A little Anecdote

I'm reading this book called Dangerous GrainsWhy Gluten Cereal Grains May Be Hazardous to Your Health by James Brady, M.D., and Ron Haoggan, M.A.


















Ook so when I say reading, I really mean skimming. The book basically details all the effects that ingesting gluten might have on a person i.e. bowel disease (what a nice starter ^_^), Autoimmune Disease, Heart Disease, hair abnormalities (early graying), and even flatulence. Doesn't eating gluten sound soo tasty?

Anyhow, there are little anecdotes in the book to break up some of the medical jargon. One I read was/is particularly...effective. I thought I would share.

An Extreme Reaction to Gluten
~ Deni W.
In 1991 I started having digestive symptoms and losing weight. My doctore started testing. Eventually, during a visit to the doctor I mentioned that I seemed to feel better in the morning if I ate Cream of Rice cereal. The doctor mentioned that there was a rare disorder called celiac sprue and urged me to try a gluten-free diet. I did start feeling better for a while -- but not for long. The weight loss continued. I started becoming "clumsy." I'd drop things and seemed to trip over my own feet. My hands and feet began to feel like they were rubber reather than skin. I lost more weight. With more meds and continued testing, I had so much abdominal pain that it was difficult to function. I was exhausted all the time, and I started having panic attacks. I lost 85 of 215 pounds. I am a tall woman -- but I looked like a concentration camp survivor. I also experienced spontateous bruising, I would watch as a spot on my arm or leg would swell, hurt like heck, and then turn vibrant purple.

In January 1992, I was hospitalized. I could barely use my left hand. I was cold all the time. I was all I could to to stay awake. I was having severe head pains and still losing weight after more testing, a psychaitrist was called in. He annoucned I had what was then called a major affective disorder (depression). I was counseled for anorexia. My guts hurt, my bowel movements were foul, and I was tired of trying to stay alive.

Though still on a gluten-free diet, I was worse than when the doctore first suggested celiac disease. My salvation came when a hospital dietitian was monitoring my food intake due to suspicions of anorexia. The dietitian brought me a photocopy of a booklet about celiac disease. On the last page there was a blurb about making sure your medications had been checked to assure they did not contain gluten. A call to the pharmacist confirmed that 9 of 11 medications I was taking contained gluten. As soon as I stopped taking all but my thyroid meds, I started getting better.

I slowly got my energy back. I started feeling human again. My body had deteriorated so much that it had been devouring itself in an attempt to find protein. I was starving to death.




So basically even our medical doctors are poisoning us with gluten in medicine. This is an extreme case, and in fact, most people who have celiac are overweight. Gluten is really a very dangerous protein. Gotta watch out!

Wheat Gluten: pet killer

My dog is my baby, and she will be my puppy till she passes on. Even though I never see her because she is back in Texas, I want the very best for her. That includes food.
From when they are this big









To this big










isn't she cute? that's mybabies, baby.


I bring pets up (in all their adorableness) because there has been a case of pet food poisoning and killing pets, dogs and cats. I was flipping through the channels today and saw it on FoxNews. I don't typically watch any news station, but when it has to do with pets dying...well I tune in.

Anyhow, the connection between the poisoning and my blog topic are very close. According to MSNBC.com there is a huge recall of over 100 brands of the "cuts and gravy" pet food. So what's the culprit that has caused the death of cats and dogs? The FDA thinks it might be Wheat Gluten. The food manufacturing companies, based in New Jersey and Kansas, use wheat to thicken the gravy sauce.


So there we have it! Gluten isn't meant for humans, so it sure as hell isn't made for pets. How are they possibly meant to eat such a thing in nature? Cut down the stalk of wheat with their claws?


I think it's time more places offer gluten-free foods for humans and pets, because frankly whole foods and trader joes type of stores aren't available to everyone. So come on Ralphs, Vons, Publix, Cost-Co, Sam's Club, etc. get with the program and feed your customers and stop denying them their nutrients!!!

Every Cause Needs One

CNN Anchor Heidi Collins

Such a beautiful PSA funded by CNN to help the National Foundation of Celiac Awareness. PSAs are meant to go on air, so all one has to do is contact their local television. To learn more about it, visit NFCA right here.

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it's pretty cool to stand in line at Whole Foods and the woman's basket next to you is full of GF foods

Big Help

I just want to say how encouraging it is to see that other people are reading my blog. Other people I don't know (and those I do).

For my work, I have to set up these dinners that hollywood insiders (i.e. producers, screenwriters, visual effects supervisors, etc.) go to and meet with various students. Sometimes I have to sit in on the dinners. Last week, being one of those weeks. The dinner planned was a penne pasta with shrimp.






