Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms
Nervousness, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, apathy, irritability, day-dreaming, confusion, restlessness, poor concentration, mood swings, aggression, unreasonable giggling or weeping, speech difficulties, couldn’t-care-less attitude, general feeling of misery, excessive sleeping, hyperactivity, insomnia.
Planning a Diet Without Wheat, Milk and Eggs
Before the miseries set in, here is a list of the foods that you can eat:
The yes list – basic wheat-free, milk-free and egg-free foods
Plain, fresh meat – all kinds
Bacon
Ham – without breadcrumb coating
Plain, fresh, frozen or canned fish (in water) – all kinds
All fresh vegetables
All fresh fruit
Rice – preferably brown
Ground rice
Maize (corn), cornflour (cornstarch)
Barley flour
Millet flour
Porridge oats
Sesame seeds
Chickpea (gram) flour
Plain, fresh nuts
Pure cooking oils, such as safflower, sunflower, extra virgin olive oil, soya and corn oils
Pure honey
Treacle, syrup and molasses
All kinds of sugars and jams
Drinks:
Tea without milk
Coffee without milk
Herb teas
Wine – red, white or rosé made from fruit
Brandies derived from fruit
Sherry
Port
Other wheat-free, milk-free and egg-free foods
N.B. Where brand names are specified this indicates that other brands of the same product may be unsuitable.
Baked beans (Heinz) in tomato sauce (check label)
Soya flour
Ground almonds
Frozen, plain fish and shellfish
Tamari-type wheat-free soy sauce
Frozen, plain meat
Curry powder (a brand which does not contain wheat flour)
Yeast extract (Marmite)
Rice bran, soya bran
Soya milk (not to everyone’s taste, but some people find it useful)
Dairy-free margarine
Split peas
Dried beans
Lentils
Soya beans
Gelatine
Many people find a new kind of diet extremely worrying, particularly if their basic knowledge of nutrition is not adequate to restructure their daily menus. To exclude wheat, milk and eggs from the food regime and still eat a balanced diet can be nutritionally disastrous if care is not taken over the following points.
The greatest danger lies in eating too little protein, fibre, vitamin A, iron and calcium. This can result in a rather alarming weight loss, constipation, lethargy and a feeling of being ‘below par’. Such a situation is easily rectified by increasing the consumption of fish and meat, taking a new kind of fibre in the form of rice or soya bran, and supplementation of the diet with vitamin A, iron and calcium in capsule or tablet form. Alternatively, suitable foods that contain these last three substances can be eaten regularly:
Vitamin A – oily fish
Iron – curry powder, spinach, watercress, dates, pineapple, sultanas, cocoa, prunes, figs
Calcium – sardines, watercress, figs, rhubarb, almonds and other nuts
By eating a wide variety of raw or lightly cooked vegetables and other permitted foods, any other resulting deficiencies in vitamins and minerals can be made up.
Once the new diet is underway, some people may experience a craving for wheat, milk and eggs. This is not an unusual reaction and to cope with it best requires a little extra effort in the kitchen to make the new diet exciting, satisfying and nutritious.
A balanced diet
Nobody knows exactly what each person requires in the way of nutrients as no two people have the same dietary needs. Much depends on what kind of life the person leads, how much energy he or she expends, his or her age and sex.
The average Western diet has many faults – usually containing too much fat, sugar and salt and not enough fibre, fresh vegetables and fruit, because too many processed and ‘junk’ foods are consumed instead.
Try to balance the daily food intake in this way:
15 per cent milk-free margarine, nuts, seeds and oils
25 per cent fish and meat
45 per cent fresh fruit and vegetables
15 per cent special bakery items
Try to use plain, fresh foods and not processed ones to minimize problems.
