I’m taking a cue from my buddy Scott Johnson and other bloggers, and enjoying a look back at what I was on about here a few years ago, via the WayBack Machine. Here’s what DiabetesMine roughly looked like back in 2005. Wow!
In the process, I stumbled on the following post, from April 2005, that seemed worth re-hashing: It’s still a double-whammy pain in the ass, every day of my life!!
Free Gifts with Diabetes
What did you get? Let’s see, mine came with a thyroid disorder and severe allergic reactions that turned out to be gluten intolerance. So now on top of the carb-counting and the shots, I’m limited to wheat-free foods, which is a whole other world of complexity, since so much “normal” food is glutinous. Are we having fun yet?!
I’m finding out how common it is for us folks with one organ-specific autoimmune disease to develop other autoimmune disorders. The body’s immune system, already going haywire, attacks other organs, like the thyroid gland.
Apparently upwards of 30% of Type 1’s also get Celiac Disease, an inability to digest gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. Sheesh! If it’s so common, why did it take so many allergy-specialist-visits and so much bloodletting on my part to discover that my reactions were caused by gluten?! They tell me mine is a “straightforward wheat allergy” as opposed to full-on celiac sprue, but the imposition’s the same: no normal pasta, bread, or baked goods of any kind. Analyze that!!
So is it becoming more common for new diabetics to suddenly show up with all sorts of add-on disorders? Probably not. My Endo says it’s partly due to the doctors getting more and more proactive in looking for these things before symptoms arise: Type 1’s get tested for thyroid disorder, rheumatoid arthritis, and (maybe, if suspicion arises) gluten problems. Type 2’s for cholesterol, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and a host of other things if they’re severely overweight.
My doc recommended I search the official Endocrinologists Association web site for “polyendocrine autoimmunity” to research this issue further. Um, NOT really a site for patients. Too much medical mumbo-jumbo we’d rather not decipher. But I did like the Patients First campaign and the Patient-Physician Contract. If you tend to slack off, this is worth printing out and pasting on your fridge, I’d say.
Back to reality, though: Diabetes and gluten intolerance is otherwise known as the DOUBLE-WHAMMY PAIN IN THE ASS. Those of you who’ve got them know just what I mean!! So here’s what I do: I order lots of gluten-free (GF) crackers, cookies, and baking mixes ahead of time from my favorite online stores, www.glutenfreemall.com and www.glutenfreetradingco.com. Then I bake breads and prepare GF pancakes and such ahead of time and freeze them. So when I’m at home, no problemo. Going out in the restaurant world’s another story. But that’s a posting for another day…
Funny how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Hi,
Nice blog! Just curious, when you bake w/ your favorite gluten free products, do you ever use artificial sweeteners that are okay for diabetics to use?
I read an article on a site, ConditionNutrition, that says Splenda is safe to use for diabetics because it helps maintain safe blood sugar levels.
Glad to see this article. When my son was diagnosed with Type 1 at 2 years old, he was also diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis one month later. I was so upset, feeling like how can one little child get socked with two chronic (no cure) illnesses. I’d heard about this “cluster” of auto immune diseases, but it is interesting to find out about others who also get hit with this. Thanks for the article.
I actually am surprised that you don’t talk about your gluten issues as much as you do. I am also a Type 1 with celiac or gluten intolerance or whatever they decide to call it and I have a tougher time dealing with my celiac. With the diabetes, I am happy that there is at least some sort of new technology and medicine coming out each year. With celiac, they just say, don’t eat wheat and that is easier said than done. EVERYTHING has wheat in it. Sometimes I think they put wheat in things just so I won’t be able to eat it.
OMG, Nick, you are so right! I try not to be a whiner about it, but the gluten intolerance is in many ways a bigger burden than the diabetes, because of the #$%@ wheat they put in EVERYTHING.
No celiac here. Thank God,but, the complications and other little gifts have been coming every year for the last 10-12 yrs or so. From the things I have learned about celiac and the food limitations, I’ll keep my neuropathy, Thank You!!! Good Luck to all who are dealing with this pain in the ass!!
Hey Amy! I was just thrilled to see that you are sharing some of your early stuff with us (it’s fantastic, as usual!). It IS crazy how the more things change the more they stay the same!
My husband’s a Type 1 diabetic. I have pre-diabetes, I’m gluten intolerant, have a dairy allergy, and other food intolerances that are pretty bad. Finding low carb snacks that don’t have artificial sweeteners in them (which we won’t eat except for stevia) that don’t have dairy or wheat’s a total headache. Do you have any suggestions on this? I tend to swing–go off my allergy diet in search of low carb alternatives, then swing back to the allergy diet and end up eating too many carbs–I can’t seem to find a happy median here. And I need to. *shakes head* It’s sure a pain in the neck. And I didn’t realize you were gluten intolerant for a bit–just happened to glance back at this post.
Well, I guess I should feel lucky … I do have one other autoimmune illness, a skin disorder called scleraderma. It is LOCALIZED, rather than systemic, scleraderma, but it has messed up some parts of skin on my back which would otherwise have been very good places to infuse insulin with my pump!
Count me in with T1, thyroiditis (autoimmune or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis), and non-celiac gluten sensitivity (meaning: I have anti-gluten antibodies but no symptoms… er, at least, not yet). That’s 3 autoimmune syndromes, but the last two only cropped up in the last few years or so.
Anybody else have non-celiac gluten sensitivity? Doc went looking for it when we discovered I had low iron, and nothing could account for it. There was suspicion that I might be having mineral absorption issues associated with celiac. I tried the gluten-free lifestyle and it was HARD! (You have my sympathy, Amy & others!) But today I don’t restrict my wheat or gluten intake at all. Since I’m asymptomatic, and went through the trouble of having a stomach biopsy which was completely normal, I just said Feh to that.
The younger brother of my uncle in our family that has a similar disease in extremely obese and overweight have been caught at an early age to diabetes. they feel sorry for his god works.
thank u for the flashback. i too have a thyroid condition 1st then diabetes- type 1. i was feeling like afreak because no on on the sites i visit talk about autoimmune diseases running in pairs.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORKS/BLOGS!!!!
I would love to hear more about your ways of coping with a gluten-free diet! I have had T1 DM for 15+ years, and I was diagnosed with celiac a few weeks ago. I am totally overwhelmed by the dietary restrictions on top of all of my usual (and stressful) diabetes stuff! I think I will be ok when I eat at home during the summer, but it’s going to be really difficult when I go back to college in the fall!
Kate, if you go to college in an urban center, you may be familiar with Whole Foods. One thing they now do is post little blue & white index cards under foods that are gluten free for “special diets.” I found that helps. In addition, they now have a whole section of cookies, etc. called Gluten-free. there are also many good cookbooks. Good luck!
I tried the gluten-free lifestyle and it was HARD! (You have my sympathy, Amy & others!) But today I don’t restrict my wheat or gluten intake at all. Since I’m asymptomatic, and went through the trouble of having a stomach biopsy which was completely normal, I just said Feh to that.