAP.

The rosacea is more of a gauge to see if the inflammation is coming down and what foods trigger a reaction, I’ve had it for 14-15 years so it’s old hat. I hear you about the bread though!

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Thanks @junebug17, I like both but the fish recipe is
My favorite so far. Also thank you for good wishes for Zoe, she is doing pretty well so hoping that continues.

 

[2Neesers]

I have celiac disease and have been gluten free since I was diagnosed 8 years ago. I struggled with alot of health issues for a couple of decades before my diagnosis. Changing to a gluten free diet wasn’t fun or easy, but it has been life altering for me.

Your rosacea looks like it’s responding very well! Hopefully you will continue to see positive results in other areas too .

As far as recipes go, I’m a terrible cook and can’t offer much in that area, but I’m looking forward to trying the recipes you shared. One thing I occasionally make that my hubby likes too is zucchini lasagna. I just replace the noodles with zucchini and then you could reduce the cheese to lowest amount needed for it to still taste good.
I eat a lot of meat, eggs, veggies and fruits. I do eat carbs, but try to limit gluten free grains. Three Bakers 7 Ancient Grains is my favorite gluten free bread when I do eat bread. There are so many packaged foods and frozen foods that are gluten free now too. Trader Joe’s, Aldi and Costco have a lot to choose from. They aren’t generally very healthy, but since I very rarely eat out and don’t cook very well, I end up relying on them too much! Costco’s rotisserie chicken is gluten free and an easy to make meal with veggie on the side.

I haven’t lost any weight eating gluten free and have actually gained, but that could have something to do with my age and previous health issues. It could also be from the two gluten free bakeries in my area whose cupcakes are my weakness!

I’m going to tag @missy because I think she might be gluten free too. I remember her posting pictures of a delicious holiday meal they made that was gluten free a few years ago.

So sorry to hear about your furbabies emergency. I hope Zoe feels better very soon.

 

[foxinsox]

@foxinsox that’s a great idea, I don’t mind baking usually (when it’s not scorching of the earth temps!) so maybe I’ll give that a try next weekend. Thanks for the suggestion!

You’re very welcome! I missed about your lovely wee pupper being so sick. I am very glad she’s on the mend but ouch about the cost of it
Also I’ve been lower-carb and GF for a few years now. Not coeliac, just my gut and joints prefer me to not eat gluten or a lot of carbs.
If I’m strict at home, I don’t have to worry about some exposure outside the home. It definitely gets easier and thankfully there are so many good options for eating this way now. I find kumara (sweet potatoes), yams and pumpkin to be great lower-carb/higher fibre substitutes for potatoes and I’ve never really liked rice that much.
I do a lot of salads with roasted vege, chicken and greens with whatever dressing suits what I feel like that day. I found the early paleo websites to be good sources for recipes and ideas for tasty, reasonably unprocessed meals. Not sure what they’re like now tho.
You’re reminding me I need to tighten things up more tho - it’s very easy to get lazy about it but I really feel so much better when I’m eating “clean”

 

[missy]

I have celiac disease and have been gluten free since I was diagnosed 8 years ago. I struggled with alot of health issues for a couple of decades before my diagnosis. Changing to a gluten free diet wasn’t fun or easy, but it has been life altering for me.

Your rosacea looks like it’s responding very well! Hopefully you will continue to see positive results in other areas too .

As far as recipes go, I’m a terrible cook and can’t offer much in that area, but I’m looking forward to trying the recipes you shared. One thing I occasionally make that my hubby likes too is zucchini lasagna. I just replace the noodles with zucchini and then you could reduce the cheese to lowest amount needed for it to still taste good.
I eat a lot of meat, eggs, veggies and fruits. I do eat carbs, but try to limit gluten free grains. Three Bakers 7 Ancient Grains is my favorite gluten free bread when I do eat bread. There are so many packaged foods and frozen foods that are gluten free now too. Trader Joe’s, Aldi and Costco have a lot to choose from. They aren’t generally very healthy, but since I very rarely eat out and don’t cook very well, I end up relying on them too much! Costco’s rotisserie chicken is gluten free and an easy to make meal with veggie on the side.

I haven’t lost any weight eating gluten free and have actually gained, but that could have something to do with my age and previous health issues. It could also be from the two gluten free bakeries in my area whose cupcakes are my weakness!

