Great article I came across that highlights Eleven (11) Chronic Health Problems that can be improved and in some cases eliminated by going to a Gluten Free diet. It’s amazing the impact that is being realized by Gluten in people’s diets and how it affects our health.
Right before Christmas I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called interstitial cystitis. Most people know it as IC. It is a bladder disorder that causes extreme urinary pain. After diagnosis I was given a loooong list of foods that I should avoid. I started keeping a mental food diary and realized that gluten was causing all of the discomfort & chronic inflammation. This is what my stomach would look like most of the time (and what it looks like now if I accidentally ingest gluten).
It’s been a little over 3 months since I went completely gluten free. I am very passionate about sharing with others because from everything I have learned gluten is bad for everyone and can masquerade as lots of other health conditions. So, I want to share 11 chronic health problems that have drastically improved by removing gluten from my diet.
- Chronic Fatigue – OMG! I was always tired.. like all the time. It didn’t matter if I had coffee.. 1 cup or 4.. I was still exhausted! I didn’t matter if I slept 4 hours or 8.. still tired. That is probably the most important thing I have gotten back is my energy! It took 2-3 weeks to get over the “withdrawals”, but once I did, I felt like a new person.. ready to GO! 2.
- Chronic Depression – I’m pretty sure the depression was caused by the chronic fatigue. I mean how happy can you be, when you are too exhausted to get anything done? And when I say chronic I mean I think I have been put on every type of anti depressant that has been on the market..starting from the time I was 15. I am now completely off of all pharmaceutical medications! Hooray!! 3.
- Neck & Shoulder Pain -This was constant. I would go to the chiropractor on Monday for an adjustment & massage and by Wednesday I would need another massage. I could barely make it to my next appointment because I was hurting sooo bad all the time. Anytime I would see a massage therapist for the first time, he/she would always say “wow, you have the tightest muscles I have ever felt.” I spent over $3,000 last year managing the muscle pain. The pain went away within 2-3 days of being off of gluten. WOW! 4.
- Yeast Infections – Every woman out there that has dealt with chronic yeast infections can relate.. it sucks! You get one & they give you medicine that causes another infection and the vicious cycle continues. I am happy to say that this is no longer an issue for me. Check out this article Diet for a Vaginal Yeast Infection . 5.
- Migraine Headaches – The crazy thing is that I didn’t even realize they were categorized as migraines because I was so used to having them. My head would pound and I was sensitive to sound and light. Thankfully those are a thing of the past. 6.
- Anxiety – I had terrible anxiety!! Sometimes it was so bad that I would avoid the phone and wouldn’t even answer to talk to family members. When you work with people, anxiety can be debilitating. Even more ironic was that I was prescribed xanax for my anxiety… turns out xanax contains gluten, so I was treating my anxiety with something that caused even more anxiety. Yikes! 7.
- Insomnia – I could never sleep! My mind would not shut off and when it would, the chronic muscle pain was so bad that it kept me from getting comfortable to sleep. 8.
- Night Sweats – Um, why was I having night sweats? Menopause is a good 15-20 years away and some nights I would wake up and the sheets would be soaked! I eventually figured out that I was having them on the nights where I had consumed a large amount of gluten during that day. Ick! 9.
- Snoring – My husband told me that I had been snoring. WHAT?! Again, I made the correlation that I was only snoring on the nights when I had eaten gluten that day. Apparently snoring is a symptom of an allergy… who knew?! 10.
- Clearer Skin/Dark Circles – I have noticed a huge improvement in the clarity of my skin. I have less breakouts and even my chronic dark circles seem to have lightened. For years and years I was told that my dark circles were genetic. 11.
- Brain Fog – Otherwise known as A.D.D. .. I know so many people that have this and guess what?! It’s caused by the garbage you are eating. I can not even begin to tell you how much more clearly I can think since cutting gluten from my diet! And my brain fog was really, really bad! I would forget the simplest things, became very easily overwhelmed and it really began to effect my daily life.
I feel better than I have in my entire life & I am no longer suffering from debilitating pain! I just wish that I had figured out gluten was the culprit sooner! Here’s to being gluten free!! Cheers!!
