Special Diet (Gluten Free & Dairy Free)

[prain4u]

A year ago, doctor recommended that I remove two things from my diet--due to suspected sensitivities to those items: gluten (which would include wheat, rye, barley, oats) and milk products (including casein and whey). My health and well-being improved immensely when I made the dietary switch. And, I usually feel like crap once again if I eat any food products containing gluten or dairy. Thus, the doctor's theory seems to have some validity.

This summer, I successfully completed a 10 day 104 mile hike on Isle Royale (in Lake Superior). The hike was gluten-free and dairy free. HOWEVER, finding "hikeable" food for the journey was a bit of a challenge and a pain. I plan on attempting a thru hike in 2012--so I am starting to plan ahead now for the dietary issues. (I will be testing various food options on section hikes between now and 2012).

Are there any other people who go hiking on this type of diet (or who have a need to avoid even just one of the two items--gluten or dairy)? Are there any AT thru hikers or potential AT thru hikers on these diets? I would love to compare ideas and notes.

[Sailor (The other one)]

Are there any other people who go hiking on this type of diet (or who have a need to avoid even just one of the two items--gluten or dairy)? Are there any AT thru hikers or potential AT thru hikers on these diets?

Yeah, me.
Can't say I stick to it very well, but I've had the same advice and the same experiences. When I don't follow that advice, I feel lousy, gain weight, have no energy. I've also got a major sugar addiction which makes it all worse. These are some of the reasons why the advice against mailing myself re-supply boxes and just shopping along the way ain't so good for me, along with the meds and supplements I need. It's amazing how many food products contain sugar in all its forms and how many contain gluten products.

My wife, Mudpie, is in the same boat. On each practice trip we experiment and she has done a great job with the dehydrator. Basically, you can dehydrate almost anything you eat at home. On our last trip we carried only .8 lbs of food per person per day and still came home with food, so there is the benefit of less weight and still eating well.

One thing we'd really love to find is a gluten free, dairy free, sugar free, additive free, natural, organic bar to use for fast breakfasts.

By the way, if sugar is an issue for you, the best alternative we've found is Xylitol, an all natural sugar alcohol that tastes exactly like sugar, is just as sweet, has no aftertaste, is low on the glycemic index, and has no side effects except a slight laxative effect on some people, who need to start using a small amount and build up to get used to it., It actually has some health benefits (it kills candida, which can be made worse by sugar, gluten and dairy products) and is good for your teeth. But it will kill your dog. We've found at least one company online that makes xylitol sweetened chocolate. We usew it, powdered cocao and almond milk to make hot chocolate at home. Haven't tried dehydrating the almond milk yet. Xylitol ain't cheap. the best deal we've found is here: http://www.vitaglo.com/6989.html.

Thanks for starting this thread. Good luck.

[prain4u]

RBrownkatz: Thanks for your answer. It is greatly appreciated.

I have found some "power bars" in my area which contain no gluten or dairy. (I am not certain regarding the sugar and additives thing. I will have to buy some more of the bars and research the labels for you). The biggest problem is that they do not have the same caloric power as the "traditional" bars that contain things like whey. So, I have to carry TWO of the gluten free and dairy free bars--to equal the calories that other hikers get in just one bar. So that adds to the pack weight.

I do eat a lot of "homemade" GORP/Trail mix for lunches and snacks. I will also use the "power bars" for lunch and snacks. I have found some VERY LIMITED varieties of dehydrated backpacking meals available at places like REI (after spending 45 minutes reading labels). Jerky is fairly high in protein and calories. Dehydrated fruit works well (often I get home dehydrated fruit in order to avoid any gluten or dairy-based additives). Rice is good.

I have found a powdered spaghetti sauce that requires tomato paste. (I get my tomato paste greatly concentrated and packaged in something that resembles a tube of toothpaste). I will eat that spaghetti sauce mixed with rice (sometimes adding dehydrated tomatoes, peppers and/or onions).

[prain4u]

A company called "GLUTINO" makes one of the brands of breakfast bars that I was talking about. Here is the link:

http://www.glutino.com/content/view/80/114/

Some of their breakfast bars are labeled as "organic". So, MAYBE there is at least some hope!

[Alligator]

Quinoa? Lentils and other bean dishes. Maybe look at Atkins diet recipes they are low on the carbs so they may be adaptable. These are meal ideas.

I'll second the dehydrator.

Powdered soy mixes, you might find one palatable to you. That could help for a quick breakfast.

I'll move this over to cooking and food, some of our foodies will likely help you out.

