Extreem tirdness after eating

godskitchen

Hello all, for about 6 months now I have been feeling extremely tired after eating.

First let me tell you about the symptoms, about 15 minutes after eating I feel light headed (almost like I have taken a sleeping tablet mixed with dizziness and a hang over, not fun let me tell you) Sometimes I feel sickly, other times I don’t.

This feeling lasts for anything up to 3-5 hours and only starts to dissipate when I become gassy and start to belch, a lot! Then everything is back to normal, until of course my next meal.

I only discovered it was happening after eating about 3 months ago, before I just didn't know what was causing it and like any good male, just ignored it and hoped it would go away. It didn't.

It became apparent that it was happening after meals so I decided to do some research on line; I came up wheat allergy and Celiac Disease that most matched my symptoms. (there were many other answers from people on line) After this I cut out wheat from my diet (to the best of my knowledge). The symptoms were and are worst after bread/pasta. It also doesn’t matter how big or small the meal is.

After 2 or 3 days of this I was still feeling the same as before, so its either not Wheat or Celiac or, I didn’t do a good enough job of cutting Gluten/Wheat of of my diet.

I decieded to go to the doctor to try and resolve this as it was and is starting to effect my mood, work and relationships with people. He did some blood tests and talked to me to see if I had any mental problems that might be causing this, to which I replied I had many mental problems but none of them are causing this!

The blood tests come back, and all is normal, I don’t know what was screened for but I don’t have any of it, so he takes some more blood today to screen for Celiac and something else and the results will be back in 2 weeks.

I guess what I really need is advice, as qualified as the doctor is, he is very young, I am 25 and he can’t be much older than me.

Has anyone else had this/does anyone else have this now? Its getting to the stage now where I am better off not eating at all, food seems to have no benefit for me other than stopping hunger.

Its starting to get me down too and I think about it all the time. I know I can just wait two weeks for the blood results to come back but I want to get as much info/advice as I can.

Any help you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Oh and i don't drink or smoke, my diet is varied and I get a good amount of exercise.

seamus

You'll have to wait for the doctor to come back to you, but I wouldn't be overly surprised if this was being caused by wheat. My girlfriend found that wheat was having a seriously bad effect on her. After managing to cut it out completely, she saw a dramatic improvment in her digestive system, though it's still not perfect.

The only thing I can say to you is to check out what you're eating. There's wheat in absolutely everything. Not eating bread & pasta doesn't mean you're not eating wheat.

Aside from that, I think the first thing that most people would think is "ulcer", but if the doctor didn't pick that up...

godskitchen

Thanks for the reply, I thought I did a good job of cutting the Wheat out, Gluten free everything, not just cutting out bread/Pasta, but as you say it seems to be in everything.

I also hear you Wheat allergy can come on you at any time, its not something that you have always had to have had. So it could be this, maybe I should just eat eggs for a day and see what happens?(or something i am sure contains no wheat)

As for the ulcer, the doctor ruled that out as i am not experiencing any discomfort or burning at all.

Thanks again.

How Strange

godskitchen, you say you only gave yourself 2 or 3 days on a wheat free diet. That isn't very much time and I would suggest you go on a wheat free diet for at least two weeks. If your system is that upset by wheat then you are going to have to wait 4 - 7 days to get it out of your system and then a week of wheat free to see the effects it has on you.

And by going wheat free you also have to cut out all forms of processed food and low fat foods as most of them contain wheat in one form or another.

Give it another shot and do it for two weeks. Try eating spelt pasta (you can get it in health food shops and tastes like wheat pasta) and brown rice as these are good carbs. Try to limit your carb intake at meals and have protein and vegetables as well.

I've been wheat free for years except for the odd slice of brown bread or a slice of cake at a birthday. I can identify with your symptoms. I went to a doctor too and she treated me like I was a lunatic. IMO, the majority of Irish doctors are not up to speed at all on diet and nutrition and have found that I know more about diet and nutrition on the occasions I had to visit one in the last few years.

godskitchen

How Strange, thanks a million for your reply, I didn’t realise it would take so long for wheat to leave the system, my doctor apparently doesn’t know either, if he does he didn’t tell me.

I relate to the lunatic part 100%, it’s a relief to hear someone else say it. He (My doctor) was pushing the sociological aspect too much, almost wanting me to say I was depressed, now I know he was only doing his job but I know it’s not in my head, my doctor that knows me is in the UK so this one does not know me or my history.

I will try the Wheat free diet again but I am petrified of making a mistake, wheat seems to be in everything. I am quite prepared to just eat brown rice and spelt pasta with fish and veg and use Gluten free sauces.

Can you give me an idea of what your daily diet is? I will seek out a nutritionist as soon as I can, is a nutritionist the right person to see?

Also would you recommend getting a allergy test done?

Again thanks for your help you have put my mind at ease to a degree, its nice to know someone else has had the same problems with doctors, I was starting to think it was me.

ali.c

Food Diary FTW, seriously if you log your meals and your symptoms, this provides yourself with more information about what is happening.

