Sick after decorating

[Elliottohonedhome]

Hey folks, I'm new here, and hoping to get some fresh ideas or insight into my situation.

 

Gluten free going on 13 months, now. I have DH (severe on my hands) and I've come to realise I'm extremely sensitive, some "gluten free" processed foods and even rice trigger a reaction, so I've reverted to a basic paleo diet. All meat and all veges.

 

Anyway, up until almost two months ago everything was great. I'd given up the rice (seemed to have withdrawal symptoms from stopping it) and felt really good - lots of energy, no fatigue etc. Also, my new girlfriend and her six year old moved into our home. Now, I know what you may be thinking or suggest, but we don't have gluten in our home. My girlfriend was inadvertently eating gluten free anyway due to eating an paleo type diet, and her son follows suit, so I'm sure they're not contributing to my glutening symptoms. Which started when we started redocorating the home.

It all began when I stripped the old wallpaper off the walls for new paper - my DH Rash that was healed flared, so I stopped. Then we had two new wardrobes built in each bedroom which required knocking walls down and extending them which had dust everywhere. Within sleeping in that environment for a week things got bad. So, we both cleaned every inch of the house making sure there was no dust, then had new carpets all through the house - but I'm still sick! My DH is back with a vengeance and I have stomach cramping/knotting like when I did my gluten challenge along with fatigue and headaches. I keep saying the house can't be making me I'll, but then I stay at my mum's to test this theory and I improve. The headaches go and my DH goes pink then heals and fades.

 

What could it be? I'm being driven insane. Am I going to have to move home? It's ridiculous. I personally thought it was the drywall dust, but surely with the cleaning and new carpet it should be gone?.

Everything I eat is fresh. Meet and vegetables and soups all prepared by me. My main staples are chicken, sweet potatoes, carrots, swede, brocolli, mushrooms and kale. So it's not my diet.

 

All thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated.

 

I don't know if paint can contain gluten, but we used a Valspar V500 paint mix to re paint the house.

 

Cheers. Elliott.

[Monika B]

Google Sheetrock and gluten. Seriously.  Was a surprise to me too last year!

[Awol cast iron stomach]

Hi

I use to work in the paint and covering retail industry 20 years ago. Many old wall papers and pastes were applied with wheat paste. That was more prevalent in the 1970s, but retailers carry wheat paste for special non pasted wall papers if I recall many grasscloth wall papers needed wheat paste.  Not sure how old your home is. If it is older it i a possible wheat paste or other compound (spackling ) has wheat from then. 

 

Perhaps someone more current and up to date in the construction industry will respond, but based on  my prior knowledge and training wheat paste was used. I knew some contractors who hated the prepasted wall coverings and preferred hanging with wheat paste.

Let someone else do the work is your spouse ok to do so? My husband patched an area recently and the spackle caused me issues, not sure if gluten or corn in there he will take off a few days from work while I am out of house at work. He said he will tape off and plastic the area of ceiling that needs repair from our recent ac install. He will close off dividing doors to isolate living room and knows to wet clean everything in cleanup and throw it all out.

I admire your ambition but let someone else do it or cover yourself in disposable coveralls mask etc. Think walter white style in breaking bad.

Ps I read on forums here that elmers spackle is one many celiac use.

 

Good luck

 

Ps did you by chance pitch everything including the shop vac you used to clean up? Just a thought 

[Elliottohonedhome]

The decorating is finished. We ripped out all the old carpets that's got covered in dust/paste and got new ones after cleaning.

 

Actually we still have the vacuum used for cleanup, but it has been emptied. Could it still have dust inside and be distributing it around the house? Food for thought 

 

Thanks for the replies.

 

P.S we did have a professional in to knock through the walls and rebuild wardrobes. I knew after removing old wallpaper and sanding down walls that's something had "got me"

[karla a winston]

I believe even some prepasted wallpaper ( i hung wp for 20 years) has some gluten in it.  And by the way, don't lick envelopes, as even they are not gluten-free.  I had DH after going gluten-free for years, but then realized my Cyrex Labs test indicated I was cross intolerant to milk and eggs.  The DH finally subsided.  I ate organic rice and was ok.  Oh, by the way.  Make sure you have no mold anywhere.  Mold poisoning can mimick DH....at least it did for me.  Thoughts based on my long-time old home construction and  gluten intolerant experiences.  Good luck!!

