Help

[WendyG]

I am hoping someone can give me some advice. First I have been gluten free since Feb 08. I have been very careful with my diet and cc. I had my endoscopy on Friday and things don't look good. Dr said pathology will give us more answers. I asked her to draw blood to check iron/ferretin/celiac markers ( I am not sure what they are called) T something. So after being so careful I am confused I have been reading for months and I may have to cut dairy???Dr didn't mention but I have heard many of you say it.

Also my hair is so horrible, brittle and thin.... PLEASE tell me this will get better. How do I know if its from malabsorbtion or female hair loss?

Any advice would be so helpful!

Wendy

[ravenwoodglass]

It can take awhile for villi to heal and for us to get back to normal. It also can be very hard at first to ferret out all the hidden sources of gluten so many are not as gluten free as they hope to be at first. