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

How Do I Find Out If I Have Other Allergies?

i-miss-cookie-dough

Recommended Posts

i-miss-cookie-dough Contributor
i-miss-cookie-dough
Posted

heyas!

i was diagnosed celiac in october.

and have since been off the gluten.

and while i haven't had as many

stomach aches since then,

i still have the fatigue, nausea, etc.

so, it hasn't gotten SO much better.

i have been reading a lot

about OTHER allergies

online and

about how maybe giving up

gluten isn't THE 100% answer.

ugh. REALLY??

dairy, soy, casien, etc...

vERY daunting.

and there is part of

me that is a bit of a skeptic

about all these other

allergies --

*i feel like, WHY wouldn't my DOCTOR

have mentioned this to me!????*

feel like i was diagnosed then

just sent out into the gluten free world

by my doctor...

i am beginning to wonder...

maybe there IS something else.

i just dont think i FEEL as good as

i should, you know??

so...how do i find out???

is there a test?

should i go to an allergist??

i hear about this enterolab -

is that REALLY a legit thing?

could my dr. just test me?

i asked my dr and she said

to just go off dairy for a week

and see if i feel better.

i felt the same.

and it was HARD!

anyhoo...

forgive me for my skepticism...

let me know your thoughts.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


dbmamaz Explorer
dbmamaz
Posted

First of all, its good to have a starting place of going gluten free, as a way to improve your health!

Doctors really do just set you loose with a dx and not give you any support. Some people have had help from a dietician, other find the dietitians dont know much either. Furthermore, even finding a doctor to recognize and test you for celiac, puts you ahead of many on this board who were sick for a long time without anyone suggesting celiac. however, doctors have certain limitations, and most of them are more about identifying and curing diseases than about optimal health! They may not be interested in additional testing, and they may even believe some of the testing and other issues discussed on these boards are nonsense.

There are a few things that could still be bothering you. First of all, are you really gluten free? Are you still using your old toaster and cutting board? It took me a long time to admit i had to avoid cereals with malt flavoring. Are you eating out? You realize that beer has gluten, most soy sauce has gluten, etc?

Depending on how long you've been sick, it can take a long time for your gut to really heal. Sometimes additional supplements can help - start with a multivitimin and some probiotics. Did your doctor test you for anemia, which can often be a side affect of celiac?

as for the tests, people on these boards rave about the enterolab test. Before i came here, I had found a test called A.L.C.A.T (if you spell it without the dots, the text gets altered.. .) Its a blood test, and I paid for it out of pocket (i think its almost unheard of for insurance to cover it). They tested me for 175 foods, and I reacted to almost a third of them!! So while avoiding dairy can be hard, i'm now off of gluten, dairy, rice, onions, hot peppers, beef and pork, peas, thyme . . . ugg! The thing is, the tests like the A.L.C.A.T have a lot of 'false positives' - so i'm off all these foods, and then i'll start introducing them back in

Even allergists or people who specailize in this kind of testing will tell you that the diet test is still the 'gold standard'. The best way to really know if a food is bothering you, is to avoid it for several weeks, and then eat it every day, and see how you feel.

I know its really hard to make this kind of change in your life - but pick up a good gluten-free cookbook, make some gluten-free cookie dough, and cheer up!

RiceGuy Collaborator
RiceGuy
Posted

Well, while the other allergies are certainly a possibility, don't overlook nutrient deficiencies. That was one thing I hadn't taken seriously for awhile, and I paid for it big time. I had unmanageable fatigue (and much more) until I started a few supplements. The two which seemed to help me the most are magnesium and B12. But we're all different, and I'm sure others will have additional suggestions for you.

As for the difficulties of giving up foods, many of us seem to find that necessary, at least for while, until the gut heals up enough. I basically had to give up nearly all the things I used to eat. Besides gluten, I've also had to give up all sugar, yeast, dairy, egg, meats, and nightshades. More recently, a number of other items are not so friendly to my gut, and are either very limited or off limits for the time being.

