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What Blood Tests Do I Need From My Pcp


mushroom

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mushroom Proficient

Help!!

Despite all the wonderful support and help I have received on this marvelous forum, I am still feeling a bit like I am wandering alone in the desert looking for the next watering hole.

I have been gluten-free for four months now; swore off scotch because it seemed to be making me itch and giving me a red itchy rash; it was either that or all the tuna and sardines I had been eating so swore off those too. Have recently totally deleted soy, dairy and corn. Still the rash, hives and itching continue though not at the same levels as before quitting scotch. However, worryingly, my limb stiffness and weakness are increasing--quads, hips, upper arms and shoulders and neck, swollen wrist joints, and a growing rheumatoid-like problem in my hands. It is so bad that I have nightmares about getting stuck on a public john and not being able to get off it!! I can't take any DMARDS or NSAIDS, so I am just gutting it out, but find myself becoming progressively disabled (and depressed). I am just not my normal positive self. I never had the rash, itching or hives before I went gluten-free.

So I am going to see my PCP in two days time; I have discussed with her previously what I have been doing and she seems interested and sympathetic, although was not involved in diagnosis since I gave up talking to docs about celiac-type problems long before I started seeing her. Got tired of being labeled a whacko. :o

I am sure I have multiple nutritional deficiencies due to long-term malabsorption (20 years), but I need help from you guys in telling her what to test for. There are the obvious ones like Vits. A, B, D, calcium, magnesium (I know my potassium is OK because I have regular electrolyte testing, and I do take it) but should I do T3 and T4 (I have read somewhere that people have very strong opinions on thyroid testing--seem to recall a previous test where I was low normal). What else should I ask for to cover all my bases? I tried the sublingual B12 and got a red lumpy rash on my face for my efforts which slowly subsided but has left some scarring.

All help gratefully appreciated!


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mushroom Proficient

Okay, I just thought of two more--iron and ferritin, perhaps calcium.

mushroom Proficient

So what we ended up doing was CRP, liver function, CBC, arthritis panel, iron studies, free T3 and T4, thyroid antibodies, TSH, calcium, magnesium and maybe something else I forgot!

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    • knitty kitty
      Yes, except for the most sensitive, cross contamination from airborne gluten should be minimal. Highly sensitive people may have nutritional deficiencies.  Many times their bodies are in a highly inflamed state from Celiac, with high levels of histamine and homocysteine.  Vitamins are needed to break down histamine released from immune cells like mast cells that get over stimulated and produce histamine at the least provocation as part of the immune response to gluten. This can last even after gluten exposure is ended.  Thiamine supplementation helps calm the mast cells.  Vitamin D helps calm the immune system.  Other B vitamins and minerals are needed to correct the nutritional deficiencies that developed while the villi were damaged and not able to absorb nutrients.  The villi need vitamins and minerals to repair themselves and grow new villi. Focus on eating a nutritional dense, low inflammation diet, like the Autoimmune Protocol Diet, and supplementing to correct dietary deficiencies.  Once your body has the vitamins and minerals needed, the body can begin healing itself.  You can have nutritional deficiencies even if blood tests say you have "normal" blood levels of vitamins.  Blood is a transport system carrying vitamins from the digestive system to organs and tissues.  Vitamins are used inside cells where they cannot be measured.   Please discuss with your doctor and dietician supplementing vitamins and minerals while trying to heal.  
    • trents
      Should not be a problem except for the most sensitive celiacs. The amount of gluten that would get in the air from cooking alone has got to be miniscule. I would be more concerned about cross contamination happening in other ways in a living environment where others are preparing and consuming gluten-containing foods. Thinks like shared cooking surfaces and countertops. And what about that toaster you mentioned?
    • knitty kitty
      Hello, @NCalvo822, Blood tests for Celiac Disease test for antibodies our bodies make in response to gluten exposure.  These Tg IgA 2 antibodies mistakenly attack our own bodies, causing problems in organs and tissues other than just the digestive tract.  Joints can ache, thyroid problems or the pancreas can develop.  Ataxia is just one of over two hundred symptoms of Celiac Disease. Some people with Celiac Disease also make tTg IgA 6 antibodies in response to gluten exposure.  The tTg IgA 6 antibodies attack the brain, causing ataxia.  These tTg IgA 6 antibodies are also found in people with Parkinson's disease, though they may not have Celiac Disease.  First degree relatives (parents, siblings, children) of those diagnosed with Celiac should be tested as well.  Celiac is genetic.  Your mom and sister should be tested for Celiac, too!   Definitely a good idea to keep to a gluten free diet.  
    • knitty kitty
      @Rebeccaj,  When you smell toast or pasta cooking, that means that particles of that food are floating around in the air.  Airborne gluten can then be inhaled and swallowed, meaning the food particles get into your digestive tract.   If you're careful to avoid gluten and are still having symptoms, those symptoms could be caused by vitamin deficiencies.  
    • Rebeccaj
      ok thanks for your advice. But my question was what happens when someone you know in a house is cooking pasta or toast that's flour  Airbourne without eating.?
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