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Gluten Free...no Drugs...how Long Till I Stop Itching?

ItchyMeredith

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ItchyMeredith Contributor
ItchyMeredith
Posted

I read somewhere that it can take 6 months to a year for a gluten free diet to clear up my DH. Is that true???

I am breastfeeding so I am going the drug free route (not to mention that I am allergic to sulpha) but I am anxious to get better.

How long was it till your DH cleared up?

Meredith

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Karen B. Explorer
Karen B.
Posted
I read somewhere that it can take 6 months to a year for a gluten free diet to clear up my DH. Is that true???

I am breastfeeding so I am going the drug free route (not to mention that I am allergic to sulpha) but I am anxious to get better.

How long was it till your DH cleared up?

Meredith

I only had DH once and that was after I was diagnosed. At the time, I didn't know there was something that helped it so I used a product that helps me with poisen ivy, hives and other itchy/weepy rashes (although it's not marketed for that). It's called Earth Therapeutics Tea Tree Oil Liquid Foot Powder Open Original Shared Link and I've used it for years on rashes to kill the itch and keep the rash (from whatever cause) dry. I get it at Bed, Bath and Beyond or Whole Foods. The rash cleared up about 10 days after I identified the pill that had wheat starch in it as a base (GNC melatonin) and stopped taking it. I don't think the liquid foot powder cleared the rash up so much as it killed the itch so I didn't go crazy.

Don't know if my experience will help you though since DH didn't appear for me except this one time. Good Luck!

Franceen Explorer
Franceen
Posted
I read somewhere that it can take 6 months to a year for a gluten free diet to clear up my DH. Is that true???

I am breastfeeding so I am going the drug free route (not to mention that I am allergic to sulpha) but I am anxious to get better.

How long was it till your DH cleared up?

Meredith

I had ONLY DH and long before I was dx. I had gotten so bad my whole body was covered and the itch was so bad I had to take high doses of Advil (which stopped the itching). I then took Dapsone, which worked, and my rash disappeared after about 2 months. But then I reacted to the Dapsone with very bad rash and liver trouble and was very sick. So I stopped completely and went 100% gluten-free (as best I could). It took several months for the rash to mostly go away. It is NEVER completely gone becaues I have to travel a lot for my job and eat out a lot. Although I try very very hard to only eat gluten-free at restaurants that is almost impossible. So when I'm traveling a lot I end up with a small amount of rash. When I don't travel and eat only at home or food I carry, I can clear up my rash in about 4 - 6 weeks.

YES, it takes quite a while to completely clear up a DH rash, even with 120% gluten-free diet.

I've heard that 3 weeks is least, but longer is common and different for everyone.

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