new to DFI

[sherrid]

my name is Sherri I am 38 years old and live in MN. I was dx with DFI in JUly via breath test. I am not sure about any further testing to see if its HFI so far I havn't found a dr that will really listen to me. I am wondering now how long I have had this. I was a preemit born at 32 weeks my mom says I didn't do well on formula so like at 2 weeks they gave me rice ceral. As a kid I was always very small/skinny I seemed to be constipated a lot but unlike a lot of you I loved sweets I would barely eat supper and turn around and eat 4 cookies as a teen I was a junk food junkie a lot of my friends were very envious that I could eat so much and never gain weight. When I was 16 I started to get diarhea off and on and seemed as the years went by I had it a lot I was dx with IBS at 18. I got married at 20 had my first baby at 21 and my symptoms kept getting worse I always seemed to have a stomache. I had my 2nd baby at 24 and I just never seemed tofeel good. At 36 I battled with kidney stones then had extreme abd pain for monthes I had an EGD/Colonoscopy which was normal I was tested for celiac via blood that was normal a scan showed my gallbladder not working so they took that out. After that I had diarhea 4-6 times a day I seemed to really notice that if I drank a can of pop I would immediately be in the bathroom so I stopped drinking pop. I had allergy testing which showed intolerance to wheat/buckwheat/eggs. I elminated those and still felt like crap I visted yet anothe gastro dr he said I had IBS and stress and needed to gain 6 pounds and quit eliminating my food. But he would do the breath test to shut me up. That came back positive all he said to do was stay away from fruits and fruit juice so I did but still wasn't doing well so I started looking stuff up on the internet and eliminated all veggies and alot of other things and finally have felt better. I can't believe what a difference. I still am trying to gain a couple pounds but I think that will take awhile. I find this whole thing overwhelming at times and know I have a lot to learn . I am doing a lot of reading on this board and some others and have gotten a lot of help. I find the need to talk to others who have gone thru this my husband is real patient but he doesn't totally understand. My co workers really don't get it. ANyway that is my story.

[colormist]

Sherrid, my coworkers didn't really get it either. They said I was crazy and needed to see a shrink. My husband also thought I was just being picky.

If you really want to gain weight, try eating lots of tuna noodle casserole and buttered pasta. Potato chips help, too. Just not any flavored kinds (unless you read the label carefully).

Sorry to hear about your history. It does sound like you have DFI. If you had HFI, you wouldn't be able to even lick a cookie.

Of course, our diets are super-crappy, but there are lots of yummy recipes that everyone's contributed over the months. I, myself, am about ready to try Mike's Nacho Casserole (just waiting for it to cool from the oven a bit).

[julienc]

Welcome to the boards! I hope you find lots of useful information here.

I agree with Colormist - it sounds more like DFI rather than HFI. I also had lots of tummy problems through the years. It has gotten much better now that I'm on a strict HFI diet. It sounds like this diet is also working for you.

It is really tough for other to grasp the concept of a fructose-free diet and what that means. My coworkers are just starting to come around, and I've been here over 4 years.

The weight should come back on for you once your diet is regulated. Can you find a new doc who is more supportive? Especially now that you have a positive breath test?

Good luck to you!

[sherrid]

thanks for the welcome I am sure I will be bugging all of you with questions for awhile anyway. I have found lots of recipes already it doesn't seem so hopeless now. Thanks

[sherrid]

one of my questions is things sweetened with cane juice? I think its a no no but just want to make sure also vinegar I wonder if thats one of those things some can tolerate and others can't???I am not feeling well today which is frustrating because I really have no idea what I ate since my reaction time can vary between hours and 2 days I try and keep track. Urgh!!!

[julienc]

Cane juice is most definitely sugar.

That's one thing that really irks me. A lot of the organic foods now say that they are sweetened with "evaporated cane juice". Come on people, it's SUGAR!!! It is not as refined as typical sugar, so it supposedly has more nutrients in it, but as far as we're concerned it's the same stuff.

Vinegar is a tricky one. Reactions do tend to very between people. I seem to do fine with white vinegar and red wine vinegar, but I'm not typically using them in large quantities. Balsamic is a no-no.

Good luck and hang in there!

[Tammy]

Thanks Julie, I'm not sure if I would have run into "evaporated cane juice" while in a hurry checking a label, I would have caught that. When I thought about it, I would have, but if I was scanning it in a hurry................ Could have been bad.

I probably haven't run into it yet since I tend to shy away from organic stuff anyway. All that natural plant stuff......yuk. Give us all the artifical, man made stuff we can get our hands on and we're happy!!!

Vinegar is fine here. A LOT of dill pickles are eaten as a snack. And since the label just says vinegar, I never know what kind it is, but all kinds seem to do well.

[julienc]

Here is a link to an article about this new trend for redefining sugar.

www.organicanews.com/news/article.cfm?story_id=23

Here is an excerpt:
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Those consumers who are smart enough to read labels may have become increasingly aware of sugar's reintroduction into many "healthy" products that used to shun it. And making this sweet dilemma more difficult is the fact that there apparently are a lot of new names for sugar.

Perhaps because it sounds like it fits in with a New Age mentality, a lot of manufacturers are using the word "crystals" in describing their sweetening agents nowadays. But sugar they are. To list just a few, there are: cane juice crystals, dehydrated cane juice crystals, unrefined cane juice crystals, raw cane crystals, washed cane juice crystals, Florida crystals (a trademarked name), unbleached evaporated sugar cane juice crystals, crystallized cane juice, and unbleached crystallized evaporated cane juice. There are also products with such names as organic dehydrated cane juice, unbleached sugar cane, evaporated cane juice, and evaporated cane juice sugar.
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There are lots of new names for sugar that we need to look out for.
I agree Tammy...forget the natural stuff. ;D

[colormist]

I am just appalled that people bleach sugar. I want to know how that works.