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Eating Poison is Glamorous

terry — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 19:50:00 +0000

How many times, after a meal, have we said to ourselves, “Well that did not agree with me!” Wouldn’t it be better and more exact to say, “Well I ate poison again.” I realize that I am talking about semantics here, but at least this way we as a society would stop fooling ourselves. Every time we react unfavorably to a meal, we have given ourselves a form of poison. So why do we try and hid the fact? Perhaps it is because food companies and fast food restaurants have glamorized the foods that are bad for us. We have been told that the wealthy and those that live the good live eat these foods. They tell us that these foods are cool. The pretty and glamorous eat them. Therefore, shouldn’t we eat these food so we can be glamorous too. Or are these individuals suffering from the same affects rest of us are? That would be: vomiting, stomach aches, diarrhea, gastric reflux, anemia and all the digestive diseases that follow these symptoms. As a society and a species we are trying to change our eating habits too fast with poor and very dangerous results.

How aware are Physicians of Adult Onset Celiac Disease?

terry — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 23:45:16 +0000

Celiac Disease is on the rise. More and more individuals are affected by this autoimmune disease. How aware are physicians of this disease which more than not appears as digestive distress? A study done a few years ago asked this same question. The study taken in the Southern California, found that physicians were not that aware. Specifically, the study found that primary care physicians and internists diagnosed Adult Onset Celiac Disease only 11% of the time compared to 65% by gastroenterologists. Most of the physicians knew about wheat intolerance in children, by only 32% knew about Adult Onset. Of the physicians studied (90%) knew that diarrhea was a symptom. However, less knew that symptoms of irritable bowel symptoms (71%), chronic abdominal pain (67%), fatigue (54%), depression and irritability (24%), or the association with diabetes (13%), anemia (45%), or osteoporosis (45%), were, in any way connected with Celiac Disease. Many physicians (44%) were unaware that the diagnosis of Celiac Disease was made by an endomysial antibodies test (ELISA). The study concluded that lack of awareness on the part of physicians may lead to under-diagnosis of Celiac Disease. The study further suggested a need for further education of United States physicians.

So to eliminate the average 11 to 17 year wait for a correct diagnosis, what is a person to do? If you have money you might fly to Ireland. At a symposium in Ireland last year, the Irish physicians and gastroenterologists showed innovation and progressive thinking in the study of Digestive diseases. The country showcased its immunology research and innovations that reached far beyond Celiac Disease into IBD, IBS, and other conditions.

Article for Living Without Magazine

terry — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:19:01 +0000

This month I have a 5 page article in the magazine “Living Without”. It is in the “So Good” section of the magazine. It contains Allergy-free kid meals to try for school lunches. You will find the article in the Aug/Sept issue in markets and health food stores or try www.livingwithout.com and click on the Aug/Sept issue. It is entitled: Lunchbox Adventures. Enjoy!

Eight Years of Diarrhea (Part 4 Light at the End of the Tunnel)

terry — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 01:10:04 +0000

After a few months on a gluten-free diet, our lady in this story was feeling better. So good in-fact that she decided to have turkey sausage with eggs one morning. That meal put her into the hospital. Why? The answer is: for a couple of reasons. First, any newly diagnosed Celiac are very sensitive to lipids (fats) and will have great difficulty digesting them. The first year after my sons’ diagnosis, I only cooked with olive and vegetable oils, and did not give them any sausages, bacon, or ham. Secondly, she later found out she was sensitive to eggs (this was short lived). Her diarrhea was so bad that she needed 2 days in the hospital to rehydrate her. Her doctors had no answers other than medication that was not working. Luckily for her one of her friends, who had heard about the Specific Carbohydate Diet, suggested she try it. This diet is for individuals with bowel diseases such as: Crohn disease, chronic diarrhea, ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis, and Celiac disease. The theory behind this diet is: eating too much complex carbohydrates in our diet such as breads, donuts, and fast food etc., that are difficult to digest, may cause very harmful bacteria to grow in our intestines. It seems that no amount of medication can cure this bacterial infestation. The only way to rid one’s self of the bacteria is to starve out the bacteria. This bacteria feeds on disaccharides and polysaccharides. Any type of complex carbohydrate must be eliminated to get rid of the bacteria. This is not an easy diet (I will explain it further in a future blog). However, the lady in this story embraced the diet and is healing again. Hopefully, she will not go off the diet until the gut is totally healed (about a year). Only time will tell. End

Eight Years of Diarrhea (Part 3 - Negotiating the Gluten-free Jungle)

terry — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 00:37:33 +0000

After the lady of our story was diagnosis with gluten intolerance, she assumed that her problems were over. “Just stop eating items containing gluten”, were the instructions of her physician. A task easier said than done. She stopped eating breads, pastas, and crackers containing wheat. She stopped using normal flour for cooking. However, the immediate change in her condition did not occur. She still had some problems with diarrhea. Her physician retested her for gluten and found she still tested positive. What was she doing wrong? Her physician assumed that she knew that gluten is used in commercial foods as a thickener or binder and did not give her a list of possible condiments containing gluten. This time he told her to read the ingredients of EVERYTHING. She found that her ice cream, cheese spreads, yogurt, canned fruits, creamed vegetables, and soups, even broths, all contained gluten. Her condiments such as soy sauce, mustards, some ketchups, and salad dressings contained gluten. Her spices, extracts, flavorings, even her favorite candy, all contained gluten. Becoming gluten-free was not as easy as she thought.

