Bladder Pain

[UK2004]

Interested to hear people that have had bladder pain or urethral pain and found to be celiac and how long it has taken to clear up once gluten free?

[LauraTX]

I was diagnosed with interstitial cystitis at the age of 17.  It has not improved with diagnosis and treatment of my lupus or celiac disease.  Maybe in another year or two, I am still hopeful!

[beth01]

I was wondering about this myself.  I have been having problems with a lot of bladder pain that is nothing like a UTI ( I was checked for one last week). It seems like the more water I drink, the better off it is. I have also been taking the stuff from the store that helps with urinary pain. I have also had problems with vaginal itching that isn't BV or a yeast infection. Taking Atarax for that.  I think it just takes our bodies time to recover from years of gluten exposure.  Hopefully it clears up soon.

[1desperateladysaved]

Sometimes a bladder problem can be caused by an enlarged uterus.  Just find out that I have a fibroid.  You may want to check on that.  When I complained about my bladder (frequent urination) they checked for bladder infection and diabetes and nothing else.

[UK2004]

Is that in ladies only or can it affect the male urinary tract?

[GF Lover]

Is that in ladies only or can it affect the male urinary tract?

Here is some information which includes specifics for men.

 

Open Original Shared Link

 

Urinary tract infections in men are often the result of an obstruction—for example, a urinary stone or enlarged prostate—or are from a catheter used during a medical procedure. The first step in treating such an infection is to identify the infecting organism and the medications to which it is sensitive.

Prostate infections—chronic bacterial prostatitis—are harder to cure because antibiotics may be unable to penetrate infected prostate tissue effectively. For this reason, men with bacterial prostatitis often need long-term treatment with a carefully selected antibiotic. UTIs in men are frequently associated with acute bacterial prostatitis, which can be life threatening if not treated urgently.

Good luck.

Coleen

[UK2004]

My urine tests are all clear though. I read about several people having interstitial cystitis symptoms before giving up gluten wondered if there were more on here.

[NatureChick]

There are all sorts of things that can cause interstitial cystitis and it can be caused by bacteria even if tests don't show evidence of an infection. For instance if you are a carrier of group B strep (a third of the population is) then it could have phases where it can have overgrowth and can irritate the lining of the bladder.

The first two things I would try would be to drink more water in order to flush your system. Next would be to drink lemonade which is a super easy way to deacidify the body. (I know, we think of lemons as being acidic, but in the body, they become a base. And though the body is able to balance out acid and base foods itself, most of the foods we eat are acidic so asking your organs to work too hard for too long in one way could mean that it isn't entirely successful all of the time.) I suppose it couldn't hurt to try avoiding sugar as well, as it can throw things off pretty quickly in a number of ways.

But aside from flushing the system and trying to vary your diet, I suppose I'd go see a doctor. They can also test you for vitamin or mineral deficiencies that might make it more difficult for your body to function properly. But I'd recommend researching and trying out nutritional approaches before taking pharmaceuticals that will only mask symptoms.

As far as I know gluten isn't a direct cause of interstitial cystitis, but I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if we learned in the future of it being related to the damage that gluten can do to one organ or another.
 

[UK2004]

I've been following the intestitial cystitis diet but also gluten free. At first I started the diet and after a week no benefit and got extra pain after gluten so cut that out and started probiotics and natural anti fungals and been improving a lot but flares up now and then once I believe due to cross contamination. Interestingly other issues I have had have abated since cutting gluten but the bladder seems to be the one thing taking a long while.

[across]

I was diagnosed with interstitial cystitis about 6 months ago, but I had had it for at least 6 years. The elimination diet for that was what led me to getting tested for celiac (long story). 

 

For me, my IC symptoms cleared up almost immediately after going gluten, soy, dairy, nightshade, egg, and nut free. I have been able to add back nuts, eggs, small quantities of soy (like in a vitamin), and almonds without having symptoms. I notice that tomatoes seem to cause flares.

 

One of the biggest things that causes me IC symptoms is artificial sweetener (especially saccharin). 

[Steph1]

Bladder pain in the urethra and some incontinence are major issues when I have gluten.

[Steph1]

Bladder pain in the urethra and some incontinence are major issues when I have gluten.

I also wanted to add that my tests usually come back clean too...just once it said infection and that was after saying screw it and eating gluten for like 2 weeks.  I chalked it up to chronic inflammation and worn down immune system.