Gluten free diets help families overcome medical challenges
Although Doris Maki believes she has had celiac disease most of her life, she didn’t find out about it until she was 62.
The Campbellford resident had always had some symptoms including bloating, occasional diarrhea and low iron levels, yet she had always passed it off as due to something else.
After getting medical tests for something entirely different — a bout of C. difficile in her early 60s — doctors stumbled upon the fact that she did indeed have Celiac: A genetic condition triggered by consuming gluten.
Eating gluten, found in most cereal grains including in most baked goods such as breads and muffins, damages the small bowel and means the person can’t properly absorb nutrients such as iron, folate, calcium, vitamin D, protein and fat.
“Celiac never goes away. But the good thing is that there’s no need for medication. It can be maintained by your diet.”
Rebecca Keeling
There’s no cure. The only way to treat it is to not eat gluten.
So that’s what Maki did: She went to specialty shops to find gluten free products and searched on the Internet for gluten free recipes, learning how to make her own bread, cookies and pizza crusts.
She also had to read ingredient-lists carefully and only buy certain kinds of ketchup and be careful of trace amounts of gluten in certain toothpastes.
Within three months of going gluten free, she said doctors told her she had vastly improved her health.
“And I’ve had no problems since,” Maki said.
It is estimated that one in 133 people in Canada are affected by celiac disease, according to the Canadian Celiac Association, although everyone who has it may not know it.
Symptoms also include extreme fatigue, abdominal pain, flatulence and weight loss.
The disease can also lead to a serious skin condition called dermatitis herpetiformis, which creates an itchy rash with bumps and blisters.
Luckily, there are more gluten free products readily available and they’re getting tastier.
You can find gluten free products such as bread and cookies in most major grocery stores.
Bakeries cater to those who want gluten free and many restaurants are also offering gluten free fare.
But with all the new products available (even including gluten-free beer) some are taking it as a sign that not eating gluten is healthier in general, even if you don’t have celiac or related health troubles.
That, however, is a myth, said registered dietitian Erica Diamond, with the Peterborough County-City Health Unit.
Unless you are diagnosed with celiac or related health troubles, it is not recommended that you embark on a gluten free lifestyle, she said.
Gluten is in so many foods — including many processed fruits and vegetables — that people would be missing out on a balanced diet if they try to go gluten free, Diamond said.
Those with celiac often live healthy lives without gluten but are well educated on their diet choices and have no other choice but to live gluten free for their quality of life, Diamond said.
If you see gluten free brownies in the grocery store, don’t be deceived that they’re any healthier than regular brownies because they could still be loaded with sugar and fat, she said.
As always, healthy living centres around a balanced diet and regular exercise, she adds.
Meanwhile, Peterborough mother Rebecca Keeling said she has been living gluten free since being diagnosed with celiac at age 31 after suffering from bowel problems, rashes, gas and feeling tired all the time.
It wasn’t too much of a surprise then when her eldest son Jakob was also diagnosed at age two after being anemic, having painful gas and not gaining weight.
Going gluten free was no big deal for Jakob, she said, because he hadn’t become accustomed to regular bread, cake or pizza crusts.
“He doesn’t know what he’s missing,” said Rebecca, a mother-of-two who is a home daycare provider in the city.
Within months of his diet change, Jakob started to gain weight and feel better, she said.
But Jakob’s health took another turn when at age seven he was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism. He wouldn’t talk to people at school and wouldn’t look most people in the eye.
For two years, he didn’t say a single word to his teacher.
There seems to be a connection between the two diagnoses: Rebecca said children with autism often also have trouble with their digestive system.
Keeping his Celiac in check by staying gluten free helps him improve social skills, she says.
“If he’s already feeling anxious and then is physically uncomfortable on top of that, the whole thing just snowballs,” she said.
With medication, therapy and a gluten free lifestyle, Jakob is now getting better at speaking to others and socializing with classmates at Highland Heights Public School.
And Rebecca said she has learned to make her own gluten free snacks such as crackers, granola bars and banana bread so Jakob doesn’t have to feel so different from others during nutrition breaks at school.
The one big misconception about celiac, Rebecca said, is that people think it will go away because it’s similar to an allergy.
“Celiac never goes away,” she said. “But the good thing is that there’s no need for medication. It can be maintained by your diet.”
NOTES: The Peterborough and Area chapter of the Canadian Celiac Association meets four times per year, said co-president Doris Maki. About 50 people regularly come out to the meetings where they can sample new gluten free products or listen to guest speakers. The chapter is also a social group, often having potluck dinners, she said. To get in touch with the local chapter, call 905-372-2361….. If you ever need to speak to a registered dietitian, you can always call Eat Right Ontario at 877-510-5102, says registered dietitian Erica Diamond.
Gluten free Recipes with Bill & Sheila
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