Diagnosis of gluten sensitivity…leads to home milling.
September 18, 2009 
3 Comments
This could be either a really long post or a short and simple one. I’m not sure how it will turn out. What I mean is I could make it long, but the outcome is quite simple so it could be brief. Anyway, here goes nothing…. ?????? ????? ????
Several years ago I was diagnosed with gluten sensitivities and told to omit all gluten and wheat from my diet. Anyone who has had this diagnosis knows a couple of things: 1) the symptoms that brought the diagnosis and 2) the difficulty in giving up foods that contain gluten.
The symptoms range from bloating, intestinal issues, and shortness of breath after eating, headaches, dizziness and foggy thought process. Sometimes the symptoms included are other bowel movement problems (ranging from both extremes) and skin rashes.
The choices? Well…there aren’t many…and what there are cost a bundle.
For 3 months, I purchased odd replacements for breads and went without gluten while absolutely killing our grocery budget. The truth is, the foods didn’t taste of feel (texture) good and they cost a LOT more than traditional foods that contained gluten. I was growing discouraged…and felt doomed to a life of restriction. ?????? ????? ????
Then I decided that to broaden my choices, I’d make things at home. After finding that most of the ‘fours’ I needed were either not available or were also too high in price, I decided to try milling at home to have access to the rice and bean flours needed. Some recipes were….okay….others….downright gross……but…..I gained one really amazing bit of relief!
I decided to mill my own wheat flour. I figured after several months of doing without, it was worth a try again. Much to my surprise, with my home milled, organic flour and only 4 more simple organic ingredients, I could eat bread with NO symptoms. NONE.
This leads me to my belief that it is not the gluten that is my problem. The problem is the PROCESSING of the wheat. The stripping of the flour or adding of synthesized ‘enrichments’ or the additives to the pre-baked bread or all three were what aggravate my insides.
To this day, years later, I can eat my OWN minimal ingredient home-milled bread with no problems, but have instant issues if I eat bread bought at the store or from a restaurant. This is just one of the reasons I keep home-milling.
My diagnosis of gluten sensitivity was key in leading me to eat healthier wheat!
Best Blessings!
Donna Miller
Donna Miller is an author, teacher and entrepreneur. Her favorite roles are that of wife and mother to three home-school graduates. The Millers own and operate Millers Grain House which offers Organic and Chemical-free Whole Grains, Bosch Mixers, the NutriMill, instructional tutorials, recipes and more.
.
My sister sent me this page of the blog to read on the sensitivities to wheat.
After reading, I am curious. Did you have allergy testing done? Did you have the IAg, IAe, etc, tests done to confirm gluten intolerance, or were you diagnosed through empirical evidence when speaking to your doctor? I wondered because an allergist, with the “pick on the skin” tests, told me I was allergic to wheat and corn and a lot of other foods. Over time, my intolerance of wheat has caused me a great deal of grief. I have recently gone gluten free. As you said, it is costly. I have spent a fortune on alternative flours, grains, leaveners, and ingredients. As a nutritionist, who taught classes for quite sometime, I did not foresee having such a difficulty in making acceptable foods. I hate the life of restriction as you did.
But before I could return to wheat, I would research it thoroughly , and insist on having my doctor perform the tests, to make sure I was not damaging my GI system, in my attempt to keep wheat and gluten in my life.
I am hopeful you will take a moment to share your experience by email, as I try to navigate the distance between enjoying my food, and being good to my body.
Regards,
Catie
Ever since I cut gluten from my diet, i’ve felt like a million dollars every morning! I bookmarked this page since it helped me come to the conclusion that gluten was the culprit. Just wanted to drop in and say thanks! Nice design on the site, by the way.
Hope to discover more details from this blog. Continue the fantastic work