Thoughts on removing Gluten, Dairy and Sugar

[Bollieforme]

Morning everyone. I’m sure lots of you are on Gluten and Dairy free diets and some of you on sugar free? I’m Gluten free, I know it’s challenging as everything we like is gluten! I’ve not braved going dairy free, how do you cope with this and what are the benefits of totally dairy free? I know one of the main triggers for my gut is “Sugar” plays havoc with my gut issues and makes my low stomach acid go bonkers. Do any of you experience this also?

[Buddy195 Administrator]

My advice is to only eliminate one food group at once for 3 months, to see if this benefits you. I tried to eliminate gluten, dairy and sugar in one go and got myself in a terrible muddle working out which change was beneficial. Personally, I’d never touch gluten again but I’ve found that I’m ok (so far) with dairy and sugar (in moderation).

[SlowDragon Administrator]

I have been gluten free since 2016 ….it was life changing

Reluctantly went dairy free last year. Similarly significant improvements. Loads of dairy free options these days

Sugar….not had any issues since adding T3

[Bollieforme in reply to SlowDragon]

I find gluten free sweet treats make up for it in sugar! Well done on going dairy free, I’m in moderation, cheese is my down fall as I’m not keen on the dairy free cheese.

[waveylines in reply to Bollieforme]

I'm gluten free... Have to be, makes me very ill. Dropping dairy made no difference and like you I do love it. My sister however is lactose intolerant. I'm a sugar head but have to say since I got everything in balance I don't have sugar cravings anymore so can eat it without stoking the fire so to speak. So I do allow it into my diet.I try not to be too strict otherwise I just want more of the banned foods..... Doesn't apply to gluten foods though.... My stomach and digestive system is transformed since I went strictly GF.... I feel sooooooo much better too. Now the lightest bit sends me off kilter.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to waveylines]

I am exactly same

Before I went GF no gut issues. Now, tiniest speck of gluten makes me unwell

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Bollieforme]

I mainly bake my own cakes

Can’t stand commercial GF/DF

I have been astonished not to miss cheese

I use Cathedral City Cheese effect Product in limited amounts

Beans on toast needs cheese

And on spag Bol

[GreenTealSeal]

I’ve been gluten free for nearly 10 years now.

I only became aware of thyroid issues in the last year but often wonder if I was having problems with my digestion back then due to slightly struggling thyroid that has slowly gone down hill since then.

I’m not sure that gluten free has made much difference to me but feel a bit scared to add it back in now!

I’d remove gluten for a few months first and see how you feel before considering the others. I was dairy free for a year but didn’t make any difference so added it back no issue!Everyone is so different but it’s worth a shot if it helps you to feel even the tiniest bit better!

[Forestgarden]

I've been dairy free for many years. Not lactose intolerant. For me it's the milk protein... makes me chronically constipated. Just a couple of digestive biscuits was enough! However, problem not completely resolved, but every time I try to reintroduce dairy, everything comes to a standstill. There are plenty of dairy alternatives now, so its not a major issue, but do miss proper cheese!I've recently gone gluten free too. Find it helps with brain fog and depression. This is a bit more challenging, but there are alternatives, you just need to get creative. The biggest issue is when out and about, looking for things which are both dairy and gluten free. Good luck!

[mrskiki]

i found gluten free made it easier to balance my meals and stop relying on a sandwich or pasta but didn’t help any symptoms noticeably. Dairy free I find harder, nothing really tastes right in my tea or coffee and I love full cream and cheese. But I’m sure it’s helped reduce swollen eye area a little, and some of the aches. Lactose free milk didnt make much difference to me, ended up using oat milks.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to mrskiki]

Best oat milk in my opinion is “Plenish” (NOT the barista version)

[mrskiki in reply to SlowDragon]

Agree, no rapeseed or hemp oil in plenish, just bought the barista version last week as it was half price, it has coconut cream in and very odd in tea!

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to mrskiki]

Yes disgusting

I threw it away

[Regenallotment]

I am gluten dairy and mostly sugar free, following a paleo type diet.

Really suits me, I have good energy, normal bowel movements, no digestive complaints.

I actually eliminated them all at once following the Izabella Wentz root cause protocol tried reintroducing individually 4 days apart and saw what each did to me.

Doing Zoe and wearing a continuous glucose monitor confirmed my blood sugar control is poor. So for this reason plus my symptoms improving makes me confident I’m eating the right things for me 🌱

[greygoose]

I've tried gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free and soy-free. And the only thing that made the slightest difference to me was soy-free. So, I continue to eat gluten and dairy, and a limited amount of sugar.

[RoseF3]

I’m gluten free as I’m a coeliac anyway but have tried no dairy and found it makes no difference. I do limit it though as it’s inflammatory and I’m trying to bring my inflammation down. Sugar if I overdo it doesn’t agree so again I try to limit it - the biggest difference for me has been caffeine and alcohol sadly. I didn’t really think it would make a difference but it really has!

[thyr01d]

I have been sugar free since about 16, other than birthdays, Christmas and suchlike. I have been vegan so dairy free for around 20 years and about 5 years ago following advice on here also went gluten free for 2 years. As far as I could tell no improvement being gluten-free and no worsening now I am eating it again. My conclusion is that we are different and the only way to know what works is to try. On a cheering note, being dairy free becomes easier and easier to the point where you hardly ever miss it at all whereas I didn't get completely used to avoiding gluten.