Glutened Myself Now What?

[Gwendolene]

Ok, so I've been gluten-free since July 22 last year (my biopsy came back negative but I went gluten-free anyway), but around February I start feeling occasionally glutened for no reason (Wheat is not allowed in my house and I can't afford to eat out or even buy many processed foods). So then I began to think, "The biopsy was negative so maybe it was never gluten to begin with..." And so in the name of science I STUPIDLY glutened myself on June 1st. It was only supposed to be one donut, but once I started I couldn't stop until the symptoms hit 4 days later. So I went back on gluten-free. A week later I was glutened at a restaurant while on vacation. The problem is I am still abnormally overweight (I only weigh this much when I've been glutened, even when I'm eating gluten-free junk foods and not working out!)

Have I done permenent damage to myself?? When will things get back to normal??

[utdan]

Other food intolerances can mimic gluten reactions. After going gluten free 2 yrs ago I got many of the same reactions from soy and dairy, corn sugar. My guess is that cc causes undue porosity in the gut and big proteins get into the blood that normally don't, and then the immune system responds.

Try doing a search on the "specific carbohydrate diet." There was discussion about people experiencing this, and this helped some.

[BRUMI1968]

Wheat, corn, dairy, and soy are the big allergens, and for good reason. It's now believed that their structure (protein surrounded by a carb coating) mimicks antibodies (also proteins with a carb-like coating), sending the immune system into a flurry of confusion. These four substances are high allergens in dogs and people - and most dogs don't have Celiac (except for Irish Setters, genetically speaking).

I have given up all of these, and have seen my weight stabilize. I was not overweight, but I dropped about ten pounds with quitting wheat/dairy, and have never gained it back. I quit soy about six months ago after reading some pretty nasty stuff about it, though on this board there is quite a debate about it now and again. And I quit corn when I went grain free about a week ago, though I didn't eat much of it. I quit grain after reading an interesting article at: doctorj.com that someone had posted. Also, I'm having a food panel run; it cost about $200, but I figure once I know what I'm dealing with, I can make a concerted effort to build a diet of my own and then stick with it.

Good luck to you!

[aikiducky]

You did gluten yourself quite thoroughly in the last month it seems! That might mean that it takes a while before you're fully recovered again, easily a few weeks. My reaction can last up to three weeks, and if i get glutened in that period, of course it then takes longer.

Pauliina