Question About Wheat Sensitivity

[lisal]

I'm new to the board. I've had some troubling symptoms for a long time like GERD, high cholesterol, anti-thyroid antibodies, insulin resistance, hair loss, dark eye circles and weight gain. I've never completely gotten to the bottom of my symptoms, my endocrinologist lumped me into the auto-immune disordered pile and put me on Glumetza w/ other supplements but I suspect wheat is a player in my problems. I've been given blood tests and a biopsy (upper intestine through endoscopy) which concluded I do not have Celiac. A food allergy panel also did not trigger gluten. However, I did an elimination diet and noticed that I dropped a lot of water weight fast. When I "tested" wheat, I gained back the water weight over night. I noticed that when I eat wheat I gain 2-3 lbs water weight over night and I get very puffy eyes/face/fingers within 1 day. If I eliminate the wheat, the puffyness and fluid retention goes away within a few days. Initially I thought carbs were just making me puffy, but I eat a lot of brown rice and I don't have a reaction to it at all. At one point I did Atkins for a year (wedding weight loss), I lost 25 lbs, my cholesterol went way down, puffyness went down, GERD improved a bit and my hair loss improved. Naturally I did not eat wheat during that diet.

So what do you all think is going on? I did not get a dx of Celiac but seems like I have some kind of issue with wheat. What is this problem? I've thought about going completely gluten free but it's a big commitment and I would feel better if I understood what my problem is.

Thanks for any info.

[Ursa Major]

It sure sounds to me like you are gluten intolerant. You would be wise to try a completely gluten-free diet for at least a couple of months to find out if it resolves your health problems. I understand that it is a big lifestyle change and hard to commit to. But isn't your health worth it?

[lisal]

Yes, you're right, of course I should try for my health. It's just that I'm less likely to do those little "cheats" when I have hard proof in front of me like a positive lab test saying that wheat is conclusively the problem.

Do you, or anyone else, retain a lot of water from gluten or had hair fall out?

[Ursa Major]

Yes, I would retain a lot of water and had really swollen ankles, sometimes my whole leg would be swollen. I also had swollen hands and joints.