Also 2-3 days wheat free to the best of your knowledge, its actually quite difficult to get rid of all wheat from your diet and it may of been that you missed some of the less obvious sources.

I would recommend getting a proper allergy test done by a specialist, in the mean time cut out all processed foods and keep a food diary and see how you get on. This will be a pain in the ass but if the symptons are bad it will be hopefully offer some relief.

How Strange

godskitchen, I PM'd you with some info so hope it helps

godskitchen

Thanks ali.c, a food diary could be reall useful, I will give it a go.

PM'd back How Strange

rubadub

How big are these meals? Try and get 6 equally sized, equally spaced meals during the day. If you eat a lot in one sitting digesting it can take it out of you, leaving you zapped of energy when really that food should be giving you energy.

godskitchen

Yes I have tried small meals and its still the same. I wish it was that simple though lol!

EileenG

Another possibility is that you are on the edge of insulin resistance, so that you are constantly on an insulin rollercoaster. This would well result in tiredness after eating.

Do you notice this after all meals, or is is worse when there are a lot of refined carbs in a meal? Does steak and broccoli have the same effect as toast and cereal?

godskitchen

EileenG, It is after all meals yes but more so with Bread/pasta, for example last night I had Mash with bacon and cabbage and didnt feel too bad, this morning I had cornflakes, again I dont feel too bad, I know if I were now to have 2/3 slices of bread I would want to go to bed within 15 minutes.

I am still getting on top of all this so I am not sure what you mean by refined carbs?

As for steak and broccoli...............who do you think I am.............

But to answer the question seriously I am not sure, today I will just eat veg with brown rice and see how I feel.

Thanks.

ali.c

godskitchen wrote: »

I am still getting on top of all this so I am not sure what you mean by refined carbs?

G'em explained it really well in the nutrition 101 sticky http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055157091

godskitchen wrote: »

As for steak and broccoli...............who do you think I am.............

Whats wrong with steak and broccoli? Yum way nicer than chicken and broccoli IMHO

EileenG

Refined carbs are things like sugar, bread, pasta, cornflakes, ricecakes etc. Things that have received a lot of processing on the way to turning them into what's on you plate.

Unrefined carbs are things like apples, potatoes, corn on the cob, porridge oats, broccoli.

In general, the refined carbs, even when they don't taste sweet, will produce a big insulin reaction which can make you feel pretty rotten.

godskitchen

ali.c wrote: »

G'em explained it really well in the nutrition 101 sticky http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055157091


Whats wrong with steak and broccoli? Yum way nicer than chicken and broccoli IMHO

It was the Steak bit I was refering too...............like who do you think I am, Bertie! Wish I could eat steak every day!

Cheers for the help guys, the nutrition 101 thread seems very informative, I will give it a read a few times.

ali.c

godskitchen wrote: »

It was the Steak bit I was refering too...............like who do you think I am, Bertie! Wish I could eat steak every day!

LOL, that was funny! Actually it just occured to me now but what you could try is test different combinations of foods and see how you feel?
You could try the following
Protein and Carbs (keep the carbs complex though, like oats)
Protein and Fat (good fats, and you can include fibrous green veg here too), so say something like a chicken salad with a sprinkling of olive oil or something
Protein

Anyhow just an idea, but i think its useful to get an idea of how certain foods and marco combinations affect you.

*Disclaimer, I am not a doctor and this is not qualified nutrional advice*

Coconut

I think this is one of these cases where expert advice is required, and where the moderators may recommend that this forum may not be able to safely deal with this issue.

Constant problems related to eating need investigation.

I would strongly recommend that you consult a dietician. You can ask your GP for a referral. (If the tests for coeliac disease come back positive then he should do this automatically. You should also contact the Coeliac Society.) The problem is that the waiting list to see a dietician can be extremely long. You could also consider going privately. Check the Irish Nutrition and Dietetics Institute website (www.indi.ie) for someone in your area.

Cutting out foods or food components (especially something found in a lot of foods, such as wheat, or gluten) from your diet will affect it quite a bit. There are many things to consider when making such radical changes.

As someone mentioned, a food diary is a very good idea. It will provide good evidence if, for example, the results of tests appear "normal" but you still are having problems, and it will also be very helpful to your dietician if you see one!

godskitchen

ali.c, I did try just protein one day but it made no difference really, like today all I have eaten is porridge for breakfast, some brown rice with carrots in the afternon and for dinner spuds, fish, carrots. And yet I still feel like crap and have to fight to stay awake after food.

Also in relation to trying different foods, when I have bread/pasta the effects are worse.

Lets assume wheat is causing my problem, if I cut it out from my diet, which I believe I now have, how long should it take to see a difference?

Coconut, thanks for your advice and concern, I think your right about seeking expert advice (not that the advice on here has not been great) but seeing someone face to face would help. I will check out the indi.ie tomorrow and see about seeing someon as soon as I can. I have been keeping a food diary since ali.c suggested it, I can see how it will help.