[karla a winston]

Oh, another thought.  Please clean the filters on your HVAC system.  That dust will just keep on coming.  Hopefully, while you are working, you can turn the airflow off.  

In health,  Karla

[1desperateladysaved]

My family built our house.  That happened before I knew about my celiac.  The mudding made me exceedingly tired.  I also developed blood in my stool.  (this looks tarry and sticks to the bowl)  I didn't know it at the time.  The building project fixed the end of my ignorance, for my illness could no longer be denied!  I sympathize and hope you will get through cleaning and recover.  I did. 

[cyclinglady]

16 hours ago, Awol cast iron stomach said:

Hi

I use to work in the paint and covering retail industry 20 years ago. Many old wall papers and pastes were applied with wheat paste. That was more prevalent in the 1970s, but retailers carry wheat paste for special non pasted wall papers if I recall many grasscloth wall papers needed wheat paste.  Not sure how old your home is. If it is older it i a possible wheat paste or other compound (spackling ) has wheat from then. 

 

Perhaps someone more current and up to date in the construction industry will respond, but based on  my prior knowledge and training wheat paste was used. I knew some contractors who hated the prepasted wall coverings and preferred hanging with wheat paste.

Let someone else do the work is your spouse ok to do so? My husband patched an area recently and the spackle caused me issues, not sure if gluten or corn in there he will take off a few days from work while I am out of house at work. He said he will tape off and plastic the area of ceiling that needs repair from our recent ac install. He will close off dividing doors to isolate living room and knows to wet clean everything in cleanup and throw it all out.

I admire your ambition but let someone else do it or cover yourself in disposable coveralls mask etc. Think walter white style in breaking bad.

Ps I read on forums here that elmers spackle is one many celiac use.

 

Good luck

 

Ps did you by chance pitch everything including the shop vac you used to clean up? Just a thought 

This is excellent advice.  We do the same thing (wet clean up, creating barriers, etc.) to prevent inhalation of ANY materials as we live in a very old house.  We also have a dedicated air filter that is only used when we are doing construction.  

I do not have DH, but once activated, it can take a while for the antibodies to go away in the skin.  ?. That is based on member input.  An exposure for me can last for months.  My last caused daily hives for six months.  I was able to use a cocktail of antihistamines as prescribed by my allergist which helped with the itching.  I learned that gluten triggers my celiac disease, but once activated, my immune system can set off my other autoimmune disorders.  Does that make sense?  

Just make sure the six year old has good practices in place like washing hand upon returning home from school. (She gets gluten at school).   We did this with my daughter.  It is normal behavior now.  

Time heals.  Two months is a short amount of time.  Hang in there. 

[RMJ]

Maybe get your air ducts cleaned if you have central heating?  And a new vacuum cleaner, or take it apart and clean thoroughly.  Good luck.

[squirmingitch]

I have dh too.

YUP. I used a shop vac & put water in it to keep the dust down. We had to relocate our A/C return & the A/C man did great until his helper screwed up & hit shop vac switch to blow instead of suck. Freaking room was freaking covered in drywall & drywall mud dust!!! Thankfully, we had closed off the entries into that room so it was isolated. I used a mask & went in suited up like there was a pandemic in my house. Wet cleaned everything, walls, blinds, 

EVERY

THING!

Took the shop vac out & washed inside & out with soap & water. Also washed out the shop vac hose with soap & water. 

We have a newer house built in 2001. Much research on my part pretty much assures us that the drywall itself doesn't contain wheat but not 100% guarantee. However, same research just about guarantees that the joint compound they use as well as the texturing compound DO contain wheat. At any rate, I got got so the wheat was somewhere - either in the drywall itself or the joint/texture compound. Took me months (3 or 4 at least) to recover.

I did remove wallpaper from the master bath. I think it was pre-pasted wallpaper the former owners had used but I wasn't positive so I didn't take any chances. Wore a mask. I had no broken skin at the time. Kept everything wet & had a lot of plastic down to catch stuff. Kept my hair up in a shower cap. Would jump directly into the shower & wash everything even including the hair that had been under the shower cap. I did not get sick. 

