porridge...

No, not gaol time!

C and I had porridge for breakfast this morning! Doesn't sound post-worthy yet, I know, but give me a minute.

A few years ago C was diagnosed coeliac, which is a gluten intolerance causing all sorts of intestinal ickiness. Oats, from which porridge is made, is one of four main sources of gluten. The others, all grains, are wheat, rye and barley. Derivatives of these four grains rule out other things, but that's the essence of it.

More recently, in response to increased stomach upsets, we took C off to the doctor for another look. According to this doctor it wasn't coeliacs at all. Never was. The only problem, at least from my point of view, is the nature of the diagnosis. See, coeliacs is a condition whereby part of the bowel, when exposed to gluten becomes inflamed. By staying off gluten as she has for a long time now, this inflammation won't occur. So how can you then look at the bowel and say she doesn't have it? Isn't it just that she isn't currently affected?

Apparently there is a blood test now, but I'm sceptical, particularly when the earlier scopes were quite clear. But maybe it isn't coeliac after all.

From time to time C has considered deviating from the gluten free diet, to test the waters a little. There is definitely something there, because a wheat bread sandwich made her sick a while back. But the other day, unbeknown to me, C had porridge and has been unaffected, it would seem.

T'rific.

As for me, I had epilepsy as a younger man and by sheer coincidence all three of my seizures came after a bowl of porridge. Pure coincidence. But, needless to say, it's become a bit of a family joke, rather like the one about keeping me away from knives, after "the incident" in '93! I'm pretty sure I'm not allergic to porridge, though :)

So, we'll see how today pans out, shall we :)