Gluten Intolerant/ Celiac question
Looking for advice from those who have been at this longer.
After elimination diets ad nauseum- I was disappointed to realize that avoiding gluten resolved my GI distress. (My DH, however, was thrilled that we found the solution.)
Disappointed because this means that the whey protein shakes I love are no longer an option.
I am switching over to soy protein for my breakfast shakes. It will take some getting used to.
THE DILEMMA:
I can no longer use Infinit. What do you use for long bike training?
0
Comments
Why do you say you can't use your whey shakes and are going to soy? Those don't inherently contain gluten.
Also, I would call Infinit and double check. I think I've talked to them about this before and they process all of their own stuff in an environment that is gluten-free. However, they don't test to be able to be certified "gluten free."
Finally,gluten is in a lot of products including a lot of lipsticks. Here's what I'd very strongly recommend:
1) Get with an excellent GI doc and get tested for Celiac. This usually involves an upper GI and also a blood test. However, you MUST be eating gluten at the time of the testing so your immune system will show the problem. It is really, really important you get a diagnosis so that you know. Celiac can impact a lot of things including fertility.
2) If you don't have Celiac but are sensitive to gluten, I'd play around with it to find out how far you can go. That will help you determine how far you need to go in eliminating it.
3) Again, gluten is in a TON of products. If you really need to eliminate ALL of it, you need to do a lot of education. I would recommend finding a local celiac support group to help you with this.
4) Find a sports dietitian who is familiar with celiac/gluten intolerance. I can help if you like. S/he can help you determine your fueling strategy.
If you want to PM me so we can chat more, please feel free. I'm not a gluten expert but know it is not something to be taken lightly.
That's a bummer that you can't have gluten. I have dealt with stomach problems in the past and have tried several different energy drinks as a result. The one that has worked best for me is Carbo-Pro. I just checked the container and it says that it does not contain gluten, so that might be an option. I typically train with the regular Carbo-Pro (comes as a powder that you mix with water) but like to use diluted Carbo-Pro 1200 for races (comes premixed in a 16oz bottle containing 1200 calories of carbs, hence the name). I have also had success with Perpetuem by Hammer Nutrition, which also does not have gluten. The bad thing with Perpetuem is that once you mix it into water, it will start to go bad after a few (probably more like several) hours if it's not kept cold. This is the only reason why I haven't used it for any races longer than a marathon.
This has gotten me thinking. Is it just coincidence that the products I have found to not give me stomach problems both don't have gluten? Maybe that's my issues too. Anyways, good luck with the hunt for new products.
Several years ago I began to experience GI issues, usually triggered after a meal. My Mom has celiac and is treated at the Celiac Center at Beth Israel Hospital. Given the family history I was immediately seen and had a biopsy (blood test was inconclusive). Luckily, it turns out I had GERD. My Mom has been very happy with the Celiac Center and the nutritionists she has spoken with at BI. Good luck in getting to the bottom of this!
When I removed foods with wheat, I stop having horrible gas and bloating, followed several hours later my loose BM.
If I bread my chicken or eggplant, I get same. If I cut breading with corn meal, no symptoms. So I can obviously tolerate the small amounts added to some products. But I tend to eat a lot of fruits and veggies, lean meats. I avoid processed foods the vast majority of the time.
It was the breakfast foods that made me notice
Whey protein shakes, cereal, bread/sticks, pasta, barley (remember Linda's recipe last year), Infinit, crackers, NRG bars- which are advertised as wheat free, etc- cause distress.
Rice, potatoes, polenta- no problem.
Rice protein shake causes symptoms but to a much lesser degree.
So far, soy replacements have been the most successful.
As for testing- I spoke to PCP and I declined for now. I may work in the medical field, but that is part of the reason that I have refused an upper endoscopy for years (literally). I am usually a compliant patient, but for some reason, that test is not anything I can see myself doing.
I am certain that I do not have celiac disease. My sister is having the same problems. She is a more compliant patient. If she gets tested, I will be closer to an answer. I do not recommend that approach for my patients.
For me it is a question of how big is the impact on my life or how big a deal is this in the grand scheme of things. I could live the rest of my life and not worry about the results of a test for this. This is nothing compared to what goes on in the rest of the world.
