Are you gluten free?

Yes I have! I spent 3 months on a very restricted diet due to extremely debilitating digestive problems and having consumed pints of gaviscon and various prescribed drugs. I slowly reintroduced different food & drink whilst taking probiotic capsules and eating plenty of plain 'live' yogurt.
I can now eat anthing, in moderation. If I feel a hint of indigestion/ bloating etc. I can now stop it with diet control & not drugs. I find the more " processed a flour based product is the more likely I am to suffer. So may not be gluten causing an issue.

My gd is gluten free and once wheat was cut out of her diet after her diagnosis, her frequent stomach problems cleared up. Boy are the gluten free (tiny) loaves expensive. I have gluten free flour at home for cakes, but haven't made gluten free bread yet, intend to give it a go sometime.

I suppose later onset of the condition in adults is slightly different and one could experiment with reintroducing non gluten free products.

I do wonder sometimes if there were children when we were young who had conditions that went undiagnosed, or whether in fact some allergies are a relatively new phenomenon

Because of joint problems I was recommended to try a gf diet but don't stick to it obsessively. We do have a coeliac in the family and obviously she has to stick to a totally gf diet.
Yes, Terribull, I wish it had been diagnosed years ago as years of ill-health would have been prevented.
I really don't know if it makes any difference if you're not a coeliac - my joints don't feel much better.

I've thought about going gluten free but someone told me you shouldn't just do it, you need to go to your GP to get tested.

I have been told several times that people with Lupus have found that going GF is helpful but I'm really not willing to give up lovely bread and pasta - not so much cake as I rarely have it anyway being a Heffalump.

I don't see why you shouldn't just do it, Katy, but it does tend to be more expensive, gf bread just isn't the same as a nice crusty loaf and it can be restrictive when eating out.

Ps if you think you could be coeliac, definitely do get tested, but if the blood test indicates you could be, then you may need an endoscopy for a proper diagnosis.

I must admit Jalima I've only become aware of coeliacs recently, I didn't realise there were other associated problems with the condition other than those relating to the stomach. It's a shame, as you say, you don't get an early diagnosis and I do wonder how many people in the past with stomach problems didn't know about gluten intolerance.

I had an intolerance to rice pudding and school milk when I was at junior school but no one listened

I might give it a go then Jalima . Yes the stuff does seem expensive. I've never had digestion problems until just lately. It might not be that, but I suppose it's worth a go.

Terribull if an undiagnosed coeliac eats gluten then the villi in the small intestine could be destroyed altogether.
www.coeliac.org.uk/coeliac-disease/about-coeliac-disease-and-dermatitis-herpetiformis/causes/

Over a period of time this can cause all kinds of ill-health.

If you have digestive problems then it could be something else causing this, Katy - so, whilst eating a gf diet won't harm you and could help, it could in fact be worthwhile having a checkup to see if it could be anything else, eg my friend has diverticulitis so has to be careful what she eats.

Gf bread is, almost invariably, disgusting.

Which capsules are you taking PECS?

I have heard a theory recently that some allergies are triggered by the menopause. That certainly would be a possibility in my case.

I, for one, am so pleased that people are faddier with their food nowadays. Makes eating out and being gf much easier..... apart from the bread!

Have you tried M&S gf soda bread, kitty? It's unsliced and doesn't taste of soda, is fine, especially toasted.

Taking probiotics and eating live yogurt is very beneficial as PECS says.

I think that is about the best one, apart from Schar frozen rolls, that I have found. None of them freeze though so I have to make the effort to go to M&S for it. And, I always forget to take a rolld out in time!

roll!!!

KatyK Some of us are gluten sensitive rather than coeliac and that doesn't show up on the tests. I can always tell when I've inadvertently eaten something containing gluten

The nicest gluten free products that I've found are from M & S, especially their bread.

I have a capsules from Holland & Barratt .. but not the ones to keep in the fridge!
It is possible for your gut bacteria to be out of balance & this can cause problems and be aggravated by certain foods. I was trying to put my gut back in balance. I feel I succeeded. I did do a York test..which cost about £100 but for me it was worth it! I spoke to GP first.
Intolerance Tests - yorktest.com
www.yorktest.com

I did recently go GF for about a week, to see if it made any difference to various gut problems - suffice it to say that bloating was one, and if we'd still had one, there would have been a lot of blaming the dog!

It did make quite a difference - my stomach went down noticeably, and I wasn't eating less, just substituting rice/rice noodles/potatoes for anything with gluten.

The symptoms weren't a massive problem so I've lapsed again - I do like bread and proper pasta - but I really ought to do it again.
Personally, given that the symptoms could hardly be called serious, I wouldn't think of bothering the GP.

There happens to be a very interesting article in today's Sunday Express about GF bread, and how it is full of chemicals. Apart from the rice flour, tapioca starch and maize starch there are also humectants and glycerine to keep it moist. There will be a Channel 5 documentary "Secrets of your supermarket food" later this week, which will lift the lid on what actually goes into GF food which should be quite enlightening.
Although not coeliac (been tested), in recent years I have found that I don't tolerate wheat flour very well, I get stomach pain and bloating from anything made with flour, so I stopped eating such foods when I started low carb eating. Small amounts seem OK, but I eat very little of it - haven't bought bread for 3 years now.

I will take your advice everyone.

White wheat bread, the shocking truth:
www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-shocking-truth-about-bread-413156.html