[jerf]

"I'm prepared to stick to this diet for 3-4 months or so before giving up."

The goal here is to determine if you have the disease, not to live as if you do. If you have the disease, then proceed to the part where you live as if you have it. :)

This is especially true if it turns out this isn't it! You really only want to pursue one avenue at a time so you don't get interference, and you don't want to tie yourself up for 3 extra months for no gain.

[savemylife]

Yes, but if it takes a few months to start to feel better (improvement takes weeks-to-months, not days, right?), then it seems like I need to give it a good 3-4 months to test that out. Especially since it's hard to be truly eliminate all sources of wheat for a newbie. I want to give this a really good try, and then if I'm not better in that time period, I can check celiac/gluten off the list of potential causes. Believe me, I'm not excited about having to give up pizza and beer. :-)

I think I'm actually in agreement with you here insofar as I'm trying to pursue one thing at a time, and not go crazy trying 5 other treatments simultaneously. I just don't want to have the Celiac issue crop up 2 years from now and wonder if I really gave it a good enough try.

[grandalf]

I'm curious if you could post about your diet and exercise habits...

[savemylife]

Sure. Prior to the Celiac possibility, I did not eat that well. Lots of prepared (Healthy Choice/Lean Cuisine) frozen meals. Not exactly fast-food, but certainly not cooking.

I weigh about 155 at the moment, which is down from 180 a year ago, thanks partially to Weight Watchers, and partially to the gluten-free diet. I'm small, so an ideal weight for me is probably around 135/140.

Now that I am (temporarily, at least) gluten-free, I'm eating more healthily than I ever have in my life. Lean meats/fish and fresh veggies just about every meal. Some rice and potatoes here and there. My snacks are small amounts of fruits and nuts. I do allow myself some ice cream (after carefully scanning the labels for gluten).

Currently I walk about 3 miles more or less daily. In the past I went through various phases where I ran 3-4 miles daily (often twice daily). However physical exertion really makes me feel worse sometimes, so it's very hard to stick with it. It's not the "good" pain that comes with solid exercise (I'm familiar with that). It's more like my head feeling like it's going to explode, feeling incredibly dizzy and being totally useless the rest of the day.

[grandalf]

Have you thought about following this guy's health diet?

http://drmcdougall.com/medical.html

He's a doctor and the diet works for a lot of people. If I were you I'd probably try it for 3-6 months.

[pasbesoin]

Re the beer, I never found a gluten free beer I really enjoyed. I'm not much of a drinker, but I've been happier with the occasional good hard cider.

As for a decent cider that's more widely available, I'm kind of partial to Woodchuck's 802 (named after their area code). (I have no interest in Woodchuck. Just passing on my experience.)

It doesn't replace beer in my life, but it's more enjoyable than an off-tasting gluten free beer. (I keep hearing there are really good gluten free beers out there, but I've yet to encounter one.)

While I'm commenting, if you think you might be gluten intolerant in addition to or as opposed to celiac, you may want to take a look at dairy, specifically casein. It is similar to gluten and some people with gluten intolerance also have trouble with casein.

Best wishes.

[savemylife]

I'm not a cider fan (and I've lived in Normandy, where they have the good stuff!) I've heard from a Belgian-beer aficionado friend that there are good rice beers, but haven't tried any yet. Beer is refreshing in the summer, but I'm also happy with a nice whiskey, which thankfully is Celiac-OK.

Pizza is the harder thing for me to give up. I've tried a gluten-free pizza recipe a couple of times, and the result wasn't very good. Willing to keep trying though.

[pasbesoin]

If you ever make it to the Chicago area, I've heard very good things about the pizza at

http://www.rosesbakery.com/

I haven't had it, but the recommendations come from people I trust. It's quite expensive, though. And, as far as I know, they won't share their recipes.

I have had some of Rose's bread, and while also absurdly expensive, it's come the closest of the things I've tried to tasting like "real" bread. (Their cookies are pretty good, too.)

My impression is that if you want good pizza or bread, your best bet is to make if from scratch, following recipes such as those in "The Gluten Free Gourmet", "The Gluten Free Gourmet Bakes" (or a similar title; my copy's currently loaned out), and the like. And the gluten free doughs tend to be best when freshly baked; they may not hold up as well over time.

As for me, that's all too much effort, right now. So while I have the books, I've just ended up eating rice and other things that are more convenient for me. (So, I hear things, but my first hand experience is limited.)