The New Gluten Plan Q&A

In essence the Gluten Plan is aimed helping you with any form of gluten related disorder from simple gluten intolerance (ha!) to full-blown NCGS with autoimmune involvement and everything in-between.  The Barrier Plan focused very much on the barrier hyper-permeability caused by the gluten-zonulin damage, and I wanted to widen the focus out a bit. In fact, the original BP will no doubt form part of the upcoming Leaky Gut Plan, which is in my head forming itself nicely!

You can view the full contents list and a 38 page preview here. But, read on for more on how the Plan has come about, how it differs from the TrulyGlutenFree and Barrier Plans, what’s in it, what formats it comes in, how much it costs, how you’ll get updates and support etc.

Why a new Plan?

Well, I wrote the original TGF ebook over 4 years ago now (time flies) and the Barrier Plan over 2 years ago. Research into and comment on gluten related disorders is coming out at a ridiculous pace, and was pushed on a good few years by the recent Gluten Summit 2014.

I spent a couple of months listening to the Summit interviews from world leaders on the subject (and was pleased that I already knew most of it, I thank you), but it was SO nice to hear such well-respected experts saying the same things I witter on about day in, day out. Once I’d done that, I need to put all that lovely, juicy info and quotes into some semblance of order so we could actually learn from and action what was said. What’s the point in a Summit if you don’t get practical, useable information out of it to help us get better?!

From a clinical point of view, I have felt for a while that we needed to amalgamate the TGF ebook and Barrier Plan so that people can get all the info they needed in one place and put them both into context – when to use which and all that. They were written at various stages of gluten knowledge over the years.

TrulyGlutenFree book and site was my treatise on why coeliacs tend not to heal on the traditional gluten free diet and set out a truly gluten free (ie. grain free) diet which also removed casein as it can have the same effect on many gluten sensitives.

The Barrier Plan emerged a couple of years later when I realised many people with gluten related disorders (GRDs) had other intolerances, chronic inflammation and autoimmune processes as a result of the damage done to the body barriers (gut, blood-brain, lungs, skin, bladder lining etc) by the effect, mainly, of gluten on zonulin. I realised everything started with the barrier breakdown when you took all the elements right back to basics. The BP set out an advanced plan to encourage not only a grain and dairy free diet, but also one which would help restore the broken barriers and stop the inflammatory and autoimmune processes being triggered continually.

They worked

Judging from your feedback, those two plans have helped a great number of people. Not only with feeling better symptomatically, but importantly with understanding what is going on, despite negative test results and, it has to be said, negative dismissals from health professionals.

I have seen coeliacs heal their villi, NCGS’s stop their migraines and chronic fatigue, multiple intolerants repair their leaky guts, IBD (inflammatory bowel disorders) sufferers calm their pain, and autoimmune sufferers lower their antibodies. Lovely to see and it really spurs me on. I also get asked daily about wheat intolerance, gluten malabsorption (bloating), IgG intolerance to gluten, behavioural issues (eg autism) with gluten ingestion, adrenal and thyroid disorders that won’t heal (often gluten) and much more besides.

This plan is now squarely aimed at helping anyone with any form of gluten related disorder, mostly coeliac and NCGS, although most people who have those don’t even know it yet; they just know they feel poorly. So, part of the Plan’s aim is to help people think about and officially identify gluten as the culprit underpinning everything, because one major thing we’ve learned over the past few years is how gluten is involved in so many illnesses. In fact, gluten illness – not just coeliac disease – is now known as a functional multi-system, multi-organ disorder. In other words, it’s very likely in there somewhere as a factor, and usually quite a major one, in any chronic illness. I have certainly seen that bear out clinically.

OK, all of that has resulted in the new Plan! Next, let’s consider some questions I have already been asked by you so many others of you are no doubt thinking.

 

What’s the difference specifically between this and the TGF ebook and Barrier Plan?

It has a LOT more info, for a start, and gives you a kind of ‘pick & mix’ approach for greater flexibility. One of the biggest lessons we have learned is the need for a flexible approach because everyone’s experience of gluten illness is different, depending on how far along they are, which type they have, which pathway it has gone ie. autoimmune, inflammatory, neurological, gut, adrenal, joints or whatever.  There are a lot more sections including, for example, on methylation, nitric oxide cycles, glutathione depletion, plus a whole new chapter on the key causes and treatment of autoimmunity.

It includes both the TGF and Barrier Diets for you, in context with loads of other diet types that might help (see more on this below). It’s an amalgamation of and a completely-revised update of the TGF and Barrier Plan ebooks taking into account new medical research, recent comment from world gluten leaders and what we have learned in TGF world in the past few years.