 

BTW, that bit about envelope glue is bogus. They do NOT use wheat in that glue. It's an internet myth that just keeps getting passed along over & over & over again. Stamps don't have wheat in the glue either.  Having said that, I use self sealing envelopes. Even when confronted with an envelope that requires moisture to seal; I use a damp fingertip to get the job done b/c licking an envelope is just plain gross. 

[Elliottohonedhome]

I can't thank everyone enough for their great advice. This forum is ace.

 

so the vacuum will be going. I personally wet cleaned the floors before the new carpet went down, and the windows and frames. We have also bought brand new blinds.

 

we have not wet cleaned the walls. That will be done next. I'm in the UK and have radiators for my heating, I'll look into how to clean them. I also wet cleaned the skirting boards myself.

the bed was still in the room during construction but it was covered, do you think it would be fine or should we get a new one just in case?

 

I know two months isn't long to heal from a gluten exposure but I have a set path with symptoms and whilst I'm in this house it's like I'm constantly getting a little gluten. All my symptoms go back to the start with a loose BM, then the stomach cramps and pounding headaches. (Sorry for TMI.)

 

thankd again for all your input.

 

Elliott

[squirmingitch]

As to the bed, if you can get it outside & beat it like they used to beat rugs in the "olden" days, I think you will be fine since it was covered. It might help if you can get one of those upholstery cleaning companies to come in & clean all your upholstered furniture. The fact of the matter is, that drywall compound dust gets everywhere & I mean everywhere. 

[healthysquirrel]

I'm sorry this is affecting you, it sucks! 

They are adding 3 stories to our appartment building while we are living here, so much dust and noise and now ventilation issues. Clean as much as possible, but if you have the money please hire people to do it for you and go out while they do it, if not wear a mask while cleaning. I am usure if you have an outside space or not, but I have been cleaning our balcony as well, so that we don't bring dust in from there. I look a bit strange vacuuming the balcony, but it helps a ton ! All my best!

[cyclinglady]

@healthysquirrel  

@Elliottohonedhome

This was just published on celiac.com today, but this little girl was very ill.  The gluten-free Diet was not helping.  Turns out living where wheat is being farmed (Kansas) was the culprit.  She was breathing and swallowing wheat dust!  She lived blocks from a silo.   They now live in Colorado.  

https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/features/girl-pens-book-about-her-battle-with-celiac-disease/73-576605565

http://support.childrenscoloradofoundation.org/site/TR/TeamChildrensColorado/General?fr_id=1163&pg=personal&px=1260744

HS — Maybe it was not the fries but construction?  Has your vacuum been compromised?  Just a thought.  

[Ennis-TX]

Yeah I would toss the vacuum, have the house air system cleaned, and like mentioned have the upultry cleaned.

Also see about cleaning all your stuff in your kitchen, that dust probably settled lightly all in the house. Go at it like you just bug bombed the house and need to clean everything before use. Consider doing all the laundry again also with a double rinse.
They make covers for couches and chairs and bed even so you can put over them I did some fun/fracked up testing years ago which proved some stuff I would not have expected (Wet soak and dabbed the arms of a couch my parents gave me, squeezed the water into a nima capsule and got gluten found. This was the same couch I would spill cereal on the arm as a kid and like 3 years after leaving parents house the couch still had gluten proteins in the fabric?)
Funny thing about gluten being a protein and not a germ, sort of have to approach it like a bio hazard/blood contamination, really hard destroy it. So loosening it and removing should be a goal. And get some cheap wash/shop towels you can toss after and not worry about or disposable ones.

I recalled how sick I was trying to build my current living area....I worked a few hours a day and spent the rest of the day sick and sleeping. I learned after doing all the plaster work about the gluten in it....we then used killz primer on all the walls then used a exterior latex based paint to seal the walls with a spray on applications in multiple layers.  I WILL NEVER again attempt to work on that kind of project again and will outsource to a professional company and see what we can do to avoid that kind of thing.

As for trying to get some regulation to your current situation. They make pollution mask, oddly bigger seller in the UK and European area but look up stuff like http://respro.com/store/product/sportsta-mask

[apprehensiveengineer]

@cyclinglady

I grew up in an agricultural area, but had not been back since being gluten-free except during the winter/spring. A lot of our recreation trails go through crop fields. Mostly corn and soy, but still quite a bit of wheat/barley/oats. I used to joke that it didn't worry me too much, since the only problem would be if the field was being harvested at the precise time I was using the trail, which would be a very improbable.