I’m going to tag @missy because I think she might be gluten free too. I remember her posting pictures of a delicious holiday meal they made that was gluten free a few years ago.

So sorry to hear about your furbabies emergency. I hope Zoe feels better very soon.

Hi @2Neezers yes, you're right. I am gluten free. Also soy and dairy free too. All are helpful for rosacea IMO. I am so glad you are doing well now on your gluten free diet @2Neezers. That is wonderful. Isn't it amazing how much what we eat really changes our health for the better or worse? So many foods are inflammatory for some of us.

My rosacea was exacerbated by dairy and when I cut that out it helped so much. My redness and papules went away. When I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's I went gluten and soy free and that helped too. It is much easier to be gluten free these days. So many options. I don't do gluten free bread though so cannot speak to that but I would caution to read all the ingredients in gluten free products to make sure they don't add unhealthy ingredients to make up for the lack of gluten. For example soy is added to so many products and most of us who have AI issues (including rosacea) could benefit from going soy free too. I also eliminated night shades as that can be inflammatory too. I miss eggplant but I enjoy good health more than any one food. There are so many yummy options we can eat safely.

I started out with an AutoImmune Paleo Diet and added things back slowly (some nuts, some seeds) and that way you can see what causes a reaction and what doesn't. Google AIP diet and see if it appeals to you.

HTH @YadaYadaYada. It changed my life for the better going soy, dairy and gluten free.

All my best to your sweet Zoe. Wishing her a full recovery. They are our family. The best of our family in many cases. Sending her bucketloads of healing dust.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@2Neezers, I was honestly very up in the air about starting a gluten-free thread because I don’t have celiac and didn’t want to offend anyone who did! I’m sorry you are saddled with additional health conditions but at least there are so many more options for this diet now and how wonderful to have a GF bakery near you, I would be in trouble!

Might be a bit TMI but I have PCOS, it is a bear of a disorder and have gone almost a year without a period at all. Well within a week of GF eating I had a cycle! So maybe even if it’s not physically apparent, there are good things happening “behind the scenes”.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@foxinsox, thank you for good wishes for Zoe!

I was on Paleo years ago and lost 70lbs by that and exercise but I was really cheating a lot and running my butt off at the gym to make up for it. True paleo is a great plan but it is very restrictive and can be hard to stick to. All we can do is our best right?

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Thanks for weighing in on your experience @missy, I am trying to also eliminate dairy and in general eat as low carb as possible because of the PCOS. As you say about soy, I have encountered that in some ingredient lists, it would be great to avoid it completely.

Thank you for your healing wishes for Zoe!

 

[2Neesers]

@2Neezers, I was honestly very up in the air about starting a gluten-free thread because I don’t have celiac and didn’t want to offend anyone who did! I’m sorry you are saddled with additional health conditions but at least there are so many more options for this diet now and how wonderful to have a GF bakery near you, I would be in trouble!

Might be a bit TMI but I have PCOS, it is a bear of a disorder and have gone almost a year without a period at all. Well within a week of GF eating I had a cycle! So maybe even if it’s not physically apparent, there are good things happening “behind the scenes”.

@YadaYadaYada It doesn’t offend at all!! There are so many people out there who are gluten intolerant that have strong reactions too. Not to mention that it’s really hard to get a proper diagnosis when someone does have a problem. I think things are better now, but back when I was diagnosed I had read that the average time for a celiac diagnosis from the onset of symptoms was 12 years. I truly believe there are a lot of people out there with celiac that don’t know they have it and they are slowly getting sicker and sicker as time goes on. That is what happened in my case and my doctor finally took my symptoms seriously when I had severe iron deficiency anemia and a ferritin level of 2. The gastro doc he referred me to literally saved my life. A blood test and small intestine biopsy were all it took for a proper diagnosis. I only wish he would have referred me sooner!

I am so happy that there is more awareness now and people are taking steps to improve their health whether they have a celiac diagnosis, gluten intolerance or any other symptoms that improve by removing gluten from their diets.

It’s awesome you are seeing good results “behind the scenes”.

This thread and @missy have reminded me that I need to work on eliminating dairy and eating cleaner, whole foods. I’ve done it in the past and have felt so much better! Thank you for that!!

