I recently went to a low carb diet and when I reintroduced wheat into my diet (whole wheat low carb tortillas) I gained weight and felt rather tired and irritable..I went off the wheat....then about 2 weeks later I tried whole wheat crackers (just 5) and the same thing happend...I went to my dr and told her what happened and between her and I searching for an answer we came up with a food intolerance to wheat. I may have had it as a child or I could have developed it as an adult but it is becoming more common to be diagnosed with food allergies or intolerances. I have now cut out wheat from my diet for 2 weeks and have lost 4 lbs. I even eat carbs....nowadays there are so many options for those that need special diets. I went to whole foods and got crackers and pasta and pizza dough made with rice flour. I have cookies and rice cakes and I even eat popcorn and corn tortillas. I feel better, my tummy is less bloated, I don't have as much gas and my period this month is much better (I get horrible cramps).. I am in awe and just letting others know what happened to me (I am 36 just finding this out) and maybe it could help others.

I'm 68 and 2 months ago was diagnosed with wheat intolerance. Our bodies are in constant change so we need to pay attention. There are plenty of whole grains besides wheat. Rice, Quinona, Barley, Bulgar to name a few.

Just a quick note - bulgur *IS* wheat.

I also have an intolerance to wheat/gluten. It has messed with my digestion and weight for many years. The older I get, the more sensitive I get to it too.

It's a part of life to accept what we cannot change. I don't resent it anymore, I would much rather find what works for my health with a positive slant. I use crisp corn tortillas as my "cracker". I use rice stick or bean thread for a "noodle" and leave it at that. I won't pay the ridiculous prices for gluten-free products.

I also appear to have a wheat and/or gluten issue. Eating wheat-containing foods, most especially breads (so I still wonder whether yeast is part of the problem, and if so how much of the problem) seems to aggravate my pain, fatigue, and skin issues, as well as my blood sugar, appetitie, and water retention. The reaction are fairly dramatic and consistent, but I still use the word "seems" because I don't have anything a doctor or researcher would call "proof." I have enough research background from graduate school (psych) to know how easy it is for coincidence and placebo to be misinterpreted as proof.
As a result, though I second-guess myself a lot.

The down side of suspecting placebo-effect, is that I tend dismiss the evidence, and continue to experiment. Low-carb and wheat-free dieting appears to works best for me - controling my health issue symptoms and allowing me to lose weight with less effort and stress.

Unfortunately, ever the skeptic (even against myself) I keep testing the theory over and over.

I'm getting better; learning to trust my conclusions, but I still sometimes second-guess myself.

I have to fight against telling myself that low-carb diets are unhealthy - it's hard for me to shake that idea, because I held it so long - and so many other folks still do. I sometimes feel I have to hide my food plan from friends and family so they don't critique and get me questioning myself again.

I also have to fight against telling myself that I can't be gluten-sensitive, because celiac disease causes weight loss, not weight gain. I've read of overweight and a few obese celiac patients, but no morbidly obese ones. But then again, maybe it's never found, because none of the doctors are looking, because they expect celiac patients to be underweight.

I have to keep reminding myself that if I'm "wrong" about wheat, I'm not hurting myself by avoiding it. Whereas if I DO have a sensitivity/intolerance to wheat, I am hurting myself by eating it (even when I'm lucky and don't notice severe symptoms), so the logical thing to do is to avoid it.

I discovered last year that I have a soy intolerance. I had a very similar reaction to yours. I have removed soy from my diet completely, even as far as eating only grass fed beef, bison and poultry. And grass-fed poultry is really difficult to find. Even egg from "vegetarian-fed" chickens, who have soy in their feed, affects me.

I was on Medifast for three weeks and my energy was slowly depleted. I even gained weight while being on under 1200 calories. Their product is soy-based. When I went off it and fasted for two days, I immediately felt better. Soy sneaks into every processed food, so my diet is totally from scratch now. Lots of extra work, so I eat as simply as possible. Gets pretty boring, so on occasion, I lose my resolve and then I pay for it later.

I finally found lecithin-free organic dark chocolate bars. Through Amazon.com. One guy tried to sell me his diet shake product, saying it was soy-free, but it had lecithin in it and it still affected me.

Wheat is another ingredient that is invasive in processed food, as is corn. Educate yourself so you know what you're eating.

Good luck!

True, except that I ended up finding a way to eliminate many of my allergies and food intolerances. And there were many.

