Gluten & Nightshades Food Sensitivity

I’m so sorry to hear you’re having to deal with this. It’s so difficult to cut out so many foods. so much of life is enjoying a meal with someone or by yourself! I am certainly going to look up Solanin. Thank you for sharing. I wish I could advise you or help in someway. Wishing you all the best.

I understand what you are going through it is not fun. Look for a good allergy doctor. Members in my family have to be careful what they eat. Gluten is one of the foods, like milk, eggs just to name a few.
And ask them for a good diet that works for you or work with someone. There are a lot of good fruit out there.
You are luck now. 40 years ago they did not list what they put in meds, and other foods in the store.
Wish you the best, going to be a bumpy road.

From my point of view based upon my experience and that of my wife's - one doesn't have to go totally without a specific food; instead perhaps less of it. Perhaps setting up a schedule of when you take what, to see whether or not that works. Trial and Error method. Doing so requires discipline and an adherence to the regime.

I'm so sorry you're going through this. I am not sure if you were tested for Celiac Disease but it sounds like you at least have a gluten sensitivity. If you were tested for gluten sensitivity (and Celiac) but were tested while on a gluten free diet your test results would not be accurate and could appear normal. Celiac Disease is a mulit-system disorder that primarily targets the small intestine. I have Celiac Disease but was not tested for many years after my strange neurological, cardiac and joint symptoms appeared (leg paralysis on two occasions that took time and or mega-steroids to recover from, spontaneous tachycardia (over 200 beats/min at rest) a severe bout of hip joint pain that lasted four days and spontaneously went away. Some people have symptoms of skin issues, ulcers, rashes, etc, others hormonal imbalances etc... the list goes on. There are over 200 symptoms of Celiac Disease. Unfortunately, many doctors are only looking for the classic GI issues that can be present with Celiac, but do not test for these other unexplainable and sometimes severe medical issues. My latest bout of Celiac before being diagnosed left me unable to walk more than ten steps or so without stopping. My legs would cramp horribly and I could not tolerate much movement at all. I was told that a gluten free diet would help but after a year and a half I was getting worse with increasing brain fog and development of weakness in my arms. To try and make a long story short, I am doing very well now, praise be to God, because I figured out I cannot tolerate anything with too much free-glutamate. I happened to read an article by Dr. Vikki Peterson linking neurological manifestation of Celiac disease with a problem with glutamate, which is an amino acid in nearly all food. I am now eating sweet potato, hard boiled eggs, a little chicken, a little beef, a little quinoa, romaine, wild blueberries, olive oil, avocado, and apple cider vinegar, and water or chamomile and ginger tea. I feel great! I can run!! I have more energy than I've had in years. To try and summarize some things I've learned.... If you have Celiac, going gluten free is the first step to feeling better but it often requires much more to truly heal the gut. Simplifying your diet to things that do not have labels (whole foods) helps... But sometimes people have issues with other foods such as nightshades (as you and I have). I also cannot have anything that is fermented or yogurt or anything like that, rich in probiotics that I would love to be able to eat to promote healing, because I cannot tolerate that high level of free glutamate. My diet is very limited but I feel better. I hope that in time my gut will heal and perhaps I'll be able to tolerate more foods again... But this can take many years for some people with Celiac. Celiac and gluten intolerance/sensitivity is not curable-- it is a lifelong commitment to being gluten free. It is my understanding that when healing occurs, sometimes other foods can be reintroduced carefully and may not cause a problem. Perhaps keeping a good journal would be helpful (that is what I am doing). I have recently visited a holistic doctor who knows very little about glutamate intolerance but is fascinated by my story and she is the only one who is willing to look into my condition. My other traditional doctors are amazed at my miracle but nutrition is not something they specialize in.... So it makes it difficult for them to offer advice. I hope that you can find healing soon! Hang in there... The shift from "living to eat" to "eating to live" is definitely challenging. I am trying to embrace what I am eating... Each meal of sweet potato and hard boiled egg with romaine... "Thank you, Lord, for this meal that sustains me." I hope that you are able to find answers and heal and find peace. You are not alone!

