Newly diagnosed

[Martin VeganTrailRunr]

Hi, I've recently been diagnosed with Coeliac Disease (I'm a Brit so we spell it differently here). It's come as sort of a surprise at 52 years old. I had some minor stomach issues but I thought I just ate too much bread. The diagnosis came as a result of trying to find out why I have such a relentess fatigue. One that has all but ended my running for the time being.  All of my bloods were good bar the anti-ttg and that lead to me getting diagnosed.

That was 10 days ago. I've cut out all gluten obviously. Still getting stomach issues though. I had hoped they'd vanish overnight. I wonder if I also have an onion allergy or is it the case that some foods do upset the Coeliac stomach before it heals?

I'm a Vegan (since 2009) and a runner as already stated so if we have those things in common please say hi. Thank you for reading.

[Scott Adams]

Many people with celiac disease, especially those who are in the 0-2 year range of their recovery, have additional food intolerance issues which could be temporary. To figure this out you may need to keep a food diary and do an elimination diet over a few months.

Some common food intolerance issues are dairy/casein, eggs, corn, oats, and soy. The good news is that after your gut heals (for most people who are 100% gluten-free this will take several months to two years) you may be able to slowly add some these items back into your diet after the damaged villi heal.

This article may be helpful:

 

 

[Martin VeganTrailRunr]

Thank you Scott. A food diary is a great idea. I already try to eat as little onion as possible but it's in so much food. Fingers crossed that these symptoms vanish as I heal.

[trents]

You probably also have vitamin and mineral deficiencies because of malabsorption from the blunted villi of the small bowel after years of celiac going undiagnosed. This would be very difficult to address apart from supplements for a vegan, especially in the B vitamin range and particularly B12.

[Martin VeganTrailRunr]

Thank you Trents. Oddly all my vitamin and mineral tests came back fine. I do take a supplement but also try to consume a balanced diet. It baffled my GP.

[knitty kitty]

@Martin VeganTrailRunr,

Taking that supplement has probably masked any actual deficiencies you might have.  

Blood tests for vitamin and mineral deficiencies are not accurate.  They can reflect what one has consumed and absorbed from food or supplements in the previous twenty-four to forty-eight hours.  Blood tests do not accurately reflect how well the vitamins and minerals are being utilized inside cells.  

One should not take supplements for eight weeks prior to testing.  

One can have deficiency symptoms prior to changes in blood levels.  Stores of vitamins within cells can be depleted while blood levels remain constant to supply essential organs like the brain and heart.

Thiamine deficiency can produce symptoms of fatigue such as you talk about.  What was your Vitamin D level?

[Sof]

Hi Martin!

Sofia from Spain here, also a vegan and rollerskater instead of runner

I discovered my intolerance to gluten not so long ago, I was in denial for too much time and only definitely quit gluten in September 2020, when I was 44. I’ve had some slips due to eating out, about 5 or them. 

The big problem for me is addressing my other intolerances. One of them is oats, they give me random reactions and even worse than gluten. They give me much worse bloating and even extreme fatigue, headache and swelling in the face sometimes. I’ve had to quit having gluten free vegan desserts in restaurants since most of them contain oats. I have also problems with chocolate, it gives me acne (gluten gives me the worst cystic acne). As they suggested above, keeping a food diary and being vigilant is the best way to discover what triggers you.

I’m very looking forward to having my intestines finally in shape and be able to introduce chocolate again in my diet, I think it might be taking longer for me since I’ve been testing chocolate and oats every 3 months, the last time I tried I had a super strong reaction so I decided to completely quit for 2 years. Hope I can stick to it .

I wish you the best of luck!

[trents]

On 8/27/2023 at 2:39 PM, Martin VeganTrailRunr said:

Thank you Trents. Oddly all my vitamin and mineral tests came back fine. I do take a supplement but also try to consume a balanced diet. It baffled my GP.

Are you sure all your supplements are gluten free? Wheat starch can be used as a filler in pills.

[Martin VeganTrailRunr]

I only take one multivitamin and I'm as sure as I can be based on their website.