Gluten Stored In The Fat And Tissues?

[Guest Kathy Ann]

It has been 7 months gluten, dairy, egg and soy free for me. I unfortunately haven't seen results yet. Is it scientifically true that years of gluten consumption could hide in the fat and other body tissues of a person. And is it also true that when that person goes gluten free, maybe including some weight loss, that the stored gluten could start coming out and causing them to still feel bad until it is totally eliminated? Could that be an explanation as to why some of us take so long to get well? Or is that not at all how it works? Just trying to figure things out.

[lorka150]

I can answer the last part about taking awhile to get well - it's because you villi are damaged and they need to mend themselves.

the other questions - they somewhat sound bogus to me, but i've really no idea. i hope you feel better.

[daffadilly]

I think the amount of time that it takes you to get well is tied to the amount of processed replacement grains that you are eating. If you only replaced the gluten in your diet with non gluten grains, although you are totally gluten-free, it is my opinion that those grains are cross contaminated and also that some people cannot tolerate them even if they are not contaminated and that you are not getting the proper nutrients in your diet.

I have just read this book "SuperFoods" by Steven Pratt, M.D. and Kathy Matthews, it is all about nutrition, just ignore the parts about wheat and dairy

and yes, I have read that it takes 6 months to get rid of the gluten in all your tissues, so if you have been getting cross contaminated - just count from that last time forward six months...

[tarnalberry]

it certainly isn't stored in your fat - gluten is a protein. and I have seen no good evidence to suggest that it is stored in your body for any length of time (most proteins are not), assuming it gets out of the digestive system (antibodies are one thing, proteins another). I'm disinclined to believe it, myself.

[daffadilly]

well it is but I do not have time to research it, everyone can believe what they want or do research

[lovegrov]

I have read that the reason a person with DH can take months to get over it is because of IGA deposits under the skin. These gradually go away. So it's not the "gluten" that sticks around or is stored, its the IGA response to the gluten.

richard

[Guest Kathy Ann]

Interesting idea.

[Yenni]

My sister in law talked about this with me the other weekend. She hasn't been all that correct with other stuff so I didn't believe it. I have no idea if it is true though.

She siad she read it in a book called " You are what you eat".

[Guest Kathy Ann]

Well, the reason I had this thought in the first place is because some people get pretty sick when they do detoxifying diets and fasts. The idea is that the stored toxins get released into the blood, urine, feces or perspiration during a detox and if a person's body is sluggish about getting rid of it quickly or they don't drink enough water, they can temporarily feel pretty rough.

People who took drugs in the 60's sometimes had flashbacks, the explanation being that the residual drugs left in their bodies were coming to the surface for removal and they would temporarily have a flashback. I wonder if any of those drugs would be considered proteins?

Comparing this to years of gluten overload may not be accurate science at all. I was just wondering if that was maybe a reason why some of us have such a hard time getting better. If it were even a little bit true, then we wouldn't have to necessarily be getting accidentally glutened all the time. We might just have a lot of leftover gluten to discard and it's keeping us feeling lousy.

[Yenni]

Well, the reason I had this thought in the first place is because some people get pretty sick when they do detoxifying diets and fasts. The idea is that the stored toxins get released into the blood, urine, feces or perspiration during a detox and if a person's body is sluggish about getting rid of it quickly or they don't drink enough water, they can temporarily feel pretty rough.

That is what my sister in law talked about too.

It is a pretty interesting idea. In some ways it would make sence, but who knows.

[Guest Kathy Ann]

I just notice that so many people on this board are trying SO hard and being SO diligent to stay gluten free. Then they get sick anyway and can't figure it out. Sometimes it is probably exactly true that they are somehow getting gluten from cross contamination or crumbs or cosmetics or something. But it's an interesting theory to wonder if some may just be releasing more stored residual gluten or antibodies to past gluten and it's just something some of us have to work through before getting honestly well.

[chrissy]

so........just how exactly could your body store it without it bothering you-----and then suddenly release it and have it cause symptoms. doesn't make sence.

[tarnalberry]

yes, there is evidence that LSD and some other chemicals can be stored in the body for extended periods of time (I believe it's stored somewhere along the spinal cord, actually). the chicken pox virus can hide in portions of the body and reappear later (causing shingles). and some toxins - like mercury - can be stored in fat. but chemically speaking, LSD, viruses, mercury, and large proteins like gluten are different. what one does, the other may not be able to do. so you can't necessarily generalize.

[chrissy]

the chicken pox virus lays dormant, so it is different than some of the other things. i've had chicken pox and shingles----both before i was 5 years old.

where did this idea of gluten being stored in fat and tissues come from? is there any research supporting this, or is this just someone wondering if it is a possibility?

[Guest Kathy Ann]

Just me wondering.

In my nutritional studies I know of a lot of people who do cleansing and detoxification diets. "Retracing" is a theory that basically says we heal by going up the same ladder we went down, temporarily experiencing many of our former "tabled" ailments as our body releases stored toxins and disposes of them. Most chiropracters subscribe to this theory.

I don't have anything to back this up. I honestly was just looking for an explanation as to why so many people on this board still seem so intensely sick in spite of herculean efforts to avoid gluten.

[chrissy]

i've heard of the retracing theory. my mother, two of my sisters, and i have fibromyalgia. one of my sisters did a detox and felt like it really helped her fibro. i was to the point that i was ready to try it, but when i asked her for more details i discovered she was still having a lot of pain----since it was fairly expensive,(the program she followed), i have opted not to try it yet. pain killers are cheaper.

[tarnalberry]

In my nutritional studies I know of a lot of people who do cleansing and detoxification diets. "Retracing" is a theory that basically says we heal by going up the same ladder we went down, temporarily experiencing many of our former "tabled" ailments as our body releases stored toxins and disposes of them. Most chiropracters subscribe to this theory.

My point is that, molecularly, toxins and proteins are different. Storing a toxin, which is generally a much much smaller molecule, in the body - and many of them are fat-soluble - is a totally different thing than storing a protein. It's like saying "oh, yeah, I have a garage I park my car in, so bring your giant motorhome over and we can park it in there". It's not necessarily a fair comparison. I'm not saying "it can't happen", I'm saying they're different things.

[Yenni]

I was looking around online and happen to stumble upon this..

Please be aware that eliminating gluten from your diet initially causes a detoxification reaction, just as smokers or drug addicts experience after quitting. For several weeks, I experienced migraines, fatigue, irritability, and various other symptoms, but once these stopped, the improvement in my well-being was dramatic.

From this page:

Open Original Shared Link

I am not saying she is right but when I stopped eating gluten I got super tired. I have cross contaminated myself lots during the summer and kinda started for real again here and I am super tired again.

But it could be a coinsidence.

I am just thinking we aren't the only ones thinking about this. Even though I think proteins being saved in the body seems unlikely.