Sores

[Rachel--24]

I've posted about this before but never really got any responses. I've been trying to figure this out for awhile now. I was getting rashes on my arms but since going gluten-free they havent come back. They were itchy like poison oak. Now I have sores on my scalp and face. I *used* to get these exact sores in the exact same spots but havent really had any in the past year...till going gluten-free.

They are small blisters and they are perfectly symetrical. I dont think it could be DH cuz they dont itch at all and also they dont come in huge amounts like a rash. I dont know if they are related to gluten either. Last time I believe I was glutened was last Sunday. Yesterday I noticed 4 new blisters. One on each side of my head and one above each eye. Sometimes my skin will burn a little before these blisters show up...sometimes not.

Does anyone else get anything like this? If I could at least figure out if they're gluten related it could help with figuring stuff out in my diet.

[nikki-uk]

Hi Rachel,

I'm not a coeliac(hubby is) but I've been gluten-free for around 6 months now.

I kind of found out by accident that when I don't eat gluten my skin clears up.!

I've has Ezcema since I was a baby,and over the years was coming to rely on steroid creams more and more.

I'd always get it in reoccuring places all over my body.

Not all the patches were the same.Some were very dry,flaky and itchy(especially scalp and hairline) others were like tiny clear blisters under my skin and they itched like crazy with shooting pain in them.

I decided to join my hubby in going gluten-free mainly to be supportive but it was also easier in alot of ways.

After a week gluten-free the skin on my face was clear(hadn't been for years)

Out of the house,I would try and sneak a bit of gluten in(afterall I wasn't a coeliac) but uh oh as soon as the bread touched my lips my skin was hot and tingling(not to mention rapid heartbeat,tongue going numb and nausea)

I thought it was a wheat thing(not gluten) but when I ate Rye Bread,all these little blisters appeared on my wrists,hands and bum(of all places) !

I'm really not sure what's going on,but I'm still gluten-free and enjoying clearest skin ever!

Those blisters were so itchy-horrible!

[Rachel--24]

Hmmm.... my skin seems worse lately but I might be having too many accidents. Not really sure but my skin is really dry too.

[Matilda]

..

[Rachel--24]

Matilda,

Thanks for responding. The candida diet I was on prior to going gluten-free was very strict. I was only eating meats and veggies. I was only getting gluten from supplements and lotion and stuff like that. After Enterolab I started "official" gluten-free diet but at the same time I added lots of food I hadnt been eating for 4 months...like dairy and pretty much everything. I'm getting glutened from food mistakes now where that wasnt really possible on the candida diet. I think I am *way* more sensitive now as well. Some of the symptoms such as the blisters and the hairloss are symptoms that are now returning after several months of not having them.

I'm not doing dairy anymore but its so hard to know if these problems are from the gluten accidents or something else.

I dont trust the dermatologist at all. 3 years ago when all this started I went to her for the burning/tingling and blisters and she dx'd Rosacea....which I definately dont have. She gave me Tetracycline and not knowing any better I believed her and took the antibiotics. They killed my good bacteria and just made everything worse for me.

[Jenn2005]

My husband (Shane) gets blisters also. Only a few and they burn like a blister (from a burn) when touched. His don't always itch either. I'm not sure what they are but I'm pretty sure they are related to gluten. He got a few right after starting the gluten-free diet (while we were learing all the ins & outs) and they faded and then he had the gluten challenge and got several more of them during that time. He gets them on his shoulders & chest. They are also symetrical and red & get blistery like in the middle.

Jennifer

[aikiducky]

Rachel, are you still coming in contact with gluten at work? I thought you worked in a place where that was a concern?

Pauliina

[debbiewil]

Rachel,

I have DH and I find that even gluten free, some other things can cause an outbreak. Stress, for instance. If I'm under a deadline at work or school, I'll usually end up with a few new blisters. Pressure or injury in or around the area also sets off an attack. Like, once I jammed my thumb - not badly enough for a doctor, but it really hurt for a while. Well, a day or two later I had a major outbreak all around the base of my thumb and going up it. I've heard that DH can linger even longer than celiac - that even after all the villi are healed, a person can still have DH break outs for years, with even the slightest bit of gluten or stress or any other trigger.

Debbie

[nccharm1972]

I have a question. I'm planning to go through self-diagnosis and determine if I have Celiac or not. I was originally told I was insulin resistant after dealing with infertility for almost 3 years now. I've been put on Glucaphage and altered my diet to cut out most carbs, but my stomach problems persist.

I also have hair loss, diarrhea, fatigue, infertility, PCOS (possibly), and I get these bumps on my chin. They start out under the skin as red and very sore places and then they end up turning into sores and leaving scars on my chin. Once I'm finally getting rid of one bump and it is healing, another one comes up somewhere near it. I also have some dark patches of skin on my neck and under my arms. A dermatologists said it was some kind of fungus and put me on monocycline. It did help, but that, in turn caused me to have excessive yeast infections and now yeast in my bowel. UGH! I can't win for losing!

Anyway...I'm trying to figure out if I even HAVE Celiac Disease....and I'm not sure what I can and can't eat if I do have it. I mean, how do I grocery shop? How do I eat out? HELP!

Linda

[Rachel--24]

Rachel, are you still coming in contact with gluten at work? I thought you worked in a place where that was a concern?

Pauliina

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't think I'm getting glutened from work at all. I'm running a totally different dept. now and I'm nowhere near the bakery. I also wear gloves all the time and wash my hands frequently. So far no problems. My new position is way less stressful and much more enjoyable. I really lucked out cuz I'm still getting the same benefits of my old position (weekends off and the same pay) but without all the stress. After being sick and unable to work for so long I can honestly say now I LOVE going to work!

[Rachel--24]

Rachel,

I have DH and I find that even gluten free, some other things can cause an outbreak. Stress, for instance. If I'm under a deadline at work or school, I'll usually end up with a few new blisters. Pressure or injury in or around the area also sets off an attack. Like, once I jammed my thumb - not badly enough for a doctor, but it really hurt for a while. Well, a day or two later I had a major outbreak all around the base of my thumb and going up it. I've heard that DH can linger even longer than celiac - that even after all the villi are healed, a person can still have DH break outs for years, with even the slightest bit of gluten or stress or any other trigger.

Debbie

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The only thing besides gluten that may have triggered some of my sores is caffiene. I noticed I could not tolerate caffiene at all anymore when I first started getting sick. I thought it had something to do with my Graves Disease though. Anyways I avoided it completely the last 3 years. A couple months back I was drinking starbucks and 3 times in a row I forgot to order decaf...I got some sores after that...I actually still have them. I got glutened last Sunday and now I have new blisters but they are almost gone already.

After you are glutened does your blisters show up immediately? Whatever I have showed up 3 or 4 days later.

[aikiducky]

... I really lucked out cuz I'm still getting the same benefits of my old position (weekends off and the same pay) but without all the stress. After being sick and unable to work for so long I can honestly say now I LOVE going to work! 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Wow, good for you!

Pauliina

[elisabet]

Hmmm.... my skin seems worse lately but I might be having too many accidents. Not really sure but my skin is really dry too.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

omega 3 fattyacids,helps alot.Do you have any fishoil or cod liveroil in your diet?

[Rachel--24]

omega 3 fattyacids,helps alot.Do you have any fishoil or cod liveroil in your diet?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Do any foods contain them or would I have to supplement? I'm not taking any fatty acids although I've tried them in the past with no noticeable difference but maybe I wasnt absorbing them properly.