Jump to content
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Gluten Free Diet And Blood Test.


doubletriple

Recommended Posts

doubletriple Newbie

I have been on a gluten free diet for close to three weeks now, but I have accidently eaten gluten a couple times and did so about two days ago. I am about to get some blood tests, will it still be sensitive?


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



happygirl Collaborator

Is the purpose of the tests to determine if you do/don't have Celiac?

If that is the case, these tests will not be accurate as you have to be consuming gluten. Gluten is the trigger that makes the bloodwork positive in Celiacs; remove the gluten and your reactions subside. You may still test positive because your body hasn't fully healed yet, but if you test negative, it could very well be a false negative.

Think of it like a diabetic and blood sugar testing. When their blood sugar isn't controlled, and you test, the levels are all out of whack and clearly indicate that one is diabetic. Start managing your diet, and re-test, and your sugars will be normal. Your tests don't make you look like a diabetic at that stage, but it doesn't mean you aren't...it means you are taking the steps to keep it under control. Same with Celiac. Eat gluten---if you are a Celiac, you should test positive. If you go gluten free, your tests should return to normal...doesn't mean you aren't a Celiac anymore, it means it is being controlled and the "trigger" has been taken out

Your doctor should have told you to stay on a gluten FILLED diet until after testing is completed, then you are supposed to go gluten free.

Nancym Enthusiast

Well, it probably depends on how much damage you had before you began the diet. So the answer is... maybe. My gut reaction is probably not though.

doubletriple Newbie

Well I am in one of my situations where my doctor knows next to nothing about this. I just looked at the blood tests he ordered (I have the order) and it says cbc, cmp and lipid panel. :wacko: He did say stay on gluten but I can't do that right now, college is hard enough as it is. But those tests will not find anything anyway.

happygirl Collaborator

doubletriple,

I'm sorry to hear that you have a clueless doc. Unfortunately, when it comes to Celiac, there are many doctors out there like yours. It is really frustrating, especially when you are looking for answers.

The good thing about Celiac/gluten intolerance is that you don't "have" to have any diagnosis. You don't have to a have a prescription filled to maintain the diet, or anything like that. Yeah, it is easier to have a piece of paper that says "I have X" ... but if the diet improves your health and quality of life, everything else doesn't really matter anymore.

What were your symptoms that lead you to suspect Celiac? How have you been feeling since you started the gluten-free diet? Is there anything we can help you with...products, ingredients, questions, etc?

Good luck as you start this semester of school. Please let us know if we can help in any way!

Take care,

Laura

rez Apprentice

Get a new doc and have him run a total IGA and a tTG. Everyone is different. MY son's test still showed positive after being gluten free 3 months. The tTG and EMA take longer to normalize than the others.

doubletriple Newbie
Get a new doc and have him run a total IGA and a tTG. Everyone is different. MY son's test still showed positive after being gluten free 3 months. The tTG and EMA take longer to normalize than the others.

It's hard to get a good doc right now. I either have to go through MediCal or my college (UCSD). Neither seem to provide very much help.

Thanks for the support and concern guys. I usually don't see this when I'm a complete n00b on a forum.

I've had "chronic fatigue," depression, bowel problems and ADD all my life. I was looking on wikipedia a few weeks back for causes of Chronic Fatigue and come across this. Since I've started the diet, not all my problems are gone, as a lot of that is related to depression, but in many areas I feel better. I don't feel so sick in my stomach anymore, I have more energy and I don't feel like I'm gonna pass out anymore (this would happen every day or every other day). Also, my face is a lot less pale.

I'm curious about the enterolabs tests. I have the money, would it be a good idea? Is a diagnosis from there as good and credible as a doctor's? Can I take it to my doctor and have it be legit?

Thanks.


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



Carriefaith Enthusiast

Your tests may be false negative because you must be consuming gluten prior to the tests. The blood tests for celiac disease check for antibodies to gluten and when you stop eating gluten your body will eventually stop producing antibodies.

rez Apprentice

Enterolab, in my opinion, is a HUGE waste of money. It is NOT reconized as a diagnosis for Celiac. It tells you if your gluten intolerant, but I think you figured that out by dietary response. We did Enterolab and I would save your "dough". Our Peds GI did not validate it in the least. If you're not going to pursue a diagnosis through blood or biopsy, I would skip Enterolab and listen to your body. If it's positive it will reaffirm what you already know and if it's negative, then what. You already feel better off gluten. Good luck! Just my two cents. :)

tarnalberry Community Regular

You need to be eating a good dose of gluten, every day, to have accurate testing, because the blood test looks for a reaction to gluten - no gluten, no reaction even if you are celiac.

