Coeliacs and Bi-Polar Disorder
I’ve been a coeliac all my life, but I was only diagnosed a few years ago. I wish I’d been diagnosed earlier.
The more I look at my condition, the more I find surprising links to other diseases.
As we all know, bi-polar disorder is something that is difficult to live with and control. It is not pleasant and in the worst cases it leads to all sorts of complications and trouble. So many families I know have all but been destroyed by mental illness of this type.
But type coeliac bi-polar disorder into Google and you get lots of stories about people who believe that the two are connected. Look at the snippet below from this article.
Sharla is a friend and a fellow blogger, her blog can be found at Jones Family Blog. Like myself, she suffers from bipolar disorder. But Sharla also suffers from celiac disease, as do two of her children.
Now is there a connection between coeliac disease and bi-polar disorder? And all of the other mental
problems, slight or otherwise?
Whilst I was undiagnosed, I didn’t suffer from too many mental problems, but I did suffer migraines, without any pain luckily, and various mood swings and temper problems. The migraines have gone and I’m a lot calmer, despite the other things that have happened to me.
But let’s look at the body and the mind from the point of view of an engineer. I was trained to be a control engineer, which is all about why systems work, so this might, or might not, give me a greater insight. You judge! Not me!
For any system to work well, and the brain is just a very complicated system, it needs to be supplied with everything it needs and all of the components must be in the best condition. Just think how poorly your car runs, when you haven’t topped it up with oil and water!
Now, coeliacs are often short on vitamin-B12 and folates, as their gut is damaged and these don’t get into the system. I still get an injection every three months to make sure my levels are where they should be.
This is what Wikipedia says about vitamin-B12.
Vitamin B12 is a water soluble vitamin with a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system, and for the formation of blood. It is one of the eight B vitamins. It is normally involved in the metabolism of every cell of the body, especially affecting DNA synthesis and regulation, but also fatty acid synthesis and energy production.
So if your vitamin-B12 is low, does this mean you might show all sorts of brain malfunctions, such as bi-polar disorder?
Type vitamin-B12 brain into Google and you get lots of interesting articles.
Like this one, where the research was done by the University of Oxford. And this article which says that the University of Highlands and Islands is researching the link between gluten and schizophrenia.
If there is one personal conclusion, then it is get your vitamin-B12 levels checked.
And on a general basis we need a lot more research, not just into this link, but into all the effects of gluten.
Dietary Specials Shortcrust Pastry
For lunch today, I had a hand-made Cornish pasty made from gluten-free pastry. It was not bad at all, even if it was a little bit crumbly. But then if pastry is gluten-free it usually is!
The pastry is by Dietary Specials and I got mine from Sainsbury’s in Haverhill.
Tiffin-in-a-Box
Yesterday, we had this Rich and Creamy Tiffin from Waitrose for lunch. It was more than enough for a snack for two, despite being labelled as being for one. There is also a Hot and Spicy Tiffin.
Both are gluten-free and suitable for coeliacs.
On-Line Pick-and-Mix
Woolies is back as an on-line store.
They’ve apparently got Pick-and-Mix. With sounds as you drop the sweets into the bag.
I don’t eat sweets as I can’t be sure they don’t have the dreaded wheat maltodextrin in them. Why can’t they use sugar? It’s natural and safe.
Dundee (or Essex) Marmalade Lamb Chops
This is an interesting recipe. I originally found it because I had some nice Welsh lamb chops and wanted a different way to cook them. I had just bought a jar of decent marmalade and typed marmalade and lamb into Google.
It came from RecipeZaar.
These are the ingredients.
- 4 leg lamb chops
- 2 1/2 fluid ounces vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 4 tablespoons real marmalade (i.e. with sugar and not wheat maltodextrin – Tiptree is ideal)
- 4 slices oranges, for garnish
- 2 ounces unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 fluid ounces water
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- salt and pepper, to taste
And this is how you cook it.
- You will need a frying pan with a heavy base and a close-fitting lid.
- First, brown the chops in the butter.
- Sprinkle the ginger, paprika, salt and pepper over the chops and add water and vinegar.
- Place a generous tablespoon of marmalade on the top of each chop.
- Bring to a slow simmer and cook for 45 minutes on a very low heat.
- If required, add a little extra water.
- Serve with a twist of orange on top of the chops and with boiled potatoes and fresh vegetables.
It is absolutely disgusting. But wonderful.
Sausage and Red Wine Casserole
We cooked this last night.
It was quite simple, quick and we were able to go down the pub for some Aspall Cyder, whilst it cooked in the AGA.
The recipe came from Cook Simply. It was modified to make it gluten-free.
The casserole needed the following ingredients.
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 6 Musks gluten-free pork sausages
- 150 g bacon rashers, chopped
- 250 g shallots, peeled
- 1 tbls (20 g) gluten-free plain flour (Doves Farm)
- 350 ml red wine
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 400 g can tomatoes, chopped
- 150 g button mushrooms
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Unfortunately, we didn’t have any mushrooms and we had to use onions instead of shallots. But it was still quick and easy.
The method is as follows.
- Heat the oil in a large casserole and brown the sausages all over.
- Remove from the pan and fry the bacon and onions.
- Sprinkle in the flour and stir in the wine gradually.
- Put the sausages back in the pan, add the garlic, bay leaf, thyme, tomatoes and season well.
- Cover the pan and allow to simmer gently for 30 minutes.
- Add the mushrooms and leave to cook for a further 10 minutes before serving.
We cooked the casserole in the bottom oven of the AGA and it took just over an hour.
There was also two sausages left over, so they were put into a small freezer tray and frozen. I’ll let you know what it is like when I get it out.
Venison and Celeriac Rosti
Or to give the recipe it’s full name, Chargrilled Venison Steaks with Redcurrant and Celeriac Rosti.
This is a delicious and indulgent recipe that I got off the inside of a packet of two venison steaks from Waitrose. When you’re a widow, you need the odd indulgent recipe for when you need cheering up. It’s also very simple to cook and well within the capability of a man who taught himself cooking at 60.
As with all of the recipes that I’ll post here, it will be gluten-free, as I’m a coeliac and can’t eat any of the gluten found in wheat, barley and rye.
This is recipe for two steaks.
- Season the venison steaks.
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan until it is very hot. Sear the venison steaks in the pan for 4-5 minutes on each side, or until cooked. Lift onto a plate and keep warm.
- Add the grated zest and juice of one orange, three tablespoons of redcurrant jelly (the proper stuff made from sugar!) and a tablespoon of port or brandy.
- Season lightly and bring to the boil. Simmer for 2-3 minutes or until sticky, then spoon over the venison.
- Heat through and serve with the rosti.
For the celeriac rosti.
- Preheat the oven to 190 Degrees Centigrade (Is there anything else?). Or with me use the bottom of the top oven in the AGA.
- Peel and coarsely grate 200 grams of celeriac then place in a bowl with 50 grams of melted butter, half a teaspoon of grated nutmeg and seasoning.
- Pile the mixture into some tins brushed with melted butter and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Before I ate this, I had never eaten celeriac. I now use it as an alternative to potatoes.
The Anonymous Widower 