To be continued……….

Eight Years of Diarrhea (Part 2 -the symptoms)

terry — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:31:52 +0000

Our lady in this story started noticing a skin rash on her forearms. She did not experience any itching or pain from the rash. A few months later the rash spread to almost every part of her body. She went to a dermatologist who performed a skin biopsy. The results showed lupus. She was then referred to a rheumatologist for consultation and tests. The medicine prescribed by the rheumatologist cleared the skin rash but not the diarrhea. She was then sent to a gastroenterologist to see if her chronic diarrhea was related to her lupus. After her second colonoscopy she was finally diagnosis with colitis. However, none of the medications prescribed helped the diarrhea. After some research she found a gluten savy doctor and was tested for gluten intolerance. The test results were positve. Unfortunately this was not the end of her story.

To be continued…..

Eight Years of Diarrhea (Part 1)

terry — Sat, 22 May 2010 20:56:03 +0000

This isn’t exactly the topic you hear at a cocktail party or around the dinner table. But with the increased amount of population experiencing this type of problem, maybe it should be. With Celiac disease the amount of years of suffering prior to diagnosis is about 11 years to 17 years. So in a way, this individual was lucky. Unfortunately, her story does not end with the diagnosis.

The lady involved in this story is like any normal person. She wasn’t perfect; she smoked and drank some wine, but that was about it. She tried to eat healthy food. One day she started experiencing diarrhea. After two weeks she went to her physician. He told her that her problem was probably due to stress and prescribed medication with the instructions to come back if the medication did not work. One month later she was back and was dehydrated. This time he ran a battery of tests (Celiac and gluten intolerance is not included in normal tests, it has to be requested). This set of tests came out negative. He tried an assortment of different medications. A year later she started to show symptoms of a very serious autoimmune disease.

To be continued…

A Mom Fighting for Her Children

terry — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:12:05 +0000

I recently heard of a story that amazed me. A young mother of three, took her children to her In-laws for dinner. The children all have gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance, and one is allergic to corn. The In-laws dinner consisted of : meat, pasta, wheat bread, corn on the Cobb, and ice cream. The mother asked her In-laws why they fixed a meal that would harm her children. The response was that the allergic stuff was stupid and the kids just needed to eat more. The Mother and her children left the In-laws’ house without eating dinner. Bravo Mom!

Is Celiac Disease and Non-Celiac Gluten Intolerance on the Rise?

terry — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 23:58:14 +0000

Lately, I have been hearing a great number of stories from people relating to me about someone they know that was just diagnosed with Celiac or Gluten Intolerance. The stories are not good. Most stories tell about individuals who have suffered years with the symptoms while going from doctor to doctor before being diagnosed. Babies and children are ending up in the hospital very ill before diagnosis is finally made. Why is looking for a diagnosis related to the digestive system out of the physicians’ realm? Why is Celiac only suspected after a phethora of negative tests come back? Even then some physicians and gastroenterologists do not look for it. I realize no one wants this disease, but with the Western Diet compounded with Fast Foods’ fat and sugar, it should be evident that Gluten Intolerance can be the problem. The amount of wheat that a person eats is immense. Gluten/Wheat is on the spicy fries we eat; it’s used as a substance that keeps ingredients together. It’s used as a coating for processed meats; it of course is used to make bread rise. I found it the other day in mustard. Is it any wonder, that according to research, Celiac disease has increased fourfold.

Problems with the RAST Test. Part 2: RAST vs ELISA

terry — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 19:03:00 +0000

Allergy tests are not always perfect. All allergy tests have the potential to give a “false positive” or in reverse a “false negative”. The Rast test or frequently used Cap-Rast test is great for immediate response allergies. Examples of these allergies are: peanuts, corn, fish, egg and milk. This test measures how much IgE antibodies are present to a specific food or allergen. The problem with this test is it’s inability to accurately test delayed hypersensitive reactions such as gluten/wheat. For a better result on the gluten testing, the individual needs to eat a diet heavy with high-gluten foods( ie., pizza, pasta) for two weeks prior to the test. That way enough IgE antibodies will be present for the test.

The ELISA test is preferable to delayed allergies such as gluten. The test measures late-phase lymphocytes responses to environmental and dietary antigens. However, because the most popular version of this test uses a non-interacting protein such as bovine(cow) albumin or casein, some individuals have reacted to the protein. This happens rarely, but it can give a “false positive” for individuals with milk allergies. So what is a parent to do? Be very informed of what type of allergy test you or your child will be taking. Inform the physician if you suspect both milk and gluten allergies so the correct allergy test will be applied. Make sure you prepare for the test so a correct conclusion of the test will result. If the test is borderline, then an elimination diet is often used. A trial elimination diet for 2 to 4 weeks is often suggested followed by a gradual reintroduction of the offending food. If the symptoms return after ingesting the suspected food then the individual is truly allergic/intolerant to the food.