Glutening - How Long Does It Take?

[Lane R]

Is there a general timeframe one would expect to have between eating gluten and having a reaction? Does it depend on the amount of the gluten, or does that only affect severity? I want to try and figure out exactly what it was that caused this reaction.

I started to have symptoms (emergency D, bloating, cramping, headaches, irritability, etc.), a few hours after I ate something I thought was most-likey gluten-free. I'm still not sure if it was or not...could it have been something I hate the night before? Or would it most likely have been this item from a few hours ago?

On a side note, I think I've determined that I'm not only allergic to wheat, but I'm probably celiac (as many of you suggested) - even though the blood test for celiac was negative (which was taken a month after I'd gone gluten-free). I'm not sure I should do an Enterolab because once symptoms arise, I can always point to a couple of items that I took chances on. I think I've been living rather haphazardly and not as seriously as I should because I thought it was just a wheat-allergy and not celiac.

[natalunia]

My reactions have shown up anywhere from 30 minutes to 6 hours later. I have no idea on if the amount of gluten affects how severe or how soon the reaction shows up. I hope you get to feeling better soon.

[TinkerbellSwt]

My reactions usually begin right away. I would say within 20 minutes. I think the amount of gluten I eat affects how severe my symptoms are. Well that is the way it seems. I usually can tell just by the bloating and gassy feeling, I may or may not get D. I guess it depends.

[jerseyangel]

My reactions usually begin after 2 hours. Gas followed by D. Nausea, stomach pain and anxiety also for the next few days until it begins to subside. I have not ever eaten gluten on purpose--my reactions are all as a result of CC. I don't honestly know if they would be any different if I ate a gluten food (as opposed to the CC). Don't want to find out!

[Girl Ninja]

I'm still feeling my last glutening. Tuesday night at work, I ate 6 caramel mini rice cakes from Quaker. I realize I should know better. Within 15 minutes I started getting hives, dizzy, felt like I might pass out, migraine, sore throat, sore body and joints, really cold. The guy I work with got to watch it start. He was amazed at how fast I reacted. It was the only thing I'd eaten besides a banana a few hours before. The migraine lasted until Thursday morning. I still have a sore throat and mild brain fog. No canker sores this time.

[Ruth52]

My reaction time to the initial glutening is about twelve hours - bloating, nausea, cramps. The fatigue, aching joints, lack of concentration etc usually starts at about 48 hours post-glutening and then it can take ten days to recover.

[Carriefaith]

I have kind of separated my wheat allergy and celiac symptoms. For wheat allergy I get a rash/hives, respiratory problems, chest pain, and heart problems within 24 hours. For celiac disease, I get brain fog within 12 hours, but my other symptoms (stomach pain and D) can take 48-72 hours.

[mouse]

I start within 10 to 20 minutes with severe heartburn and then I get stomach cramps. That is ususally as far as it goes, but it is usually just cross contamination with me.

[MNB]

For me about 10 minutes after eating. Today for example I was so excited because a friend found a pizza place that has wheat free pizza (corn meal crust). I was about 1/2 way into the slice when the nausea, bloating and cramping started. I noticed that the wheat-free and regular slices were being heated in the same oven, but I was so desperate for pizza I wishfully ate it knowing it would probably make me sick (which it did).

I also seem to notice the longer I am wheat-free the more adverse my reaction is to it. I was suprised how sick a little cross-contamination made me this time compaired with one month ago.

[4getgluten]

I usually know within 2 hours if I've been most likely glutened - stomach cramps and bloating. Then, my suspensions will be confirmed the next day with brain fog, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and dizziness. Sometimes this only last a day, sometimes it lasts a week. I think it depends on much gluten I had.

[gfp]

Time frames vary and amount seems to have no effect on severity.

4 days ago I had a Thai red curry, I found the paste and thought I'd try ....since its really hard to get fresh galangal here. I had a coconut rice with saffron accomp....

Then last night I was eating out and started feeling weird .... I had been a bit off and a bit brain foggy but then I have hay fever as well .... my friends left the resto and I left with my Girl-Friend then WHAM!!!!!

I ran back in to the loo cursing the resto .... how do you CC RAW beef????

To cut a long story short .... what came out has saffron .... you can't exactly mistake it whole.

I can only conclude that the bowel movement and the glutening were from the same thing....

Retrospectively I had been constipated.

However I usually react 6-8 hours later .... but this case was pretty clear!