What led us to einkorn wheat?

Recently, there was a story on Nova  called The Iceman’s Last Meal, which talked about Otzi and his final dinner of Ibex meat and einkorn wheat. When we first started looking for the most ancient wheat, I was really intrigued by this story and our family visited the Otzi museum in Bolzano, Italy. There you can see The Iceman himself, original belongings that were found near his body and also two einkorn grains that were stuck to his fur coat. They look like fresh wheat berries and they still have the husk on them. His bearskin cap is in amazingly pristine condition, considering it is 5,000 year old, as is a lot of his equipment.
So what led us to einkorn wheat?

My oldest daughter is now eleven and at about age two, we realized she was allergic to lactose. A few years went by without dairy, but still something was not right. Eggs were the next food we figured out she could not eat and eliminating eggs made her feel much better. Still, everything was not perfect and I really, REALLY wanted her to be very healthy.
Not only did my daughter have typical signs of food intolerance like skin rashes or frequent trips to the bathroom, she also had tonsils the size of cherries, constant coughing and a plugged due to swollen turbinates. When she was six, we moved back to Italy and things got worse. She was officially diagnosed with asthma, she could not breathe through her at all and she snored loudly and slept with her mouth open. She also seemed tired and forgetful.

I really got serious about this situation when her hair started to fall out. Some moms at school stopped me one day and asked what was up with her beautiful hair. We had had our suspicions about wheat many years prior and our family was only eating spelt at that time. A doctor told me one day that he was sure wheat was causing all of her symptoms, but she did not have Celiac Disease. He recommended eating ancient wheat, like spelt. I said I would try, although I had already been doing that for years and it did not seem to make a difference. I was thinking maybe there might be something more ancient out there.
Wikipedia lists Respiratory tract symptoms can include nasal congestion, sinusitis, pharyngeal irritations, asthma and an unproductive cough under symptoms of food intolerance. I had never thought a food intolerance could cause asthma, I just never made that connection.

We began our search for the most ancient wheat and we found it. Once we were able to get einkorn grains, flour and eventually make tests batches of pasta, our little girl blossomed like never before. Slowly, the tonsils shrank, the nose unplugged, and the asthma disappeared (its been years now without these symptoms). Everyday before school, I still comb her hair. As she complains about the pain of my brushing, I admire the shiny, thick curls. What an improvement!

We did not always have einkorn available to us at first, so it was an on again off again elimination diet. This was the part when we could really observe the difference. If she would eat regular wheat, she immediately became really and moody. She actually fell down the stairs at school after eating spaghetti for lunch after being wheat free for about two months.

Each individual is different and this post is in no way a recommendation, just our own experience at home. For my family, we found the best solution to be alternating a diet of gluten free days with einkorn, and this led to the start of our jovial product ideas. Being a mom and trying to do the best for my children is really what led me to einkorn and to working hard at making gluten free products that taste good. I believe people should not feel for having a food allergy and that actually intolerances can open many doors not only to better health, but also to new foods and more creativity. More and more people are identifying and treating food intolerances and this process is essential for achieving the optimum health that each and every one of us deserves.