Happy Holidays to all.
I'm 33 and for the past 4 years I've suffered all the symtoms of celiac but as most of you have gone
through I was only diagnosed 5 weeks ago.The only information I was given until I see a specialist was not to eat any food.So I have stayed with fresh veggies,fruit,and meat.After 5 weeks I feel 100% better than I did and know I have aways to go.
If I post these questions and they are repeats of what is already here please direct me to them.
1 I find after 5 weeks caffine makes me feel tired especially (for all you canuck out there)Tim Hortins steeped tea or coffee,will this pass?
2 does drinking pepsi of coke hurt?
3 I quit smoking for 5 years but fell off the wagon 1 year ago because it did make me feel better,but I KNOW I MUST QUIT but why does it make me feel better to a point,and is it having an effect on my recover.
thank you for helping a newbie
Brian

I can only address question # 2, pepsi or coke are gluten free, and if you have been used to drinking them, you don't technically have to stop. Personally, I've found that I can only tolerate a coke once in a blue moon... it's too harsh on my system. I find that I do best if I stick with my one cup of coffee in the morning and then water the rest of the time. Occassionally I drink a hot herbal tea with honey, and every once in a great while I crave a coke... I really try to avoid the soda though... It gives me the belches like you wouldn't believe.

thank you, one more thing I can have without being to nervous about

I am fairly new (about two weeks into this) myself. Your best bets are learning to read labels, checking the Internet/websites and contacting the companies you have questions about. LOTS of foods have gluten, some which you might not suspect. OTOH, LOTS of foods do NOT have glutens.



I did a search of "Horton's" on this message board, but really did not find anything about TH's coffee/tea. I did find an Internet site from a few years ago that identified steeped tea as OK. I think your best bet is to contact Tim's. For the most past as long as it is just tea or coffee you *should* be OK, but they are a bakery of sorts, so there is certainly a risk of cross contamination.



Both coke and Pepsi are gluten-free. NOT true of all sodas.



Not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV. I wouldn't think it would hurt the recovery but it certainly will not help it.

Good luck!

in the beginning caffine and smoking didn 't bother me but as time goes on I crave caffine more than anything .I figured it must be my system trying to right itself.I bet you play a better doctor than mine

That's so funny. I think a lot of people on here play better doctors than real ones.

Coke has been my fail-safe, my dessert, since going gluten and dairy free, but the acid is starting to bother my mouth and belly. Enjoy it while you can, in moderation of course. Watch out for root beer, cream soda, and no real beer of course.

Smoking doesn't hurt celiac per se, just your lungs (and the residual effects of that). Your celiac symptoms that are not digestive will be hard to distinguish though between what is caused by celiac and what is because of smoking. It is probably making you feel better because you are breathing deeply when you smoke, and it is calming your nerves, which can be more on edge than ever because of your love of caffeine and because of gluten. Although smoking is likely the most important thing to quit, it is the hardest. For that reason, I would quit gluten first (look for lists on this site's index as to what ingredients to avoid - whole foods other than bread are usually ok - fresh fruit, veggies, meat, potatoes, rice are all fine). When you have a handle on that I would ease off the caffeine. Getting rid of these two will hopefully, eventually make it easier for you to stop smoking. But that is easy for me to say!

Brian-
Welcome! Something I found helpful while initially 'recreating' my diet were the safe and forbidden ingredient lists. You can take them with you when you go shopping as you get accustomed to reading labels. They are here: http://www.celiac.com/st_main.html?p_catid=12 Don't forget to ck your shampoos and tolietry items for gluten too.

There have been studies that suggest that undiagnosed celiacs may try to self-medicate by smoking. Something in it seems to reduce their symptoms (if not the damage). I don't think the articles I read on it suggested the mechanism (or if they did, I have forgotten) but you are not completely out of the ordinary to feel there's a link for you. That doesn't mean you should stop trying to give it up, however!

thank you all for your responses,they are very helpful.I reseached as much as I could but somethings
you cannot,like smoking,I know I can quit but I have come so far I dont want to take on to much right now,at least I can have pepsi,in moderation.

