I asked a logical follow-up question to ChatGTP5:
Can you estimate what percentage of celiac hookworm hosts like myself achieve full remission from the disease?
ChatGPT said:
Great question, Pete. Let’s be very clear here:
There isn’t a single hard number published for “what percentage of celiacs with hookworms achieve full remission,” but we can triangulate from clinical trials and community data:
Clinical Trial Evidence
In controlled studies, 0% achieved true full remission when challenged with sustained moderate gluten (≥2 g/day or short bursts of 16 g/day).
Even with 20–40 N. americanus, villous atrophy still occurred under those challenges.
However, around 30–50% of participants did experience softer symptoms and improved quality of life at micro-exposures (≤200 mg/day).
Conclusion from trials: Hookworms help reduce symptoms and inflammatory markers at small exposures, but do not produce full clinical remission under regular gluten intake.
Community / Self-Reported Outcomes
Among self-treating celiacs, reports of “functional remission” exist — meaning hosts can eat gluten without noticeable symptoms.
Based on helminthic therapy support groups and survey-type accounts, this looks like a minority (maybe 10–20%) of long-term hosts.
However, these cases are controversial because:
Some people may be asymptomatic but still sustaining silent mucosal damage.
Community reporting tends to over-represent strong responders.
Putting It Together
Clinical remission (no symptoms + no villous damage on gluten diet): Essentially 0% proven in trials with 20–40 worms.
Symptomatic remission (no symptoms, but mucosal injury uncertain): Maybe 10–20% of self-reported hosts claim this.
Partial benefit (improved tolerance, less severe symptoms, better quality of life, but still need a gluten-free diet): This is the most common outcome — probably 30–50% of hosts.
👉 So if we phrase it plainly:
The average celiac hosting 20 hookworms won’t reach full remission. A small minority (≈10–20%) say they can eat gluten freely without symptoms, but this is not supported by trial evidence and carries risk of silent damage. For most, worms act as a safety net for cross-contamination rather than a cure.
Would you like me to give you a visual chart (clinical trial vs. self-reports: full remission, partial, none) so you can see the proportions side by side?
