Hello, all! I love blenders! They are, in my opinion, a really usefull great invention. Just pop in a frozen banana, some frozen peaches, a yogurt, some of those sterile eggs that come in a box, a drop of vanilla, and some flavored protein posder, and you have a yummy delicious smoothie! I love it! Blenders are also excellent for making hummus. But hummus should under no circumstances be mixed with fruit smoothies. No good.

So, my stomach is ulcerated and bleeding. I have an autoimmune disorder, which means that occaisionally my immune sustem has the habit of going "Oh look! That looks like a bacteria! Let's kill it... oh wait, that was her stomach." One common kind of autoimmune disorder is Type 1 diabetes. Two others you may have heard of are juvenile arthritis and lupus. I have an extremely common type of autoimmune disorder called Celiac disease. Approximately 80% of caucasians have this disease. "What?" You're thinking. "I don't know anyone who has that. It can't be that common." Here's the deal: over 90% of people with Celiac disease are undiagnosed.

I was lucky. I had one of the very worst cases of Celiac disease. In 5th grade, food started to make me sick, and even when I ate, I was unable to absorb nutrients. I went from 90 lbs to 60 lbs in about two months. Eventually, I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. This disease causes your immune system to attack your stomach, ulcerating it. Specifically, it attacks the part of your stomach that produces the acids neccesary for digesting gluten, a protein that is found in nearly all grains.

So in 5th grade I had to stop eating wheat-- This includes bread, pasta, pizza, cookies, most cereals, sandwhiches, soup, anything fried or breaded, peanut butter, gummi bears, the list goes on and on. After about 6 years, my stomach had repaired itself enough that I could eat wheat again, which I felt was truly a miracle. However, my immune system noticed that my stomach was back after I started eating wheat again, and those darn antibodies went on another killing spree. Now, after a few months of totally eradicating wheat from my diet, my ulcers are starting to go away.

Now, how does this affect you? As I said before, 80% of the Caucasion population has some form of Celiac disease (or gluten intolerence, as it is sometimes called). You think, wait, I can't have that. I'm overweight, and you said that your first symptom was losing 30 lbs.

Here's the deal: Your stomach can't absorb as many nutrients as it needs, so you may feel hungry constantly, even though you are eating continuously. Not only this, but with your stomach inflammed and ulcerated, you may feel tired constantly, and unable to exercise. Most cases of Celiac disease go undiagnosed because people feel that these symptoms are just a part of normal life. I met one woman who was not diagnosed until she was 40 years old, and only because she mentioned to her doctor that when she was a little girl, she used to crave eating dirt.

Seriously, try this: For two weeks, don't eat wheat (two weeks is the amount of time that it takes your stomach to heal, so you'll start feeling the wonderful affects). See if you have more energy. I guarantee that you'll lose at least 5 lbs in those 2 weeks. This is because not only are you cutting out the biggest source of calories, fast food, and junk food, but as the inflammation goes down and you are able to absorb all the nutrients you need from the food, you won't feel so hungry all the time.

It may seem hard to stop eating wheat, but it is well worth it! (And, the food tastes twice as good-- wheat is cheap, and is used as a filler in many products). Here are three delicious, healthy foods that you can use as breakfast, lunch and dinner, that have no wheat, are easy on your tummy, and are absolutely delicious!

Breakfast: 1 frozen banana; 1/2 can fruit (frozen or chilled); 1/2 cup yogurt*, milk*, or soy milk; 1/4 cup Break Away! or other type of sterile egg that comes in a boz; 2 tbsp protein powder, such as the kind made by Atkin's; 1 tsp vanilla. Blend until smooth. It's soo yummy!

Lunch: 1 can chickpeas, 5 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp paprika*. Blend until smooth. Remember not to eat hummus with a cracker! It's just as good with a spoon.

Dinner: Spread a 12 inch by 12 inch peaice of aluminum foil out. Cover with 1 tbsp olive oil. Place 1 tilapia or flounder filet in the center of the foil. Cover with 1 tbsp sliced or chopped onions*; as many chopped carrots as you want; 3 or 4 cherry tomatos*; 1 chopped zucchini; and 2 tbsp salad dressing* of your choice (just make sure it doesn't contain wheat). You can also sprinkle chopped almonds, sunflower seeds, raisins, dried cranberries, etc, on top. Cover with another peice of aluminum foil and roll the edges together tightly. Cook in the over, over a fire pit, or in a grill for about 20 minutes.

*Caveat: If you are really sick, and think that you do have a serious form of Celiac disease, you should avoid foods that may irritate any ulcerations. This may include dairy, live cultures (such as those found in yogurt), vineger, lemon juice, acidic fruits, tomatos, vinegarettes, and spices.

I really hope that this helps some of you! I know many, many women who wish they had known about Celiac disease sooner, so I hope that this helps some of you.