celiac

[berdycha]

Since I have been diagnosed with celiac and started gluten free I have gained weight what am I doing wrong.  I don't eat bread or pasta unless it's gluten free and if I do eat it it is not too much because I don't like taste of it.

[Paxiled]

Okay, eating some crow.  Though about it and realized that teff, like oats, though high in protein and great for making Ethiopian bread, does not, repeat not, contain gluten.  Oops.  Double Oops.  Great tasting grain, by the way.

[Paxiled]

A study just reported confirms what high animal protein diets like the paleo and Atkins have been criticized for -- a higher incidence of cancer and heart disease.  Bulgar is wheat, not a separate grain.  Gluten is also found in teff and some other grains.  But when I managed health food stores people supposedly with gluten problems had no problems eating spelt or teff, so again, unfortunately as with so many things today, one has to experiment to see where the true problem lies.

[gymdandee]

Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley, spelt, kamut, and bulgur. It's also in processed foods and personal care products used as a stabilizing agent. you find it in cheese spreads,and margarine. It's also in sauces and gravies it prevents them from curdling. You can find it in thickening hair conditioners and  mascaras Gluten is made up of two main proteins and a person can be sensitive to either one or to one of the 12 smaller units that make up gliadin.
Gliadin and glutenins are the two proteins that make up gluten. Any one of these can lead to inflammation. There's a difference between celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. Cut back on your carbs!! Are you eating to much fruits? Try the Mediterranean diet or the Paleo Diet.

[Paxiled]

The gallbladder is involved in digesting fats -- first the liver does some work and then sends it on to the gallbladder, so it could have an effect on fat digestion.  Did they have you take any digestive enzymes to help you digest fats?  I have no idea if this has anything to do with your weight gain, but I can see where it certainly might.  In natural medicine they often use artichoke herb to help the liver handle its fat responsibilities, so that's also an avenue you might pursue with a naturopath, but again, I don't know if that has anything to do with your weight gain.  As for the above post, by all means read up, but that's mostly a wheat problem and a processed food problem.  People have always eaten whole grains without the problems we see now, but wheat in particular, like cows, is something humans invented by hybridizing from other grains or animals.  That's why these two foods have presented so many problems because the hybridization was done with purposes other than health or ease of digestion in mind.  Many people feel the gluten problem is really just the result of a system overwhelmed by an extreme sensitivity to wheat, and many people with a supposed gluten problem find they can eat gluten containing grains that aren't wheat.  Many also can't, so it's not a given this will happen, but it does happen and suggests maybe gluten isn't really the culprit here.  Good luck.

[gymdandee]

I suggest reading the book by Dr. David Perlmutter Grain Brain!

[skydnsr]

Good point about the thyroid.

[Paxiled]

Had your thyroid checked?

[skydnsr]

I can see why you're concerned.  I don't know how long it took you to gain the 40 pounds, but 40 lb. is a significant amount of weight, even if it accumulated over a long period of time.  There's nothing about eating gluten-free, per se, that should make you gain that much weight.  Most people stay close to the same weight after they go GF.  Some might gain a little weight, some might lose a little, and some will lose a lot -- especially if they don't replace their former gluten foods with, as Paxiled points out, a lot of high-carb gluten subsitutes.  But people don't generally gain 40 lb., just from eating gluten-free.  I don't think that eating more fruits and vegetables is likely to be what's causing the problem.  Usually, eating more fruits and vegetables will help people to lose weight, if anything.  

I really can't imagine what is going on to cause this problem, but something is, because we know it's not magic.  There has to be a reason.  I don't know if it could have anything to do with the gall bladder issue; that would be a good thing to ask your doctor about.  I would also review medications with your doctor or pharmacist, to identify any medications that could possibly have triggered weight gain.  If a direct reason for the weight gain cannot be readily identified, then I would approach the problem as a straightforward obesity issue and work on it from that perspective.  Good luck.

[berdycha]

I have gained 40 pounds.  I am exercising 3 times a week.  I don't buy a lot of the products that say gluten free.  I am eating more vegetables and fruit.  I also had my gallbladder removed at same time not sure if that has anything to do with it.

[Paxiled]

If you're buying packaged gluten free foods, that's your problem.  Most of them try to duplicate the flavor of what Americans are used to eating by using a lot of sugar and simple carbs.  They're not healthy for anyone.  What you need to do is learn to use the whole forms of the gluten free grains and seeds, such as millet, quinoa, brown rice, etc.  You can get pasta made of whole brown rice or quinoa, for example, and it will be quite fine if you just use the pure product and not a prepared food.  

[skydnsr]

You might try stopping the GF products altogether.  I used those things in a transitional way for a few months, but now I just don't eat bread, pasta, crackers, tortillas, cakes, cookies, or any of that.  In fact, I have been eating totally grain-free for the past couple of months, and I like it.  I don't plan to go back.  I'm losing a little weight, slowly, and I like how I feel.

How much weight have you gained?  Just a pound or two, or was it a lot?  And over how long a period of time, if you don't mind my asking?