gluten free diet ideas

Posted Sun 26 Jan 2014 16.55 by experiax10
Plaque psoriasis on elbows and knees.

Hi, new to the forum. I've had psoriasis now for a couple of years and I'm going to start the gluten free diet tomorrow. Just wondered if any one had any tips or ideas for snacks etc to stop me going off the diet between meals?

Posted Mon 27 Jan 2014 12.12 by ally123
significantly affected during my 20's, now in early 30's and on biologics, seeing great results.

Hi, I'm also new, thought i'd join this year after about 8-10 years with psoriasis! I'm really interested in how diet can help psoriasis, I think it probably has a massive effect in improving symptoms if given enough time and discipline! I guess the short answer to your question would be to snack on fruit, nuts, veg (carrot / celery sticks etc), however my suggestion would be if targeting gluten specifically is the answer? I don't think it's all that safe to remove it entirely unless you are intolerant, and probably very difficult to stick with! Have you tried other elimintation diets with any success? :-)

Posted Tue 28 Jan 2014 20.40 by experiax10
Plaque psoriasis on elbows and knees.

no this will be the first time I try any type of diet for my P. Kind of tough when your used to eating what you like, especially now as my family/friends still do yet I'm on the gluten free diet. Only my second day so far but I'm determined to stick to it and give it a real go. If there's no change in a few weeks, I'm going to see if I can arrange an allergy test as I've never had one done. What about yourself? Any diets tried? Or tests? Nic.

Posted Wed 29 Jan 2014 12.43 by ally123 (edited Mon 21 Jul 2014 13.10 by luharmn@hotmail.com)
significantly affected during my 20's, now in early 30's and on biologics, seeing great results.

I've not stuck with anything long enough (discipline is an issue for me!) - I think my worry would be how long to give something before realising it is (or isn't!) working. Also, I guess you could go round in circles trying different things, i.e gluten, dairy, meat etc etc and ultimately drive yourself crazy! Ultimately I think I just need to eat more healthily overall and stamp out some bad habits. I've never had an allergy test and when asking my GP about this, they were quite firm that psoriasis wasn't caused by an allergy - which I do actually believe. Have you seen the Dr Pagano book? I think there are some good principles in there regarding foods (and overall causes of P), I always mean to keep going back to it in a more disciplined way - I guess another thing is not to think of it as a 'diet', more just some tweeks to eating habits! Good Luck!

Posted Wed 29 Jan 2014 19.44 by experiax10
Plaque psoriasis on elbows and knees.

haha yes I'm the same when it comes to sticking to something. I have the book here yes, bought it a few weeks back. A good, interesting read. It sounds so strict though to follow it exactly as he says doesn't it. Like you when I asked my doctor for an allergy test he said the same that it would not be caused by this. Funny that though, as I remember going there and him actually asking me am I allergic to anything. Thinking of trying out the doublebase brand too for shower gel/creams etc. I've been using epaderm now for a while and it just doesn't seem to do anything anymore.

Posted Fri 31 Jan 2014 00.26 by katherinech28 (edited Mon 21 Jul 2014 13.10 by Catdanser)
I have it quite badly

Hi, I'm new too but suffered for 20 years now. I started a strict elimination diet on 1st Jan this year, stopping cyclosporin I was on at same time. Carried on using Dovobet gel though. Mixed results so far. There has been a definite improvement but itchiness has been up and down and some patches have started reappearing. Figured I'm reacting to chilli and almonds but finding out what else is proving really hard as I think it is very individual and also affected by other things eg. stress, soap, etc. Am just trying out Kinesiology next week. Will post how I get on. K

Posted Fri 31 Jan 2014 16.50 by Laura79
I've had it for over 15 years.

I'm new too! I've had psoriasis for over 15 years and, after a really good few years, it's getting worse by the day since having babies. It's just started coming up on my face for the first time too which is even more of a bugger. From tomorrow, I'm going to have a go at drastically changing my diet - no gluten, dairy, sugar, nightshades, caffeine or alcohol. Just the thought of it makes me depressed! But I'm going to try... I haven't got the Pagano book. Would you recommend it?