As for Enterolab - whether it will be accepted by your doctor or not varies greatly. It's not widely accepted yet, as there hasn't been peer review publication of their methodology yet, but a few doctors find it 'acceptable'. If you don't have obvious symptoms, it could be worth it, but a good gluten free trial followed by a challenge would be more acceptable to most doctors.

Ursa Major Collaborator

Personally, if I had the money, I would still get tested by Enterolab myself. Even though I can't really do their normal testing for gluten intolerance, casein, soy etc. any more (and I know I react badly to all of those anyway). But I think I will go for the gene testing as soon as I can afford it. I would find it helpful to know if I have the celiac disease genes, or the gluten sensitive genes, especially because it would help in determining what kind of testing to suggest to my children and siblings if they ever believe they should get tested.

And even though Enterolab testing is not YET widely recognized, it soon will be. Plus, it would give you a valid reason to stay off gluten, and you can also get tested for casein and soy intolerance, which could be helpful as well.

You could still try the blood tests. But if they come back negative it won't be a big deal. All that matters is, that you feel better and are able to get your schoolwork done.

Do you realize that your depression can be caused by celiac disease as well? You haven't been on the diet for long, I wish you all the best in feeling better every day.

doubletriple Newbie

I wouldn't be able to tolerate eating gluten again right now, too much school.

Yeah, I'm aware that my depression my be caused by Celiac disease. It would really help me to know what is causing what, for sure.

Any other opinions on Enterolabs?

Nooner Newbie

The blood tests I took while still eating gluten were negative.

I did the Enterolab tests to placate my spouse, who was worried there might be something else besides gluten intolerance. You can see my results in my signature. I also found a GI that accepts Enterolab, by calling celiac support group leaders in my area. Again, I only went to make my husband happy, but I'm glad I did, because he urged me to get a bone density scan, which showed osteoporosis.

My GI took one look at my Enterolab results and said we don't need a biopsy, that my test results and dietary response were enough to tell him I have celiac disease. The pre-menopausal osteoporosis was just one more sign of the disease.

So, back to your original question, your blood tests might well be negative. Dietary response is enough to say you should be off gluten. If you really want to go through the effort, you might be able to find a doctor who takes Enterolab. But if you can't, you might still find personal peace of mind by doing that test. It's all up to you.

doubletriple Newbie

I noticed there are a lot of tests that can be taken. Which ones should I take?

doubletriple Newbie

bump

CMCM Rising Star

In the new book I am reading, "The Gluten Connection" by Shari Lieberman, she very positively discusses Enterolab's testing options. Another thing discussed is the great difficulty in diagnosing gluten sensitivity with blood tests....that you have to have fairly good villi flattening to produce the antibodies which show up in the blood tests. She says blood tests are inadequate to detect gluten sensitivity for a couple of reasons....

1) Partial atrophy is ignored. You can ONLY be guaranteed to test positive in the 3 antibody areas of antigliadin, anti-tissue transglutaminase and anti-endomysial if TOTAL villous atrophy has occurred....that is, if the villi are completely flattened. If you have partial atrophy you may NOT test positive for these because the atrophy and inflammation of the villi may not be severe enough to allow all these antibodies to easily pass thru your intestinal barrier. Only some of them...or even none of them....may be in your bloodstream, depending on the condition of your villi and the progression of your gluten sensitivity.

SO....you basically have to let things progress pretty far before your blood tests will show much. You could easily be very very sick at that point! If you've been fairly gluten free and healing has occurred over time, I wouldn't think pigging out on gluten for a short time before a test would be helpful...maybe not enough time to do the damage necessary to show up on the blood test.

Another interesting point is that typical lab testes do NOT identify all the antibodies in your blood. The most common antibody a gluten-sensitive person produces is antigliadin. The labs use a wheat in water solution as a buffer agent to test for the antibodies....only problem is that gliadin does not dissolve in water, so more than 30 gliadin peptides (molecules) are not evaluated by this test. SO....your body may be reacting to gliadin peptides that are not picked up by these blood tests.

