I would like to thank everyone that responded to my previous posts on this site. All your suggestions were very helpful and informative. The additional input was right on target and I will forever be grateful that there are people that there are on this web site. The support is beyond anything I was expecting.

I do have to agree that I must have an issue with an overgrowth of yeast in my gut from over use of antibiotics. I was tested for a fungus problem while in the hospital but it was negative. I have been on antibiotics many times this year alone though, so I still suspect a yeast overgrowth in my system. I think experiencing the white coating and sore blistered areas on my tongue confirm that conclusion.

I plan on cutting out all sugars and any other items from my diet that would feed the yeast, and taking the supplements that have been suggested to help combat the problem. This is in addition to following the Celiacs dietary changes of course, and taking special supplements that are easier to absorb.

I simply have to many of the symptoms and conditions of this disease to not be convinced that this is what is causing my difficulties. I understand that it will take some time before I begin to feel the full benefits of the changes I need to make, but I am still determined to make them.

I simply can not go on living life feeling this ill, besides for me it will become a life or death situation if I do not make the changes. There simply is not any other choice. At least this is something I can correct through dietary changes, and not something like cancer that can take one's life. I am grateful for that fact alone. My diagnosis could have been so much worse therefore I feel very fortunate that it is what it is.

One thing I wold like to ask of the other members is this though. Are there any suggestions as to how to set up my dietary meals when first making the changes. I am having difficulties getting started on the right foot. The items on the restricted list are a little confusing, and I have not found a simplified list of foods on the accepted list for me to follow.

It is kind of like the information has been made to complex for someone to follow. There is not a standard list of food items that a person needs to stay away from that contain gluten.

I know about some things like soups and salad dressings but what else does a person stay away from? I ordered the grocery store shopping list book that contains brands that have been approved on this site, but still find it somewhat limited as far as the information it provides.

What resources have some of you found that may not be listed here during the process of educating yourself about dietary concerns. Please share what information there may be available. Many thanks again for a warm welcome to this site by its members that did respond to my cries for help.

One thing that is fortunate for me is that one of the local health food stores has an employee that has Celiacs Disease and she is a wealth of information about the condition. She has already told me to fee free and come to her for any help or information I need. But the experience and knowledge of the wonderful people on this site is just an invaluable.

List of Unsafe Ingredients:
http://www.celiac.com/articles/182/1/Unsaf...ents/Page1.html

List of Safe Ingredients:
http://www.celiac.com/articles/181/1/Safe-...ents/Page1.html

Companies that won't "hide" gluten in its ingredients. If you don't see wheat, rye, barley, or oats, its not hidden.
http://www.glutenfreeindy.com/foodlists/index.htm

Your best bet is to learn to read labels effectively. These three lists should take out the guesswork on the vast majority of products/companies.

You'll need to know the ingredients of everything that goes in your mouth, even seemingly "safe" items. If you don't know whats in it, or how it was prepared (eating out, at a potluck, etc), its best not to chance it.

glad to hear that you are finnaly getting somewhere,

the thing you to be careful of is hidden gluten in colourings, preservatives and flavour inhancers, ive found a lot of foods that dont have gluten in the allergy lists but do contain modified startches and things like that, so be careful and good luck.

labeling on foods can be confusing so it might be an idea to start with things that are naturally gluten free and then when your more used to the diet you can start buying speciality products

Thank You Nikky, and happygirl for the information you provided for me. It helped me out and I saved the lists to my computer for later reference.

I was reading about all the different types of substitutes for wheat flour used in baking various types of gluten-free foods. I am still a little unsure about just what to use for say basic stuff like coating meat before cooking it, or what would be the best combined mix to make bread out of.

The health food store we have in town has a section that carries foods that are gluten free. One of the items they have are various pre mixes for bread and other baked items. They also have bread that is ready to eat for sale that is safe for me to eat. One thing I have noticed is that the amount of food in a package is allot less than regular wheat flour at a supermarket, and the prices are quite high for the amount a person is purchasing.

