Question: Sudden Dizziness, Possible Trace Exposure From Goya Beans?

[Chaff]

Hi Folks,

 

I've been gluten-free since Nov 2011 (when I was diagnosed after testing) and lately discovered that a lot of my lingering digestive issues seem to be connected to the small amounts of dairy I was eating (butter, hard cheese, the occasional yogurt).  Since I couldn't handle most foods, I'm excited to finally start to expand my diet now.  I'm underweight, but the dairy kept my bloated and without an appetite.  Now I'm hungry all the time!

 

I need whole grains of some kind because my high iron gives me blood sugar issues from simple carbs, but as you know, whole grains are often contaminated (and I react to gluten-free oats, probably from the avenin, which some celiacs are sensitive to).  Goya's website claims their blue-label beans are gluten-free (though mysteriously they don't make the same claim for their dry beans), although About.com's Jane Anderson is pretty adamant that gluten-free beans from anything but small farmers is a myth.

 

Anyway, I tried the Goya black beans for a few weeks. It's a fantastic addition to my diet, like, I finally have hope of gaining weight without having blood sugar spikes, maybe even can think of travelling. But...now I routinely wake up late, feeling clumsy, dizzy and stupid for a few hours in the morning.  Folks elsewhere on this site seem to do OK with Goya beans, so I'm wondering if I'm crazy and imagining things or what.   

 

I've ordered some Eden Foods certified gluten-free canned beans and some EZ Gluten tests, but these will take 1-2 months to get to me, because I'm living overseas on a US base.  So I'm checking to see if you all have any thoughts on this in the meantime.  Apart from the beans, I'm just eating my usual diet of whole foods that I prepare myself. My kitchen is shared and contaminated, but I have my own area and equipment, and keep my stuff clean and apart.

 

Any experience with these beans, or thoughts on whether this could be a gluten thing?  

 

Thanks!

 

References:

 

About.com: Open Original Shared Link

Celiac.com Forums: https://www.celiac.com/forums/topic/102175-goya-canned-beans/

[mommida]

I just had 3 days of severe vertigo.  I was barely able to walk.  Went to urgent care and there was no diagnosable reason.  The doctor did note there was some fluid in my right ear, but no infection.  Then last night my ears started popping, and the vertigo has gone away.

[dilettantesteph]

Were those canned beans that you tried?  If you are very sensitive you might want to try beans from a gluten-free certified facility.   I noticed early on that I reacted to things that many could tolerate.  Later I found that there were others with this seeming sensitivity to lower gluten levels.  It seemed to me that these people often were the ones with DH and I started reading those posts more and that helped me a lot.  I believe that the tests that you ordered are not very sensitive for barley.  I hope you improve soon.

[cristiana]

I just wanted to say that I had sudden vertigo last summer and for months was quite sure I was being glutened, but despite being strict could not find out what was causing it.  It came on suddenly, my limbs felt distant and disjointed, it was a weird feeling, and I felt that I was continuously walking on board a ship at sea.  I thought I must be suffering from Ataxia.  Eventually I saw an ENT and it was discovered that my C-spine was out and I was suffering from Cervical Dizziness.   It took me a while to work out that actually I had injured my neck picking up my little boy above my head just a couple of days before the dizziness struck.  The dizziness improved dramatically after Christmas, a combination I think of rest and also knowing what was behind it all.   It could well be that something that you are eating is causing all of this but I would advise anyone who cannot pin something down after a while to consult an ENT as dizziness can be very anxiety inducing and if it isn't gluten, there can be many other causes that can be easily (or eventually!) fixed.