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What to use for starch if grains are out?

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Cort just posted an interesting piece on Celiac's, gluten sensitivity and ME:

http://www.cortjohnson.org/blog/201...tigue-syndrome-pt-2-autoimmune-links-testing/

Like I posted there, some months ago I cut out wheat and within a day, was able for the first time in years to lie on my side and breath through my nose at night instead of my sinusitis rapidly clogging it up. So I stayed off wheat and switched to quinoa and buckwheat. That was a while back – but in the last few weeks, that night-time problem is back. I had thought it was maybe hay fever but Cort's table shows quinoa and buckwheat as potentially troublesome foods if you're gluten-sensitive (I test negative for Celiac's and have no GI symptoms).

I’m running out of ideas for what else to have for starch. I’m already on sweet potatoes for two of my meals as the starch portion. Anybody got any non-grain ideas?
 

helen1

Senior Member
Messages
1,033
Location
Canada
squash - acorn, butternut and spaghetti squashes are available in most grocery stores. and tastes great with some kind of fat, salt and cinammon
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
squash - acorn, butternut and spaghetti squashes are available in most grocery stores. and tastes great with some kind of fat, salt and cinammon


Thanks - that's a good idea. Never would have thought of them in a million years!
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Potatoes, yam, corn :)


Thanks - I'm off nightshades & corn (and soy and dairy and chocolate and and and...) while testing them on an exclusion diet but yams... not sure I can get them in the UK but again, good suggestion! Another one I would never have thought of.
 

anne_likes_red

Senior Member
Messages
1,103
People who follow things like the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (so not Paleo but watching what kind of starches they eat) make bread, muffins etc using nut flours. I do school lunch baking for my kids using coconut flour, almond flour and chestnut flour. Not everyone can tolerate these of course due to other sensitivities but there are all kinds of options to replace grains with.
We also use a lot of sweet potato and squash. :)
 

Kati

Patient in training
Messages
5,497
Here in Canada we call sweet potatoes yam. The orange flesh potato like vegetable. They make fabulous fries, keep the skin on, cut up in your favorit shape, put in oven with desired amount of oil, salt, peoper and paprika. Yummy. serve with ketchup or your favorite condiment
 

maddietod

Senior Member
Messages
2,859
Test out some of the newer GF breads at health food stores (usually frozen). There are suddenly some excellent ones in the US.

Schar makes fabulous GF products, including a bread mix. Glutino makes good crackers. Elana's Pantry online has an excellent almond flour quick bread recipe.

Peas are a starchy vegetable, and of course beans will fill you up fast!
 
Messages
15,786
I’m running out of ideas for what else to have for starch. I’m already on sweet potatoes for two of my meals as the starch portion. Anybody got any non-grain ideas?
It's not non-grain, but if you can afford it, a bread machine with a gluten-free setting is wonderful. I've got about a dozen different flours and starches I can use (typically 3 flours and 2 starches go into one loaf), so if one starts to be a problem, I have plenty of alternatives.

An example would be millet, rice, almond, tapioca, and arrowroot.
 

Lynn

Senior Member
Messages
366
I did a lot of research a couple of months ago on diet and health. I chose a diet called The Perfect Health Diet http://perfecthealthdiet.com/the-diet/ and started about 4 weeks ago. The book is very research oriented and very informative in talking about food and its impact on health.

It seems to be a cross between the Wahl MS diet and a modified paleo diet with a big emphasis on vegetables. It actually requires you to eat some carbohydrates called safe starches. The authors believe that potatoes, yams, and white rice are important to include every day. They keep your glucose levels even. Also like paleo, it does require you to eat meat or seafood but in moderation (about a half of pound/day). But f you do it right it is mostly plants.

  • About 3 pounds [1.4 kg] of plant foods per day, including:
    • About 1 pound [0.45 kg] of safe starches, such as white rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes (yams), and taro;
    • About 1 pound [0.45 kg] of sugary in-ground vegetables (such as beets or carrots), fruits, and berries;
    • Low-calorie vegetables to taste, including fermented vegetables and green leafy vegetables.
This is a high fat/low carbohydrate diet. Over 50% of calories are supposed to be from fat but I find it difficult to eat that much fat so I just add it where I can and don't worry about it. It took a little convincing for me to go the high fat route. But I have been doing a low fat diet all of my life and I am neither thin nor healthy. So with the blessing of my doctor I am trying it.

This is the easiest "diet" my husband and I have ever done. I just eat leftovers for lunch. We are both feeling much better on it. And we are really never hungry because there is just so much to eat. I think this is the first diet that I have ever thought of as a lifestyle. In fact I lost 5 pounds in the first few weeks which is very unususal for me.

Disclaimer: I have no financial interest in the authors or book.