Thanks again everyone, I will keep you posted.

ali.c

godskitchen wrote: »

ali.c, I did try just protein one day but it made no difference really, like today all I have eaten is porridge for breakfast, some brown rice with carrots in the afternon and for dinner spuds, fish, carrots. And yet I still feel like crap and have to fight to stay awake after food.

Right so todays combinations would of been
Breakfast: Carbs and protein
Lunch: Carbs
Dinner Carbs, protein and fat

So i would recommend just playing with the combinations and seeing how you react. Personally i would be inclined to get the bulk of my carbs from vegetables and leave out all the starch (Rice and potatoes from todays menu for example) for a few days and see how you get on. Now its not a no carb diet because you still get a good bit of carbs from vegetables.

godskitchen wrote: »

Lets assume wheat is causing my problem, if I cut it out from my diet, which I believe I now have, how long should it take to see a difference?

Its hard to say, i cut out wheat and dairy and noticed an improvement in a couple of days. Honestly i think that if you believe it is then maybe try it for 4 weeks and see how it is getting on.

You are right though internet advice will only get you so far, and of course consulting a professional is the best route to take. the advice here is more along the lines of stuff that you can do yourself in the meantime.

Do keep us updated though and fingers crossed you get it sorted ASAP.

MeatProduct

One thing that really helped me to be less tired after eating was to not drink immediately before, during or after the meal. It made a significant difference and I still stick to it 3 years later. I generally leave 30 minutes around a meal time before I have a drink. I also drink a lot, which seems important too, usually about 3 litres a day.

This mightn't be useful to you but when I cut out dairy it also helped me but mostly with eliminating mucus buildup.

Nick

godskitchen

well guys I thought I would give you a quick update, its been about two weeks of wheat free now (to the best of my knowledge) i have pretty much ate nothing but veg, lots of veg, I have done things I didnt think possible with sprouts! I have cooked everything from scratch so I am as sure as I can be that no wheat has been eaten.

And now for the results………………….

I feel 10000000000000000% better, now this could be down to the fact that I am eating 100% healthy for the first time in my life, I was pretty good before, like I have not gone near soft drinks for years, but I was a sucker for biscuits of any kind! I also like a lot of people assumed most processed food was fine, like white rice/bread and other stuff I now know to be crap! Whatever the cause of me feeling better I am convinced now that its was diet causing my problems, wheat or not.

I have kept a food diary of what I have eaten and how I felt after eating it, I started my own tiredness scale and charted how I felt after each meal, it has been getting better every day and the diary is a great reference as I would have forgot what I ate and how I felt without it. 100000000 points to ali.c for the idea.

I have not as yet had the results of my latest blood test back from the doctor, they should be ready by Tuesday I hope, so I will find out then.

Just a few questions for anyone that has problems with wheat…………If I ate some now would I feel like crap? And if so how long would it take to feel normal again?

So that’s it for now guys, all that’s left to say is thank you all so much for taking the time to give me advice and guidance, it has helped more than you will ever know. I will keep you posted on future events, if only for this to be of some help for someone searching on the internet with the same problems as myself.

Thanks!

ali.c

I am delighted that you are feeling alot better, food diaries are a great tool as at least for me alot of eating is done subconciouslyand i tend to forget what i have eaten. I honestly dont know how you would react now if you re-introduced wheat, it really depends. I know one guy who was lactose intolerant and he decided in the end not to bother trying to find a level that suited him. His view was no lactose no symptoms so he went completely lactose free.

Keep us updated!

awnya

I am Coeliac and your symptoms sound very familiar, I was diagnosed 2 years ago, but you should wait until your bloods come back before cutting gluten out of your diet, if they come back positive for Coeliac, your Doctor will arrange for you to have biopsy taken from your small intestine to confirm Coeliac Disease and it is important to continue eating gluten up until the biopsy, as the villi in the small intestine begin to heal when gluten is cut out of the diet.

godskitchen

Well its been a long few months trying to sort this problem out, and to be honest I am no closer, the bloods from the doctor all came back ok, still have not received the Coeliac ones yet..............its been over 6 weeks now.

I went for a biopsy two weeks ago, they managed to get one from the stomach but not the small intestine, I pulled the tubes out, of course I dont remember any of this. They said nothing looked worng.

The results are still to arive and they said they wanted me back in 3 weeks, I am still to get a letter for a new appointment.

I have not eaten wheat now since I first posted on here, its been a long time. I have lived in England most of my life and to be honest the health system here is shocking, I thought England was bad. When I told the doctor doing the biopsy I had not eaten wheat in X amount of months, he said my doctor should have told me to sat as normal, which of course he didnt.

I am feeling marginally better now but still get light headed and sickly after eating, its no where near as bad as it was when I was eating wheat.

I can deal with whatever the problem is, its just the people that are there to tell me and point me in the right direction to fixing the problem are not seemingly up to the task!

So should I start eating wheat again?

Thanks for your time all!

ali.c

godskitchen wrote: »

So should I start eating wheat again?

I honestly dont know tbh. I think if your not happy with your doctor and then results so far then its worthwhile to get a second opinion. If you have insurance or can afford it it is definately worth going private for.