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

Gluten Free For A Week

Melissa312

Recommended Posts

Melissa312 Rookie
Melissa312
Posted

I have been off gluten for a week but this morning I woke up with more severe abdominal pain and an inability to go to the restroom. My major symptom lately has been that I wake up at night every couple hours and feel my stomach rumbling. Then I have to run to the bathroom. I hate to be gross but since I started getting really sick a couple months ago that has been my main problem. My bowels are really loose and floating. I am just wanting to see if this is typical of celiac because I am still trying to pinpoint exactly what has caused my villi damage.

Someone suggested cutting out dairy and I have done that for the last 3 days. Yesterday I had an apple, almonds, and gluten free pretzels for lunch. For dinner I had eggs with soymilk, bacon, and a gluten free waffle. I have been very careful to avoid cross contamination. I am just worried that what if I don't have celiac and this is something else. I know its only been a week, but I thought I would feel much better by now. Any advice?

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


dbmamaz Explorer
dbmamaz
Posted

Have you noticed any change in symptoms at all? For me, the tapioca flour in most gluten-free products acted just as bad as gluten on my stomach. Some people also need to cut out soy.

My stomach issues improved in a few days. Did you go to a doctor at all for this? Get checked for parasites, perhaps?

Melissa312 Rookie
Melissa312
Posted
  • Author

I originally just thought I had a stomach flu and went to the hospital because I was dehydrated and have no appetite. They gave me some pain medicine (I was also having severe lower abdominal pain) so I would quit complaining. I then ended up back because I woke up on saturday night and I couldn't take the pain anymore. Once at the hospital I was checked for EVERYTHING. I had 2 ultrasounds, a CT scan, upper GI, endoscopy, colonoscopy. After all the tests my doctor gave me Nexium for acid reflux and said to try that. I felt better for about a week but then ended up back in his office. They had suggested a parasite but they ordered another upper GI and this time the tech noticed the malabsorption. I then had a blood test and biopsy of my small intestine. The bloodwork says no celiac, but the biopsy shows damage.

I haven't had any soy until yesterday. I had some soymilk in the eggs. Could it also be the eggs?

My symptoms have improved since I stopped with the gluten but I am thinking maybe I am just not being careful enough about cross contamination. Maybe my reaction last night was worse because I haven't had any gluten in a few days?

Have you noticed any change in symptoms at all? For me, the tapioca flour in most gluten-free products acted just as bad as gluten on my stomach. Some people also need to cut out soy.

My stomach issues improved in a few days. Did you go to a doctor at all for this? Get checked for parasites, perhaps?

home-based-mom Contributor
home-based-mom
Posted

It looks to me like the gluten free foods you are eating are still rather hard on the stomach. Raw fruit and nuts I would think could cause discomfort in a system that needed healing. Fatty fried bacon sounds really tasty :P but probably isn't easy to digest, either. Were the pretzels salty? Too much salt can cause discomfort.

Try apple sauce instead of apples. Minute Rice is easy to digest. Cooked veggies instead of raw ones. Baked chicken instead of bacon. You get the idea.

Hope you feel better, soon! :)

Melissa312 Rookie
Melissa312
Posted
  • Author

Thanks. The hard part is I get tricked into thinking I feel a lot better and then, boom, I feel bad again and get discouraged. I had some applesauce for breakfast. Up until today I didn't have bacon or anything like that, so maybe that was just too much too fast.

It looks to me like the gluten free foods you are eating are still rather hard on the stomach. Raw fruit and nuts I would think could cause discomfort in a system that needed healing. Fatty fried bacon sounds really tasty :P but probably isn't easy to digest, either. Were the pretzels salty? Too much salt can cause discomfort.

Try apple sauce instead of apples. Minute Rice is easy to digest. Cooked veggies instead of raw ones. Baked chicken instead of bacon. You get the idea.

Hope you feel better, soon! :)

April in KC Apprentice
April in KC
Posted

Hi there! This may not be it, but when I read your list I immediately spotted many foods we had to stop feeding to my SOY intolerant Celiac son:

gluten-free pretzels (check, but the Glutino kind he used to eat contained soy flour)

soymilk

gluten-free waffle (if it's vans, it also has some type of soy flour)

Did you replace the toaster you used to fix that waffle? If not, get a new one. You're probably going to become more sensitive to gluten cross contamination.

If you're not in a gluten-free kitchen, it could also be your dishes/pans. Give a careful scrub to anything you use, especially anything used to bake cookies, or forks used to eat pasta that went through the dishwasher.

By 'inability to go,' do you mean that you suspect you have constipation? Or just that usually when you feel like that, you do go, and last night you didn't?

I agree on cutting dairy out for a period of weeks until you heal a little more. You can try it later and see if you can tolerate it. I cut it out at first, but now I eat a little cheese from time to time.