Brian~
I am not sure if you have some gluten free lists but if you would like I can send them to you. They are very extensive and then there is a list of brands that will not hide any gluten and clearly list it on the label. Might help as a general guideline for you so you don't have to worry about some things.
Coke and Pepsi are gluten free...I do drink soda occasionally but in one of my textbooks for school I read that 1 can of soda needs 30 cups of water to neutralize it! So I try not to drink it too often.

One thing I've been wondering, with the gluten-free lists, are the ingredients that we need to watch out for in shampoos etc on the lists? where do we find that sort of info?

I CALLED THE COKE COMPANY BECAUSE I FOUND IT BOTHERED ME SO, THEY TOLD ME IT DOES HAVE GLUTEN IN IT BUT SUCH A SMALL AMOUNT THAT CAN SAY IT DOES NOT. SO NOW I DO NOT DRINK IT AND DOING BETTER WITHOUT IT. I DRINK GATORAIDE WHEN I WANT SOMETHING OTHER THAN WATER.

thats why I started the post,soda at the restaraunts bothered me but not the odd pepsi ,I'm trying more water intake but it makes me hungry.One other question for everybody ,is instant white rice a problem for us as celiacs?thankyou again for the food lists they are a big help.I dont feel so restricted,everybody has been such a big help

hi everyone,
i am new to this site, but not to this disease! I was diagnosed in 2001 when i turned 50 ( or so it seemed).
I am 53, and a poor typist but that is not from celiac.
Feel free to email me with your comments ,questions or what ever!
I smoke,but want to quit. I am not adjusting too well to this whole thing , but i
-read labels
-found alot of support and info on the computer
- there is much to be qleaned from simply typing "gluten free"....."Celiac"..into the address bar, then clicking go Amazing results i found!
here are some ;
delicious gluten-free bread made by Gillians ( french rolls)
tinkiyata pasta
hey i took up enough space! write to me wheatless352 @yahoo.com. My name is kenny!

I also called Coca-Cola when I realized I reacted badly every time I drank one. The guy said according to Coca-Cola it was gluten free. I asked what does the phrase "according to Coca-Cola" mean? The guy told me it had 0.02% traces of gluten in it and that meant to them it was gluten free. I had a hissy fit - this isn't gluten free to me!!!!
I've been off cokes (I'm Southern that's what we call all sodas no matter the brand) for 19 months - yea! I was so addicted to those things. It's only been in the last couple of months since I stopped craving diet cherry cokes. Now that I'm off them I plan to never ever drink another coke.

Hi Brian and Kenny:

Welcome to the forum! Ask away as much as you want, we have all been there at the beginning when this seems to be insurmountable, so you will alway have people answering you as best they can. There is also a wealth of information here (and support!)

Brian, first off, you can relax, I have confirmed that our dear old Timmy's tea (steeped included) and coffee are indeed gluten-free. Also, unfortunately, I am also a smoker, but does not affect my celiac in any way. In fact, I have also read (way, way back) about the study that showed smoking actually alleviated some of the gastro symptoms of celiac and other gastro problems..... even one of the gasto specialists I have seen has told me that there are some specialists who believe this to be correct (irrelavent to me since I already smoked so it's not like I started for that reason....)

I suggest you PM Coulter and request that he send you a copy of the Delphi list. It is a list that is quite regularly updated so it is always current, and it is also categorized into convenient categories to make it much easier to find something (especially when you are in the middle of a shopping aisle!!!) It is an absolute godsend.

I recommend you check everything from vitamins to medications, lotions, over the counter medications. I made the mistake of eating Gas-X Chewable Tablets like candy for the gas and it turned out that they contained gluten (the softgels are okay for us).

Remember, the change is not going to be miraculous overnight, and neither is the transition. Each day, the diet will be that much easier, and each day you will feel that much better......

Good Luck!

Karen

Tim Horton's coffee and I don't agree. Perhaps I have gotten cross-contam there a few times - I try to avoid coffee places with 'open' pots. Anyway, I avoid it.

I myself am not a coffee drinker, but I definitely have their teas all the time without any problems.

Karen

I just came across this. I knew I had read this study somewhere, and it turns out to be here!

http://www.celiac.com/st_prod.html?p_prodi...-18106091650.f8

Karen