[Daydream Believer]

I have Celiac's Disease or Gluten Intolerance. It is a major PITA to find gluten free dehydrated hiking food but I happened upon these sites one day.

http://www.wildernessdining.com/gl.html

http://www.trailfoodexpress.com/glutenfreeitems

It seems like the brand Alpine Aire has most of the gluten free entrees. I bought a nice variety of these meals off the second site and will be taking them with us for our hike later this week and early next week. I'll let you all know how they taste and if the portions are decent sizes.

As for daily life, I have been doing this for a couple of years now and I can recommend some really good food. www.samisbakery.com has some wonderful millet bread that is excellent and shipped fresh. To me, the hardest thing to get over was bread...I love it and not being able to have it anymore was a major blow to morale.

A great site to shop on line is www.glutenfree.com I buy breakfast bars, prepared meals like hamburger helper (only gluten free called Mrs Leepers), and soup and gravy mix.

I'm not sure how possible it would be to through hike with Celiac's Disease. That question has kept me wondering a few times. You'd have to do mail drops very strategically on the trail as you will not likely find much suitable at an outfitters. It was funny as I was at Mountain Crossings back in Oct. and I mentioned it to one of the guys there and he said "oh you are one of THOSE people!" Apparently, I'm not the first that has asked them about gluten free food.

Recent stats show that up to 30% of all Americans (particular European descent) may have the gene for Celiac's Disease/gluten intolerance. People are affected very differently...some do just fine and some have major complications. What is a fact though is that gluten is added to many prepared foods where you'd never expect it and I do think people who might have been OK in the past are becoming more sensitized to it than before...thus the fact that you are hearing more about it these days.

[Sailor (The other one)]

Thanks for the sites folks. I had no idea they were even out there. I think they will help us a lot. The bars look like good possibilities.

One more thing about dehydrating. Vegetables dehydrate very well, and some (especially onions) make delicious snacks. You can freeze them and they'll keep forever, and can be added as you will to other dishes.

Fruit also dries very well and makes for great snacks. Dried watermelon, guava and papya are incredible.

[Compass]

I went through a bout with something intestinal for 6 months and solved the problem with a gluten free diet. I have since brought foods back into my diet slowly and found whole wheat and wheat bran were the main culprits.

During this time I was hiking sections and had difficulties finding food with the calories and some variety. Rice was and is my friend. Spelt is an ancient grain with similar positive attributes as wheat but I find no negative reaction.

Hammer nutrition has some products designed for long distance cycling that seem to meet OP and post 2's needs http://www.hammernutrition.com/za/HN....ID=4047#info3 . Scroll to the bottom of the page and open "Nutrition Imformation" for ingredients. From the above page you can navigate to other products offered.

For calories oil should not be left out of the equation.

[Compass]

RBrownkatz,
Calories have weight.

0.8 pounds of food is 12.4 ounces which if in a balanced diet has an average of 1400 calories.

0.8 pounds if in pure oil/fat form would only have 2728 calories which would still be an inadequate amount of food.

For a long duration hike more food would be essential.

[Daydream Believer]

Compass...Spelt is a first cousin to modern Wheat genetically speaking. It is true that some people do better with it but it does have gluten...so a true sufferer of Celiac's should not count on Spelt. Could you possibly have a wheat allergy? That is a bit different than having the gene for gluten intolerance but can behave in a very similar way.

Rice is definitely our friend. Be careful of the flavored rice meals...only a very few are gluten free. Again, gluten hides in many foods you'd never suspect. A wonderful brand of gluten free rice meals with flavors is Lundberg. Some take milk as well as water to mix in so you could probably carry powdered milk and make that work for a hiking trip as well.

I see we are practically neighbors too! I'm from Suffolk!

[Dogwood]

Wow, lots of solid advice happening on the beginning of this thread. I appreciate everyone's positive contributions and the ability to make proactive informed trailfood decisions outside of the box!

First, two quick stories. One of my cousin's sons was having persistent serious debilitating inner ear pain. He took his boy to several traditionally Western trained medical doctors specializing in ears, nose and throat. After many expensive tests, the doctors all recommended rather expensive surgeries, drugs, and/or treatments diagnosing inner ear damage. Being self-employed and having to pay for the surgeries out of his own pocket my cousin was concerned with the $10,000+ price tags and the costs of some of the treatments and drugs. Someone recommended my cousin see a medical doctor having an integrative or alternative medical practice. The integrative medical practioner saw my cousin's boy and immediately started asking questions about the boy's nutritional habits. My cousin was confused because none of the other Western trained medical doctors had asked these types of questions. On the advice of the integrative medical doctor, the boy cut down and then eventually eliminated dairy from his system. The boy has never experienced inner ear pain since. Cost - less than $200 and only 3 doctor visits.