You can view the full contents list and a 38 page preview here (I haven’t sorted the TGF site out yet, sorry; that’s a lot more complex!). Throughout the 280 pages, I have put links to my favourite resources in each subject area so you can read up more, to tests, books, other clinical resources and to specific products I’ve mentioned so you can find them easily.

What does it include?

Introduction & Wise Words

We start with a full introduction to the gluten problem and I have peppered it liberally with quotes and wise words from world gluten experts. Not least to increase the credibility of what I am saying, but also to give you confidence in your own thoughts about your body, and something to show your doctor! We go through why gluten was a wonder crop for us initially, and still is for some, but then why it now seems to be causing so many problems.

We consider why we are following a gliadin-free, rather than gluten free diet, which is presumably a lot of the reason why, as the stats show, many coeliacs never successfully repair their villi damage and continue to suffer the consequences of that. We go through and debunk some really important beliefs about gluten illness (it’s mostly neurological, not gut; reintroducing gluten for testing can trigger more, potentially irreversible damage etc) and then go through the pathological process step by step so you can follow what’s actually going on in your body. The more you understand it, the more you realise you can do about it.

 

  Step 1: Finding Your Type of Gluten Related Disorder

 

This is a much extended version of the testing summary that you see on the TGF site already. We go through step by step what happens in current diagnostics and, importantly, pick holes in each step! I then set out what I think the ideal gluten testing route really is, given everything we now know. It takes about 20 years usually for changes like this to happen in mainstream medicine, but the research is all there for us to action now and that’s really what this section is for. The flexibility kicks in again here and you have a kind of pick & mix of testing, depending on where you are and what you need to know. I have focused very much on practical testing; in other words, things that can make a real difference to the pathological process and to how you feel. You can test for England, but the question is: what will you do with the info you get? Will it make a treatment change? If so, it’s worth it.

 

  Step 2: Determining Your Diet

This starts with the barrier stuff – all about hyper-permeability and why this inevitably leads to multiple food and environmental sensitivity. We go through the different types of leaky gut (permeability) tests and discuss the differences between them, when to use which etc. We talk about the sad fact that there is, no matter what anyone tells you, no one-diet-fits-all for gluten related disorders. The traditional gliadin-free diet is just not enough for most people with gluten illness. As we said, above, why do you think most coeliacs are not healing?

The rest of the section is designed to help you identify what your specific healing diet might be. If you continue to eat foods your body mistakes for gluten, or that are simply inflammatory for you, it will scupper your healing. This is the most important – but also the most difficult  – part of your healing plan. Some people may be fine on gliadin-free (the traditional GF diet), whereas others may need to come off grains, dairy and FODMAPs; still others may not be able to do salicylates or citrus foods etc. You have to find what the issue is – or choose a diet that is good enough for most to heal – that’s TGF, BP and AIP (Autoimmune Protocol) onward I have found clinically over the years. Those seem to help most people.

I have put the full TGF and Barrier Diets into the book for you. Only instead of just being them this time, I have put them into context with other key diets you might use as a resource to help you and listed them in order of food removal, if you like.  For example, the Barrier Diet is between Paleo and AIP (Autoimmune Protocol). My own diet is one beyond AIP – AIP Purity as I call it. But, you could need AIP FODMAPs or even just a simple (!) grain and dairy free option (The TGF Diet) or traditional gluten free might be just fine for you. They are all in there with links to resources and info for each one.

 

  Step 3: Establishing Your Healing Protocol 

This is a really meaty section, full of  deeply-researched, clinically-proven and very specific, practical healing help. We have certainly found that the diet just isn’t enough for most to heal properly.

If you are bloating with gluten, you need enzymes – which ones? If you are coeliac, how will you ensure your nutrient levels to prevent things like osteoporosis? If you are NCGS with inflammation somewhere in the body, how will you dampen down that fire? If you are a gluten-sensitive with hyper-permeability, how will you stop more intolerances forming? If you are an automimmune person (eg thyroiditis, diabetes etc), how will you slow the progression of your disease?

All of these are covered and much more besides.

I set out a pick & mix (again, that flexibility!) of healing protocols and add-ons. To start, I have given a core traditional GF protocol, then a TGF one, added a ‘pick & mix’ of add-ons in each section, depending on your needs and test results. I have even given you a suggested staged supplement plan so you know what order to do it in. Plus there is a new Hypersensitivity protocol for those who have difficulty getting the normal supplements in.

