Extreme Leg Swelling

[surfgolden]

Hello, I was just officially diagnosed as having celiac disease a few days ago. I have been trying to be gluten free for the past 5 days, though my lack of knowledge has resulted in some hit or miss results. My calves and ankles were grossly swollen last night after eating something with gluten (not sure what it was but I sure reacted). Today I was very diligent about being gluten free and my lower legs are still swollen but not as much as last night. Also, I've never had leg swelling before celiac setting in. Can I expect that this swelling will suubside or hopefully go away with a completely gluten free diet.

Thanks in advance.

[Lisa]

I do not know the answer to your question, but will keep it current.

[martz]

I went gluten-free in April after a diagnosis of Hashimotos. Immediately I started feeling much better and lots of symptoms - fibro, itching, brain fog etc - cleared up. However I started having really bad gut-ache and swollen ankles which I'd NEVER experienced before. My ankles were swollen and stiff and had hard, painful lumps on the achilles tendons. Thought it was some weird reaction to thyroid medication at first. There was a heatwave at the time so I drank loads but it didn't help. It got so bad I could barely walk and since I couldn't get my shoes on I was pretty much immobilised. Then intuitively (and thanks to this forum) I gave up all dairy and immediately the gut ache lessened and within a day or two the leg swelling had subsided. Within a week or so it was gone. I test it every few weeks and even a little milk in my tea will bring back the swelling and painful achilles tendons. Hope this helps.

[shelly10983]

Hello

My mom has had Celiac disease for about 40 years. One of the symptoms she had had is swelling in the legs. The most important thing is to make sure you get a sono gram or MRI to determine you don't have any blood clots. That was the first thing we did.

I'm not sure where you're located but there is a top doctor in this field at Columbia University/Celiac Center. Dr. Green - leader in this field- Also a Doctor Lee. A little tough getting appointments but you can't get any better.

We are meeting with Dr. Lee next month to see why my mom has leg swelling - even more so in the past year.

What you need to do is try different things - like we did--- stick to gluten free diet for 1 week--- and then you can tell if this is what affected the swelling.

Anything else--- Call Columbia - Dr. Green's Office ---

Michele

[RiceGuy]

For me it was dairy, and also proteins of various types. I cut out all dairy, and limited the other proteins. But the single best thing was the magnesium I started taking. That helped immensely.

One thing to remember though, is that it can take time, so don't expect total recovery in a week. Some of us still struggle after years, myself included. Still, I'd like to think that the swelling should subside once your body is clear of the things which bother it, and if gluten is the only no-no, consider yourself extremely fortunate.

[Janeti]

I completely agree. I recently went to a ND, and he limited all my proteins, no dairy, and has me on a variety of probiotics, including magnesium. Each day(actually several times a day ) I check my calves, usually a while after I eat, and the swelling is down to a low roar. Before that, there were times that I couln't recognize my legs...I couldn't believe how swollen they were.