Are nagging symptoms like fatigue, pain or digestive problems interfering with your life?
Do you suspect that you have gluten intolerance but you’re not quite sure?
Have you been tested for gluten intolerance only to be told that it’s all in your head when your blood tests are “normal?”
You are not alone.
Jennifer’s story
Jennifer, at 41 years old, has an infectious zest for life. She has always been an active woman who exercises regularly and eats healthy most of the time. She started feeling ill eight years ago with unexplained symptoms of generalized fatigue and occasional joint pains. She thought this was due to the demands of being a new mother and figured she would overcome these complaints. Over the next few years her fatigue worsened. She started experiencing chronic neck pain and migraine headaches for the first time in her life. Most recently, she had frequent bouts of constipation and her face started breaking out with acne.
She went to several medical specialists prior to her consultation with Dr. John Foley at BodyCures. All of her blood tests were within “normal” ranges, including traditional testing for gluten intolerance. She was prescribed pain relievers and skin ointments to suppress symptoms while the underlying cause was being ignored. Jennifer did not want to spend the rest of her life on medications which left her very unsettled.
Jennifer was evaluated at BodyCures. Her bioenergetic and functional medicine body scan revealed that gluten intolerance was one of several underlying causes for her condition. Her symptoms were healed over time, and Jennifer is now living a healthy, happy and productive life.
Could whole wheat bread actually be bad for you?
Bread contains gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye, spelt, barley, kamut, and oats. It’s hidden in pizza, bagels, bread, pasta, wraps, rolls, and most processed foods.
What most people don’t know is that gluten can cause serious health problems and you may be at risk even if you don’t have full blown celiac disease.
Far more people have gluten intolerance than you think, especially those who have chronic complaints. The most severe form of allergy to gluten, celiac disease, affects one in 100 people, or three million Americans, and most don’t even know they have it. But milder forms of gluten intolerance or sensitivity are even more common and may affect up to one-third of the American population.
Dr. Alessio Fasano of the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s Center for Celiac Research published a recent study suggesting that as many as 18 million Americans suffer with gluten sensitivity.
An estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don’t even know it and typically blame their ill health or symptoms on something else.
There are over 250 documented symptoms of gluten intolerance and their manifestation varies greatly from person to person. One person might have constipation and abdominal cramping, while another person has anxiety or depression.
If you have any of the following symptoms it could be a sign that you have gluten intolerance:
- Digestive issues such as gas, bloating, nausea, abdominal cramping, constipation, diarrhea, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Constipation is a common sign of gluten intolerance, especially in children.
- Fatigue, brain fog or feeling exhausted after eating a meal.
- Emotional issues such as anxiety, depression, irritability and Attention Deficit Disorder.
- Pain, swelling, or inflammation in your muscles or joints.
- Diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) or fibromyalgia. These are syndromes, not diseases. This indicates that your conventional doctor cannot pinpoint the underlying cause of your fatigue or pain.
- Headaches and migraines
- Hormone imbalances or unexplained infertility.
- Neurological symptoms such as dizziness or balance issues. Tingling, numbness or weakness of the extremities may also occur.
- Anemia or hypoglycemia
- Unexplained weight loss or weight gain
- Teeth and gum issues
- Skin problems, brittle nails, or hair loss
Left untreated, people with gluten intolerance or celiac disease can develop further complications such as osteoporosis, diabetes, thyroid disease, cancer, heart disease, and almost all autoimmune diseases. It has also been linked to autism.
Elimination test
One of the easiest and best ways to determine if you are one of the millions of people suffering from unidentified gluten intolerance is to do a 21-day elimination diet. The idea is to remove all foods containing gluten from your diet for a short period of time (21 days) and see how you feel before reintroducing it. Those with more severe symptoms are advised to eliminate gluten for a minimum of 30 days.
Eliminate the following foods: Gluten (wheat, rye, oats, spelt, kamut, barley). Refer to www.celiac.com for a complete list of foods that contain gluten along with hidden sources (soups, sauces, salad dressings, beer, gravies, soy sauce).
If you feel significantly better off of gluten or feel worse when you reintroduce it back in, then it’s likely that gluten is a problem for you. In order to get accurate results from this method you must eliminate 100 percent of the gluten from your diet for 21 days. No exceptions, no hidden gluten, and not a single crumb of bread.
This method will teach you more than any test about the impact gluten has on your body. Simply eliminating this insidious substance from your diet can help you reach higher levels of health and well-being.
Still unsure?
Seek out an integrative practitioner experienced in Bioenergetic and Functional Medicine to help to guide you.
The majority of people that seek our help at BodyCures never realized that many of their symptoms were partly due to gluten intolerance. We scan all body systems for the presence of hidden gluten and other toxins. In the event that gluten is present, we may recommend dietary changes or suggest a whole food purification program designed to cleanse this toxic buildup from the body. In addition, our evaluation may indicate a need for a specific whole food supplement that can be extremely helpful in targeting and removing any gluten residue from the various organs, tissues and glands.
That’s all for now. We would love to hear from you.
How do foods that contain gluten seem to affect you or your children?
How did your life change after you cut it out?
What tips can you share with others about eliminating gluten from your diet?
Please let us know your thoughts and help others by posting a comment below.
To your good health and happiness!
Dr. John Foley
Pioneer of Bioenergetic and Functional Medicine
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