Posted Fri 31 Jan 2014 17.16 by ally123
significantly affected during my 20's, now in early 30's and on biologics, seeing great results.

Hi, Yes I'd def recommend the Pagano book, it's an interesting read and I think comes the closest of anything I've read to nailing the causes of psoriasis on the head. (for me personally anyway) Thats a massive elimination diet you're embarking on! Good luck with it! Yes, Pagano mentions nightshades as a big factor, then elsewhere it's lots of veg and low fat proteins....I think it's actually very do-able, I've just not got round to properly sticking to it to reap the benefits!

Posted Sat 1 Feb 2014 19.37 by katherinech28
I have it quite badly

I've just bought the Pagano book - looks interesting. I'm on an elimination diet already and I would suggest making sure you always have stuff with you, you can eat, especially when you go out. Bananas are great for filling you up and buy loads of fruit, as you can eat this all the time. Dried apricots, raisins, raw carrot and cucumber and celery sticks - you could make your own avocado dip. Cook off some plain rice and put it in the fridge, you can fry it up with onion, garlic, clove, bay leaf, ginger, salt, pepper, tumeric and it's suprisingly tasty. Rice cakes and Tyrells do veg crisps (no potatoes) which are a real treat. Try googling dairy free choc, you can get it made with rice milk (not sure if it's gluten free though), tinned tuna, salmon and mackerel in oil or water are good to carry for snacks or with salads and I'd forget lettuce and substitute it with spinach (so much better for you). Kallo do a good range of free from food (sold in Holland and Barrett and I'm sure other shops) - imparticular rice crispies with no sugar. You can use Stevia for a sugar substitute and although I love dairy, I've found rice milk (called Rice Dream - Tesco, maybe elsewhere) a great substitute. If you're feeling tired try lambs liver (I know it's not everyone's cup of tea) but with onion and veg gravy (thicken with arrowroot) and parsnip and sweet potato mash - yum! Hope you do well!

Posted Mon 10 Feb 2014 13.26 by hendricks10
I have had psoriasis for over 10 years now and like many people feel like I have tried everything!!! I am dealing with it better as I get ol

Hi Experiax, Ally, Katherine and Laura, I have just registered and can't believe I have never come across this website before. I have had psoriasis for over 10 years now in all sorts of areas and was also diagnosed with psoratic arthritis. I have tried everything same as most of us on this website and as we all know only the sun is the true answer to psoriasis. When I was younger the tar treatment worked for me in the I was cleared in 2 weeks completely however I was bandaged like a dummy and smelt like a coal mine so I just carried on dealing with it. I have never tried to adjust my diet as I enjoy food and wine too much however today is day one of a dairy and gluten free diet and I would really like it if we can try and share some recipes together along with hints and tips. Thanks Katherine for the great cooking tips you have already put up. I have ordered the Dr Pagano book from amazon for hopefully some inspiration as I really want to try this the natural way after, creams, lights, all the drugs etc that have really done nothing to help because I am starting to believe more in the diet aspect. Here's to a psoriasis free and healthy future. Hopefully speak soon!

Posted Thu 13 Feb 2014 13.58 by ally123
significantly affected during my 20's, now in early 30's and on biologics, seeing great results.