However, there is still a lot of stuff I can eat, so it isn't as bad as it might seem when you are accustomed to the typical American diet. So once you widen your view to include some new foods, it's like a whole new world opens up in terms of food, and the variety you can enjoy.

So I'd suggest cutting out dairy for awhile, and see how it goes. Try not to dig into replacements like soy and so forth, until you know how you are doing. You wouldn't want to trade one reaction for another. Then of course the supplements, which seem to be almost a given for most if not all of us.

That's my two cents. I'm sure others will offer some great assistance.

Hope you get the answers you need!

tom Contributor
tom
Posted
i asked my dr and she said

to just go off dairy for a week

and see if i feel better.

Saddens me to hear of Dr.s saying one week is enough.

It wasn't until my 3rd or 4th test of soy that I decided to go longer and it wasn't until day12 or so that I realized I'd REALLY found an answer.

Had I stopped at one week I'd absolutely STILL be ******g miserable just about every hour of every day.

As it was, I felt like I got my life back. :)

(All of this was after 3.5 yrs gluten-free & yrs dairy-free & sugar/sweetener-free)

Archived

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

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. trents
      - trents replied to Atl222's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      1

      Increased intraepithelial lymphocytes after 10 yrs gluten-free

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @Atl222! Yes, your increased lymphocytes could be in response to oats or it could possibly be cross contamination from gluten that is getting into your diet from some unexpected source but not enough to damage the villi. And I'm certain that increased lymphocytes can be caused by other things besides celiac disease...
    2. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to Aretaeus Cappadocia's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      1

      Brown Rice Vinegar (organic) from Eden Foods is likely gluten free

      This is a solid, well-reasoned approach. You’re right that “koji” by itself doesn’t indicate gluten status, and the risk really does come down to which grain is used to culture it. The fact that you directly contacted Eden Foods and received a clear statement that their koji is made from rice only, with no wheat or barley, is meaningful due diligence—especia...
    3. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to wellthatsfun's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      1

      nothing has changed

      Seven months can still be early in celiac healing, especially if you were mostly asymptomatic to begin with—symptoms like low iron, vitamin D deficiency, nail changes, and hair issues often take much longer to improve because the gut needs time to recover before absorption normalizes. A tTG-IgA of 69 is not “low” in terms of immune activity, and it can t...
    4. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams commented on knitty kitty's blog entry in Thiamine Thiamine Thiamine
      1

      About Celiac Remission

      This idea comes up often, but it’s important to separate theory from what’s actually supported by evidence. In celiac disease, the immune system does not “forget” gluten in a permanent or reliable way, even after long periods of avoidance, and the celiac genes do not turn off. While antibody levels (like tTG IgA) can normalize on a strict gluten-free diet an...
    5. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to TheDHhurts's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      2

      need help understanding testing result for Naked Nutrition Creatine please

      Gluten testing is normally reported in ppm (parts per million), which is equivalent to mg/kg, not micrograms by itself. A result of <0.025 mcg only becomes meaningful if you know the sample size tested (for example, mcg per gram or per kg). If that value represents <0.025 mcg per gram, that would equal <25 ppm, which is above the gluten-free threshold...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,190
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Atl222
    Newest Member
    Atl222
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Increased intraepithelial lymphocytes after 10 yrs gluten-free

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @Atl222! Yes, your increased lymphocytes could be in response to oats or it could possibly be cross contamination from gluten that is getting into your diet from some unexpected source but not enough to damage the villi. And I'm certain that increased lymphocytes can be caused by other things besides celiac disease or gluten/oats exposure. See attachment. But you might try eliminating oats to start with and possibly dairy for a few months and then seek another endoscopy/biopsy to see if there was a reduction in lymphocyte counts. 
    • Scott Adams
      Brown Rice Vinegar (organic) from Eden Foods is likely gluten free