No treatment other than elimination from diet. I have kept a food log for 16 years, since getting celiac disease. I didn't realize I had decades of gluten intolerance until after going GF; over 6 months my reflux, rashes, bloat, and other symptoms disappeared. Ten years ago I developed collagenous colitis, so no NSAIDs and some other meds, and my food log showed sensitivity to legumes (I tolerate a peanut, miso, and GF soy sauce) which I first noted in 2015 after biking up a mountain and being passes by Lance Armstrong (peanut energy bar caused GI problems). I can eat dairy. Gluten is in so many things, and cross contamination is common enough that if I eat out it is limited mostly to GF restaurants/bakeries. I also avoid processed foods and am on a mostly FODMAP diet. There are some great online GF recipes, and one's diet isn't limited like in the old days, just different. A nutritionist with background in autoimmune diseases/intolerances might be able to help with diet. Bread machines with GF settings are good for healthy GF bread that is better than and cheaper than most bakery/store stuff. GF waffles are a useful replacement for sandwich bread. In some ways, this is a new world to explore.

GF is 20 ppm and less, a small crumb of wheat bread. I will note that the hardest part of celiac and other food-associated diseases is the social isolation, not the diet. A friend got mad at me for calling chocolate cake at work poison; I replied "I love (gluten) chocolate cake and it doesn't hurt as much if I demonize it" (another version of death by chocolate). Not being invited to friends' or work parties, all and more because one has to be strict with GF. So, if one is new to food intolerances, it would be good to have people/therapists to talk with because it is a complex loss. Regular therapists don't understand; one said "can't you bring your own food?". I wish, but some people are uncomfortable if you aren't eating similar food to them. Sort of like the "joking" about people on vegetarian, vegan, and GF diets. Screaming into a pillow is good as long as it doesn't have wheat crumbs on it.

Hello, kayabbott, Just wondering, have you been given any medications, or any specific food requirements, for collagenous colitis? I went into complete remission from ulcerative colitis, but they did find collagenous colitis. I was not given any medication, just told, "You can keep on with mesalamine if you want to." I am mostly GF (not allergic to gluten, but abstaining from it is why I believe I went into UC remission. Thanks for your thoughts on CC.

I mostly used my 16-year celiac food log of what irritated my 8 years of collagenous colitis (CC). There is little overlap on symptoms of the two. I am sensitive to NSAIDs, ACE II, statins, processed foods, legumes, and a lot of meds hit CC. I add kombucha and psyllium husk to some foods (psyllium adds insoluble fiber to stabilize the GI and soluble to fee the [hopefully] friendly bacteria). My doctor recommended a mostly FODMAP diet for CC. I avoided CC meds until last summer; I was diagnosed with stage 3a CKD and the nephrologist put me on very low dose lisinopril (for kidneys, not blood pressure), which wreaked havoc with my colitis; I went off the Ace II meds and on 9 mg Budesonide for 2 mo. followed by tailing off for a few weeks (GI ok now). Budesonide is a designer corticosteroid that is mostly localized to the GI tract and can decrease the abnormal thickness of collagen. https://www.cedars-sinai.org/health-library/diseases-and-conditions/c/collagenous-colitis.html

Hi everyone, Thanks so much for your advise and hints and for sharing your personal stories related to GF and other food sensibilities. I'm on a strict GF diet for about a year. As soon as I eat something containing gluten by accident, I get these cuts/ fissures again. I feel the gluten I can get under control. To eat GF is difficult, but doable. What's more difficult is the nightshade vegetables and any vegetables and fruits that contact Solanin or any other "poison" that's also in nightshade vegetables. I think this sensibility developed because I eat out too much. For years I went for lunch and often for dinner to the salad bar at Wholefoods. They also use processed food and flavor enhancers. Both are very bad for us. In addition I think the menopause had a trigger effect.
I'm searching for studies regarding these kind of food sensibilities. I'm trying to find a scientist who is conducting research about this. I'd even volunteer as a participant in a study. It's obvious that many people suffer from these kind of sensibilities and there needs to be more studies.
If any one of you know of any studies, research etc. please let me/ us know.
Thanks!!

Just diagnosed with MCTD and don’t know much about diet. What happens if you don’t follow diet that well. I not even sure what a flare up is. Can anyone help me understand diet and MCTD? And what will happen if I do t follow all that well. Thanks