Cross contamination, Intentional Slips, and Genetics

Living totally gluten free is hard. To be honest, anytime you eat you are at risk of cross contamination, even if you made it. I have to admit, after being so strict for so long, I can get a little lackadaisical and I shouldn't. For someone with celiac disease, it is essential that you maintain no gluten in your diet. The short term issues can include abdominal pain, bloating, joint pain, fatigue, headache,  damage to dental enamel, anemia, constipation or diarrhea, gas and acid reflux. You could experience some or all of these, it's different for each individual. But there are more long term issues to be concerned with. Some of the following are side effects of this disease if you don't follow the "rules":

According to the mayo clinic:

• "Malnutrition. The damage to your small intestine means it can't absorb enough nutrients. Malnutrition can lead to anemia and weight loss. In children, malnutrition can cause stunted growth and delayed development.
• Loss of calcium and bone density. Malabsorption of calcium and vitamin D may lead to a softening of the bone (osteomalacia or rickets) in children and a loss of bone density (osteoporosis) in adults.
• Infertility and miscarriage. Malabsorption of calcium and vitamin D can contribute to reproductive issues.
• Lactose intolerance. Damage to your small intestine may cause you to experience abdominal pain and diarrhea after eating lactose-containing dairy products, even though they don't contain gluten. Once your intestine has healed, you may be able to tolerate dairy products again. However, some people continue to experience lactose intolerance despite successful management of celiac disease.
• Cancer. People with celiac disease who don't maintain a gluten-free diet have a greater risk of developing several forms of cancer, including intestinal lymphoma and small bowel cancer." Mayoclinic
• Other Autoimmune diseases.

So as you can see, it is very important to continue your diet as it is the only way to prevent these things. That last few are the scariest for me! I have lots of cancer related deaths and other autoimmune diseases in my family history, so honestly, this is a great little reminder, even to me, that I should never be lackadaisical.

Now, about what I said above, "anytime you eat you are at risk of cross contamination, even if you made it" I wasn't kidding. At any restaurant you will find not only people who don't understand the gravity of the situation, but it can be really hard to get every surface, every employee, every process perfect unless it's a 100% dedicated gluten free kitchen. Same goes at home! I cook regular meals for Jay and gluten free for me a lot due to the cost of my food. Sometimes switching from regular to gluten free, or vis versa, can inadvertently be dangerous. You must learn to make the gluten free first and if you make anything regular wash, wash, wash everywhere it touches! Hands, towels, sponges, counters, utensils, pans..... Wash it all really good! Some websites even discuss a whole different set of dishes, sponges, and pans for gluten free but I haven't quite done that yet. I just make sure to wash everything in the dishwasher, even the sponge, or double wash things with lots of soap/hot water.

"Slips" As in I just can't help myself, I have to have that cookie! Or when someone that doesn't know anything about your disease says, "Can't you just have a little?" Really, if you have read this far you can understand why I think this one is just silly. There is no such thing as just a little, or giving into a craving for things you used to love. I am understanding when someone doesn't know, but I defiantly don't give in. It is not worth my health, short term or long term. I encourage you to make that your priority too! 

Celiac disease is a genetic disease. Which means this can be passed to your children, and came from one of your parents or both. They don't necessarily have to have an active form of the disease though. It stays dormant until it is triggered by an illness, pregnancy, or surgery. So, it isn't a terrible idea to encourage your family to be tested if you have a positive celiac diagnosis. There is a blood test but this is generally not effective, so I wouldn't count that as the end all be all if you get a negative result. The best way to know for sure is the intestinal biopsy. This can be expensive, but is the only sure fire way to know one way or the other if you have celiac disease.

There is soooooo much more I could keep talking about, but this is enough for now. Just be careful out there! It gets easier over time, I promise!