# Going back to gluten



## kittywitty (Jul 5, 2005)

Going gluten free 1.5 years ago really helped me. I lost most of my post-baby weight, I felt better, my hives largely subsided, etc. But the hives and joint pain still continued, though lessened. So I decided to cut dairy back out (I was dairy free from about 2004-2008 while bf allergic babies) because those issues never existed when I was dairy free and pescetarian, and I did not feel great eating so much meat (no offense, carnivores! I've just never been a meat person until I was gf!). And now that I've largely cut out meat and cut out dairy, my hives are gone and so are most of my issues. So I'm thinking of putting gluten back into my diet and just keeping out the dairy and meat (except fish). Has anyone put gluten back into their diet after a long time without reaction? I'm just worried about reactions down the line. After being gluten free so long, it's a little scary!


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## cynthia mosher (Aug 20, 1999)

I don't have any experience to share but I'd suggest a very slow introduction trial and see how you respond.


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## Oread (Aug 12, 2012)

I ate Paleo for like, 6 months or so maybe, and didn't notice anything change at all when I added gluten back into my diet. I just don't think I am sensitive to it at all.

I highly recommend sourdough bread (or other fermented breads like injera), particularly if you think you might be sensitive to gluten. The fermentation process breaks down a lot of the gluten I believe, on top of making a lot more of the nutrients available. It's easier to digest and is overall pretty great for your digestive system, like most other fermented foods. AND it doesn't spike blood sugar like most other breads/grain products.


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## MaggieLC (Sep 2, 2013)

Our oldest daughter had a wheat allergy (she was tested and it wasn't a real gluten sensitivity, but a true wheat allergy.) It was dxed at about 2 yrs and by about 8 yrs old we had her tested again and our allergist said it was safe to SLOWLY rotate some wheat back into her diet. (Over 20 years ago finding anything wheat free was basically impossible, when I could find stuff, it was prohibitively expensive, so I did all her baking and cooking myself.)

We did a rotation diet, letting have small amount of wheat containing foods every 7 days, for a few months, then every 5 days for a few months, then every few days for... as long as we felt comfortable. She did very well with none of the symptoms (hers were irritability, diarrhea, fatigue and bloating.)

She's an adult now and living on her own. A few years ago she decided to go gluten free again, due to some symptoms. She was gluten free for about a year, and then rotated it back in the way we did when she was child and she doesn't eat gluten every day, but does well eating it every 2-5 days.

I took dairy out of my diet 26 years ago, and ALL my allergy symptoms were cut back by about 90%! With the exception of my anaphylactic allergies to shell fish and peanuts, which I would never eat again, ever. My dog and cat and even dust and mold allergies became manageable, I haven't taken a Benadryl or other allopathic allergy medication in years (although I do use saline mist and/or NasalCrom during the worst parts of the year (spring and fall for me.) I've never had problems with gluten, but whey and Bovine Milk Proteins are my nemesis.

We even have dogs, something I could never have done when I was a child. I can't brush them myself (too much exposure to their saliva protein when brushing) and I'm fine. Cats are still a problem, I could never have one as a pet because the allergies are so bad. But, they used to be so bad that even with allergy medicine when we would visit friends with cats I'd be laid up in bed wheezing with swollen eyes for days. I can visit people with cats for a short period of time, now. All because I lowered my histamine load by taking all the dairy (except butter) out of my diet.

You may want to try very SLOWLY reintroducing small amounts of gluten, letting your body heal after every introduction, watching for symptoms. Maybe one serving a week to start. It's worked for us in the past.

Good luck.


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## kneadymama (Sep 3, 2013)

How is it going? My suggestion is to make your gluten containing foods from scratch. Seems we all (in my family) are far less sensitive to yeasty homemade breads, rather then ones I can purchase at the market.


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