The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Trying to find the culprit

Roo's picture
Roo

Trying to find the culprit

My wife has been trying to figure out her fatigue that she has been fighting for sometime now.  We have looked into her symptoms and after a week of little to no carbs she has had much more energy and is feeling better overall.  In an attempt to to narrow it down even more I would like to see if it is a gluten allergy (she has had NO bread pasta ect this week) or a carb issue.

Am I correct in thinking that whole grain breads are going to produce less gluten?  I was thinking of turning my attention to multi grains and whole grain type breads hoping this may shed some more light on the subject.  Any thoughts or ideas?    Thanks in advance for any information or help you could provide.

milwaukeecooking's picture
milwaukeecooking

Any wheat based flour is going to have gluten in it.  Gluten is a combination of two proteins glutenin and gliadin.  When they combine they form that tough substance we know as gluten.  These two compounds come from wheat.  So.  Whole wheat isn't going to solve this.  You need to look into rice flour.  Gluten free baking is a completely different topic.  Hope your wife feels better. 

 

BettyR's picture
BettyR

Check out this forum..the people on this forum can help you a lot.

http://lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/

My son-in-law has Crohn's disease and can't have any grains what so ever. My daughter gets a lot of the recipes that she uses for him off this website and also this one.

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/recipes.html

Good luck.

Yerffej's picture
Yerffej

Are you baking bread with yeast or sourdough?

Jeff

Roo's picture
Roo

Mainly using yeast as I am trying to get a starter going. 

Yerffej's picture
Yerffej

Yeasted bread and sourdough affect the body very differently with sourdough having a much more positive effect.  This one change alone could make for a world of difference.

Jeff

Janknitz's picture
Janknitz

Whole wheat has plenty of gluten--from what I have read, the issue with whole wheat rising is not the lack of gluten, but the fact that the bran "cuts" the gluten strands.  Somehow the addition of extra gluten will help the bread rise.  So someone who is truly gluten intoerant should not eat whole wheat. 

But whole wheat has plenty of fiber and a little bit more fat, and  as a result it is lower on the glycemic index (measure of the effect of a particular food on the blood sugar).  So people who benefit from low carb diets can often tolerate some whole wheat within moderation.  The acid in sourdough also lowers the glycemic index for breads and is better tolerated. 

You would have to go completely gluten free to  really see if your wife is having a problem with gluten tolerance. Otherwise it will be hard to distinguish the difference between carbohydrate issues and gluten issues, especially when the main symptom is fatigue. 

flournwater's picture
flournwater

I don't understand why medical questions continue to arise in these forums.  Time for a medical exam to identify the cause of the problem.  I doubt than anyone here can accurately diagnoses Crohn's, Celiac or any other medical problem based upon a description of one individual's eating habits.  Take the lady to a competent physician, tell him/her about the tymptoms and your suspicions regarding carbs and get her the treatment she deserves.