Mal Absorption

[Terrilyn]

I was also told that along with Celiac I have mal absportion determined from stool test. I know that I have fat in my stool because it does float. Now my question is does anyone else have this problem and when did you stop seeing the fat in your stool (not floating). I also would like any opinons on how often you have to have a BM when you are feeling good. I am still going about 3 to 4 sometimes 5 times a day even when I eat only gluten free. Sometimes I am going any where from 1/2 hour to 1 hour after I eat. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I was also wondering if maybe I am eating too much at a meal and maybe I should try smaller meals. It seems I am always hungry.

Thanks

[Guhlia]

You are likely always hungry because your body is craving the nutrients that you can't absorb. This seems to be relatively common in Celiacs. Malabsorption is a direct byproduct of Celiac. Celiac causes the villi in your intestines to flatten, this causes an inability to absorb essential nutrients as well as other health problems.

JMO, your eating will probably level itself out once you've been gluten free for a little while. Once the villi start to recover and you're absorbing nutrients again, your body likely won't crave as much food as it once did. I would take it one day at a time and keep an eye on your weight just to be sure that you aren't overeating out of habit. I know I gained 40 lbs. almost immediately after going gluten free (some people lose weight instead).

It may take weeks and weeks for your stools to return to normal or it may take days. I believe mine returned to normal about three days after going gluten free.

Good luck!

[mouse]

Because of the problem of not absorbing vitamins or nutrients, I would suggest that your doctor run a vitamin check on you. Then you can take the suppliments that you need to, while your small intestine heals.

[Terrilyn]

Thank you very much for your input and advice. I am sure I am jumping the gun as I am very anxious to feel better all the time. I am just afraid that maybe there is something else going on besides the celiac. I will certainly take one day at a time and talk to my doctor about adding more vitamins. I have found a multi-vitamin that is gluten free and calcium pills that are also gluten free. One of my other problems is that I have breast cancer, mastectomy of right breast in 2004 so I need all the nutrients I can get.

Thanks again.