Atrial Fibrillation

[Guest Kathy Ann]

In the last year I have been plagued with frequent atrial fibrillation. I've been checked and there are no apparent heart problems. I was just wondering if anyone else with celiac has found that to be a common side effect?

Thanks.

[mamaw]

If you have A Fib I consider that a heart problem..... Have they did an arteriorgram on you? When I had one done they found I have a bad arorta valve.

[Guest Kathy Ann]

Yes, I've had an ultrasound on my heart and the valves etc. are perfect. I've also had numerous EKG's and all that stuff over the years too.

Obviously, since I didn't get any response from the board, it must not be a common side effect of celiac.

Thanks for your input!

[Anteau25]

In the last year I have been plagued with frequent atrial fibrillation. I've been checked and there are no apparent heart problems. I was just wondering if anyone else with celiac has found that to be a common side effect? It is very debilitating and today has been a REALLY bad one. It feels like you're dying and it's hard to ignore.

My naturopath believes heartbeat irregularities can be an allergic reaction to food or the environment. The problem is....which food?! I've eliminated so much now, I don't know what food to suspect next. I ate tomato sauce last night that I made myself to put over rice spaghetti. I've eaten it many times before. But last night I got the heart flops almost immediately afterward and they are still there right now.

I take magnesium, by the way.

There is actually a website that believes the Paleo Diet can eliminate much atrial fibrillation. Could that be because people are really celiac with other food allergies too maybe, and by going Paleo, they've inadvertantly also eliminated their problem without knowing they were doing it??? Interesting theory.

Just would like to hear from someone who maybe used to have it and it went away after they were gluten free long enough. That would be a comfort. This is hard to live with.

Thanks.

My mom was diagnosed with a fib. She had problems on and off for a few years. Her dr told her it was anxiety. One night it got really bad, and I took her to the ER. My mom eventually saw an excellent cardiologist who suggested that she get her thyroid checked. She did and was diagnosed with graves disease. This is what caused the a fib. Now that her thyroid is under control she is no longer experiencing sympotoms and has been taken off the meds that she was taking for the a fib. This might be something to look into. It's worth a try. Good luck!

[jaten]

I just saw this post. I have been diagnosed with PVCs (a common and usually benign irregularity) and PACs not common and not usually benign according to my drs. I, too, have gone through numerous EKGs, Echocardiograms, stress tests, holter monitors, etc. Like you, the problem is very real, occurs very often, and has been documented within the tests, but also like you, they cannot isolate a cause. My heart looks healthy but yet this electrical problem persists. I take medicine to control it (which has to be changed every few years, and is due for a change now, because a med will just stop working for me after awhile).

Yes, it's debilitating. When it's at it's worst, all I can do is lay down, and if I can sleep, I wake up feeling a little better at least for a little while.

Good luck to you! I'd be interested in what you learn. PM me anytime.

[Mindy35]

Hi,

I have a fast resting heart rate between 90-100 and my diastolic is around 80 to 90 depending on the time of day. After seeing the cardiologist they still don't know what is wrong. I am being reffered to a physiologist to see if it is an electrical problem with my heart. I have been diagnosed with celiac disease for 8 months.

I will let you know if I find out any correlation.

[Jon B]

Kathy Ann,

People with "perfect" hearts can have atrial fibrillation. See Open Original Shared Link

There are many other articles out there on the topic - google atrial fibrillation and h. pylori.

I have had periods of afib twice in my life - was accidentally cured the first time with antibiotics for different ailment, but I didn't realize it was the antibiotics that helped. The second time I had afib (3 yrs after first cure) I did extensive research on the web and found the connection between afib and h pylori. Went to my doc, got protocol for h pylori - three weeks of antibiotics and pepto-bismol - after three days the afib stopped and it has not returned since (6 months). I was getting afib ever two days for 4-5 hours at a time.

Hope this helps.

Jon

John 14:6-7

[Roda]

This is a little off the subject but still relevant to the heart. I initially almost 3 years ago, out of the blue, started having a very rapid heart rate. To make a long story short, I was seen by a cardiologist, had some labs done, an echo (my second, I had problems late in my pregnancies), and a holter monitor. They could find nothing wrong. Was told my resting heart rate was a little fast so took metroprol (? spelling) for about four months. The side effects were horrible. It caused my already normal BP to get really low. I quit taking the meds and my problem seemed to subside and only bothered me once in a while. I was told I had SVT (supraventricular tachycardia). Lately I have been having regular episodes even with the slightest exertion. I get short of breath and my heart beats really fast sometimes even just walking up my basement steps. I do have trouble with my BP being low and have to be careful getting up or I get very light headed. I am thinking about going back to the cardiologist to possible rule out POTS or inquire if it could be related to the celiac or some kind of electrolyte, vitamin, or mineral deficiency. I already know my ferritin is low at 6, my hemaglobin and hematocrit are normal, and my vitamin k was low at 17 ish. I had my TSH and other thyroid levels checked in Dec. and all were good ( I have Hashimoto's). I have had too much thyroid meds before and I don't feel like that. I don't think it is related to the meds. I wonder if it is because of the low ferritin or something else. It makes it really hard to exercise and play with the kids.

[Roda]

I already know my ferritin is low at 6, my hemaglobin and hematocrit are normal, and my vitamin k was low at 17 ish.

Sorry got mixed up it it my vitamin d that was low. I have not had the vitamin k checked.

[fentonceliac]

In the last year I have been plagued with frequent atrial fibrillation. I've been checked and there are no apparent heart problems. I was just wondering if anyone else with celiac has found that to be a common side effect?

Thanks.

I was diagnosed with Celiac in 3/2009. After going gluten-free for 6 months I started noticing atrial fibrillation problems. Went to cardiologist, had stress tests, etc. and ended up having RadioFrequency Ablation to correct the "misfiring" in my heart. No problems since and there was never any mention of there being a correlation between the problems -- now I wonder. Also saw the notes on parathyroidism from other posters and I do have many of those symptoms as well. Am going to ask my physician what my calcium levels are next time I visit.

[Momto2Boys]

Interesting. I don't have a fib but was diagnosed with an arrhythmia in 2003. One doctor just said mitral valve prolapse. Another says those are not related conditions. . .anyway. They wanted to do a cath and ablation. I didn't want to, so I worked on more natural ways to keep my heart in check. My symptoms were not all the time, just sometimes. They've been better in the last year or so.