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L-glutamine made me sick?

1398-Days

By 1398-Days
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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1398-Days Contributor
1398-Days
Posted

I was advised to take L-glutamine and probiotics to help repair some my gut.. So I bought some L-glutamine as well as a probiotic and super enzyme. All from the brand NOW Foods. I was nervous to take them at first, but I finally did yesterday. I noticed that I felt a little bit sick after I took the L-glutamine (1 500mg capsule) but didn't think too much of it. Then I felt kind of sick all day yesterday, almost like I was coming down with a cold or something. My nose was stuffed up, my eyes felt glassy, and I was really tired all day. At one point I had slight stomach cramps and went to the restroom, but my stomach was still a bit upset after I went. Again I figured it was fine, and a while later had something to eat. Immediately after eating I felt bloated and the bloating eventually turned into slight nausea which lasted for a few hours. And almost all night last night I had really bad chills, but I wasn't cold. In fact I was very hot (no fever though, temp was actually lower than normal), I just couldn't stop shaking. I tried holding my phone at one point and it flew out of my hand I was shaking so hard! Eventually I felt better and managed sleep for a while.. I woke up with chills, but they didn't last too long. After that I had a headache and was dizzy but eventually that stopped and I felt normal again. Until I ate dinner.. (slept past breakfast and skipped lunch..) I barely took a few bites before I started to feel bloated and shortly after a bit nauseous. And the chills started again.. I took some gaviscon and feel a lot better now. I really don't know why I'm feeling like this though. I think the chills are because I'm anxious (when my anxiety gets bad I get chills sometimes) I have no idea though. Could the L-glutamine cause all of this, or could this all be due to anxiety? I've always had anxiety, but it's been a lot worse since going gluten free since I'm just always worried about getting sick. Or maybe I got glutened? Though I can't think of anything I ate that could have had gluten in it yesterday. I feel like this is all from anxiety.. but could the L-glutamine possibly have made my anxiety worse? I think this is the worst my anxiety has ever been. And it's just an awful cycle.. I feel sick because I'm anxious, but then I'm anxious because I feel sick. I have emetephobia as well so I really kind of panic sometimes when I feel nauseous or something, which doesn't help. Sorry this is so long, but what do you think is causing me to feel like this? And how can I get better? Help!

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flowerqueen Community Regular
flowerqueen
Posted

Is it possible you have a bug or the flu? It may not actually be related to gluten contamination.  It could also be some kind of bacterial infection.  Hope you start to feel better soon. 

Skiangel Newbie
Skiangel
Posted

It is probably the probiotics. I get really sick when I take them and feel like I have the flu. I am now eating one tbsp of fermented carrots and one tbsp of sauerkraut each day in place of probiotics. I also just started drinking water kefir. I feel like I am having a similar reaction to the water kefir that I did yo probiotics. 

cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted

Those probiotics could be making you sick!  GI doctors were puzzled that many of their celiac patients were not getting well so they tested about 20 probiotics marketed in the US this year:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/294043.php

My recommendation?  Either purchase certified gluten-free supplements (tested) or avoid them all together until you have healed and can take the risk.   I did not take any supplements the first two months with the exception of iron since I was so anemic.  I relied on easy-to-digest whole foods and time to help my gut heal. 

Your current supplements do contain some lactose.  That could be an issue for you as many folks are temporarily lactose intolerant (others become lactose intolerant because of aging or genetics,).  They could contain gluten.  Their own website states that they do share lines (they make every effort to clean them) and they do not test the final product.  At least that is my interpretation.  

Or you could be getting sick, like FlowerQueen suggested.  We celiacs can get sick like everyone else!  

Just something to consider.  

1398-Days Contributor
1398-Days
Posted
  • Author
3 hours ago, cyclinglady said:

Those probiotics could be making you sick!  GI doctors were puzzled that many of their celiac patients were not getting well so they tested about 20 probiotics marketed in the US this year:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/294043.php

My recommendation?  Either purchase certified gluten-free supplements (tested) or avoid them all together until you have healed and can take the risk.   I did not take any supplements the first two months with the exception of iron since I was so anemic.  I relied on easy-to-digest whole foods and time to help my gut heal. 

Your current supplements do contain some lactose.  That could be an issue for you as many folks are temporarily lactose intolerant (others become lactose intolerant because of aging or genetics,).  They could contain gluten.  Their own website states that they do share lines (they make every effort to clean them) and they do not test the final product.  At least that is my interpretation.  

Or you could be getting sick, like FlowerQueen suggested.  We celiacs can get sick like everyone else!  

Just something to consider.  

Thanks for the advice.. I was wondering if it could be the probiotics as well. Or maybe just a virus. I actually had something similar to this a 4 or 5 years ago. I couldn't eat anything without feeling nauseous and would get really bad chills every now and then. It lasted a good two weeks, and then at least another 1-2 weeks before I was eating normally again. I tried eating something today, but I got this feeling.. like there was a lump in my throat so I stopped eating after only 2-3 bites. I really hope this isn't the same sort of virus.. It feels pretty similar though. The only difference is that I'm also really tired (even despite sleeping 12+ hours) and I'm dizzy when I stand up. What are some good things to eat that (hopefully) won't upset my stomach? I think this is also like 10x worse with the emetephobia.. I'm so scared that I would rather starve than feel nauseous! Any tips? :unsure:

  • 2 years later...
Speedybump Newbie
Speedybump
Posted

This is speculation from a userpost on another forum:  GABA is formed from glutamate and excessive glutamate could possible cause excitation, elevated hr, anxiety etc...

I have also read about people having diarrhea, headaches, brain fog when taking l-glutamin. The few times I've tried taking l-glutamine in doses of 5-10g I've felt like i'm about to have a panic attack.

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