Melissa312 Rookie
Melissa312
Posted
  • Author
Hi there! This may not be it, but when I read your list I immediately spotted many foods we had to stop feeding to my SOY intolerant Celiac son:

gluten-free pretzels (check, but the Glutino kind he used to eat contained soy flour)

soymilk

gluten-free waffle (if it's vans, it also has some type of soy flour)

Did you replace the toaster you used to fix that waffle? If not, get a new one. You're probably going to become more sensitive to gluten cross contamination.

If you're not in a gluten-free kitchen, it could also be your dishes/pans. Give a careful scrub to anything you use, especially anything used to bake cookies, or forks used to eat pasta that went through the dishwasher.

By 'inability to go,' do you mean that you suspect you have constipation? Or just that usually when you feel like that, you do go, and last night you didn't?

I agree on cutting dairy out for a period of weeks until you heal a little more. You can try it later and see if you can tolerate it. I cut it out at first, but now I eat a little cheese from time to time.

I actually put the waffle into the oven for a few minutes because I haven't been able to buy a new toaster yet. I think that maybe it is the soy that made me have the problem. I am going to have only the basics for a few days until my allergy testing.

I feel constipated and my stomach rumbles while I am sleeping. Sometimes I run to the bathroom and have a bowel movement but other times like yesterday I was unable to and then I had trouble sleeping all night long.

I already cut out gluten, soy and dairy. I suspect problems with corn also so I haven't really had much corn either.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Archived

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

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,671
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Paul1567
    Newest Member
    Paul1567
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Who's Online (See full list)

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Rejoicephd
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Rejoicephd · Posted

      That and my nutritionist also said that drinking cider is one of the worst drink choices for me, given that I have candida overgrowth.  She said the combination of the alcohol and sugar would be very likely to worsen my candida problem.  She suggested that if I drink, I go for clear vodka, either neat or with a splash of cranberry.   So in summary, I am giving ciders a rest.  Whether it's a gluten risk or sugars and yeast overgrowth, its just not worth it.
    • Inkie
      Tea Bags and Gluten

      By Inkie · Posted

      Thank you for the information ill will definitely bring it into practice .
    • Scott Adams
      Tea Bags and Gluten

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      While plain, pure tea leaves (black, green, or white) are naturally gluten-free, the issue often lies not with the tea itself but with other ingredients or processing. Many flavored teas use barley malt or other gluten-containing grains as a flavoring agent, which would be clearly listed on the ingredient label. Cross-contamination is another possibility, either in the facility where the tea is processed or, surprisingly, from the tea bag material itself—some tea bags are sealed with a wheat-based glue. Furthermore, it's important to consider that your reaction could be to other substances in tea, such as high levels of tannins, which can be hard on the stomach, or to natural histamines or other compounds that can cause a non-celiac immune response. The best way to investigate is to carefully read labels for hidden ingredients, try switching to a certified gluten-free tea brand that uses whole leaf or pyramid-style bags, and see if the reaction persists.
    • Scott Adams
      Inconclusive results

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      This is a challenging and confusing situation. The combination of a positive EMA—which is a highly specific marker rarely yielding false positives—alongside strongly elevated TTG on two separate occasions, years apart, is profoundly suggestive of celiac disease, even in the absence of biopsy damage. This pattern strongly aligns with what is known as "potential celiac disease," where the immune system is clearly activated, but intestinal damage has not yet become visible under the microscope. Your concern about the long-term risk of continued gluten consumption is valid, especially given your family's experience with the consequences of delayed diagnosis. Since your daughter is now at an age where her buy-in is essential for a gluten-free lifestyle, obtaining a definitive answer is crucial for her long-term adherence and health. Given that she is asymptomatic yet serologically positive, a third biopsy now, after a proper 12-week challenge, offers the best chance to capture any microscopic damage that may have developed, providing the concrete evidence needed to justify the dietary change. This isn't about wanting her to have celiac; it's about wanting to prevent the insidious damage that can occur while waiting for symptoms to appear, and ultimately giving her the unambiguous "why" she needs to accept and commit to the necessary treatment. This article might be helpful. It breaks down each type of test, and what a positive results means in terms of the probability that you might have celiac disease. One test that always needs to be done is the IgA Levels/Deficiency Test (often called "Total IGA") because some people are naturally IGA deficient, and if this is the case, then certain blood tests for celiac disease might be false-negative, and other types of tests need to be done to make an accurate diagnosis. The article includes the "Mayo Clinic Protocol," which is the best overall protocol for results to be ~98% accurate.    
    • Scott Adams
      Medication

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Welcome to the community! Generally, for a gluten challenge before celiac disease blood tests, Tylenol (acetaminophen) is considered safe and should not interfere with your antibody results. The medications you typically need to avoid are those like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or naproxen (Aleve) that can cause intestinal irritation, which could potentially complicate the interpretation of an endoscopy if you were to have one. However, it is absolutely crucial that you confirm this with either your gastroenterologist or your surgeon before your procedure. They know the specifics of your case and can give you the definitive green light, ensuring your surgery is comfortable and your celiac testing remains accurate. Best of luck with your surgery tomorrow
×
×
  • 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.