How are you getting on with the diet? :) I've decided to get a juicer and ram myself full of veg! I don't eat enough fresh veg really, and find it quite hard to eat the quantities that would probably make a difference, so I'm deciding to juice it instead and see if that helps! Did you get the pagano recipe book or just the main 'healing psoriasis' one? that one doesn't have many recipes it it... good luck, keep us posted! :)

Posted Tue 18 Feb 2014 19.17 by hendricks10
I have had psoriasis for over 10 years now and like many people feel like I have tried everything!!! I am dealing with it better as I get ol

Hi Ally123, So its day 9 I have been totally dairy/wheat free no alcohol no fags and no sugary type bad food. I have to say that I really feel the benefits! My skin is improving, not clear yet but not as itchy or scaly. My Pagano book arrived on Friday and I was so excited it really just confirms what I already know apart from a few things like the herbal teas and some other info. I really wish I had known to just get the recipe book. At the moment I am deciding whether to buy it or not cause I cannot find any recipes online everyone wants you to buy a book. I much prefer soya milk! There is a wide range of cereal/muesli which is gluten/wheat free. Cutting out red meat is hard I crave steak and burgers but I am coping with chicken and fish! I have eaten a lot of apples and banana's tubs of Yeo Valley natural yogurt. I knew it would be hard but have been doing ok so far. My partner is supportive although he eats big bars of chocolate in front of me which is hard. I have changed my routine and surprised myself at how much more will power I seem to have with this one. I think it just shows you have to want to do something because I have never cared about psoriasis this much before. I have just always covered it up and not told anyone. Recipe wise my meals have included fish (salmon) with fresh veg season with garlic and onion. We roasted a chicken yesterday which was delicious and I just had veg with it instead of my normal billion potatoes on the side. The day before I had a salad with asparagus, garlic, ginger, celery, feta cheese and spinach. For snacks I have maybe carrot dipped in humous, rivita with olive spread, cottage cheese and maybe a bit of cucumber. I am not sure if cucumber is a nightshade? Anyway I will keep you updated. The juicer idea sounds very exciting. I am starting a new job on the 10th March and I am sure my routine with not be quite as successful when the starts ;-) Speak soon Best wishes

Posted Fri 28 Feb 2014 16.36 by JBA
Scalp, ears, midrif and a little on arms and legs

Hi there, My psoriasis greatly calmed down after following the principles in Konstantin Monastyrsky's book: 'Fiber Menace' - you can read all about his work here http://www.gutsense.org/. Personally I find his insights something of a revelation. After mentioning my progress with psoriasis to the author, he also kindly pointed me towards a histamine restriction diet which cuts out foods that cause inflammation. http://web.archive.org/web/20130325195625/http://urticaria.thunderworksinc.com/pages/lowhistamine.htm#foodsource My psoriasis continued to calm down further, however it flares up quite quickly if I don't keep my histamine intake low, and this is a little difficult when you are away from home. I am now on a mission to get rid of any skin products with preservatives and other nasties in and give my body a break from everything that is causing stress and inflammation. Hopefully this will be the final touch to clear the psoriasis up completely. For those of you who are feeling down about your psoriasis, I hope you find some relief from this information. My dermatologist refused to even discuss diet in relation to psoriasis as there is no scientific proof of a connection. However, if it works for me, I hope it will work for you too. I have always sensed that diet played a major part, but I couldn't quite figure it out. I hope this helps, and Good Luck!

Posted Thu 6 Mar 2014 00.40 by melanietamera
My sister has it and has guttate psoriasis plaque psoriasis and scalp psoriasis ive just started monitoring her diet with her and things see

sure snacks could be nuts, almonds pistachios sunflower seeds you CAN drink almond milk since there's no dairy but the unsweetened version ( I drink that too and I really like it ) eat lots of fruits and veggies, you can have grilled chicken brown rice, gluten free pasta, sugar free cereals, fish those are basically all the things I eat every day and I don't have psoriasis but I just like eating healthy. I'm getting my sister to eat like this now because she has psoriasis and im hoping she'll get better soon. Good luck to you

Posted Wed 22 Jan 2020 20.34 by hainiej
Cannot go swimming any more

Great stories thanks. Laura, how I’d it work out for you cutting out gluten, dairy, sugar, nightshades, caffeine or alcohol. Did you see results. It’s exactly what I’m doing right now so very keen to hear how you got on and how you are doing

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