Q & A: Gluten Defined

For the record, there are actually more gluten/wheat ingredients than I listed in my last post.  I only gave you a few to give you an idea of how intense this is.  Actually, the person I'm working with actually thinks I have celiac disease because of the severity of my symptoms--determined through elimination, supplement testing, etc.  The testing may never show positive because I've now been off of gluten for a bit.  Anyway...  I am hoping to answer more questions in this post.  All of my information is taken from three books (that I hope to acquire someday): Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern, Healhier Without Wheat by Dr. Stephen Wangen, and The G Free Diet by Elisabeth Hasselbeck.  If you are able to acquire and read these books, you will be well on your way to understand living gluten free.  Short, easy, and enjoyable reads.

What is celiac disease?
 Celiac disease is a digestive disorder which displays a toxic reaction to gluten--the protein found in certain grains.  It is hereditary, in your gene pool, chronic (meaning it won't ever go away), and autoimmune (meaning that your immune system attacks itself).  Gluten damages the tiny villi lining your small intestine and prevents your body from absorbing the nutrients it requires, which eventually leads to numerous health problems: colon cancer, woman's reproductive/cycle difficulties, infertility, miscarriage, diabetes, itchy or dry skin, anemia, lack of energy or appetite, constipation, diarrhhea, weight gain or loss, headaches, joint pain, arthritis, loss of dental enamel, cramps, sores, stunted growth, numbness in arms/legs, ear infections, vomiting, eczema, depression, insomnia, osteoporosis, Autism, Down Syndrome and a million other serious health problems.  You carry the gene, but it needs something major to happen to awaken it (I've always had problems with it, but we think that marriage and a miscarriage brought the awakening).

What is gluten?
Gluten is the protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and contaminated oats, and a host of other products.  It is the binder that holds foods together.  It can be found in food, vitamins, postage stamp adhesive, etc.  It requires extreme vigilance to avoid contamination.  I recently discovered this on Sunday.  It was communion, and I decided to go ahead and consume the communion wafer.  By lunch, my stomach was in severe cramps--enough to make me grab some pain medication.  The diarrhea and congestion ensued and I struggled to keep awake.  Brian told me I looked awful (my face sometimes turns colors), and my rash returned.  Sounds crazy, doesn't it?  Something so small caused a bad reaction.  It may have been something else, as well, I don't know.

Who benefits from a gluten free diet?
Obviously, those who need to avoid gluten.  Other people who choose to limit their gluten intake will benefit as well for several reasons.  One, you won't overload your system with gluten and save yourself the trouble of a gluten free life.  Two, it's just healthier because you add more fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet and eliminate processed foods, chemicals, and other unhealthy options.  Now, I'm not saying to not enjoy your food or that you can't ever eat ice cream.  I made chocolate pudding last night because I needed something sweet and chocolaty.  Eating healthy does not mean food needs to taste bad, look bad, or that you need to count calories.  You just need a bit of knowledge.  Think about what you are putting in your body.  The best foods are those that are freshest and natural--think about it, the farther the food is from the source, the worse it is for you.  When you cook fruits and veggies, only cook them until they are fork tender--otherwise you deplete the nutrients.  You also need a balanced diet.

For instance, if you figure out your BMI, you can figure out how many servings you need daily of the food groups.  Brian and I both average about 1700-20 something.  No, I don't count calories or servings, but this is a general guide for how I plan our meals, and I don't really think about it much.  At any rate, this means we use a 8, 10, 12, 14 ratio.  What does this mean, well, that's carbs/fiber, vegetables, protein (fish, poultry, meat, eggs, beans, nuts, cheese), and good fats (nuts, avocado, raw milk, butter, oil, cheese, oily fish, cheese).  If you have a dinner plate (mine are oversized, so I adjust), 3/4 of your servings should be veggies/fruits, and a serving of grains and a serving of protein.  A serving is about the size of your palm.  It has also been proven that if you eat 6-8 small meals a day, it's better for you because your blood sugar levels stay even, your energy source has a constant fuel, and you will be less tempted to overeat.  Getting enough water a day is good, too.  Good eating isn't about dieting and following the fads, it's about knowing what is good for you and how to balance your diet.  I'll write more about this later.

You also need to know the glycemic index of food.  For instance, white flour loses 80% of its nutrients in the process of refining it and has a glycemic index of 71.  Ironically, if you compare all the various grains, wheat has one of the very lowest nutrient rich ratings.  The growing and consumption of wheat and its resulting intolerance is a recent occurance.  It was helped when all of the processed foods were on the rise 50 years ago (interestingly enough, the rise of feminism, evolution, divorce, abortion, working woman, etc all seemed to happen about the same time).  Raw wheat is toxic to humans, and most wheat produced today has been genetically modified to ensure faster growth.

That's enough technical information for one post.  I'm not fond of it myself.  :-)

In other news, my cookbook came in from the library.  And I want this one.  Badly.  It's called 1,000 Gluten Free Recipes by Carol Fenster.  It's like having 5 books in 1.  Most GF cookbooks focus on one aspect of food (comfort, pies, breads, etc).  This is like the Taste of Home or Betty Crocker cookbook for GF.  Instead of me having to convert every recipe or experiment, it's done for me.  AND, it teaches me which flours to use if, say, I want a crispy crust and light crumb, or a dense crumb, but high rise, etc.  It teaches liquid and flour ratios. I LOVE this cookbook!

Smiles!