Hair loss and going gluten free.

I love carbohydrates, I love wheat, I love anything that's made with wheat and that also means that it contains gluten. So imagine what it feels like to have your doctor telling you that you are gluten intolerant. The reason? My hair had started falling out like crazy two years before and had not stopped. I saw many different doctors who all prescribed different treatments including minoxidil and iron tablets. They all put it down to stress and one told me I had androgenic alopecia. I was depressed most of the time. I tried putting on a brave face but deep down all I could look at was other women's hair and how full, glossy and thick it looked. My already thin hair became even thinner, my scalp was showing through and I couldn't stand direct sunlight on my head in summer. I didn't want to go swimming anymore because I feared having to wash my hair and seeing more clumps of hair. Minoxidil partly solved the problem but it wasn't a practical solution for the rest of my life. Until one day my mother took the bull by the horns and told me she had made an appointment with my father's pathologist. I went to the appointment and he started asking me loads of questions about my health. After a thorough examination and an hour-long discussion in his office, we decided that I would try going on an elimination diet and cutting out all the gluten. I was to have blood tests taken as well but if I was just intolerant to gluten it wouldn't show in the tests.

I changed my diet and after three weeks I felt like a new person. No bloating, no dizziness, no swollen calves, no headaches. On the plus side, I was always in a good mood. I started laughing again, pulling pranks, creating, designing, projecting. I went back to the doc's and he confirmed my suspicions. I was truly intolerant to gluten.

It was hard adjusting to it. I still craved pizza, Maltese bread, biscuits, crepes, hot dogs, pies and cakes. I hated ready-made gluten free bread, nearly choked on a ready-made gluten free pizza base and could have easily shattered a tooth if my mother had not warned me beforehand that the crostini she had bought me were rock hard. Shopping at the supermarket took me half an hour longer because I had to read the label at the back of each and every food item.

Now I have adjusted quite well to my new diet. I have started baking my own bread which tastes much better that any bread you buy ready-made at the supermarket. One needs to experiment a lot with the dough mixtures as they are not easy to manage. Once you get the right recipe, you'll never look back. Gluten free pasta actually tastes much better than normal pasta. Shopping around and trying different brands will help.

My hair has started growing back. I am much more positive now and I thank the Lord every day for putting that pathologist in my way. I have wasted too many euros on miracle shampoos and treatments. Some of them do help a little but they never get to the bottom of the problem. I never had androgenic alopecia in the first place. Listen to your body and understand what it has been trying to tell you all along.