When out on a thru-hike, I'm currently attempting to eliminate dairy from my diet. During the first few days out on the trail my nose runs and I'm constantly spitting up mucus. After a couple of days my body pretty much purges itself of the clogging mucus. I feel so much better after that. I think I know why! One of the first things I seek out when returning into town for a resupply is a 20 oz. coffee made light w/ a good dose of half and half and sugar. I'll usually drink at least two coffees made this way. Back out on the trail, I have to go through the process of purging the dairy induced mucus from my system all over again! I'm now trying to totally eliminate coffee w/ dairy from my diet.

IMO, casein and whey are two milk products humans should avoid. Casein can keep your body from absorbing beneficial nutrients by forming a wax-like layer on the inside walls of the digestive tract not that unlike how cholesterol can form in your arteries. It takes energy, your body can use elswhere, to eliminate it from your system. Whey(sometimes listed as sweet dairy whey, but NOT the same as whey protein isolate) is a by-product of the cheese making industry. A few decades ago whey used to be disposed of in landfills at a significant cost to the cheese making and dairy industries. Since, the FDA has allowed it be used as a food ingredient and we see the creation of whey protein isolate. Makes me say, "Hummm!"

This summer, I successfully completed a 10 day 104 mile hike on Isle Royale (in Lake Superior). The hike was gluten-free and dairy free. HOWEVER, finding "hikeable" food for the journey was a bit of a challenge and a pain. - Prayin4u

Doesn't have to be!

I have found some "power bars" in my area which contain no gluten or dairy. (I am not certain regarding the sugar and additives thing. I will have to buy some more of the bars and research the labels for you). The biggest problem is that they do not have the same caloric power as the "traditional" bars that contain things like whey. So, I have to carry TWO of the gluten free and dairy free bars--to equal the calories that other hikers get in just one bar. So that adds to the pack weight. - Prayin4u

Doesn't have to be!

I'll give you several nutritional bars(note: Despite some persuasive marketing campaigns I DO NOT consider candy bars or several of the supposed nutritional bars as such). ALL DAIRY AND GLUTEN FREE at different costs with HIGH cals/oz to suit individual budgets and tastes and REDUCE trail food wt! Most with less refined or naturally formed sugar and having raw ingredients w/ living enzymes and contributing to an overall adequate daily protein intake. These are the reasons nutritional bars are a major component of my wt saving and high nutrition trail food. And, although some of these nutritional bars are more expensive than some other so-called nutritional bars their HIGH cals/oz translate to needing to haul and buy less food. One additional benefit that I like - I can pronounce and easily understand what I'm eating!

Lara Bar(Cashew Cookie is my favorite, very filling, 1.7 oz, 210 cals., vegan, ingredients: cashews, dates)
Prana Bar(Pear Ginseng is my favorite, 1.7 oz, 220 cals., organic, vegan, ingredients: agave nectar, date paste, almond butter, almonds, pears, sesame seeds, amaranth, Ginseng, sea salt)
Bumble Bars(Almond and Luscious Lemon are my favorites, something different in a nutritional bar, may not be good for someone who has a problem w/ seeds, chew well, 1.6 oz(almond), 230 cals(almond), organic, vegan, ingredients(A): sesame seeds, brown rice syrup, Flaxseeds, Evaporated Cane Juice, Almonds, vanilla extract, cinnamon, sea salt, Tocopherol(vit E)
Raw Revolution(Cashew/Agave Nectar and Spirulina/Cashew are my favorites, one of my favorite bars, I'm seeking sponsorship by this company, raw, live, organic, vegan, 2.2 oz(C/AN), 280 cals.(C/AN), ingredients: cashews, dates, agave nectar, almonds, sprouted flaxseed)
Go Raw(Spirulina and Pumpkin are my favorites, great tastes, nut free, raw, live, organic, vegan, these bars are some of my favorites but I limit them because of their higher cost and availability, I'm seeking sponsorship by this company, 1.7 oz(S), 1.8 oz(P), 220 cals(S), 276 cals(P, WOW!), ingredients(S): sesame seeds, banana, coconut, date, spirulina, ingredients(P): pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, date, agave nectar, sea salt)

...but I've had the same advice and the same experiences. When I don't follow that advice, I feel lousy, gain weight, have no energy.... These are some of the reasons why the advice against mailing myself re-supply boxes and just shopping along the way ain't so good for me, along with the meds and supplements I need. It's amazing how many food products contain sugar in all its forms and how many contain gluten products. RBrownkatz

Although, not diagnosed with any health care issues by a physician myself, I feel it's also better for me to mail myself resupply boxes at key places(towns where a mid-lg grocery store doesn't exist) during a thru-hike so I can make sure I eat these types of foods that I feel best support my body and hike.