I was just wondering if anyone knew of a good replacement for Inifinit. I may just have to get creative.
Thanks for the responses.
Michele- Perpetuem and Sustained Energy both by Hammer use soy protein. I have used both and used perpetuem exclusively last year training for IMWI. Not the greatest taste in the world however.
It sounds like there are multiple intolerances going on.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Don't have much to add, but I like almond milk a lot better than soy for me smoothies. You might want to try that.
Linda- I have recently fallen hard for almond milk. It mixes better into lots of things. I am also drinking coconut milk (unsweetened). The only soy milk I drink regularly is chocolate Silk. Now that- I have become addicted to in the past and had to rein it back.
Penny- That is what I was thinking, that this is more than a wheat thing.This has only been going on noticeably for about a year. For the life of me I can not figure out where this came from. Max (DH) has hypothesized that the chemicals we have polluted the environment with are what is causing an uptick in all of these illnesses, like autism, celiac, lupus, etc. Since I already have an autoimmune illness, I wonder if that has played a role. I have no idea and neither does my doc.
This does not cause me pain, I can not say that it is so terrible. If I pay attention, then I can avoid symptoms.
Interesting you found whey in Sustained Energy. Here is a list of ingredients from the book for SE: Maltodextrin (is that whey based?); glucose polymers, corn solids, isolated soy protein group, lecithin (soy), potassium, l-carnosine, l-carnitine complex, choline bitartrate, chromemate brand chromium polynicotiante.
Perpetuem ingredients from package of strawberry-vanilla: Maltodextrin, soy protein isolates, energy smart (fruit juice, natrual grain dextrin (this might contain wheat?? they don't say that on the package, my comment), soy lecithin, natural flavor, trisodium phosphate, l- carnosine, red beet juice powder, l-carnitine, choline bitartrate, chromium poly nicotinate.
Just what you wanted to know, right
Hammer's endurance fuel is ok. I found that I got really tired of the taste in training and IMWI. I actually ended up using more of the heed + gel as a fuel source. I noticed Hammer is now making Perpetuem in solids,,,,which for me might be a better way to get fuel. Then I am eating my fuel rather than drinking and just taking in water, heed and gels for a more tolerable fuel. Just thinking out loud here.
If you drink a lot of coconut water, you may be suddenly seeing if you can hold z5 to the nearest toilet as it's a pretty good laxative.
It's odd that whey protein shakes would trigger a wheat allergy ... whey protein is from milk. Maybe there are other ingredients in the whey vs soy protein drinks -- maybe some sort of colour/flavour?
Nemo- coconut water doesn't have much in the way of calories. So might be good for recovery drink, but not in large quantities. I learned that from Tom Hanks.
Graham- would you share your recipe? I have used Perpetuem in the past and am well over it.
And I am in agreement with Penny. This is a multiple sensitivity issue. My solution for daily life is pretty much to avoid any processed foods unless I stick to a single serving of gluten free product. It has really pushed me to eat a very "whole food" diet. I don't feel like I am missing out.
I really was just trying to figure out what I would do once I could ride outside again.
hey Michele, I need to reread all of this more closely as my cleanse is gluten free (and also dairy, soy, sugar-free) and I like the major principles and will try to stick with it, but have wondered about nutrition/hydration when I get into hard training. I may have more a problem with this as soy is off the table, too. Hopefully in the re-introduction phase I won't have any major aversions to some of these things,
As for smoothies - like you I use coconut milk (I actually buy the cans in the international food aisles bc the "milk cartons" all have added sugars and other processed stuff), coconut water, and almond milk. Since whey is off the table for me in the clease I found vegan brown rice protein powder at Whole Foods and that does the trick pretty well, but you mentioned rice powders don't work (hmm... then maybe it's not just gluten).
I've thought about Honey Stingers for gels (although I only use gels in my long course stuff sparingly)... will have to think harder about the infinit mixes... but I only use those for racing and in season weekend training... need to come up with something else for the weekday stuff as needed. I definitely love coconut milk for recovery (but I do miss my chocolate milk, that's for sure).