Softer "Food-ier" Stools after Gluten-Free Diet

[okamifire]

Hello!  Hoping some of the more well versed Celiacs here may have a bit of input on my recent situation.  Additional and relevant details also included.

Quick Celiac Backstory: Mother and sister were diagnosed with Celiac circa 2003.  I at the time was blood tested (borderline results) and scoped (negative, no noticeable damage to cilia / villi).  I've went through life on a non-gluten free diet as any guy that was told they don't have Celiac would do, am now just shy of turning 30, and decided to get another blood test (this time a newer antibody one).  The results were a very strong positive for Celiac, which isn't surprising given my family history.  I haven't gotten scoped as I see little actual point in it; I don't doubt I have Celiac.  This was about May 1st.  I've eaten Gluten Free since then.

Relevant Background Information: Main reason how I've went undiagnosed for so long is I've been by and large asymptomatic.  My mom and sister were super sick and a wreck GI wise, that's what led to their diagnosis.  I probably poop a little more than the average person, but of a normal Type 4/5 Bristol scale (important for later!).  My bowel movements don't typically disrupt my life.  I didn't feel foggy, nauseous, swollen, or the typical other symptoms.  I do have acne flare ups and a hand rash on a few fingers, but not sure they're Celiac related (not sure they aren't, also.)

In April I decided I was a bit overweight.  I was 5'9", 185 lbs.  I started counting calories and eating mostly healthy food.  Lot of rice, chicken, and vegetables.  I have comfortably lost 10 pounds in 2.5 months, a very safe rate to lose weight.  In mid-May I started also cutting added sugars and simple carbs, like white bread, etc.  I wouldn't say I was eating Gluten-Free at that point, but definitely a lot less than I ever had before. 

Around this time of cutting out sugars, my stool started getting a bit softer, and while not diarrhea, definitely a 5-6 on the Bristol scale.  I had considered it could be some sort of Candida / yeast / gut flora rebalancing.  The soft stool also contains some solids in it, which I later determined to be what I believe is rice husks.  I also eat granola with gluten-free oats daily for breakfast with yogurt.  After cutting out all gluten, it's looking even a little less solid.  I think that today I saw some oat-y looking things in there.  While not yellow, it's definitely more yellow-brown than it used to be. 

My question is this.  Does it make sense for my stool to get softer and exhibit the characteristics above while switching to a gluten free diet, or has anyone perhaps experienced this and know what might be up?  The only reason I started cutting added sugars and simple carbs in the first place was in attempts to get healthier.  I have been eating rice regularly and also greek yogurt and granola for literally years almost day.  (Though it wasn't gluten-free granola before.)  So it's not a change in the types of fiber going through me.

My plan is to cut out oats for a bit as I hear that's a good suggestion for people starting gluten-free diets.  I still don't feel ill, nauseous, or really any different than before I went gluten free.  Around the time I cut sugars, my stomach was considerably more bubbly and gassy, which I attributed to a change in diet.  Unless something stands out to someone as telltale signs of something else, I think it's completely reasonable to carry on with everything else that I've been doing for a month or two and monitor the progress.

Thanks for the long read and thanks for any input or advice!

 

[Ennis-TX]

Many factors here, just to note, when I was eating gluten, I used to get constipated, sort of a issue with magnesium  deficiency from damaged intestines. Maybe yours are healing and regulating? Other thoughts like you said could be the biome of your intestines regulating to the new diet, if you had cadidia before or a biome of primary sugar eating bacteria they are dyeing off and purging out and your biome is again regulating.
FEW things to consider natural helps for loose stools and D is potassium 3000mg a day is listed in most medical references for helping. Try eating more foods to "dry out" and add bulk to your stool, I use simple gluten-free breads and flat breads made of coconut flour which is high in potassium and absorbs liquid, high in fiber, and a bulking agent for stools. I think I have a recipe here for a simple one on my recipe blog. 

Probiotics might help regulate your gut flora more but be sure you get gluten free ones...dairy free also  helps, on that note try dropping diary for a few weeks. With damaged intestines comes the inability to get the enzymes to break down dairy effectively til it heals, this can lead to diarrhea, gas, bloating etc. IF your had slight constipation from celiac then it starts healing but enzyme production is not up then lactose intolerance loose stools and D would result, just another thing that MIGHT be happening.

Seeing undigested foods in the stools could also be a sign of enzyme issues, I had this with meats, and a borked pancreas, I have to take enzymes and currently use Silver Fern Enzymes before meals.

This is going to be trial and error, keep a food diary and record your foods, rotate your diet and limit your diet to just a few choice whole foods. Might also suggest checking the newbie 101 thread but I assume you have the family background to know the diet, a blessing many of us did not have (I am adopted so this was a whammy to my family).
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PS simple healthy meals, look up gluten free sheet pan meals, and crock pot meals, blessed with chicken and rice still being on the menu lol. You might trial a paleo diet if you keep noticing issues with rice.

[Beverage]

Oat protein is very close to wheat, rye, and barley proteins.  My body reacts to oats the same as the others, yes even gluten free oats, and even certified gluten free oats of the best most strictest brands.  For some, it's close enough to the others to cause the same auto-immune response.  Try cutting out the oats for awhile and see what happens.