Gluten/Wheat questions

Hey everyone.

So I have some questions about wheat and gluten.

I was wondering if anyone could give me some information on just why wheat is bad for you. I dont have an allergy or anything that I am aware of, (though I have not done a detox from it) but every time I eat something with wheat in it, just have this sneaking feeling that its not good, though I dont know why, but its not because of any physical symptoms, other than some weight gain. I want to start eliminating all breads and wheat based foods from my diet, but I am just so tempted by all the little goodies that get brought in to work for everyone to share. I am hoping that by having a little more knowledge about the whole thing will help me avoid eating those things. Would you say that most people have some kind of gluten intolerance and just dont know it?

Also, in an attempt to help curb my cravings for breads, cookies and things, I have started eating a lot more fruit. This hasnt been hard at all, but I am still craving the breads. My intake of greens has been low, as I mostly just want to eat the fruit whole instead of in a green smoothie. Would adding anything to my diet, which is not RAW, but no where near SAD either help, or do I just need to tough it out and see how much better I feel when I dont eat that stuff?

Thank you all so much.

Comments

  • RawKarenRawKaren Raw Newbie

    I used to be a big bread girl and can understand why you feel the way you do. I used to eat it even to point of constipation and candida just for the taste of it. Here are a few things that might help you think about it some more and also a small experiment for you to try for yourself.

    1. You are right that wheat has high amounts of gluten. This is a protein that can create inflamation in your body and overtime, can cause something called a leaky gut to those who are sensitive to it. This can lead to other problems over the longer term such as yeast overgrowth and food allergies, but I'm not a nutritionist, so others here can expand on the long term effects.

    2. The best way to see for yourself is to break some white bread into the bottom of a glass and fill it with water. Watch how the bread expands and goes into a wallpaper waste like consistency - this should be enough to put you off for good!

    3. If you are not ready to go raw, try switching to other types of bread. Rye bread for example, has lower amounts of gluten and you can still be satisfied with this. Read the labels carefully - sometimes it is very hard to get stuff that does not contain wheat. Oats are also a fabulous substitute and if you can be bothered to make your own oatcakes (cooked, not raw), this will make a big difference to you. Wheat free pasta is also good.

    After years and years of trying to get off bread, I now make my own raw onion bread as I realise that it is the texture I need rather than the taste. So experiment and see what works for you. There are lots of wheat free, gluten free dishes to be found on the web.

    Good luck.

  • Try transitioning out by buying some gluten-free flour. Also, look up some of the raw recipes for bread on this site. A lot of them use almond or coconut flour or some sort of ground seed. If you're not super raw yet and just focusing on cutting out gluten, you could even make some of these raw breads in the oven I bet so they are similar to wheat breads. Also check out http://www.therawdivas.com/signup.php?t=RitaMarie (they just email you a link so you can listen to the teleseminar)

    Hope that helps!

     

  • I started eating 100% gluten free a couple of months ago. I am currently about 80% raw and hopefully on my way to 100%!

    A few great products I can recommend for bread cravings for those of us that aren't 100% raw are:

    Liz Lovely gluten free cookies - these are AMAZING! They are better than "regular" cookies, in my opinion. I like the snickerdoodles best. They are also vegan and made with mostly organic ingredients.

    Rice bread - I can't recall the name of the brand I have been buying and I don't have any right now but there are a few different ones out there....the stuff I buy is really good. I love to toast it and put raw almond butter on it - amazing!

    Millet/flax tortillas - I buy the Sami's Bakery ones. They are really good!

    Rice/vegetable pasta - I buy Mrs. Leeper's and it is REALLY good. I think it is even better than wheat pasta.

    Hope this helps! These products all satisfy my cravings for bread and they don't make me feel sick!

  • joannabananajoannabanana Raw Newbie

    I'm not sure if the Ezekial brand products are gluten-free, but they taste amazing. I ate those pre-raw and they are much healthier than Thomas's english muffins.

  • Thanks for all the replies.

    Luckily, I no longer buy white flour products, and havent in years. But even the whole wheat or Ezekial brand stuff just doesnt feel quite right, though they are tasty.

    Thanks RawKaren, your reply #1 was more of what I am looking for. I know there are all sorts of things I can make, and I will once I move and can get my dehydrator out of storage next month, but I was wanting to know why wheat and/ or gluten is bad, as I know most of the ways to avoid it.

    I am hoping that a little more knowledge will be power for me.

    Thanks iluvlife for the link. I dont have enough time to listen to it right now, but I looked at the page, and I think its going to give me a lot of good information that I am looking for.

    I love GoneRaw. This is such a great resource for me and I love how much every one wants to help!

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