WOAH now! That is a huge No-No. So I spoke with the waiter, Frederico, and asked him if there was any way the kitchen could cook me up something that I could eat. (By the way, I work for my Universities Film school and the dinners are catered by the same company who runs the cafeteria here. Sodexho.) I had to explain several times to my hard to understand latino friend what gluten was and what I could not have. Eventually I just asked if I could have a chicken dish with no pasta. He obliges and I receive a (not so great) chicken breast over mexican rice. It was not the best combination of flavors or fantastic tasting, but it was GF.

Tonight I thought I'd have to sit in on the dinner again, and I ran into Frederico in the cafeteria at lunch. He introduced me to the chef who would be cooking the dinner for tonight, and he, Louis, asked me what I would like. Isn't that nice? It ends up that tonights dinner is GF anyhow, and that we have enough students to sit in on the dinners. It's still nice to know they are happy to help me out.


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This ones good for St. Patrick's Day. Being that it's green and all.

Spinach & Artichoke Dip









recipe found here

Ingredients
2 cups shredded gf mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup gf sour cream
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated & divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 roasted garlic cloves
One 14 ounce can gf artichoke hearts (in water), drained & chopped
16 ounces gf cream cheese
5 ounces frozen spinach, thawed, drained & chopped
gf tortilla chips (most are)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups mozzarella, sour cream, 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, pepper, garlic, artichoke hearts, cream cheese and spinach. Stir until thoroughly blended.

Spoon mixture into a 1-1/2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown on top.
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Fruit is naturally gluten-free.
It's also naturally fantastic.

Gluten a Different Sort of Drug.

Autism. I have family friends whose children are anywhere from slightly autistic to severely autistic. Austism basically makes them a little off beat. They have trouble communicating with others and communicating their feelings and emotions. They can be socially awkward or appear to have no social skills. Often times they are amazing musicians or artists but not so good conversationalists.

So where does Autism and Gluten meet? Well they have a nice little rendez-vous in the treatment quad. According to autism.org, a popular treatment method for Autistic children is to put them on gluten free/casien free diets. (casein is a protein found in all dairy products). According to the thousands of parents that have put their kids on a strict gluten/casein free diet, they have seen dramatic differences. One site, glutensolutions.com, goes so far as to state that gluten and casein are pretty much poison to most autistic children. These proteins leak into their guts (remember my last post about leaky gut syndrome?) completely undigested and attach to what is called the opiate receptors of the child's brain.

That kind of sounds to me like these wheat and milk products are acting like a drug such as morphine, cocaine, or heroine.

If you know any one who's child is autistic, talk to them about trying out a gluten/casein free diet.

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www.bakeryonmain.com


I went to Whole Foods today (I love that store, always have) and bought my parents a bag of gluten-free granola. Yes, that's correct. I bought them something. I was talking to my mom on Sunday when she was in the Whole Foods in Houston, I was telling her about this FantTASTic granola. Apparently they didn't have it at their whole foods, so I bought them some and plan on sending it out tomorrow. I've never had any granola this good, never.





Available in five amazing flavors. My personal favorite?
Apple Raisin Walnut


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What makes Glacéau Smart Water smart? It's not all that shocking...

mean little protein

Oh? So you want to know another side effect that occurs when someone who is sensitive to Gluten ingests the protein? I'm glad you asked!!

Well, my dear, according to enzymestuff.com it causes our cells to inflame, to swell, to get bigger. BAD NEWS! It can also lead to what some refer to as a Leaky Gut Syndrome. Sounds delightful, does it not? And what exactly is this leaky gut thing? As the bodies white blood cells go into kamikaze full attack mode on the body, they attack the lining of the gut and essentially destroy the blockers that keep food out of the blood supply and let nutrients in. yuck.


So with all this bad that happens as a result of eating gluten how come so many people STILL don't know about it?! Why is it that my brother is only going gluten-free for four months and if he doesn't see any changes then he won't stay on the diet? (this may be because he loves his beer). The fact that this is an issue that causes so many health problems later on in life and still so many people or completely unaware of the proteins existance even is astounding. The medical community has a job to do, and that is to ensure the over all health of the citizens they serve. Right now, they are totally sucking at it.


I feel like a recipe today. A recipe for some comfort food. Soup.
surprisingly most soups have flour in them. it's used as a thickening agent.
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Baked Potato Soup
recipe found on www.glutenfreeda.com











Ingredients
1-1/4 pounds baking potatoes
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons gluten-free flour
3 cups milk
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup green onions, divided
3 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

Directions
reheat oven to 400°F.