Then that actually happened (what are the odds?!). It might have been ok, except the combine was doing the row directly beside the trail and literally raining grain dust on the trail. I learned that a combine harvester kicks up a lot of grain dust over a pretty wide radius that day!

Luckily, I noticed quickly, used my shirt as a face mask and was able to take an alternate route, and rinsed out my mouth and nose as soon as I got home. Still got glutened a bit I think, though. Not sure how I would have fared had I been in a car driving past... probably fine, assuming one turned the A/C on (so air recirculates)?

[Elliottohonedhome]

Well I had the house wet cleaned... Started staying there again... And got reactions... Again.

 

I also bought a new duvet, pillows and covers for the bed... So thought everything would be good. But no.

 

Could I be reacting to the paint used? Something in it? Or is this sneaky dust still lingering, do you guys think?

 

Going to wet clean again. Get rid of the headboard off the bed. Ennis makes a good point I've been thinking about. We re painted the bedroom before the wardrobes were built, maybe it would be a good idea to buy some primer to re seal all the walls. What do you think?

 

Oh. Also bought a new vac and tossed the old one. Bathed the dogs, completely cleaned paths in garden. I clean the kitchen like a madman at least twice a day, and no work went on there so it should be ok.

 

Thanks to everyone for your input or ideas. I feel like I'm just missing something that's really small but adding up over exposure time and still getting me... Huh. This celiac stuff is mad the things that can make you sick. It really is a pain in the arse.

 

Be well all.

 

Elliott.

 

I really hope I don't have to pay for more decorating over the holidays ?

[kareng]

29 minutes ago, Elliottohonedhome said:

Well I had the house wet cleaned... Started staying there again... And got reactions... Again.

 

I also bought a new duvet, pillows and covers for the bed... So thought everything would be good. But no.

 

Could I be reacting to the paint used? Something in it? Or is this sneaky dust still lingering, do you guys think?

 

Going to wet clean again. Get rid of the headboard off the bed. Ennis makes a good point I've been thinking about. We re painted the bedroom before the wardrobes were built, maybe it would be a good idea to buy some primer to re seal all the walls. What do you think?

 

Oh. Also bought a new vac and tossed the old one. Bathed the dogs, completely cleaned paths in garden. I clean the kitchen like a madman at least twice a day, and no work went on there so it should be ok.

 

Thanks to everyone for your input or ideas. I feel like I'm just missing something that's really small but adding up over exposure time and still getting me... Huh. This celiac stuff is mad the things that can make you sick. It really is a pain in the arse.

 

Be well all.

 

Elliott.

 

I really hope I don't have to pay for more decorating over the holidays ?

At this point, I wonder if it’s something else, not gluten, that is bothering you?

[cyclinglady]

I am thinking like Karen.  Maybe it is NOT gluten that is triggering your symptoms.  Have you had your antibodies checked recently?  It might help to see if gluten is really the culprit.  

I was certain I had a gluten exposure a while back.  This time, besides, all the usual GI symptoms, I developed autoimmune hives (which lasted for six months).  After a month of suffering, I went back to my GI and had my antibodies (for celiac disease) checked and they were off the charts.  Later, due to the horrible daily hives, my allergist rechecked my thyroid antibodies and they were crazy high.  My GI suggested a repeat endoscopy but instead I went on the Fasano diet (very strict gluten-free).  The hives finally went away, but I still had GERD symptoms.  My GI convinced me to get an endoscopy (almost a year after that gluten exposure) which revealed healed villi, but autoimmune Gastritis.  

Not everything is due to celiac disease.  I also learned that my antibodies for all my autoimmune disorders can be triggered or made worse.  Everything in the body is linked. So antibodies testing is not always accurate for dietary compliance, but it is the least invasive of the tools in the celiac tool box.  

Look for something else or go back to your GI for a follow-up and rule out celiac disease or you could drive yourself crazy.  

Remember or research that DH has a mind of its own.  It can take a year or longer for the antibodies to be removed from the skin.  It can re-flare  for no apparent reason.  Read through the DH section.  You have to be strict and even more patient than a regular celiac with traditional GI issues.  

[Elliottohonedhome]

Thanks guys. If it's not gluten I find it strange that my reactions only start again when back in the newly decorated house, not when I stay elsewhere.

I'll go for an antibody check up.