Cognitive Damage-Celiac Disease

[JoelW1lls]

So I've read online that celiac can cause damage to your brain and cognitive deficient etc. and I've recently just ate something that had gluten in it that's affected me and I don't feel too well mentally, I am wondering if eating this will have a long-term mental effect and potentially ruin my intelligence and creativity and stuff...because I am doing a film course right now and don't feel as efficient as I was last year and I'm really worried. 

[trents]

JoelW1lls, have you been diagnosed with celiac disease or at this point are you wondering if you have it because of the symptoms you experienced after eating something with gluten?

[Blue-Sky]

Have you been tested for Celiac disease, or do you know you have wheat sensitivity?

A lot of people with Celiac disease feel like they have difficulty concentrating or anxiety after eating wheat. These symptoms go away though on a gluten free diet. If someone has many years of brain damage from untreated celiac disease (say for example gluten ataxia), that may take a long time to improve, or they may not recover. 

Probably eating wheat if you are celiac throws off electrolyte balance. Also I think it is likely Celiacs can become deficient in zinc, magnesium and and selenium immediately after eating something with wheat. 

[JoelW1lls]

13 hours ago, trents said:

JoelW1lls, have you been diagnosed with celiac disease or at this point are you wondering if you have it because of the symptoms you experienced after eating something with gluten?

I had a blood test which said that I may have a problem with eating gluten, they said they would put me through an endoscopy (which is coming up soon) and I've been on a gluten free diet for the last three months or so and have felt better since so I'm pretty sure that I do have celiac disease. However I ate something a few days ago by accident that had wheat in it and that's what I'm talking about above. 

[JoelW1lls]

13 hours ago, Blue_Sky said:

Have you been tested for Celiac disease, or do you know you have wheat sensitivity?

A lot of people with Celiac disease feel like they have difficulty concentrating or anxiety after eating wheat. These symptoms go away though on a gluten free diet. If someone has many years of brain damage from untreated celiac disease (say for example gluten ataxia), that may take a long time to improve, or they may not recover. 

Probably eating wheat if you are celiac throws off electrolyte balance. Also I think it is likely Celiacs can become deficient in zinc, magnesium and and selenium immediately after eating something with wheat. 

I had a blood test which said that I may have a problem with eating gluten, they said they would put me through an endoscopy (which is only just coming up soon) and I've been on a gluten free diet for the last three months or so and have felt better since so I'm pretty sure that I do have celiac disease. However I ate something a few days ago by accident that had wheat in it and that's what I'm talking about above. Over the months between June-September I kept throwing up after eating food (there may have been instances before can't remember) not knowing why until the blood test in late September. 

[trents]

3 hours ago, JoelW1lls said:

I had a blood test which said that I may have a problem with eating gluten, they said they would put me through an endoscopy (which is only just coming up soon) and I've been on a gluten free diet for the last three months or so and have felt better since so I'm pretty sure that I do have celiac disease. However I ate something a few days ago by accident that had wheat in it and that's what I'm talking about above. Over the months between June-September I kept throwing up after eating food (there may have been instances before can't remember) not knowing why until the blood test in late September. 

Your endoscopy will likely be invalidated by your eating gluten free for the past three months and the one recent episode of being "glutened" will not be enough to change that. There likely has been significant healing in the villi if you have truly been eating gluten free except for that one episode so the endoscopy/biopsy will not show the former damage. If there are still several weeks to go before the endoscopy/biopsy then start eating gluten again daily and that should reproduce enough damage to the villi of the small bowel to make the endoscopy/biopsy valid. The equivalent of a piece of bread or several wheat crackers per day should be enough. If the endoscopy is sooner than several weeks away then reschedule. Contact your doctor right away.

The other option would be to assume you have a gluten disorder and commit to eating gluten free the rest of your life. That means eliminating not most but all gluten from your dient, even trace amounts from non gluten foods that have been cross contaminated by coming in contact with gluten during growing, shipping, processing and packaging. This would also include meds and supplements. Everything must be checked that could possibly contain or have come in contact with gluten. Wheat starch, for instance, can be included as a filler in meds and supplements. It can be used as a texturing or bonding agent in foods and even spices. Become a faithful label reader. Did you know that most soy sauces contain wheat and most canned soups? Would you expect tomato soup to contain wheat? But it does? Wheat starch is a cheap thickener used widely by the food industry in prepared foods. You will also need to avoid eating out unless the kitchen staff is willing to work with you in making sure the food you order has not been cross contaminated with gluten by being cooked on the same surfaces with gluten containing food, or cut or served with the same utensils. 

Recent studies show that most people who claim to be eating gluten free are inadvertently consuming small amounts of gluten through ignorance, inattention and cross contamination and that they are actually practicing lower gluten eating, not gluten free eating. That will not allow the small bowel to heal properly. These same studies also show that most of these people were still dining out.

Edited January 27, 2021 by trents

[raspberryfirecracker]

Bump. Don't get scoped after already going gluten free!

[Wheatwacked]

In retrospect, I was getting dumber since graduating high school in 1969, probably even earlier . Since I started GFD Thanksgiving 2014, and over the past year replenishing all the vitamins I was missing in my diet, my thinking is clearer and my health is improving.

[Scott Adams]

Pure coincidence, but we just published a summary of a study on this very topic:

 

[DJFL77I]

I don't think it affects intellect. But can affect the part of your brain that controls balance coordination etc and that usually goes away after eating gluten free

 

[ravenwoodglass]

Celiac can definately impact the ability to learn and to retain what one has learned. That's why I feel so strongly that children should be tested on a routine basis even without GI issues. That can be resolved for most if they are diagnosed soon enough. In folks who were diagnosed after years of brain impact total resultion isn't always possible but many (like myself) can learn to adjust to the deficits in time.

[Scott Adams]

I also believe in universal screening. They've done this at some level in Italy I believe, but this recent study clearly shows the benefit of doing this:

 

[trents]

I'm with you on this, Scott. Finding out at an early stage in life that one has celiac disease can avoid a lot of health issues down the line.

[knitty kitty]

Thought this article might help....

 

Neurophysiology of the “Celiac Brain”: Disentangling Gut-Brain Connections

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5591866/

[trents]

Great article, kk. Thanks.