Dear Gluten, you’re fired…
This weekend Leah and I made a major decision regarding Jonathan’s condition. As last night at supper time, Jonathan started a gluten free diet. When I went shopping this weekend, I took the time to hit two grocery stores to get all the items I needed to make this all possible. When I was at my usual grocery store, I was able to make a few changes to what I picked up but a lot of the stuff I usually bought I had to put back after reading the labels. Leaving Gluten behind had made getting stuff I thought was normal more of a chore. Even stuff like instant oatmeal I couldn’t get cause it had bran in it. I’m seriously considering making my own oatmeals from scratch to get around that.
When I went to the other grocery store (which I usually don’t go to cause it’s way more expensive) I had to get specific items from the Gluten free section this place had or I couldn’t make the week’s menu work. First thing I got was a spagetti noodle pack made of rice flour, making it fine to make Spagetti this week. Another thing I did was pick up few packs of macroni noodles made of rice, so I could use them to substitute the noodles in the macaroni & cheese boxes and hamburger helper boxes with stuff that was gluten free. That wasn’t too hard of a hit, they were on sale three for five bucks. It didn’t get better from there.
After a little digging around freezers, I found two loafs of bread I wanted to give Jon a chance to try. One made of rice, one made of corn. Each one was about half the size of a regular loaf but three times as much money to buy, $6.99 a loaf! I also replaced regular milk with Soy products, and picked up a chocolate Soy drink to ease Jon into taking to the new stuff. I then found a small tubb of ready to cook batter of gluten free cookies. It was chocolate chip and despite the insane price for this small box ($9.99+tax) I got it anyway cause Jon needed something to snack on.
It’s a good thing the little bugger is cute, cause he sure as hell isn’t cheap. I then found a box of gluten free chicken nuggets and fish sticks, which were items I was dying to find at this store. It was a very small box, and nine dollars each! I put the fish sticks back and just got the chicken nuggest instead. Both Ethan and Jon had the chicken nuggets with fries for supper last night, but Ethan had the normal nuggets and Jon’s supper was completely gluten free… and that box only covered one meal. Jon ate them all in one sitting, which was good cause I was worried he wouldn’t eat any of it.
Today was Jon’s first full day on his Gluten free diet. This is what he had today:
Breakfast:
– 2 pieces of Toasted Corn Loaf w/ peanut butter
– Apple juice
Lunch:
– Peanut Butter & Jam sandwich on Gluten free rice bread.
– one portion of motts all natural apple sauce
– Soy Milk
Supper:
– Gluten free Hamburger Helper (substituted noodles/milk)
– a banana for dessert
– grape juice
Bedtime Snack:
one portion of yogurt
– grape juice
Toss in an occassional gluten free cookie and some freezies and that is what Jon ate today, completely gluten free.
This has been a big step for Leah and I, but I am happy to say because the only difference in Jon’s diet was made through mere substitutions of the ingredients rather than a change of what he ate, he accepted the gluten free meals without incident and ate them all happily. Leah and I are so proud of our little guy, and hopefully we’ll be able to keep this up. We are told that removing stuff like Gluten and Casein from what he eats can show a dramatic change in his condition. Since Jon’s specific condition doesn’t seem to bad right now, we are hoping he will show signs of improvement within the next month or two.
Right now Leah and I don’t care if we had to double or triple our grocery budget, our little guy is worth the effort and the expense. I plan to go broke or without food for Leah and myself before I break this diet. If it will help him just a little, it will be well spent. So that is the biggest news from here… I hope everyone had a great labor day weekend and enjoy the rest of your week!
Peter
My best friend is gluten-free (she’s full-blown coeliac) and as time has passed she says it’s become much easier. Something they did was buy a breadmaker and make their own gluten-free bread which has saved them a lot of $$$. I hope the new diet sees the improvements you’re looking for – I’m sure it will.
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I saw you on the front page and just wanted to comment. My dad has Celiac Disease and therefore can’t have gluten so I am used to cooking/baking w/o it. We have found that corn pasta is also a good substitute but it can be harder to find than rice pasta. There’s also a GF hot cereal called Bob’s Mighty Tasty that can usually be found in the organic section of stores. I’m not sure where you are(I’m in Halifax) but Sobey’s carries it. 🙂
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It sounds like quite a challenge, but it’s so great that you two are committed to doing everything you can for your son. I hope it makes a difference! ^_^
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More parents need to be as caring and sensitive towards their children as you and your wife are. I hope this diet helps.
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One of my friends has recently found out that she’s actually allergic to wheat, so she’s gone gluten free as well. I’m glad Jon is taking to it so well. If he gets used to it early, it’s always better. 🙂
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My son is gluten and dairy free. Is your son autistic? My son has a mild case and this diet has helped him so much. I found it is so much more affordable to bake my own things for him and offer him baked chicken cut into strips. Also watchc out for soy milk, it effected my son too, we changed him to rice milk and now he can tolerate goats milk. Best of luck, if your looking for some help pleasefeel free to note me 🙂
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Good for you!
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