Weight gain?

[roobiedoobie]

Ok,so I've been fully gluten free for nearly a week now,I'm taking my iron tablets to sort my anaemia.

I'm eating healthily,small portions of fresh meat and potatoes,cereal and I have one treat a day of a 'fun size' chocolate bar and I have gained 2lbs already.

I am avoiding anything that isn't naturally gluten free,given the sugar and fat contents of those foods.

I find myself panicking,I don't want to end up with a weight problem.

Anybody got any advice?

Thanks in advance

Roo

Xx

[cathyanna]

Hi - don't panic you will be OK! In my own experience giving up gluten helped me to loose weight ! Checking the ingredients in things can be a bit tricky at first, and time consuming, but after a while you will know what you can & can't eat. Finding a replacement for bread was my hardest challenge I must admit.

Can I ask when you say 'small portions of fresh meat and potatoes,cereal' - what do you mean by cereal? Also are you on any new medication and if so what (if you don't mind saying).

Don't worry you will be fine - there are a lot of us - talk soon,

Cathyanna.

[roobiedoobie]

I eat rice krispies from morrisons,which are ok in the coeliac uk directory,the only meds I'm taking is the iron,my levels were down to 3.

[judithr]

I agree don't panic & it isn't the end of the world if you put on a little weight. It is bad enough being a coeliac without removing all the nice things from our diet. You don't say anything about eating fresh vegetables & salad. I do hope that you are eating these.

I treat myself to biscuits & when we have visitors we have homemade g/f cakes, crumbles & pies. It is good to be able to enjoy things like this with friends & family. It helps to make you feel "normal".

The g/f porridge oats is also good for breakfast & I put a small amount in my bread & crumbles.

You'll get there. When I was first diagnosed in 1995 I stood in the supermarket wanting to cry as it all seemed so difficult but there are lots of edible things available to us now. Just don't let your new diet take over your life, so many restaurants, pubs & shops understand about the g/f diet.

Good luck!

[cathyanna]

I couldn't have put it better. Watch the five a day - it helps keep things moving!!! I so relate to feeling so many of the things I liked where forbidden to me but now I truly don't feel deprived at all and you do need to do things that that are normal which you can do on a g/f diet with a bit of tweaking now. I'm sure your weight will stabilise.

All the best, let us know how you get on!

[Penel]

It's early days for you and it can take time for your body to settle.

Perhaps look around for some alternative 'treats' to chocolate bars,if you are trying to avoid too much sugar/fat?

Rice Krispies have quite a high GI, lower GI foods may help keep your weight under control

the-gi-diet.org/lowgifoods/

[FionaGFG Administrator]

roobiedoobie - Lots of good points from everyone so we hope they've helped.

We just have a few pointers to add:

- everyone is different, some people lose weight initially then gain it and stay at a set level

- some people gain weight and then lose it as their body adjusts to the new GF diet

- if you're worried about weight gain try and get an appointment with your GP or dietitian to discuss it in full

- do consider exercise that will help you burn any extra weight - even walking for 20 mins each day is better than none especially as so many of us have desk jobs and hop from cars or buses to work and then back to our desks or the sofa

- be wary of oats initially - even GF ones. Newbie coeliacs especially may find these hard to tolerate as they have the a similar protein to gluten called avenin so only a very small portion should be eaten & only in consultant with health professionals so that they can help assess if you are reacting to them

- do bear in mind the point about high GI foods e.g. mashed potato and white rice are high GI consider swapping to new potatos/ jacket potatos and brown rice especially if you're eating a lot of these to make up for avoiding gluten

It sounds like you're on the right track especially in terms of avoiding all the Fre From foods that are often loaded with salt, fat and sugar.

Do have a chat with your GP as they can help monitor your weight and allay any concerns you have.