[Compass]

Dogwood,
My daughter has a very similiar reaction to dairy with a naisal drip and on hikes of more than 3 days she would completely clear up. We found out that for her it was not the natural parts of the dairy products but the Vitamin D additive which is a synthetic cholestrol. Just about all dairy products including cheese and butter have the vitamin D additive but do not have it listed on the label like milk does. If you look closely some specialized small companies will not have it. We get milk from Kroger in the glass bottles from the Homestead Creamery which does not use the additive.


Daydream Believer,
Spelt does have gluten but not as much. I tend to think my problem is from the GMO wheat which is all that is now availiable in the markets and wheat products.

Prepackaged rice meals tend to have a mix of rice and vermicili(sp) which is a wheat product designed to look like rice.

[Sailor (The other one)]

RBrownkatz,
Calories have weight.

0.8 pounds of food is 12.4 ounces which if in a balanced diet has an average of 1400 calories.

0.8 pounds if in pure oil/fat form would only have 2728 calories which would still be an inadequate amount of food.

For a long duration hike more food would be essential.

Thanks. Important information, for sure. However, that .8 is almost all dehydrated, so if you were calculating calories for proteins and complex carbs, this weight might be misleading. But even so, 1400 calories would mean all .8 was in carbs and/or protein. For exactly your reasoning, we carry extra virgin olive oil to increase the fat content (if the .8 were all fat, the calories would total 3162. There are 9 calories in every gram of fat. 12.4 ounces, at 28.34 grams per ounce, is 351.416 grams. 251.416 grams x 9 is 3162.744). The .8 also included some nuts, chocolate and bars, each of which contributed some more fat.

The trip we went on with the .8 figure was only 6 days and our body weights didn't change. I have no doubt that when we thru we will eventually (well, at least I HOPE this part is true) lose a lot of body fat and need to vastly increase our caloric intake. Given what we were able to accomplish with only .8 pounds per person per day, it seems to me we could easily increase our caloric intake within the recommended 1.5 to 2 pounds of person per day on the trail, plus add many more calories in town stops, being careful to eat the right foods. Easiest way for us, since we enjoy it so much, is the olive oil.

At least I think this is logical. I'd appreciate any help I can get with this. I've had the misfortune of going hungry for a few weeks and don't relish it on the trail.

[mweinstone]

you can eat anything on a long distance hike.with less trouble than at home. remember low glycemic means by serving. not by food. anything in a small enough serving is low glycemic. its a huge scam. and yes , you are correct. dehydrateing works wonders. once dehydrated a whole stuffed turkey and all the fixins. well, actually i burnt down the house. but technicly , i dehydrated the dinner.

[Compass]

RBrtownkatz,
I used 220cal. per ounce from memory and that is for butter. Olive oil is 250 cal. per ounce=3100. OOPS.

After a six day trip body weight might not change due to swelling/water retention(due to exertion and sodium rich diet) and benge eating on the way home before getting to the same scale. Calorie needs are also mileage weight and weather dependant. About 7 miles per day is the line for a noticeable increase in calorie needs.
5 miles/day eat like usual.
10 miles/day eat more.
18 miles/day and up double usual calorie need.

The first strenuous long hike I did I sort of lost my appetite for days 3-5 and kind of forced food a little but by day 7 was ravenous.

Carbs are not as calorie dense even dry. Sugar and pasta are only 105-108 calories per ounce or 3.8 cal. per gram. (12.4x108=1339 calories)

At 0.8 pounds eating a pure diet of a calorie dense food like peanut butter would only be 2000 calorie /day (12.4x165).

Sorry about deviating from OP.

[Graywolf]

Yeah, me.
Can't say I stick to it very well, but I've had the same advice and the same experiences. When I don't follow that advice, I feel lousy, gain weight, have no energy. I've also got a major sugar addiction which makes it all worse. These are some of the reasons why the advice against mailing myself re-supply boxes and just shopping along the way ain't so good for me, along with the meds and supplements I need. It's amazing how many food products contain sugar in all its forms and how many contain gluten products.

My wife, Mudpie, is in the same boat. On each practice trip we experiment and she has done a great job with the dehydrator. Basically, you can dehydrate almost anything you eat at home. On our last trip we carried only .8 lbs of food per person per day and still came home with food, so there is the benefit of less weight and still eating well.

One thing we'd really love to find is a gluten free, dairy free, sugar free, additive free, natural, organic bar to use for fast breakfasts.