Are there any suggestions anyone could provide as far as a cost effective way to purchase the required dietary items that would help keep the costs down some. It seems that eating the gluten free diet is going to be very expensive. I mean expensive in comparison to regular grocery store prices.

A person could spend quite allot of money on their food budget to adhere strictly to the gluten-free dietary lifestyle. How have any of you coped with the increase in costs for the special foods that are necessary to be able to get well. Please share your experience with me regarding this issue, how have others successfully kept the costs down while staying on the diet.

I am a little overwhelmed about that particular aspect of the diet as it does seem that it will cost twice as much as someone would normally spend on food.

How much does it cost approximately for one person to be on the gluten-free diet while two other family members would be eating the standard American diet? Or is it more cost effective for the entire family to be on the gluten-free diet together. And is if difficult to get a spouse or seventeen year old boy to eat the same way that the person with Celiacs has to?

Any feedback would be wonderful as I am not sure just what direction to take with the issues I have presented here. What has worked best for other families in this situation.

my family all still eat "normal" food, (the advice we were given was that anyone on the gluten-free diet should be closely monitiored, so i should be the only one not eating gluten), and it is cost effective for us because of the amount my family relies on bread, rolls and things like that (they all work), so it makes sense to get a loaf of bread for me (that lasts me a week) and a seperate one for them (which lasts two days).

as for the difficulty of getting a teenager to switch... IMO that depends on the teenager, .. at 15 i found it easy to switch at home but at school it was a challange because there is nothing on their menu that i can have .. so now i have no choice but to take my own stuff. I have good will power but i must admit.. i might of been reluctant to change if it had been someone else with the condition instead of me.

I know what you are going through, I was a mess at first, so scattered I didn't know what to eat, how to make it, besides I have diabetes so somethings are still forbidden. I found that Gluten Free Pantry brand carries a bread mix called French Bread and Pizza mix, if you see it, buy it, it makes a delicious pizza, by the way, dont try mixing it with your hands! use a fork for mixing, and to make bread with that mix I use a breadmaker so I have not tried baking it in the oven as a french bread yet, just a big loaf and it's quite good compared to all the other mixes and premade breads, the worst ones are the ones that are already made at the store, they're dry, just bad.

I try to eat as many vegetables as possible, even vegetables that I didnt eat before going gluten free. For example Butternut Squash goes wonderfully with mash potatoes, cook them together and mash, put some nutmeg on it and it tastes so good. Eat spinach, broccoli, carrots, lettuce, avocadoes, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans with butter, corn, zucchini, fruits. Eat seeds like almonds, peanuts, sunflower kernels, pecans, etc as long as youre not allergic to them.Eat fish if you like, I found that Cod and Salmon are the best tasting, i wasnt even a fish fan before.

Rice, rice cakes, to make a rice cake [for one serving] beat one egg in a bowl, mix about a serving of rice which is about a small cup of cooked rice in the egg, mix it, heat a medium/small size pan [it has to be nonstick] with a tablespoon of oil, once its hot drop the eggg/rice mixture and flatten it with a spatula so that it will look like a round circle, in argentina that is what we call a tortilla let it cook for a few minutes, even cover it up for a minute or two to dry up the top a bit, once you think the bottom is brown turn it over [usually a spatula works] and cook for a few more minutes, if it comes out too watery/soft its because you need to add a bit more rice to the egg mix next time.

Also use dipping sauces on veggies, carrots or broccoli with ranch dressing is really good. Make sure you introduce legumes to your diet, lentils are good for soup or just on their own, eat beans, there's good beans out there, i like butter beans, i make them into a salad [the canned ones] with chopped parsley and garlic. Garbanzo beans are good too. You can also make wraps, buy corn tortillas and fill them up with ham/salami or whatever cold cut you like to eat in a sandwich, lettuce and whatever you think would be tasty along with that and you got yourself a wrap, you can also make them with chicken or meat [cold as a wrap] or hot as a taco.