BIOPSY problems...unless significant structural damage has occurred to the villi of the small intestines, physicians rule out celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. Without total villous atrophy, doctors consider a biopsy negative, even if early inflammatory changes are seen! However, research has shown that the brunt of the immune reaction to gluten can affect the function of the intestines and cause symptoms WITHOUT structural damage! Since the minority of gluten sensitive people actually develop celiac disease, a biopsy that confirms only significant damage means that the vast majority of those reacting to gluten remain undiagnosed and untreated for years!!

Genetic testing: If you have one or more genes for celiac/gluten sensitivity, there is a high probability you have gluten sensitivity and may develop celiac disease. Genetic screening cannot tell if you are gluten sensitive, only that you have a predisposition in place for it. Of the general population that does NOT have celiac disease, 20 to 30% test positive for these genes.

ENTEROLAB...pages 98 and 99 discuss stool testing and Dr. Fine's results. Page 100 also has a discussion of salivary testing for antibodies.

rez Apprentice

A blood test is pretty simple. If it's postive, you have your answer. If negative, try Enterolab or just stay on the diet. Good luck.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,896
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    debbiebryant12
    Newest Member
    debbiebryant12
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):




  • Who's Online (See full list)


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Gigi2025
      No, I've not been diagnosed as celiac.  Despite Entero Labs being relocated to Switzerland/Greece, I'll be doing another test. After eating wheat products in Greece for 4 weeks, there wasn't any reaction.  However, avoiding it here in the states.   Thanks everyone for your responses.  
    • Rejoicephd
      Thank you @JulieRe so much for sharing this extra information. I'm so glad to hear you're feeling better and I hope it keeps moving in that direction. I feel I'm having so many lightbulb moments on this forum just interacting with others who have this condition. I also was diagnosed with gastric reflux maybe about 10 years ago. I was prescribed ranitidine for it several years back, which was working to reduce my gastric reflux symptoms but then the FDA took ranitidine off the shelves so I stopped taking it. I had a lot of ups and downs healthwise in and around that time (I suddenly gained 20 pounds, blood pressure went up, depression got worse, and I was diagnosed with OSA). At the time I attributed my change in symptoms to me taking on a new stressful job and didn't think much else about it. They did give me a replacement gastric reflux drug since ranitidine was off the shelves, but when I went on the CPAP for my OSA, the CPAP seemed to correct the gastric reflux problem so I haven't been on any gastric reflux drug treatment for years although I still do have to use a CPAP for my OSA. Anyway that's a long story but just to say… I always feel like I've had a sensitive stomach and had migraines my whole life (which I'm now attributing to having celiac and not knowing it) but I feel my health took a turn for much worse around 2019-2020 (and this decline started before I caught covid for the first time). So I am now wondering based on what you said, if that ranitidine i took could have contributed to the yeast overgrowth, and that the problem has just been worsening ever since. I have distinctly felt that I am dealing with something more than just stress and battling a more fundamental disease process here. I've basically been in and out of different doctor specialties for the past 5 years trying to figure out what's wrong with me. Finally being diagnosed with celiac one year ago, I thought I finally had THE answer but now as I'm still sick, I think it's one of a few answers and that maybe yeast overgrowth is another answer. For me as well, my vitamin deficiencies have persisted even after I went gluten-free (and my TTG antibody levels came down to measurably below the detectable limit on my last blood test). So this issue of not absorbing vitamins well is also something our cases have in common. I'm now working with a nutritionist and taking lots of vitamins and supplements to try and remedy that issue. I hope that you continue to see improvements in working with your naturopath on this. Keep us posted!
    • ElenaM
      Hello everyone. I am Elena and am 38 years old. I suspect I have a gluten intolerance even if my celiac panel is ok. I have the following symptoms : facial flushing, Red dots not bumps în face, bloating abdominal distension, hair loss, depression anxiety even with meds and even bipolar. Fatigue extreme to the point of not being able to work. All of these after I eat gluten. Could I have non celiac gluten sensitivity? Thanks anyone else with these symptoms?
    • JulieRe
      Hi Everyone,  I do appreciate your replies to my original post.   Here is where I am now in this journey.  I am currently seeing a Naturopath.  One thing I did not post before is that I take Esomeprazole for GERD.  My Naturopath believes that the decrease in the gastric acid has allowed the yeast to grow.    She has put me on some digestive enzymes.  She also put me on Zinc, Selenium, B 12, as she felt that I was not absorbing my vitamins. I am about 5 weeks into this treatment, and I am feeling better. I did not have any trouble taking the Fluconazole.  
    • Ceekay
      I'm sure it's chemically perfect. Most of them taste lousy!        
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.