By the way, if sugar is an issue for you, the best alternative we've found is Xylitol, an all natural sugar alcohol that tastes exactly like sugar, is just as sweet, has no aftertaste, is low on the glycemic index, and has no side effects except a slight laxative effect on some people, who need to start using a small amount and build up to get used to it., It actually has some health benefits (it kills candida, which can be made worse by sugar, gluten and dairy products) and is good for your teeth. But it will kill your dog. We've found at least one company online that makes xylitol sweetened chocolate. We usew it, powdered cocao and almond milk to make hot chocolate at home. Haven't tried dehydrating the almond milk yet. Xylitol ain't cheap. the best deal we've found is here: http://www.vitaglo.com/6989.html.

Thanks for starting this thread. Good luck.

In stead if Xylitol, use Zsweet. It is pure organic, no after taste, 0 calories, 0 glycemic impact, kosher, non- GMO..I t much healthier for you and wont kill your dog...

You can purchase it at whole foos market or any health food store..
Here is a website to check it out:

www.zsweet.com

I am a Chef and do a lot of baking, I have clients who are both glucemic and diabetic. I began to use this as an alternative to suger and in nonaste-dairy recipes..such as no-dairy cookies and such..It very healthy for you and taste hust like suger and leaves no after taste..

Oh did I mention it is pue organic...

Graywolf

[Graywolf]

In stead if Xylitol, use Zsweet. It is pure organic, no after taste, 0 calories, 0 glycemic impact, kosher, non- GMO..I t much healthier for you and wont kill your dog...

You can purchase it at whole foos market or any health food store..
Here is a website to check it out:

www.zsweet.com

I am a Chef and do a lot of baking, I have clients who are both glucemic and diabetic. I began to use this as an alternative to suger and in nonaste-dairy recipes..such as no-dairy cookies and such..It very healthy for you and taste hust like suger and leaves no after taste..

Oh did I mention it is pue organic...

Graywolf

I just saw my typo..I meant gluton-intolerant,

Graywolf

[Sailor (The other one)]

RBrtownkatz,
Sorry about deviating from OP.

I for one am glad you are, I'm learning here and I appreciate the help. I have also experienced the loss of appetite phenomenon on two week trips. I'm guessing we may have experienced some of that on the shorter trip.

I follow your logic up to here: "At 0.8 pounds eating a pure diet of a calorie dense food like peanut butter would only be 2000 calorie /day (12.4x165)." What I don't get is where the 165 came from. (I'm lousy at math so I'm not suprised I don't get it. )The way I'm figuring it goes like this:

Peanut butter is between 45% and 55% fat. Call it 50%. Each gram of fat yeilds about 9 calories, each gram of protein or carbs about 4. So one gram of peanut butter ought to yeild about 6.5 calories. .8 pounds is 12.8 ounces is (at 28.34 grams per ounce) 362.75 grams * 6.5 is 2357, which is close enough to your 2000 that I think we agree. But where'd the 165 come from? What'd I miss?

It seems to me the calories per gram and/or per ounce figures for carbs and proteins are for those foods in their undehydrated state. So if I apply those figures to these foods in their dehydrated state, I'm really getting inaccurate figures. Does that make sense? If it does, then that might explain why we would not be hungry nor lose weight on a .8 pounds per person diet that included fats from olive oil, nuts and chocolate despite the increase in our exercise.

Hope your having a great holiday.

PS: thanks for the hammer nutrition info and link.

[Sailor (The other one)]

In stead if Xylitol, use Zsweet. It is pure organic, no after taste, 0 calories, 0 glycemic impact, kosher, non- GMO..I t much healthier for you and wont kill your dog...

You can purchase it at whole foos market or any health food store..
Here is a website to check it out:

www.zsweet.com

I am a Chef and do a lot of baking, I have clients who are both glucemic and diabetic. I began to use this as an alternative to suger and in nonaste-dairy recipes..such as no-dairy cookies and such..It very healthy for you and taste hust like suger and leaves no after taste..

Oh did I mention it is pue organic...

Graywolf

Thanks, Graywolf. I actually have Zsweet in the house and agree with you about it. I use it when I'm out of Xylitol, which I prefer because it helps to fight Candida and is supposedly good for teeth, and both of mine can use the help. It'll probaby see more use here when we get a dog.

BTW, I was a chef about 150 years ago.

[Sailor (The other one)]

Wow, lots of solid advice .... hike.

Wow is right, Dogwood. That's a great post for me. I have been advised to avoid all dairy by both an integratice western MD and a Chinese medicine doctor and I suffer from the running nose problems everytime I hike. I never thought of the connection before, so thanks a lot.

I also appreciate the information about the bars.

I love White Blaze.