Ok Sometimes?

[uiucjulie]

i am recently discovering i am allergic to gluten, but am wondering if its ok to have a little gluten now and then? i had the symptoms for years before figuring out the problem and nothing happened. also, if i didnt stop eating gluten what would the implications be? would i just have to deal with the bloating/nausea or could it progress to something worse?

thanks!

[Nantzie]

Well, how exactly did you find out you should avoid gluten? Blood test? Biopsy? Did you just take it out of your diet on your own and then found you felt better?

If you saw a doctor, did you see an M.D.? an allergist? a GI doctor? a naturopath or other alternative med doctor?

There are a lot of ways that you can come to find out you have some sort of gluten intolerance. And for every way there is, there are people who have found out that way.

With more info on how your diagnosis was come to, we can give you better answers.

Welcome to the boards, by the way. Gluten intolerance can be a little overwhelming at first, but it's actually pretty easy once you know what you're doing.

Nancy

[Lisa]

i am recently discovering i am allergic to gluten, but am wondering if its ok to have a little gluten now and then? i had the symptoms for years before figuring out the problem and nothing happened. also, if i didnt stop eating gluten what would the implications be? would i just have to deal with the bloating/nausea or could it progress to something worse?

thanks!

Tell us a little about your history and that can generate a more accurate response. Glad that you found us and welcome It's a good place to be.

[uiucjulie]

Hi and thanks for replying.

I fould out that I have a gluten allergy through a blood test . My doctor first diagnosed me with lactose intolerance, and a year or so later when taking dairy products out of my diet wasn't helping, I had an upper GI x-ray which turned out ok, so she recently decided to administer a gluten allergy blood test. I haven't begun a gluten free diet yet because I only very recently found out.

However, almost everything that I eat at this point is a bread or carbohydrate product so I am pretty overwhelmed. I am wondering if I am still safe to have gluten now and then, say once a week, or if it has to be cold turkey and I can no longer ever have gluten? My symptoms (horrible gas, canker sores, hair loss, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, fuzziness in head) are very uncomfortable, but I have been dealing with them for years now and I don't think I will mind them now and then. Is that the only effect of eating gluten once I have been diagnosed?

Thanks again!

[Lisa]

read as much as you can from the posts here......it will awaken you.

[Nantzie]

A positive blood test would mean that you actually have Celiac Disease. Which means your body's immune system thinks that gluten is a poison. You have to completely and strictly avoid gluten 100%.

Celiac isn't like diabetes where you can have a little bit every once in a while. You have to be 100%. Cold turkey is the goal, although gluten can hide in all sorts of things. For example, Red Vines are basically made from a wheat dough, which still irks me. Most soy sauce also has wheat.

The way I found out was that I found out about it, had to make an appt with my doctor to talk about it, wait for the referral, etc. So it was literally months between the time when I realized I probably had it and the time the testing was done. During that time, I was on this board, trying recipes and gluten-free products, etc. so I was able to go 100% gluten-free really easily. I can only imagine how it is to find out about this pretty much all of a sudden.

There's definitely a learning curve. I certainly wasn't able to be 100% gluten-free overnight, so I wouldn't expect that from anyone. I would say that the first thing to do is take out all of the obvious gluten. Bread, pasta, baked goods, etc.

The good news is that you're going to feel SO much better. You might even be having a few symptoms that you're not even aware of because, like you said, you just get used to it. Mine was headaches. I never realized how often I had headaches.

There is also a lot of food that is gluten free already. I'm not sure how much of a junk food person you are, but there are some things that got me through the first few days and weeks when I was frustrated and felt like gluten was in everything.

Cool Ranch Doritos (Nacho isn't, not sure about the rest)

Plain Mission Tortilla Chips and Salsa

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

M&M's (all but the crispy)

A lot of the Thai Kitchen products are gluten free. My favorite were the Thai Noodle Cart line that they have. They use rice noodles, and it says gluten-free right on the back of the package.

Basic foods that are gluten-free are

Plain meat

Plain veggies

Plain fruit

Plain rice (not rice a roni, it has pasta in it)

Plain potatoes

Butter

Oil

Sugar

Salt

Pepper

A lot of seasoning mixes and packets have gluten in them. McCormick will say if there is gluten in plain english in the ingredients if it's in there. I make taco meat with the McCormick seasoning packets all the time.

I also buy McCormick herbs and spices.

Kraft is also a company that will disclose any gluten in the ingredients. If it doesn't say wheat, rye, barley or oats in the ingredients, it's safe.

There is a brand of pasta that is gluten free which is even in a lot of mainstream grocery stores. It's called Tinkyada - Pasta Joy. There's a bunny on the package. You should definitely be able to find it in a healthfood store. It's AMAZING!

That should get you started on some stuff to eat.

Nancy

[Guest cassidy]

It can be overwhelming in the beginning, but at least you have found out what you need to do to feel better. There is lots of good advice here and it will get easier. I just want to second that you have to go cold turkey, you can't ever cheat (you won't want to once you feel better and you realize how crappy cheating makes you feel). I loved carbs as well and Tinkyada pasta is very good, so you can find gluten-free options of the food you used to eat.

I would get your facts together and then commit to start the diet in a few days. I ate a ton of gluten the day before I gave it up and while it wasn't healthy and I did get sick, it was my farewell glutening and made me feel better.

[uiucjulie]

Thanks for all the responses. It helped alot. My last question is just what if I do eat some gluten now and then. It won't pose any serious threat? Will it just make me uncomfortable for the day I eat it?

Thanks!

[CarlaB]

If you had a positive blood test for celiac disease you cannot eat gluten once in a while. Any amount of gluten causes a reaction that does damage to your intestines, so it's not just a matter of feeling uncomfortable. You may think you are getting away with it for a while, but as the months/years go on, you will progressively get sicker and sicker. You will also be at a higher risk for some cancers.

Gluten intolerance is not the same as lactose intolerance. Lactose intolerance will make you uncomfortable, but gluten intolerance will cause damage and make you uncomfortable.

What was the test you had? Was it an allergy test or a celiac test? I would guess it was celiac (IgA test).

[tarnalberry]

You have celiac disease. So if you do eat gluten, even once a month, you'll increase your risk for other autoimmune conditions (like T1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune thyroid issues, etc.), nutritional deviciency issues (like anaemia, osteoporosis, excessive fatigue, etc.), intestinal and blood cancers, potential neurologic damage, and - on average - reduce your lifespan by 10 years.

I'm actually not trying to play 'scare tactic' here, but that's what the research shows - forcing your body into a chronic state of overactive immune response is not healthy and has long term, systemic effects. Comparing the financial, emotional, and physical costs of the non-treated outcomes to the loss of wheat, barley, rye, and oats also leads to the solution of staying strictly gluten free. But it is important to remember that it is a choice, and only you can make the choice to stay healthy.