Why Gluten Free?

Since my decision to go gluten free I have had several people (including my husband) ask Why Gluten Free? While I do not seem to have any extreme reactions to gluten, I kept having these nagging symptoms and agitations. Together with my amazing homeopathic care provider we narrowed my symptoms down to a possible gluten intolerance. I had symptoms like:

1. Chronic Fatigue - I would wake up in the morning feeling like I had not gotten any rest at all. It was miserable. I also notice I literally crashed about an hour after lunch and dinner (like a coma).
2. Chronic Constipation - Need we discuss the details?
3. In ability to lose weight - despite 6 workouts a week!
4. Acne - I'm 36 years old! Why am I still dealing with breakouts? Seems even worse than when I was a teenager.

Taking these symptoms into consideration I decided to do a little experiment and went off wheat and gluten for 30 days. Susan, my homeopath, says that it takes 30 days for your system to clear the gluten out of your system. So in October I quit cold turkey and for over 30 days I stayed gluten free. I successfully lost 5 pounds, but what was most amazing was my renewed sense of energy. I was actually able to stay awake after 8:00pm and when I woke up in the morning I actually felt rested. Apparently this renewed life wasn't enough of a motivation for me because with Thanksgiving and Christmas around the corner I quickly fell off the wagon, until now.

I have now renewed my commitment to being gluten free for the last 2 weeks and I am finding it even easier to be gluten free this time around. Hopefully it will stick. The biggest problem I find with this lifestyle commitment is my ability to eat on the run, not to mention not being able to eat pizza (one of my favorite foods)! However, this new meal plan forces me to focus on eating healthy food and to look for fruit as a snack rather than crackers. In addition I have also started thinking about other ways I can eat cleaner and healthier. I have also been inspired to start planning a garden for our house, begin composting, and really make a meal plan for the family rather than simply freaking out every night around 4:30pm thinking I don't have anything for dinner!!! I'll keep you posted and let you know how I feel and how this new eating plan has impacted my life.