Miscarriages - celiac diagnosis?

[Charlotte9898]

Hi everyone, 

I am new to this site and hoping people may have a bit of advice for me. We’ve recently started trying to conceive, but unfortunately have had two miscarriages with a growth of under 6 weeks each. I’ve never had an official diagnosis, but myself/my doctor suspected I had gluten sensitivity around eight years ago when I was also being diagnosed with endometriosis. 
 

As I didn’t have any pain/bloating that was particularly bad, I continued with my normal diet including gluten. Not until my second miscarriage did anyone mention a link between eating gluten and miscarriages. 
 

I’m now on a strict gluten diet - but the wait time for testing to see how bad the damage is isn’t for another nine months, which seems like a really long time to just have the test done, let alone wait for results and know if I’m on the right track. 
 

I want to do as much as possible to limit the chances of another miscarriage, while knowing this might not be the only cause of the problems (e.g endometriosis). 
 

can people advise on how long I should be gluten free before I even consider trying again, and what vitamins etc I should be taking in the meantime to try and boost my chances? 

[cristiana]

Hi Charlotte

I am so sorry to hear about your miscarriages.

In the case of coeliac disease there does appear to be a link;  certainly, I was made aware of this link by a friend who had several miscarriages until she was diagnosed with coeliac disease, then was able to carry two babies to term without any issues.

This is just one of the many studies one will find on line:

https://gut.bmj.com/content/46/3/332

I also had a premature baby at 33 weeks, and I have often wondered if my coeliac disease was the issue.

You will need to speak to your doctor and decide what is best for you but I think my own inclination would be to try to get a firm diagnosis asap if you live in the UK, where the NHS gives a lot of important support to diagnosed coeliacs (blood tests, annual reviews with a gastroenterologist, a dietician, bone scans, prescription for gluten-free food etc.)  I

Have you had a blood test yet?  If not, it will involve eating at least two slices of glutinous bread (or the equivalent) for six-eight weeks before the blood test (i.ie. a full coeliac panel).  If you test a strong positive, in some cases may not even have to have an endoscopy but if you do, you will need to eat gluten before the endoscopy.

If you can afford private healthcare, it might be worth going down that route for an endoscopy for a quicker diagnosis.  But the first step - the blood test itself - can be done quickly through the NHS, but remember it will only be accurate if you have eaten enough gluten (as outlined per above) for the raised antibodies to show in your blood test.

Re: supplements, here is a helpful link for coeliacs from Coeliac UK.

https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/living-gluten-free/the-gluten-free-diet/gluten-free-when-pregnant/

Do come back if you have any questions.

 

Edited May 30, 2023 by cristiana

[trents]

Charlotte, have you had the serum antibody testing done for celiac disease already? You don't mention that but you allude to "the test to see how bad the damage is" which sounds like the second stage of testing for celiac disease, namely, the endoscopy with biopsy of the small bowel.

I want to reiterate what Cristiana said about continuing to consume regular amounts of gluten until all testing is complete. If you have already been on a gluten free diet for months or even weeks leading up to the diagnostic test you will sabotage the testing. Removing gluten would eliminate the inflammation caused by gluten and allow the villi of the small bowel to heal. The serum antibody testing is designed to detect specific antibodies produced by the inflammation. The endoscopy/biopsy microscopically examines the lining of the small bowel to check for damage caused by the inflammation.

The infertility and miscarriage problems connected with celiac disease are tied to vitamin and mineral deficiencies that result from damage to the small bowel lining by celiac disease. This is the area of the intestinal track where all of the nutrition from what we eat is absorbed. Damage the villous lining of the small bowel from celiac disease often greatly reduces the surface area of this absorbing organ. We regularly advise recovering celiacs to counter this with high potency vitamin and mineral supplementation. All supplements should be checked for being gluten free as not all of the are. Wheat starch can be used as filler in pills.

If you are anticipating an endoscopy with biopsy to confirm celiac disease, you should be back on regular amounts of gluten (defined by the Mayo Clinic as two slices of wheat bread daily or the gluten equivalent) at least two weeks preceding the procedure. If you have not had the serum antibody testing done, which is the first stage of diagnosis, you would need to be eating that same amount of gluten for 6-8 weeks leading up to the blood draw.

Edited May 30, 2023 by trents

[Cissy De]

8 hours ago, Charlotte9898 said:

Hi everyone, 

I am new to this site and hoping people may have a bit of advice for me. We’ve recently started trying to conceive, but unfortunately have had two miscarriages with a growth of under 6 weeks each. I’ve never had an official diagnosis, but myself/my doctor suspected I had gluten sensitivity around eight years ago when I was also being diagnosed with endometriosis. 
 

As I didn’t have any pain/bloating that was particularly bad, I continued with my normal diet including gluten. Not until my second miscarriage did anyone mention a link between eating gluten and miscarriages. 
 

I’m now on a strict gluten diet - but the wait time for testing to see how bad the damage is isn’t for another nine months, which seems like a really long time to just have the test done, let alone wait for results and know if I’m on the right track. 
 

I want to do as much as possible to limit the chances of another miscarriage, while knowing this might not be the only cause of the problems (e.g endometriosis). 
 

can people advise on how long I should be gluten free before I even consider trying again, and what vitamins etc I should be taking in the meantime to try and boost my chances? 

 Celiac and infertility go hand in hand. My cousin had 6 before she was diagnosed.  Went gluten-free for three months and got pregnant, took progesterone suppositories to help the pregnancy alone 

 

good luck 

[Scott Adams]

I agree, and not to scare anyone, but here is our category of articles on this topic:

https://www.celiac.com/celiac-disease/celiac-disease-amp-related-diseases-and-disorders/fertility-pregnancy-miscarriage-and-celiac-disease/