Lynn
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Here in Canada we call sweet potatoes yam. The orange flesh potato like vegetable. They make fabulous fries, keep the skin on, cut up in your favorit shape, put in oven with desired amount of oil, salt, peoper and paprika. Yummy. serve with ketchup or your favorite condiment


I'm big on sweet potatoes - yum! I just prick the skins, shove them in the microwave wrapped in a paper towel, do each side for a minute or two, and put ghee on them. Just don't want to eat them all the time (just had one for breakfast :aghhh:).
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
People who follow things like the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (so not Paleo but watching what kind of starches they eat) make bread, muffins etc using nut flours. I do school lunch baking for my kids using coconut flour, almond flour and chestnut flour. Not everyone can tolerate these of course due to other sensitivities but there are all kinds of options to replace grains with.
We also use a lot of sweet potato and squash. :)


I love chestnuts - that's a good idea. I can get them whole, cooked, and vacuum-packed here.
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
It's not non-grain, but if you can afford it, a bread machine with a gluten-free setting is wonderful. I've got about a dozen different flours and starches I can use (typically 3 flours and 2 starches go into one loaf), so if one starts to be a problem, I have plenty of alternatives.

An example would be millet, rice, almond, tapioca, and arrowroot.


All grains (millet, rice) are in Cort's list of cross-reacting stuff with wheat - those other things would be good, though. I can't cope with much food prep so I'll see if I can find breads or crackers pre-made.
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
I did a lot of research a couple of months ago on diet and health. I chose a diet called The Perfect Health Diet http://perfecthealthdiet.com/the-diet/ and started about 4 weeks ago. The book is very research oriented and very informative in talking about food and its impact on health.

It seems to be a cross between the Wahl MS diet and a modified paleo diet with a big emphasis on vegetables. It actually requires you to eat some carbohydrates called safe starches. The authors believe that potatoes, yams, and white rice are important to include every day. They keep your glucose levels even. Also like paleo, it does require you to eat meat or seafood but in moderation (about a half of pound/day). But f you do it right it is mostly plants.

  • About 3 pounds [1.4 kg] of plant foods per day, including:
    • About 1 pound [0.45 kg] of safe starches, such as white rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes (yams), and taro;
    • About 1 pound [0.45 kg] of sugary in-ground vegetables (such as beets or carrots), fruits, and berries;
    • Low-calorie vegetables to taste, including fermented vegetables and green leafy vegetables.
This is a high fat/low carbohydrate diet. Over 50% of calories are supposed to be from fat but I find it difficult to eat that much fat so I just add it where I can and don't worry about it. It took a little convincing for me to go the high fat route. But I have been doing a low fat diet all of my life and I am neither thin nor healthy. So with the blessing of my doctor I am trying it.


This is the easiest "diet" my husband and I have ever done. I just eat leftovers for lunch. We are both feeling much better on it. And we are really never hungry because there is just so much to eat. I think this is the first diet that I have ever thought of as a lifestyle. In fact I lost 5 pounds in the first few weeks which is very unususal for me.

Disclaimer: I have no financial interest in the authors or book.

Lynn


There's so much conflicting info about diets! I get eczema if I eat rice (and it's on Cort's list of grains that people could be sensitive to if they're sensitive to gluten); white potatoes are in the nightshade family and also suspect - they're one of the things to go in an exclusion diet.

I'm glad you and your husband are doing well on it, though! There's just so much complexity with diet. I wish there was better research on who does well with what.
 

maddietod

Senior Member
Messages
2,859
All grains (millet, rice) are in Cort's list of cross-reacting stuff with wheat - those other things would be good, though. I can't cope with much food prep so I'll see if I can find breads or crackers pre-made.

This sounds pretty extreme to me. My friends with celiac disease eat these grains.
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
This sounds pretty extreme to me. My friends with celiac disease eat these grains.


Cort's article is about how people with celiac's cut out gluten (wheat, barley, rye) but it's not enough:

Less than half of patients with coeliac disease on a gluten-free diet have complete normalization of intestinal biopsies, intestinal permeability defects, and antibody levels (after a mean of 9.7 years on a GFD) Digestive diseases and sciencesApril 2010 It is important to understand that children with CD had a 3 fold increase of long-term mortality – whether they were on a gluten-free diet or not. This suggests taking gluten out of the diet is not enough. Although the villi of CD patients does grow back after 1 year on a gluten-free diet, the evidence suggests that increased intestinal permeability and poor absorption – both linked with autoimmunity – is still present. So the gut must be healed and any inflammatory cascade dealt with even after gluten is removed.
Read more: Celiac Disease, Gluten Sensitivity and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome #2: Autoimmunity, Cross-Sensitization, Testing http://www.cortjohnson.org/blog/2013/09/09/celiac-disease-gluten-sensitivity-chronic-fatigue-syndrome-pt-2-autoimmune-links-testing/

I need to re-read it - it's quite complex.
 

Lynn

Senior Member
Messages
366
I need to re-read it - it's quite complex.

Yes, I am interested in reading the next article about what to do to heal your gut once you have given up gluten.

I agree with Alex. I feel like I could just about have a reason to give up all food. I am tired of being confused about what to eat. I think that is why I picked this particular book. It seemed to cover the right bases and seemed like a plan that I could rigidly follow. So I will stick to it for a while and see if it does indeed help.

Lynn
 

maddietod

Senior Member
Messages
2,859
Well, you can test for leaky gut (I'm doing mine today). I'm all for experimenting with diets to possibly feel better - I've been doing it for years. I just think it's a huge stretch to connect all grains to gluten because of possible "cross-contamination," and to use this idea as the reason to stop eating grains.
 

Kati

Patient in training
Messages
5,497
I eat what I eat. The only food thT doesn't agree with my system is beets and I used to love them. The rest is all good.