Questioning Gluten...

Things in our house are going pretty well health-wise. We have been eating pretty well- probably about 50% raw on average and sticking to our organic dairy and meat so far. I think we are actually starting to notice a big difference in how we feel. For the most part, we've been feeling "good" for about a month. Sometimes you don't realize how you feel until you don't feel that way anymore...does that make sense? Here's an example-We had a Panera gift card from Christmas, so we decided to go there for dinner Friday night. Given that I eat an average of 1.5 salads a day, I did not opt for a salad. I totally could have, or even the healthy vegetable soup. Nope, didn't go that route. Instead I got broccoli-cheddar soup with a french baguette and 1/2 of a chicken panini. I know you're thinking "No wonder you didn't feel good after eating that!". Really though, I have eaten this meal several times (prior to this diet change) and have never noticed anything different about how I felt afterwards. Eating that way was always a "treat" and not the norm, but even so, I don't remember any changes in how I felt.  Now that we are preparing for the Nutritional Typing meal plan, we eat very little carbs, and most definitely not simple carbs like white sourdough bread. After eating that meal, I was sick for about the next 24 hours. I won't go into details, but the result was enough to deter me from eating such a carb-laden meal for a long time. The funny thing is, I am sure it was better than a "fast food" meal, yet I ended up feeling just as bad, physically. Jude also felt nauseated for the rest of the night after eating his meal (similar to mine) and chalks it up to the white bread and oil in the soup. It's amazing what consistent healthy eating will do to you-and how you feel when you attempt to return to eating the way you used to.

Part of the Nutritional Typing meal plan is to go Gluten-Free for the first 6o days and then re-introduce gluten to find your tolerance. I have been finding lately that whenever I do eat bread, I end up feeling a little queasy, so I wonder if I've had an issue digesting gluten all along and just didn't know it. It will be a challenge to be gluten-free for 60 days, but it seems that there are a lot more gluten-free options available than there used to be-in grocery stores and in restaurants. Plus, I have several friends who eat gluten-free due to other medical issues, and they are doing just fine with the adjustment. I am very curious to see how I feel and if it will be something I will completely eliminate. I doubt it-I just can't imagine going without it FOREVER-but I have a feeling I will cut back significantly when all is said and done.

Jude and I have been generously gifted 24hrs of baby freedom from my sister this upcoming Saturday and are staying downtown, going out to a nice dinner, etc. Knowing that it will be near impossible to stick to the Nutritional Typing diet during that time, we are opting to start it the following Monday (Valentine's Day!) so that we can commit fully to it and reap the true benefit. I will be sure to follow up with you often about what we're eating, more info on the diet, rationale behind it, etc.  Looking forward to continuing to share all of our experiences with you!