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AUGUST 2005 - NEWSLETTER #5


This is the fifth in a series of occasional DietNet newsletters. [Click here for printable version. Read previous newsletters : No 1, No 2, No 3, No 4]

Further to last newsletter’s info on fats – here’s a new website with information about cholesterol and it’s vital role in health: www.cholesterol-and-health.com/


Topics in this newsletter:


Food intolerances

There is growing public awareness of food intolerances, and allergies in general. But the scope of symptoms and disorders that can be caused by food intolerances is still largely misunderstood. Many people remain undiagnosed and suffer unnecessarily. I want to give you an overview of some of the new knowledge and to enable you to have a better idea whether you or someone you know might be affected. So I’ve written a new article for covering food intolerances.

Although there are many foods (and other substances) that we can be sensitive too, gluten is possibly the most common and the most under-diagnosed. It can also lead to other sensitivities. So I’ve focused mostly on gluten, though most of what is discussed is applicable to other foods as well. The article is too long for this newsletter, but you can read it in full here.

To give you a bit of a taster of the article, here are some of the many symptoms that have been associated with gluten intolerance and that may be a sign you’re affected.

  • Digestive problems & gastrointestinal distress- eg. gas, bloating, "beer gut", diarrhoea, constipation, vomiting, reflux, Addison's disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn's disease, Ulcerative colitis
  • Respiratory problems - eg. asthma
  • Hormonal problems - eg. delayed menarche (menstrual cycles), amenorrhea (lack of periods), infertility, PCOS
  • Pain - eg. headaches, migraines and bone, joint or muscle pain
  • Mental problems - eg. inability to concentrate, ADD
  • Emotional problems - eg. moodiness, depression
  • Skin problems, including DH or Dermatitis Herpetiformis (a "sister" of celiac disease), Psoriasis
  • Fatigue
  • Malnutrition – eg. Anemia/Iron deficiency; Obesity, weight loss or gain
  • Mouth sores, Dental enamel hypoplasia & other dental problems
  • Seizures, Epilepsy
  • Autism & Aspergers
  • Multiple sclerosis, Systemic lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Cancer

The article also covers:

  • What are the different types of sensitivities?
  • Why does gluten cause so many problems?
  • How common is gluten intolerance?
  • How can I get gluten intolerance diagnosed?
  • What should I do next?

For help, if you need to change to gluten free eating, there's also a new page on Avoiding Gluten


“Simple” Gluten free bread

First of all, this is not a whole food recipe, it’s a gluten free (GF) version of a high carb, refined white bread. It’s a transition recipe for anyone who has decided to bite the bullet and go gluten free, but hasn’t a clue where to start. Or you might have kids who need easing into a new way of eating.

To make it even easier to get started, this particular recipe uses a bread mix, and a breadmaker. (On the bag, there are also instructions for making the bread without a breadmaker.) It’s made from Simple GF Bread Mix, made by Healtheries, which is based on a three flour mix and guar gum. You should be able to get it in any supermarket, but if you can’t, email me for how to make up your own bread mix.

I’ve adapted the amounts for my breadmaker. The recipe on the pack calls for oil, and I’ve tried out a few different types. The best texture comes from melted butter or melted palm oil (the white shortening, not the red palm oil), available from Commonsense Organics.

  • 1 ¾ tsp Edmonds Active Yeast (with the yellow lid)
  • 450 gm Bread mix
  • 3 Tbs melted butter or palm shortening
  • 360ml water

Put it all in the breadmaker in the order specified for your machine. I use the Rapid Bake setting. After it’s kneaded for a few minutes, scrape down the sides with a plastic spatula and make sure everything is mixed in. If it seems too dry add a tiny bit more water. It should be thick and doughlike, but not dry.

The first day you make it, it will be a lovely textured bread suitable for making sandwiches. But by the next day, it is usually a bit dry and crumbly. So what you don’t eat the first day, slice and freeze.

Once you’ve made it a few times and got the hang of what the texture should be like, you can start playing with variations, adding more water if needed. Then you can start mixing and matching the variations.

  • Replace some of the water with some cooked, mashed pumpkin or kumera.
  • Replace some of the water with an egg, whisked slightly before adding
  • Add some sesame and sunflower seeds and some dried herbs
  • To make fruit loaf, add 2 tsp mixed spice and 1 cup sultanas. Can also add some mashed pumpkin.

