Dh From Shampoo? Food? Eczema Or Burning Pimples?

[Ksmith]

HI all,

So here's what I got...btw, I have been attempting being truly gluten-free for about 6 months, but I do eat oats, and I haven't paid any attention to wheat in shampoos, etc...I have got the weird eczema looking DH on one of my elbows once and it is still kinda there, but for the most part it has healed. Recently, about a week ago, I thought I had got some spider bites because I had two painful bumps on my back and three, in a line, a little below my armpit. They started to burn and almost looked and felt like little bee stings. THen a couple of days later I got 5 more, fairly close to the ones near my armpit. After the burning subsided a little, they scabbed up and started itching. They are red bumps with little scabs in the middle of each. I have been very good about not itching them. That said, I am confused because I have not been eating gluten and I don't understand why I would get such a painful DH rxn (if that is what it is). I have never got these bumps before, and I haven't had any bad gluten stomach aches, so I don't think I had consumed gluten on accident. However, I do drink beer, which doesn't bother my stomache and my shampoo had wheat in it. Anyway, I guess I am just asking y'all's opinion. Does this sound like DH? Should I not use that shampoo? Are skin products that have wheat in them harmful to celiac's skin, but won't bother their digestive system? Thanks so much for your help!

~K

[jerseyangel]

Hi K--Most brands of oats that you find at the grocery store are contaminated. Eating oats is a personal decision--I don't chance it. Beer (regular) has gluten and even if you don't *feel* a reaction, there is damage occuring. Not all Celiacs get GI issues. The fact that your dh is flaring up means that you are ingesting gluten. The problem with shampoos and lotions is that it is so easy to get some into your mouth. Since you are still experiencing symptoms, I would suggest cutting out the oatmeal, the beer, and use personal care products that are free of gluten.

[Ursa Major]

I agree with Patti. If you've been drinking beer, you have not been gluten free. I find that shampoos with wheat germ cause an itching rash on my scalp.

Plus, even when gluten free, the deposits under your skin that cause DH take one to five years to clear, meaning, you can get DH for quite a while after going gluten free.

And, by the way, those outbreaks you describe sound a lot like DH. I say see a dermatologist to have a skin biopsy taken before you truly go gluten free. A firm diagnosis of DH will automatically give you the diagnosis for celiac disease as well. Because only celiac disease causes DH.

[Ksmith]

Thanks guys. I guess my real question was whether or not the bumps sound like DH. I understand the oats and beer stuff, and I only buy the McCann's Oats which are supposedly ok--which I actually haven't had for about a month and a half, anyway. The beer on the other hand is something I have on occasion and I haven't had any in quite some time...so why the sudden break-out and not break-out after I ate a douhgnut or bagel or something years ago? Something that has a much higher gluten content than beer (which seem to have fairly low doses of gluten 20-100 ppm, depending on the brand, some can be much higher, but I avoid those ones). I would think bigger foul-ups I've had in the past would be far more detrimental than a light beer. That's all that I am saying. I have also been using the same shampoo for years now. BTW, I have GI issues when I consume gluten...I am not a hidden gluten celiac. Thanks yall:)

[Ursa Major]

Now that you qualified what you said in your first post, I understand you're not a hidden gluten celiac. But it was easy to misinterpret. Sorry about that.

Still, I get the rows of bumps like you, and for years were paranoid about getting bitten by things I could never see! Like 'mosquito bites' in the winter, or 'flea bites' all in a row, which turned into ugly blisters when scratched (and we don't have pets, and nobody else was getting 'bitten'). Now I understand it was DH all along. I suspect you have the same problem.

Anyway, my advice about having it biopsied by a dermatologist still holds.

[julie5914]

I have 2 on my back as well, and I came here looking for the same. Is it DH? Mine don't really itch though. I got one on my nose, and had some strange blisters on my lip. They weren't outside my lip like a cold sore, and they weren't inside my lip like a canker sore, they were just right on my lip, more clear than red. The ones on my back hurt deep though, to the muscle.