Questions about CBC history

[GeneticMess]

Hey all, new member here. 👋🏻 This will be a bit long considering it's an introductory post with a fair bit of relevant detail lol.

 

Little bit of history: 

My GP diagnosed me based on the fact that going gluten free cleared rashes I've had for most of my life, and a couple of days of eating gluten again made me break out again quickly. She didn't want to put me through the misery of a challenge, and considered it a confirmation. 

 

I call myself a Genetic Mess because, well, it's true lol. I've been diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, epilepsy, celiac, degenerative disc disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, severe sleep apnea, IBS, asthma, endometriosis/fibroids/cysts (that one's now nonexistent, thankfully lol), and the list goes on. I'm HLA B27 positive. 

 

Our medical system recently made blood results and medical reports available to view online. I was under the impression that I had tested negative for celiac markers years back - meanwhile, I can find no such test as far back as 2015. That said, I have multiple CBC/other results that have been repeatedly off that entire 9 years - not consistently, but at least one marker every time (usually 3 or 4). Considering I get blood work done at a minimum every 3 months, that's a lot of weird results. My question is, are there CBC/other results that can be consistently irregular in celiac disease? 

 

Here's the list:

Low erythrocytes

High erythrocyte distribution width 

High MCV

Low MCHC

High MCH

High WBC

High MPV

Low hematocrit

 

I know this is not a substitute for medical advice, and I do intend to speak to both my GP and my rheumatologist about it, but I'm wondering if anyone has any knowledge or experience with this.

 

Thanks in advance guys, I'm hoping this forum will help me get some of the answers and support I really need.

[trents]

Welcome to the forum, @GeneticMess! The answer is yes.

Celiac disease damages the mucosal lining of the small bowel which is the area of the intestinal track where all of our nutrition is absorbed. This "villous lining" is composed of millions and millions of tiny finger-like projections that creates a huge amount of nutrient absorbing surface area. Having celiac disease long-term that is unaddressed by a gluten-free diet causes these fingers to get worn down because of the inflammation caused by the immune system attacking the gluten as it comes in contact with the cells of this lining. This greatly reduces the surface area of nutrient absorption which inevitably results in vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Iron deficiency anemia is one of them and your CBC scores certainly indicate that. All of the values you list have to do with iron storage levels and red blood cell counts and/or morphology. Hematocrit is an iron storage protein. The other values you list indicate the body was pumping out too many misshaped, malformed red blood cells.

[GeneticMess]

Thank you so much. I thought that might be the case, and looked up individual definitions/results, but didn't have the specific knowledge to tie it all together. I'm guessing my doctors (all six of them) likely compared a few sets of results, but nobody has gone far enough back to really make that correlation. The fact that those results are still showing up is concerning, given that I've been gluten-free for the better part of two years. 

I'm honestly in patient burnout. Trying to research your own conditions because your doctors are too overloaded/overworked is exhausting. Autoimmune disease is brutal.

[trents]

You need to be on some high potency vitamin and mineral supplements. I'm talking about more than an adult multivitamin. Sublingual B12, B-complex, 5-10,000 IU of D3, Magnesium glycinate or magnesium citrate, and zinc. Make sure all are gluten free. What does your CBC say your hemoglobin score is? You might also need to be on an iron supplement. If you take an iron supplement, also take it with vitamin C or with an acidic beverage like orange juice or tomato juice to increase absorption.

Are you still consuming dairy and oats. These two foods can cause inflammation in the villous lining of the small bowel just like gluten in about 10% of celiacs. Are you on a proton pump inhibitor for acid reflux by any chance?

Edited August 13, 2024 by trents

[Wheatwacked]

Congratulations on finding such a wonderful doctor.

For the meantime, consider Celiac Disease as the true disease and the other symptoms a result of the malabsorption syndrome assosicociated with Celiac Disease.  They should improve.  These have all been related to deficient nutrients.

13 hours ago, GeneticMess said:

psoriatic arthritis, epilepsy, celiac, degenerative disc disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, severe sleep apnea, IBS, asthma, endometriosis/fibroids/cysts

Add choline for the NAFLD.  Thats eggs and beef or Phosphotidyl Choline capsules.  4 eggs or 10 cups of cooked brocolli for the minimum RDA.  Is has been estimated that less than 10% of the western world eat the minimum RDA.

Choline - The Most Important Nutrient of the Body: This simple nutrient is super effective for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s

Another test you can ask for is Homocysteine.  Homocysteine is an amino acid. Vitamins Choline RDA 500 milligrams, B6 RDA 1.6 milligrams and Folate 400 mcg with B12 RDA 2.4 mcg break down homocysteine.   High homocysteine levels may indicate cardiovasular inflammation. Without treatment, elevated homocysteine increases your risks for dementia, heart disease and stroke.  Increasing Choline intake can lower it.

Work on getting less omega 6 in your diet.  The typical western diet is 14:1 omega six to three.  Optimum for us humans is 3:1.  Wheat is 22:1; sweet potato is 14:1 and white potato are 3:1 and wild raw salmon is 1:11 and canned tuna in water 1:31 for example.  Omega 3 reduces inflammation.

Quote

Evidence has accumulated that hepatic steatosis [NAFLD], which occurs during parenteral nutrition therapy, develops as a result of choline deficiency because endogenous production of choline from parenterally infused methionine is deficient. In addition, memory deficits and skeletal muscle abnormalities have been described, and choline deficiency appears to activate cellular apoptosis. Provision of intravenous choline ameliorates hepatic steatosis associated with parenteral nutrition infusion.  The addition of choline to parenteral nutrition

Edited August 14, 2024 by Wheatwacked

[GeneticMess]

On 8/13/2024 at 1:57 PM, trents said:

Are you still consuming dairy and oats. These two foods can cause inflammation in the villous lining of the small bowel just like gluten in about 10% of celiacs. Are you on a proton pump inhibitor for acid reflux by any chance?

Heh. Yup, acid reflux with a PPI on board. I do eat gluten-free oats, and as far as I can tell, it doesn't cause any issues. I cut out and reintroduced dairy products before (7-8 weeks without) and eliminated all but regular milk and sometimes ice cream as any kind of issue.  I'm working on my diet - major shift towards fresh fruit and veg. Seeing a difference with that.

[trents]

The PPI increases the PH of the gut (makes it less acidic of an environment) and reduces the absorption of vitamins and minerals from your diet.

[GeneticMess]

2 minutes ago, trents said:

The PPI increases the PH of the gut (makes it less acidic of an environment) and reduces the absorption of vitamins and minerals from your diet.

That's a tangly one. Part of the reason for the PPI is the amount of oral medication I'm on. Another is that it's at least partially a functional issue, not just acid overproduction (swallowing trouble, so the muscles definitely ain't right lol).