I don’t have full-blown celiac disease. I’m gluten sensitive meaning, too much of it, or eating it even in small amounts regularly for long periods of time, makes me sick. So, technically, it’s a mild form of celiac disease, which shouldn’t go further because it can cause a variety of other nasty problems. In short, I can eat it occasionally and have very little reaction. If I eat it daily, even in small amounts, over time I have more intense, ongoing reactions. These can last for days, or even weeks. Several episodes have required medical attention and antibiotics to heal secondary infections caused by initial reactions. Oddly, during none of my physicals, or when I’ve presented at a hospital or my docs’ offices, no one questioned me about gluten sensitivity or suggested I be checked for it. I learned about it, and celiac disease while researching other areas of pathology in school and on the job. In the doing, I recognized specific illnesses and symptoms I’d struggled with for years. Image via me, my mouse and Microsoft 3D Paint :) Not being thrilled with the idea, but wanting to be pro-active with my health, I wanted to see if going gluten-free would help. I did it, thinking it’d be a short term, trial basis and it made such a great difference in my health, for the good, I’ve stuck with it, for the most part, since then. I wish I’d learned about it sooner. When I drastically reduced gluten in my diet, to nearly none, the change in my health was noticeable in only a couple days. As time goes on, the more I learn about gluten-free alternatives to favorite recipes, which makes it easier still to maintain a mostly gluten-free diet. Below are some of the illnesses I experienced on a near daily basis during the years I ate gluten-laced foods consistently. 💥 Abdominal pain: I had this almost daily. My diagnosis, multiple times over, was (and has continued to be) spastic colon, aggravated by stress and anxiety. I was medicated for it, and took the meds faithfully but most days, especially after a meal, I had abdominal pain anyway. 💥 Bloating 💥 Cystic acne that sometimes developed into an abscess 💥 Bouts of moderate fatigue 💥 Nausea MoreI had other health challenges that may or may not have been due to gluten, but all of them are sometimes due to gluten sensitivity. Several of these I experienced regularly and they were intense enough to receive treatment for. Some were short-term and sporadic. Others were long-term and regularly occurring. 💥Unexplained weight loss 💥Iron deficiency 💥Anxiety 💥Auto-immune disorders 💥Joint and muscle pain 💥Arm/leg numbness 💥Brain fog Again, knowledge is power!I still eat gluten occasionally, but not on a daily basis. And, if you’re a lover of gluten-rich foods, there’s good news! Gluten-free doesn’t mean you have to give up stuff that tastes great! There are bunches of gluten-free recipes for regular, gourmet and specialty food items. It isn’t more expensive to be gluten free. You can even make your own gluten-free flours with stuff you probably already have in your pantry that's readily available and inexpensive to buy, like rice! Brown or white, stick it in a coffee mill and shazam! You've got gluten-free flour! Gluten-free foods are appealing and don't have to be even a little bit boring You can make them boring though, if that's how you roll... You can enjoy most of your favorite foods in gluten-free versions that are no more difficult to make than the regular versions. The difference is worth a test drive... Since maintaining a mostly gluten-free diet, I’ve had no cystic acne outbreaks. I still get hormonal-flux related acne, occasionally and on schedule, but not cystic acne. I don’t have as many bouts of nausea or abdominal pain after eating, and also I have little to no lung congestion after (or even during) a meal. Episodes of anxiety and depression are rare, short lived and I don’t take meds for either. Good stuff! Seeing is believing 😊Here are a few of my fav YouTube chefs presenting some tasty, gluten-free recipes. Their channels made learning to prepare vegan and gluten-free foods much, MUCH easier! I subscribe to all of their channels and if you like their work, I hope you will too. It’s your chance to support the indie biz community. Every subscriber and thumbs-up they get helps them earn a living from the work they produce as vloggers. Via TheOfficialHungry ShoutOutsThe wrap! A new style of content starts today, in this section. I'm adopting it from my friend and colleague, Ann Rains of RainsWriter and the New-Harmony Gazette. She ends every post with a scripture from the Bible. I find that I always look forward to seeing what selection she's used. Whatever it is, my soul reacts to it in good ways and the rest of me follows. I want to ensure I follow suit providing the same opportunity to flashPress readers, so here ya go... ...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 'Til next week,
Shalom
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June 2018
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