Celiac Disease Vs Gluten-allergy

[Jazzy]

Hey everybody!

As you know, I'm from Austria and currently I'm doing an internship in Canada.

Yesterday a co-worker of mine told me, that she has a lot of friends who have a gluten-allergy and who live on gluten-free. She knew everything: where to buy gluten-free products, what additives to take for feeling better etc.

Then I asked her, how many of those friends have been diagnosed Celiac disease (blood test and biopsy).

Her answer was surprising for me: none of them were diagnosed celiac.

All of them have been to a nature's path (is this a special doctor in North America?) and only with a blood test they found out that they have an allergy against gluten.

My co-worker told me that there is a difference between the two:

Celiac disease is a severe allergy whereas the gluten-allergy is not severe and the symptoms when eating something with gluten, are not as painful as with celiac disease.

I'm a bit confused now.

In Austria, there is only one gluten-allergy: Celiac disease, and so far I've never heard that there is a difference between them.

Is it true?

Is there a difference?

Jazzy

[Tim-n-VA]

This was discussed in this thread a week or so ago: Open Original Shared Link

Putting together comments from a few months of reading this board:

Celiac is not an allergy, it is an auto-immune disease/response to gluten.

Some people are allergic to gluten.

Some people have both celiac and a gluten allergy.

Some people believe that a gluten allergy is really just a early stage of celiac (but that doesn't seem to be a medical professional consensus).

There is another category. Some people avoid wheat based on their blood type in according to a diet book published a few years ago.

[Guest nini]

Naturopath's are not Dr.s, they are Alternative Health Care Practitioners, they may call themselves Dr.s but it's not the same as the Western Medical Profession (which I might add I've lost a lot of respect for.) As a majority, the Western Medicine Dr.s are reluctant to even dx. Celiac most of the time and even less likely to prescribe trying dietary changes. I'm coming from the Alternative Health Care perspective which looks at prevention of illness rather than simply treating symptoms. Many Naturopath's believe that no one should be consuming wheat/gluten and I'm of the same opinion. They believe it's responsible for the epidemics of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, depression/anxiety, infertility, and on and on and on...

It is much simpler to dx someone with positive dietary response and determine that yes they do have a problem with certain foods, then to rely on outdated testing methodology. Dr. Kenneth Fine of Enterolab has developed a much more sensitive testing method than those currently used by the Medical profession, and until the Medical profession starts to recognize that their testing methods are not only outdated and limited in their perspective, unfortunatly people will continue to suffer undiagnosed Celiac or Gluten intolerance. Is it the same thing? Maybe, maybe not. I think there are many manifestations of gluten intolerance, Celiac being only one of them.

[SchnauzerMom]

I was amazed to learn how many people have either celiac disease or gluten intolerance. I think it's like 1 in 130. I've been sick for years and didn't know why except the Dr. said I had IBS. I seem to have lots of company.

[NoGluGirl]

I was amazed to learn how many people have either celiac disease or gluten intolerance. I think it's like 1 in 130. I've been sick for years and didn't know why except the Dr. said I had IBS. I seem to have lots of company.

Dear SchnauzerMom,

I was told the same thing, that I had IBS for a long time. I am like nini, I have lost all respect for the Wester medical community. I was drugged, accused of being crazy, forced to go to psychotherapy, you name it! Finally, part of the misery was removed after going gluten free. Though I have other health issues, (fibromyalgia, yeast candida, hypoglycemia,asthma, sinus problems, bad teeth) the gluten intolerance really made the severity much worse. At least the stomach problems are more tolerable now for the most part. By the way, I grew up having two Schnauzers, a miniature and a standard.

I miss mine so much! Tasha Bear was a big baby, though she was a gray standard. Jasmine was a black and white miniature Schnauzer. Jasmine died almost four years ago, and Tasha died last year. We have a Yorkie now, but it is just not the same! Once you have owned a Schnauzer, you cannot go back!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[lonewolf]

Naturopath's are not Dr.s, they are Alternative Health Care Practitioners, they may call themselves Dr.s but it's not the same as the Western Medical Profession (which I might add I've lost a lot of respect for.)

Nini - I'm not trying to start an argument, but in my state (WA) naturopaths have earned the right to be called doctors. My doctor is called an "ND" (Naturopathic Doctor) and graduated from the University of Washington pre-med program, went to a naturopathic college for 4 years (Bastyr), did a residency and then went into private practice. I think there are only two naturopathic colleges in the US and they're both in the Northwest. (Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong). Because of her licensing, my doctor can prescribe certain classes of medications (thyroid, antibiotics in case of strep, etc.). She also does my pap smears, yearly blood work and everything else in my annual exam. The MD I see (occasionally) trusts my ND and actually refers people to her because she believes that she is "an excellent clinician".

[Gin]

I, like many other on this forum have been tested by Dr Fine's Enterolabs. I had both the Glueten Sensitivity and Complete Gene Panel. Gene analysis revealed that I have one of the main genes that predisposes to gluten sensitivity and celiac sprue. Yet I do not the the villi damage that places me in the Celiac catagory. I had biopsies for villi damage prior to getting help from Dr Fine's lab. In reading all the data that Enterolabs sent me Dr Fine seems to feel that both situations are similiar. Here is Dr Fine's website, maybe that will help you undestand more about this situation. Open Original Shared Link

I also have the inherited anti-casein gene. So it is necessary for me to avoid both gluten and dairy products.

I was not surprised by the lab findings as I had skin scratch tests many years ago and learned I had the gluten problem. However after avoiding it for several years I could once again tolerate it until recently when I began to have constant diarrhea, bloating and sore gut.