Should I Wait? And How Long?

[Ginger38]

I am still struggling with getting this gluten-free way of life right. Between foods and medicines I still haven’t got it all figured out, trying but not there 💯, so I know I have had gluten in some form. aside from the gastrointestinal issues and general immune system issues such as itching and rash and allergies etc the gluten exposure has also been causing intermittent tachycardia and palpitations.
I have generalized anxiety disorder and complex PTSD. My doc is wanting me to start some mental health meds for this, and the mental health meds  of course have side effects , particularly gastrointestinal and can also increase heart rate. So I am wondering if I should give my body some time to heal, or expel the gluten and calm down before starting these meds? I don’t know how long all this takes to exit the system and for things to calm down from last known exposure 

[Scott Adams]

Without knowing a lot about what you're going through mentally it's difficult to make any recommendations here, and I forgot how long you've been 100% gluten-free (you can count periods where you got contamination), but as far as how long it takes to recover from celiac disease, this can vary greatly from person to person.

This study indicates that a majority of celiacs don't recover until 5 years after diagnosis and starting a gluten-free diet:

• Mucosal recovery and mortality in adults with celiac disease after treatment with a gluten-free diet

However, it's also possible that what the study really shows is the difficulty in maintaining a 100% gluten-free diet. I suspect that if you looked closely at the diets of those who did not recover within 2 years might be that their diets were not 100% gluten-free. Perhaps they ate out more often, or didn't understand all of the hidden ingredients where gluten can hide. Either way, it shows how difficult recovery from celiac disease can be for most people.

According to this study:

Quote

After an average of 11 months on a gluten-free diet, 81% of patients with celiac disease and positive tissue transglutaminase IgA (tTG-IgA) at baseline will revert to negative tTG-IgA (SOR: C, disease-oriented evidence from retrospective cohort study). The intestinal mucosa of adult patients with celiac disease will return to normal after following a gluten-free diet for 16 to 24 months in only 8% to 18%. However, in children after 2 years, 74% will have a return to normal mucosa (SOR: C, diseaseoriented evidence from longitudinal studies).

This article explores other causes of flattened villi:

 

 

[Ginger38]

Scott- I have generalized anxiety disorder and complex PTSD. I struggle with all the symptoms of ptsd and ruminating thoughts and severe anxiety. Not sure if that helps or not. I have been on the gluten free diet for a while, but I have been glutened here and there since in foods and medicines and cross contact. I have been dealing with autoimmune responses from recent gluten exposure so I wasn’t sure if I should wait on a new med to give my immune system time to calm down and heal or just go for it because it takes so long

[Scott Adams]

I am not sure which med you mean, but if you do take it just verify that it is gluten-free.

You can search this site for prescriptions medications, but will need to know the manufacturer/maker if there is more than one, especially if you use a generic version of the medication:

To see the ingredients you will need to click on the correct version of the medication and maker in the results, then scroll down to "Ingredients and Appearance" and click it, and then look at "Inactive Ingredients," as any gluten ingredients would likely appear there, rather than in the Active Ingredients area.

• https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/ 

 

[knitty kitty]

@Ginger38,

I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Complex PTSD.  SSRIs did not improve my health.  SSRIs made my gastrointestinal symptoms much much worse, worsening my brain health as well.  

What did work for me was to focus on calming my digestive system and providing essential vitamins and minerals so my body could function properly.  I followed a low histamine Paleo diet, and I took vitamin and mineral supplements.  I studied Nutrition before earning a degree in Microbiology, so I did research into healing my digestive system and improving my mental health. 

High histamine levels cause anxiety and inflammation.  Our bodies produce histamine in autoimmune reactions.  There is histamine in the food we eat.  If we reduce the amount of high histamine foods, reduce inflammation, and provide sufficient vitamins and minerals our bodies can clear histamine and heal.  Omega Threes, Vitamin D, the eight essential B vitamins, Vitamin C and minerals like magnesium all help to reduce histamine levels, reduce inflammation and promote healing.  

Serotonin is made in the intestinal tract.  Tryptophan is required to make Serotonin.  1000 mg of Tryptophan, some Pyridoxine B 6, Niacinamide B3, and magnesium an hour before bedtime has been found to promote Serotonin production, improve restful sleep and relieves anxiety.  Passion flower extract is beneficial in relieving anxiety and promoting restful sleep, too.

Benfotiamine (a form of Thiamine B1) has been shown to help heal the digestive tract and relieve anxiety.  

If you give the body the nutrients it needs, it can operate properly.  Your body can't make sufficient Serotonin if your digestive system is not absorbing nutrients because of celiac disease and inflammation.  Pharmaceuticals are a temporary bandaid and the side effects only make matters worse.

Please try Tryptophan now before starting an SSRI.  SSRIs cause further damage to the intestines.  Tryptophan has no harmful effects.  

KK

References:

Factors associated with villus atrophy in symptomatic coeliac disease patients on a gluten-free diet

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28220520/

Antidepressant-like Effects of Representative Types of Food and Their Possible Mechanisms

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10574116/

Influence of Tryptophan and Serotonin on Mood and Cognition with a Possible Role of the Gut-Brain Axis

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4728667/

The Effects of Dietary Tryptophan on Affective Disorders

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4393508/

Effect of Tryptophan, Vitamin B6, and Nicotinamide-Containing Supplement Loading between Meals on Mood and Autonomic Nervous System Activity in Young Adults with Subclinical Depression: A Randomized, Double-Blind, and Placebo-Controlled Study

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31902864/

Nutritional and herbal supplements for anxiety and anxiety-related disorders: systematic review

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2959081/

Nutrition as Metabolic Treatment for Anxiety

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7907178/

Vitamin B6: A new approach to lowering anxiety, and depression?

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9577631/

Thiamine and benfotiamine: Focus on their therapeutic potential

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10682628/

Neurological, Psychiatric, and Biochemical Aspects of Thiamine Deficiency in Children and Adults

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6459027/

Hiding in Plain Sight: Modern Thiamine Deficiency

Chandler Marrs and Derrick Lonsdale

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8533683/

Edited March 8, 2024 by knitty kitty
Typo correction