The biggest part of this section is going through the key healing areas including nutrient therapy, probiotic therapy, inflammation therapy, malabsorption therapy and autoimmune therapy to bring you up to date research and how to use it in practical terms. The section on autoimmunity could be a mini-book in itself, I reckon! Fascinating stuff on the factors involved in developing autoimmune disorders and the (mostly alternative) treatment approaches that have most promise.

 

What’s Blocking You?

We finish with a really important section. I fully expect you to get well and certainly improve significantly using the info so far. But I also know there are some cheeky little areas that have proven real bugbears for some people, scuppering their healing efforts despite such hard work to get well. That’s what this section is for: to help you identify the biggest bugbears and what to do about any you find. I think of it as a kind of ‘Chronic Illness Checklist’ if you like – I refer to it all the time. It covers areas such as infections, glutathione depletion, liver detox pathways blockages, methylation difficulties, adrenal and thyroid fatigue, nutrient deficiency and much more. Again, I reckon there is a mini-book in this one, too! How do you test for them? How do you treat them? Where can I find out more?

Anyway, I think you get the picture. That’s what’s in the Plan. You can see the whole Contents list in the Preview here. Next some practical questions:

 

What format can I get the new Gluten Plan in and how much does it cost?

Short answer: instant download (PDF) and Printed (yay!). Not as much as you’d think!

Instant Download

The plan is available as a PDF instant download here rather than having to register as per the Barrier Plan. Or click the buy button to go to the shop page. It costs a very respectable £45 instead of the previous £65 + £20 for the BP and TGF ebook respectively, despite the fact it is a lot more in-depth and longer than the other two put together! At £45 it is almost half the previous £85 cost as most people bought both books.

I priced it at £45 to reflect the fact that it is not just a book as you would buy on Amazon etc, but is a full clinical product and dosage-specific protocol, which is very rare. But I also want to get the word out and help so I have made it cheaper than the BP. Other Purehealth Plans, eg the Adrenal Plan, which is by far the most popular, are £25. This GP, as it shall no doubt become known, is more than twice the length but, importantly, far more complex. (All of the pre-release reviewers, incidentally, thought it should have been the same or more than the BP!)

Why PDF? Most of you requested this format when I asked because it can be read on any screen and most e-readers like Kindle, Nook etc, and, importantly, you can follow all the links easily. Sorted.

Printed

Many people asked for a printed version of the TGF ebook and BP, so this time I spent quite a bit of time discovering how to do a print on demand book (not least so I don’t have loads of copies in my garage!). In other words, you order a printed book via Lulu here (or click the image) and they print one off just for you. Sweet :). Postage is from only £2.99 which is very impressive since it is a full colour cover A4 280 page book with black and white inside. It’ll fair thump through your letterbox! The printed book costs just a tenner more at £55, simply because it costs me over that to print each one.

Upgrade to Printed

Ah, you say: ‘what if I buy the download but then want a printed book?’  I have you covered, not least because I do this all the time with tomes that I refer to a lot. Anyone buying the download who then wants a printed book will get it for £35 instead of £55. There is a special link included for you at the end of the PDF.

 

  Can I get updates and support?

Yes you can. As a purchaser, you will be eligible to join the Barrier & Gluten Planners Facebook Group via a special link given to you in your PDF/purchase thank you email. This is a closed, private group where we chat about all sorts of things plan-related. There are plenty of people already there who are wearing the same T-shirt as you and are a real wealth of information. I chime in when I am called upon (and often when I’m not ;)) and will also post any significant update info there. I used to do a special newsletter with updates for the BP, but, quite honestly, it takes too much time and I didn’t get much chance to do them This way, I can pass on important snippets much more quickly to you all in the same place!

 

What do others think of it?

Have a read of what the pre-release readers said here. I blushed is all I’m saying.. Here are a couple of snippets:

What you have done is major. Be in no doubt.

Have finished reading it today and totally amazed at the wonder of you, I do so hope you get the recognition you deserve because you truly deserve it infinity percent!

Blimey.  Your Gluten Plan is absolutely bloody brilliant!!   Can’t tell you how many light bulbs have gone off whilst reading it. 

Gulp.

 

Can I see a sample?

Yep. I’ve put a live preview and a downloadable one here – 38 pages long of random bits to give you a flavour.

 

What if I don’t like it?

After I have picked myself up from a dead faint (!), I will refund you. No-one’s ever actually asked yet so don’t be my first 😉

 

OK, happy? Any other questions? If so, contact me. No? Then, I look forward to seeing you in the Facebook group and to helping you move forward in your health journey. Gluten? Pah!