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@2Neezers, 12 years! Just about fell out of my chair when I read that. All the while people are suffering, with no idea that the food they are eating is the culprit.

I remember in the past looking at the oh so wonderful food pyramid and thinking 6-11 servings of grain daily, how in the world am I going to reach that?! Then it’s no wonder people are so sick with all kinds of autoimmune problems, leaky gut etc.

 

[missy]

@YadaYadaYada you also might want to consider (if changing your diet doesn't work to completely clear your face) Soolantra. It is a topical prescription cream that is a little miracle worker IMO.

Not to mention that it’s really hard to get a proper diagnosis when someone does have a problem. I think things are better now, but back when I was diagnosed I had read that the average time for a celiac diagnosis from the onset of symptoms was 12 years. I truly believe there are a lot of people out there with celiac that don’t know they have it and they are slowly getting sicker and sicker as time goes on.

Totally true. It is hard to get an accurate diagnosis for Celiac and your experience is not uncommon. I am sorry it took 12 years to get your diagnosis but glad you are doing well now!

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@missy, thanks for the suggestion! I tried Metrogel years ago and my skin responded very well to it. My skin cleared completely when I lost weight and was eating primarily Paleo. It’s going to take a bit to get it cleared up again I think but hey, I didn’t get unhealthy overnight and it won’t be undone in that time either.

Also just wanted to mention if anyone bakes gluten free and has a really good recipe, please post it. DH has been making GF Nutella brownies but I think he is game for trying out other recipes.

 

[foxinsox]

@missy, thanks for the suggestion! I tried Metrogel years ago and my skin responded very well to it. My skin cleared completely when I lost weight and was eating primarily Paleo. It’s going to take a bit to get it cleared up again I think but hey, I didn’t get unhealthy overnight and it won’t be undone in that time either.

Also just wanted to mention if anyone bakes gluten free and has a really good recipe, please post it. DH has been making GF Nutella brownies but I think he is game for trying out other recipes.

For cakes and muffins, I do 1:1 substitution of GF baking mixes with normal flours and they always work. I've used a bunch over the years and never had a failure that wasn't attributable to other things (like separating eggs and not whipping the whites enough to be usefully structural where I've also subbed in too much almond meal etc). I've even made french bread using a specialty GF french bread mix which was a treat!
I think King Arthur is well reviewed from what I've seen of US flours? To make them lower-carb, I like subbing in almond meal for some of the flour but if you go all almond meal, it can get a bit heavy. That's another dimension of swapping things out

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@foxinsox speaking of flour, DH bought GF flour to make Nutella brownies, literally all it said on the front was “Gluten-Free Flour”. Turns out it is rice flour and I’m sure in the world of GF flours it is less than ideal from a carb standpoint. However I have found the texture to be very good, more than acceptable and not at all mealy like almond flour baked goods can get.

Just to give you an idea this is the interior consistency:



More dense than a normal brownie for sure. These brownies have three ingredients, eggs, flour and Nutella. Granted not at all healthy but pretty great if you “need” something sweet.

That is good to know about the ratio for substituting with GF flour. When the temps come down from nearly 100F here then maybe I will try baking some muffins.

 

[foxinsox]

Just to give you an idea this is the interior consistency:



More dense than a normal brownie for sure. These brownies have three ingredients, eggs, flour and Nutella. Granted not at all healthy but pretty great if you “need” something sweet.

Ermagherd! that looks perfect. Fudge, dense, bit gooey. It’s 10C (like -200F haha) here so baking is very tempting

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@foxinsox, DH makes these for me and these are his best batch yet, I’ll have to post the recipe.

Cooking and/or baking during a heatwave is just so miserable. We ended up ordering pizza for dinner because it was just too hot.

Of course I didn’t have pizza, instead I made tuna fish ( with avocado, red onion, green pepper and spices) with a sweet potato. The pizza place makes a GF pizza but it’s too expensive IMO and a lot of carbs anyway.

 

[dk168]

The bill…..oh it is a lot. Now initially they told us $6500-$7800 but the doctor worked something out so we paid $5300 which is still a lot. We are not rich people but how can you put a price on a pet?

How could anyone resist that cute face?!

Glad she is on the mend.

DK

 

[dk168]

When I was looking for cookie recipes, I came across one that mixes ground almond, Maple syrup and Paleo baking powder. Very easy to make and tasted great!



DK