I wanted to write my first blog on Celiac Disease. It is something that has controlled my life for so long and will continue to be something that I constantly struggle with. Celiac Disease is an autoimmune disease. People with Celiac cannot consume any shape or form of gluten. Gluten is a protein found in many grains. We cannot eat/drink/consume wheat, rye, barley, tritical, hops or Oats. To give you a bit of background I started to have issues when I was 10 or 11 years old. I would have extremely bad pains in my abdoman area and would have constant nausea and vomiting. It was terrible, I would be stuck in bed on pain killers for 3,4 and sometimes 5 days at a time. I would have these episodes at least twice a month. I was in and out of the doctor. I had blood work done, ultrasounds, exams, cat scans. Almost anything that you can think of I've had it done. I found out that I was lactose intolerant and anemic but that didn't solve my problem. A little over two years ago a friend of mine mentioned gluten. After a series of tests and trial and error we diagnosed the problem and figured out how to deal with it. I've been gluten free since November of 2007. I was recently diagnosed as having Celiac Disease. When people with Celiac Disease consume gluten the villi in our intestines break down and are extremely damaged and can no longer absorb nutrients. They either react intestinally with pain and discomfort or they react epidermically and their skin rashes. Celiac Disease if not treated can be chronic. Recent statistics state that 1 in 100 people have Celiac but 90% of those people don't know that they have it.
I felt like it was important to write about this because it is something that effects my daily life. I have to analyze everything I eat, if I am at a restaurant I have to know exactly what is in the food and how it is cooked. I am limited by the foods that I eat but consequently I am a lot healthier then a lot of people I am surrounded by because I am forced to eat natural foods and healthy foods. I believe that everyone can benefit from eating gluten free even if they don't have any allergies to it. If anyone wants to learn more about it I recommend reading "The G-Free Diet" by Elizabeth Hasselback. It is an extremely common allergy and at a point in everyone's life they will encounter someone who struggles with food allergies. If you are a waitress or waiter or a cook at a restaurant, it will be beneficial to know more about common food allergies other then nuts. I guarentee you if you are able to communicate with the customer about it, the process will be much smoother.
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Lydia,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post on celiac disease. I watch "The View" a lot, which is the show that Elizabeth Hasselback is on, so I've heard her talk about being gluten free before. But, I didn't really know exactly what it was. Your post was helpful in learning about it, because it didn't have a bunch of big, hard to understand words. It was straight forward and to the point, which I like.
Also, I really like the suggestion you made of restaurant servers should read Hasselback's book. I know if I were a server and someone started asking me about gluten, I would be confused. Thanks for the information.
Lydia,
ReplyDeleteYou are so brave to have written about this disease and exposed yourself. It is a blessing that you were finally diagnosed and can move on and continue to live your life. Many people do not want to be defined by their disease, but you seem to have taken the reins. I have a friend who was diagnosed with it and it impacts their everyday life. I like the fact that you take it and make the disease proactive, not only for your health but for everyone else's. Thank you for taking the time to make people aware of an issue rather than complain.
I had never heard about celiac disease before. It must have been rough growing up with those kinds of pains and not knowing the real cause for years. At least you have gotten it under control and can manage it now, and even eat healthier doing it!
ReplyDeleteHave you ever had a problem in restaurants with people not knowing gluten content, or telling you something was safe even though it wasn't? I hope not.
I've never heard of Celiac Disease either, so reading your blog was very informative. I'm glad you view the positive side and realize that being gluten free is a good thing, and makes you much healthier than your friends! In the long run, hopefully you'll be glad to have a food allergy because it will probably make your life more enjoyable- health wise.
ReplyDeleteAlso- great suggestion for people in the food industry to learn more about different food related diseases! I agree that everyone in the restaurant business should know at least a basic definition of diseases like Celiac- after all you must know your consumer in order to market your product to them effectively!
Wow, Celiac Disease is a new one for me, I had never heard of it before. It must be very hard to have to carefully analyze every meal, I don't think I could ever be that careful. You would think with numbers like 1 out of 100 people having it that there would be more G-free food options. But I suppose that if as much as 90% don't know they have it, it would make sense. I wonder if the symptoms are just not as substantial as the other 10% who know for a fact that they have it.
ReplyDeleteLydia, as long as I have known you I didnt realize that it was Celiac Disease that you had. My grandma has just been diagnosed with cancer and Celiac disease. I talked to her the other day and she too says how frusterating it is to analyze every meal and every thing in them. Hopefully everything works out for the better. And we hope that everything goes well with the acting. Hopefully there can be more research and information about the G-free foods.
ReplyDeleteReally interesting to read - a good friend of my was just diagnosed w/ celiac's a couple of months ago after years and years of issues - I'll suggest that book to her - maybe it will help :)
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