Gluten-free Carrot cake muffins

Mix together in a big bowl:

  • 1 cup ground almonds, or ground up crispy almonds or macadamias
  • ¾ cup fine dessicated coconut, ground up more finely in a food processor
  • ¼ cup arrowroot (or can use other white GF flours like rice, potato or tapioca)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp mixed spice

Beat together in a blender or food processor:

  • 3 eggs
  • 4oz melted coconut oil (or palm oil, or butter)
  • 1 ½ tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 4 Tbs rapadura, muscavado or shakkar (or other natural sweetener of your choice)
  • Pinch fine sea salt

Pour into the big bowl along with:

  • 2 cups grated carrots (approx 2 medium)
  • ½ cup of sultanas or raisins (optional – if you add these, you might not even need the sweetener)

Mix it all up. It should be a quite thick batter. Add some more ground almonds or arrowroot if needed. Spoon into 12 lined muffin pans and bake at 175C (350F) for about 20 minutes, till an inserted skewer is clean.

Optional cream cheese topping:

Beat together till smooth:

  • 1 cup cream cheese, softened
  • ¼ cup butter, softened
  • ½ tsp vanilla essence
  • ¼ cup honey

Other Gluten Free foods

"Simple” have other products in their range, including pasta and a baking mix. I haven’t tested the baking mix, but try the recipes on the pack first, before experimenting with your usual recipes.

Other GF products are becoming more commonly available in supermarkets (I'm told San Reno GF spagetti is just like the "real" thing), but health food shops usually have a wider range. Here are some of them:

  • Venerdi Nice'n'Light, Country and Fruity are very good
  • Organic Bakeworks do a nice tapioca bread, Liberte, in two flavours.
  • Dovedale and Organic Bakeworks both do rice breads. (Sep 06 - The Dovedale bread has a new recipe with better texture and including chia seeds)
  • Breadman have a buckwheat and corn bread and a very nice Cassava loaf based on tapioca
  • Elocin foods have a range of GF foods, including the nicest GF pizza base I’ve tried
  • Gluten Free Goodies do a number of GF mixes, and have lots of recipes on their site. The bread mix contains soy, which I don't recommend. But the other mixes look good, though I haven’t tried them.
  • Eat Right Foods have a large range of baked goods suitable for most allergy free diets, and widely available
  • Intolerance is a specialty food store with all low allergy foods
  • For those who need to avoid wheat specifically, but can tolerate other gluten foods, there are a number of breads and pastas made from rye, spelt or kamut.

Pandoro, with outlets in Wellington and Auckland, have a Rye and Rice sourdough bread, fermented for 18 hours. Suitable for people who are wheat free, but not suitable for most people who are gluten intolerant. Brumby’s also offer a GF loaf, but it is made with soy.

Many commercial GF products are pretty much like any other processed food – best eaten only occasionally, due to high levels of refined carbs, sugars and sometimes dodgy oils. For a good source of whole food recipes, check out the Yahoo group http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/GFCFNN/

There are also some whole food GF recipes in previous newsletters and lots in my cooking course, eg:


 

Deb

PS See below for the usual list of helpful resources


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"How To" & Resources section:

~ Wellness guide ~
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~
Changing Diets ~ How to do an Elimination Diet ~ Reverse Elimination ~
~
Avoiding gluten ~ NZ GF guide ~
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~ Cooking Grains ~ Breads & Pancakes ~ Baking ~ Holiday Recipes ~ For "A" Blood Types
~
~ Newsletter Feb 08 ~ ~ Newsletter Apr 07 ~
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~ Newsletter Jun 05 ~ Newsletter Aug 05 ~
~ Newsletter May 04 ~ Newsletter Aug 04 ~Newsletter Dec 04 ~
~ USA News ~ UK & Europe News ~

~ Reading List ~  Links ~
Other people's articles: ~ Natural remedies safe? ~ NZ health at risk ~

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My other websites:

~ www.eft.net.nz - Emotional Freedom Technique ~
~ www.heal.net.nz - Diet, EFT & Health Therapies ~

Other links:

~ Weston A Price Foundation ~ Gary Craigs Emotional Freedom Technique site ~
~ Amazon Books ~ Frot Design Portal ~
~ Chi Rising - Directory of natural health & personal growth practitioners in Wellington, NZ ~


The information provided in this website is for educational purposes. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information from our own research and experience.

We suggest taking responsibility for ones own diet, lifestyle, diagnosis and medication, based on informed decision making. We encourage you to make your own health care decisions based upon your own research and in partnership with qualified health care professionals.

We do not offer medical advice. That is the job of your natural health practitioner, or doctor. But we think it's important that you have access to as much information on diet and health as possible, and that's what we're aiming to provide.