Throughout adulthood I've periodically had excema later to develop hay fever, environmental allergies and asthma. I was at the point where my doctor recommended I get weekly shots. 2 things - I HATE needles and that would have put an extreme kink in an already loaded weekly schedule.

I read an add in my local business flyer about a local holistic spa offering an array of treatments and one of them was a non-invasive treatment for allergies. I looked into it, decided it wasn't expensive or dangerous to try it and it turned out to make a huge and noticable difference.

Once we extended the testing to foods, I was amazed and alarmed at how many food intolerances and sensitivities I really had. Wheat/gluten were right up there. Since treatment specifically for foods, I've gotten off asthma meds, can smell/taste properly and have MUCH more control over my craving cycles.

The treatment is called bioenergetic intolerance elimination. It's an alternative therapy so not for everyone but it has worked wonders for me.

Hey I have Celiac Disease, I also have eliminated artificial sweeteners, corn syrup, and MSG. I have to say once I dropped gluten I lost about 35-40lbs without even trying (at my worst I was eating 700 calories/day for about 7 months because I couldn't keep anything down and I gained 20 lbs putting me at about 220-225). My hubby dropped gluten as well (and thus discovered his gluten intolerance) and dropped about 60lbs without even trying (though recently he has gained 15 back).

I think for me personally, the trick has been taking time to mourn the loss of certain foods and behaviors (no more going out to new restaurants or grabbing something without reading the ingredients etc). Accept that there won't be a replacement for everything (or that the replacements won't taste the same). Removing gluten sucked really bad for like 3 months... I haven't looked back since. Although I HAVE been "glutened" a few times (Once from an altoid mini! DOH!).... ouch.

Anyway, we're here for you!

::raises hand::

yep, gluten intolerant too. I was told for the past 10 years that I had IBS and that I just needed to avoid my trigger foods. I could never identify them. I consistently gained weight, became insulin resistant, developed anxiety and depression. I was fat, unhappy, and worst of all - infertile.

this past october I went to a new GP and went over my laundry list ot little things my past doctors - even my reproductive endocrinologist - had shrugged off and he immediately said "it sounds like you're either a celiac or have a gluten intolerance". I was dumbstruck. I had read about it and knew that I has symptoms of it, but has begun to think that it was all in my head.

in my pursuits to get pregnant (with my now ex-husband) my OB/GYN had started playing the "it's in your head" and "just relax and it will happen" cards, while my RE noted I had very questionable insulin levels and suspected something metabolic was causing my irregular cycles and weight gain, he also found that my ex-husband was completely sterile. so why treat the wife when there's nothing to be done for the husband? My issues got shelved.

After divorcing and accepting that I may never have another child (I do have a 10yo daughter from a past relationship) I wanted relief from the constant stomach upset, diarrhea, cramps, gas, bloating, and overall malaise I had. That's when the gluten intolerance was diagnosed. within a month of going of gluten I lost almost 10 lbs - no dieting, it was thanksgiving time after all. I felt amazing. I was me again.

Now I know whats made me sick for so long and I hope that I can now lose the weight that has piled up over the last 10 years. I also hope that loosing the weight will correct my insulin issues and restore my menstrual cycle to how it was when I got pregnant with my daughter. I'd love to have another child, especially now that I've got a new man in my life who is equally focused on having one, if not a few. I feel that by getting healthy the other things will fall into place. If they don't, at least I'm now healthy.

I think you said it best, MyPitBullSmiles, mourn the loss of the previous lifestyle, then move forward. I went through this process too and you do find that there is life without gluten and it's not as bad as it seems in the beginning. It's actually pretty darn good. No more dreading eating because I will be crippled by the pain and tied to the bathroom for the next hour. No more embarrassing stomach sounds or gas either! And maybe, just maybe, it'll help my family grow.

I have numerous allergies that have been diagnosed by a doctor. I have allergies to soy, corn and then I am unable to tolerant any gluten at all. I was just sitting here trying to write my menu plan for the week and it just stressed me out so much. If it weren't for these allergies my planning would be so much easier. I wanted to follow the North Star Diet, but I can't find any gluten free breads/ wraps with 4 grams of fiber that are under 70 calories a pieces. I'm trying to figure our how to get more fiber, but's tough. I count calories, but I somtimes wonder if that will really work because I'm getting so little fiber. Could anyone tell me what a perfect meal plan for someone who is gluten free, corn free, nut free and soy free would like on 1500 calories. So frustrated.