Tag: food sensitivities

  • Celiac disease, wheat allergy, or gluten intolerance?

    Celiac disease, wheat allergy, or gluten intolerance?

    Celiac disease, wheat allergy, or gluten intolerance?

    We explain it all for you

    Tested negative for celiac disease but still have a problem with gluten? Here’s an in-depth look at three types of gluten intolerance. Learn how to determine which condition you might have, and how to manage it going forward.

    What’s in a name?

    Gluten intolerance is an umbrella term encompassing three distinct conditions: celiac disease, wheat allergy and non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS), all of which are triggered by different mechanisms.

    Although all three conditions benefit from eating a gluten-free (GF) diet, it’s important to understand which condition is the cause of your gluten woes, so you can customize your approach for rebuilding health in the long term.

    Wheat allergy

    Wheat allergy is a hypersensitivity reaction in the immune system against wheat as a whole, rather than the gluten protein specifically. If your symptoms only occur after ingesting wheat but not after ingesting other gluten-containing grains, like rye and barley, then wheat allergy may be the cause.

    Celiac disease

    Celiac disease occurs when environmental factors, such as viral infections and gut dysbiosis, trigger an autoimmune response upon the ingestion of gluten. Celiac disease can be triggered at any age. Gastrointestinal symptoms occur from the immune system attacking one’s own tissues. The disease can progress to become multisystemic, affecting major organs including the heart and liver.

    Non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS)

    NCGS is a reaction against gluten that is neither a hypersensitivity reaction nor an autoimmune one. Some researchers suggest that NCGS originates in the innate immune system, but we haven’t yet determined the mechanism underlying the condition.

    Spot the symptoms

    Celiac disease, wheat allergy, and NCGS can all present with nonspecific gastrointestinal symptoms, including bloating, abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, and flatulence. Based on digestive symptoms alone, it is difficult to differentiate between these conditions.

    Both NCGS and celiac disease are associated with other syndromes as well. NCGS is associated with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, dermatitis herpetiformis, psoriasis, and rheumatologic diseases.

    Celiac disease can cause or contribute to serious complications including autoimmune thyroiditis, peripheral neuropathy, epilepsy, infertility, osteoporosis, dermatological conditions, and ataxia (poor balance, coordination, and speech).

    Testing and diagnosis

    When you tell your doctor about your gluten-related symptoms, you may be given a referral to an allergist for testing. Your allergist will likely perform an in-office skin prick test and order blood work to measure wheat-specific IgE. Having a positive result from either of these tests indicates a wheat allergy.

    Receiving negative results from these two tests (no wheat allergy) usually begins the process of screening for celiac disease. Blood tests for celiac include immunoglobulins such as tissue transglutaminase IgA. If this is positive, then a confirmatory small intestinal biopsy is performed.

    Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is a diagnosis of exclusion, only reached following negative results for all the above tests.

    Treatment

    Wheat allergy

    Treatment for wheat allergy requires a wheat-free diet; it may also benefit from gluten-free, too, since many grains are cross-contaminated with wheat. It’s possible for a wheat allergy to subside with time after implementing a wheat-free diet, but allergy severity and duration are different for everyone.

    Celiac disease and NCGS

    These both require a gluten-free diet for treatment. In celiac disease, complete adherence to a gluten-free diet is crucial. Those with NCGS may be able to tolerate a small amount of gluten in the diet, but the amount of gluten and timing of its reintroduction are different for everyone and should be discussed with a healthcare provider.

    It’s also key for your treatment to address nutrient deficiencies that occur from digestive malabsorption, as well as ones that commonly occur from a gluten-free diet.

    Speak with your healthcare provider to treat extraintestinal symptoms of gluten intolerance, such as headache, neuropathy, brain fog, and anxiety. If you have celiac disease, remember to regularly screen for associated conditions, like autoimmune thyroiditis and osteoporosis.

    Article Provided by Alive Magazine

  • Whole 30: The Reset You Might Need

    Whole 30: The Reset You Might Need

    This blog post chronicles the experience of one of our brave produce team members, Cheryl, who recently experimented with the Whole30 diet.

    * * *

    Make sure your food is truly nourishing you.

    Being constantly inside during the winter can encourage poor habits, such as sedentary behavior and unhealthy food choices. Sometimes even when we think we are making good choices, our bodies still don’t feel well due to food sensitivities.  Foods that are labeled as nutritious, such as “whole grain,” “calcium-rich” or “vegan” may be causes for bloating, headaches, brain fog, low mood, aches, pains and a plethora of other symptoms.

    This is where eliminating these culprits is a great way to start off the spring. With this in mind, a guide to help you do this is essential. One method available that I recently used is the Whole30 plan, named for its thirty day span and menu of unprocessed whole foods. 

    This plan really needs preparation, but in spite of that, I did it spur of the moment. I woke up one morning, tired of feeling bad after years of feeling tired, foggy, bloated, having periodic headaches and trouble sleeping. I stopped eating questionable foods that day and had the good fortune to work in place that sells healthy food and the Whole30 book. The plan’s goal is to create a healthy relationship with food, boost sluggish metabolism, improve the digestive system, boost immunity and eliminate chronic inflammation, thereby eliminating numerous conditions. 

    My diet generally consists of organic foods, not a lot of refined sugar and all of the food groups–It’s no accident that I work in a health food store. The Whole30 requires that for thirty days you eliminate sugar, alcohol, grains, dairy and legumes. This includes peanuts. Which means peanut butter. Which would have been the deal breaker, if I wasn’t feeling so bad.

    The book has all of the information necessary and also gives you a day-by-day idea of symptoms may occur as you go through the month. I suffered many of these things and the knowledge made it a little more bearable. Even after three days I was fatigued and headachy from withdrawal–but not bloated. After that, there was no turning back.

    I don’t miss many of the things and the simple fact that I don’t want to feel that way again has made me resist the foods that make me unwell. I’ve been off the Whole30 for a few weeks now and feel much better overall. I was sure the moment I was done I would jump into a vat of peanut butter, but nope–I wanted rice. Just rice. With pepper. It was marvelous.

    So, give it a go. Start off Spring by eliminating food sensitivities and allowing the food you eat to do its job and nourish you! If you have any questions about the Whole30 or my experience, you can find me in the Flemington store produce aisle 🙂

    Cheryl shared this amazing chicken recipe to help you find success like she did!

    Cheryl & John’s  Whole30 Approved Chicken

    9 chicken thighs

    1 lb Niman All Natural Italian sausage links

    2 red peppers

    2 green peppers

    4 potatoes, quartered

    8 oz. mushrooms (baby ‘bella or button)

    1 large onion

    1/2 head Garlic

    1 large can Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes

    2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

    Parsley

    Oregano

    Basil

    Black pepper

    Frontier Poultry Seasoning

    1/2 cup white wine (optional)

    Preheat the oven to 350.

    Chop the peppers, onions, mushrooms and Garlic and add to a large roasting pan. Add the quartered potatoes, tomatoes, vinegar and wine (if using). Season to taste with the herbs and stir to combine. Nestle the sausage in the mixture. Season the chicken with poultry seasoning and arrange on top of the pan. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes to an hour. Serve.