Question About Tummy Aches

[Jennifer M.]

When someone has Celiac Disease and consumes gluten, do they typically get a reaction immediately or could it occur several hours later? For example, last night my daughter (not diagnosed) woke up in the middle of the night because she had a bad tummy ache. She is not gluten-free; she had had a hamburger roll with dinner around 6:00.

Still trying to piece together the puzzle,

Jennifer M.

[Guest jhmom]

Yes you can have a reaction to gluten 30min to 12 hours later. Sometimes I have an immediate reaction especially now that I am gluten-free but before I was dx I could eat bread and not have a reaction until the next morning but other things like croutons, spices from french fries at Outback, I would have a reaction VERY quickly!

I hope your daughter is feeling better and gets a dx soon!

[flagbabyds]

Some people get their reactions a wek later. I get mine 24 hours afterwards

[gf4life]

The delayed reaction is what takes people (and their doctors) so long to figure out that it is gluten that is causing their reaction. For me it is usually the next day, or late at night if it was something I ate in the morning.

God bless,

Mariann

[celiac3270]

When I was younger I used to have farina a lot...and I would eat the meal, then run to the bathroom 30 min. to 2 hours after finishing, throw up, and then feel fine.

In the past few years, I didn't have anymore of that, and therefore, I had no immediate symptoms. Rather, I'd eat gluten all week and then get sick towards the end of the week....cramping and vomiting. Other symptoms such as bloating and gas were constant, and diarrhea wasn't a major issue...it came every now and then, but not enough to really disrupt everything. My delayed reactions were a contributing factor in not finding celiac disease in me for a time....after all, I couldn't connect it with any particular food since my symptoms didn't come immediately after eating a bagel, doughnut, sandwich....etc.

-celiac3270