Pierce potatoes with a fork; bake for 1 hour or until tender. Let cool.
When cool, peel potatoes and coarsely mash; discarding skins.

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; whisk in gf flour and cook until combined. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly until blended. Continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thick and bubbly, about 8-10 minutes. Add mashed potatoes and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Remove saucepan from heat and stir in sour cream and half the green onions. Return saucepan to low heat and cook for 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated (do not let boil).

To serve, sprinkle each serving with crumbled bacon and remaining cheese and green onions.
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don't lay out in the sun in southern california for 2 1/2 hours with out sunscreen.

What a mean little protein!

So what exactly happens when some with a gluten sensitivity ingests that little protein?

Quite frankly it depends on the person, everyone reacts differently because...well, no one person is the same (duh)

Alot of the problems I have today are a result of my eating gluten for 19 years. I'll just list off the things I attribute to this: asthma, allergies, really red face when I work out and an extremely high heart rate while working out (like...way too high), spider veins and vericose veins (at age 14 I shouldn't have to feel embarrassed when girls make comments about the "purple things" on my legs), and red bumps on the back of my arms and tops of my thighs. These are all things that I am highly self conscious of, even now.

When I eat gluten now, whether purposefully (that Pazookie at BJ's was far too tempting...a giant chocolate chip cookie all warm and gooey covered with vanilla ice cream!?! mmmm) or accidently (Caesar dressing...) I react in a few different ways. Either my asthma and allergies kick into full gear, so i'm gasping for breath in between each spine breaking sneeze and watery eyes, or I have, shall we say, indigestion. My thoughts get cloudy and fuzzy and I just feel awful in general. All that is only what I NOTICE happening. Inside something entirely different is going on. The gluten i've eaten is causing an all out civil war of sorts in my body. My body doesn't recognize the gluten protein as something good, and since the gluten attaches itself to my Villi inside my intestines my white blood cells begin to destroy those Villi.



Why do I need these Villi? What do they do for me? They are little hair like receptors that absorb the nutrients in the food we eat. So when the Villi are gone, I can't absorb the nutrients I need. As a result those senstive to gluten/celiacs often are malnurished and have deficencies.

OK, so what happens to me when I eat gluten isn't all that bad, thank GOD. Some people get terrible diarrhea, weight loss, inability to lose/gain weight, allergice reactions, mild weakness, bloating, bone pain, etc. These are just the immediate results that can happen.

Celiac and Gluten-intolerance is a LATENT genetic disorder. I'll talk more about the long term affects. This post is getting far too long.

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Today's Plate!

Breakfast: Apple Raisen Walnut Granola made by Bakery on Main mixed with Craisens and Apple Cinnamon cheerio-type cerealGlutino brand(all gluten-free of course) and Tazo Chai Tea.

Lunch: Mexican Rice and Earl Grey Tea. [[granola is filling]]

Dinner: Grilled chicken on a bed of spinach with red and yellow bell peppers, mushrooms, and carrots with a drizzle of balsamic vinegarette and olive oil.

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Think of all the chocolate that doesn't have gluten in it.

Gluten? Isn't that one of the seven deadly sins?

Up until this summer I had never heard the word "gluten." Up until this summer I had no idea such an unopposing word could be so destructive. Little did I know, that such a little word meant so much.

According to several books such as Living Gluten-Free for Dummies (you know from the delightful little series) and Gluten-Free 101, gluten is a protein found in grains such as wheat, rye, barley, spelt, kamut, and tritcale. First off, what on earth are the last three? Spelt, kamut, and tricale? I just looked up spelt and it is an ancient grain used by the egyptians, a grandparent of sorts to wheat (according to www.spelt.com). However, what got me the most about gluten is wheat.

WHAT?! you mean i can't have ANY wheat products? no bread? beer? cake? pasta? What the hell am i supposed to eat?! Salad all day?

That's pretty much how i reacted when my mother told me she was gluten-intolerant and that this problem was genetic. I've been living my life for nineteen years enjoying delicious bread products and pasta and all sorts of exotic foods that are all made with things derived from wheat, rye, or barley. Ever since then, I've dedicated my time to learning more about this little problem i have. I'm still learning. I will continue to learn about the food i put in my mouth and how it affects my body.

In the upcoming posts I'll be discussing problems associated with Gluten intolerance, sensitivity, and celiacs disease, and what the difference between each of these things is. As I learn what it means to live a gluten-free lifestyle, I plan on sharing my experiences and thoughts. Recipes, anecdotes, and facts should be expected from this blog in the upcoming posts.

If any question or comment comes to mind, please don't hesitate to leave a note.