My Twin Brother

[JerryK]

I've been talking to my brother about Celiac/Gluten Intolerance for a few weeks now. At first he was quite skeptical. He does admit that the symptom list describes him perfectly, but he's sold on the depression diagnosis. I'm telling him....go without gluten for a few days....then eat some.....

He's asking the right questions....what's got gluten in it...what should I eat...etc...

I finally got him to go a day or two without eating gluten...

This morning he's bragging he ate a sub sandwhich last night...feels fine.....

A little while later he e-mails me back...."Hmmm, I don't feel as good as yesterday.

I'm more tired, achey...I have a headache. Yesterday was a 7, today is a 4."

What do you think of that?...Identical twins...identical tooth enamel defects...identical symptoms

after eating gluten...

Oh, just a comment, I am the good looking one.

[Viola 1]

I've been talking to my brother about Celiac/Gluten Intolerance for a few weeks now. At first he was quite skeptical. He does admit that the symptom list describes him perfectly, but he's sold on the depression diagnosis. I'm telling him....go without gluten for a few days....then eat some.....

He's asking the right questions....what's got gluten in it...what should I eat...etc...

I finally got him to go a day or two without eating gluten...

This morning he's bragging he ate a sub sandwhich last night...feels fine.....

A little while later he e-mails me back...."Hmmm, I don't feel as good as yesterday.

I'm more tired, achey...I have a headache. Yesterday was a 7, today is a 4."

What do you think of that?...Identical twins...identical tooth enamel defects...identical symptoms

after eating gluten...

Oh, just a comment, I am the good looking one.

Sounds like it should be an identical diagnosis.

to the good looking one

[angel-jd1]

I've been talking to my brother about Celiac/Gluten Intolerance for a few weeks now. At first he was quite skeptical. He does admit that the symptom list describes him perfectly, but he's sold on the depression diagnosis. I'm telling him....go without gluten for a few days....then eat some.....

He's asking the right questions....what's got gluten in it...what should I eat...etc...

I finally got him to go a day or two without eating gluten...

This morning he's bragging he ate a sub sandwhich last night...feels fine.....

A little while later he e-mails me back...."Hmmm, I don't feel as good as yesterday.

I'm more tired, achey...I have a headache. Yesterday was a 7, today is a 4."

What do you think of that?...Identical twins...identical tooth enamel defects...identical symptoms

after eating gluten...

Oh, just a comment, I am the good looking one.

If you are identical twins, you have identical genes. Therefore, he has the celiac gene (not sure how you were diagnosed, but if you have the gene so does he).

The only difference would be the "trigger". Or what flips the switch to turn your symptoms on. However, sounds to me like his switch has been flipped and he has it also. Just my 2 cents

-Jessica

[JerryK]

If you are identical twins, you have identical genes. Therefore, he has the celiac gene (not sure how you were diagnosed, but if you have the gene so does he).

The only difference would be the "trigger". Or what flips the switch to turn your symptoms on. However, sounds to me like his switch has been flipped and he has it also. Just my 2 cents

-Jessica

I'm guessing just plain stress to be the trigger. When we built a house 10 years ago, I suspect that might have been the trigger for me. Other than an Enterolab test, I have no official diagnosis, just

circumstantial evidence, like getting the runs for a week after eating bread.

[Lisa]

Jerry:

I do believe that stress can be a trigger. I had "IBS - I Be Stumped" for as long as I can remember.

During some HIGH stress business, celiac kicked in ONE day and I could not leave the house for two months. Sometimes I needed to get to the bathroom in ten seconds and it was eleven seconds away.

Yup, stress is a very bad thing in many ways.

Lisa

[Nancym]

I heard something really interesting last Saturday, I heard a doctor speak who treats autoimmune diseases and he was speaking about the one I had, they know it is something environmental that causes the disease, like a bacteria or virus because they breed rats with the gene who will get the disease. However they don't get the disease if they're placed in a germ-free sterile environment. I wonder if celiac acts like that? Perhaps it is just some common virus that can kick it off.

[happygirl]

Nancy:

Thanks for sharing that. Its interesting to hear that, as for years, "autoimmune" theories have included bacterial or viral "triggers" as part of their hypotheses. Although it is just anecdotal stories, there are many of us on here that never got better after having mono. So I definitely think that some (it could be many---makes sense) viruses/bacterial infections, under the right conditions, can "trigger" something.

Thank you so much for posting!

Laura

[tarnalberry]

Identical twins were at a 70% chance if one had it? Something like that.

Given his response, I think he probably has it. Good luck on that one.