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      This is a solid, well-reasoned approach. You’re right that “koji” by itself doesn’t indicate gluten status, and the risk really does come down to which grain is used to culture it. The fact that you directly contacted Eden Foods and received a clear statement that their koji is made from rice only, with no wheat or barley, is meaningful due diligence—especially since Eden has a long-standing reputation for transparency. While the lack of gluten labeling can understandably give pause, manufacturer confirmation like this is often what people rely on for traditionally fermented products. As always, trusting your body after trying it is reasonable, but based on the information you gathered, your conclusion makes sense.
    • Scott Adams
      nothing has changed

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Seven months can still be early in celiac healing, especially if you were mostly asymptomatic to begin with—symptoms like low iron, vitamin D deficiency, nail changes, and hair issues often take much longer to improve because the gut needs time to recover before absorption normalizes. A tTG-IgA of 69 is not “low” in terms of immune activity, and it can take 12–24 months (sometimes longer) for antibodies and the intestinal lining to fully heal, particularly in teens and young adults. Eating gluten again to “test” things isn’t recommended and won’t give you clear answers—it’s far more likely to cause harm than clarity. Weight not changing is also very common in celiac and doesn’t rule anything out. Please know that your frustration and sadness matter; this adjustment is hard, and feeling stuck can really affect mental health. You deserve support, and if you can, reaching out to a GI dietitian or mental health professional familiar with chronic illness could really help you through this phase. This study indicates that a majority of celiacs don't recover until 5 years after diagnosis and starting a gluten-free diet: Mucosal recovery and mortality in adults with celiac disease after treatment with a gluten-free diet However, it's also possible that what the study really shows is the difficulty in maintaining a 100% gluten-free diet. I suspect that if you looked closely at the diets of those who did not recover within 2 years might be that their diets were not 100% gluten-free. Perhaps they ate out more often, or didn't understand all of the hidden ingredients where gluten can hide. Either way, it shows how difficult recovery from celiac disease can be for most people. According to this study: This article explores other causes of flattened villi:    
    • Scott Adams
      need help understanding testing result for Naked Nutrition Creatine please

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Gluten testing is normally reported in ppm (parts per million), which is equivalent to mg/kg, not micrograms by itself. A result of <0.025 mcg only becomes meaningful if you know the sample size tested (for example, mcg per gram or per kg). If that value represents <0.025 mcg per gram, that would equal <25 ppm, which is above the gluten-free threshold; if it’s <0.025 mcg per kilogram, it would be extremely low and well within GF limits. Without the denominator, the result is incomplete. It’s reasonable to follow up with the company and ask them to confirm the result in ppm using a validated method (like ELISA R5)—that’s the standard used to assess gluten safety.
    • Scott Adams
      Medications

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Medication sensitivity is very real for many people with celiac and other autoimmune conditions, and it’s frustrating when that’s brushed off. Even when a medication is technically gluten-free, fillers, dose changes, or how your nervous system reacts—especially with things like gabapentin—can cause paradoxical effects like feeling wired but exhausted. The fact that it helped bloating suggests it may be affecting gut–nerve signaling, which makes sense in the context of SIBO, but that doesn’t mean the side effects should be ignored. You’re carrying a heavy load right now with ongoing skin, eye, and neurological uncertainty, and living in that kind of limbo is exhausting on its own. It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed and discouraged when systems and providers don’t meet you where you are—your experience is valid, and continuing to advocate for yourself, even when it’s hard, really does matter. You can search this site for prescriptions medications, but will need to know the manufacturer/maker if there is more than one, especially if you use a generic version of the medication: To see the ingredients you will need to click on the correct version of the medication and maker in the results, then scroll down to "Ingredients and Appearance" and click it, and then look at "Inactive Ingredients," as any gluten ingredients would likely appear there, rather than in the Active Ingredients area. https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/   
×
×
  • 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.