Gluten Free But Still Not Really Feeling Well?

18:19

I have taken some classes offered by our local community education which are taught by a wonderful chef who also has Celiac Desease. The classes have been very helpful and enlightening, if a little depressing at times. In the second class of a recent series, a classmate told us she had gone home from the first class and cried about all the things she now could not eat. After a moment of mourning the loss of more foods, I have been grateful to find out why I sometimes don’t feel well, even though I have been gluten-free for over two years. With increased knowledge I can avoid those foods that are making my tummy hurt. Or I can decide whether I want it badly enough to pay for it later. The problem with that is, if it hurts, it is doing damage.



It is interesting that these are the same foods that I could not eat at all when I was first diagnosed and so sick. No-brainer, right? If they made me really sick back then, it makes sense that they would still be the culprits now.
A major offender is lectin, a protein that is hard to break down. Lectins are found in grains, not just the ones we know we should avoid, but also in quinoa, rice, buckwheat, oats, millet and corn. They are also in legumes, which is all dried beans and peanuts. The nightshade family are also high in lectins. This includes potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. That last one isn’t such a hard one for me to give up. Zucchini, green peas, asparagus, radishes, mushrooms, and cucumbers are high in lectins as well. Really just the seeds of the cucumber so you could eat them if you remove the seeds. I find it interesting that cucumbers were probably the last vegetable that I was able to add back into my diet. That pretty much wipes out what I plant in my garden and look forward to every summer Guess I will plant more squash this year.
Pay attention to what you are eating and how you feel afterward. Not all foods will effect everyone the same way. I, for example, can eat rice with no problem, but our teacher has trouble within ten minutes of eating it. I really, really love tomato basil soup! But now I know why I always have a stomachache the day after I eat it. Or why I have issues for an entire day after eating potatoes.
I hope this hasn’t been too depressing. As always, concentrate on all the yummy foods you can eat. I am grateful for the increased knowledge and amenjoying feeling better than I have for a very long time.

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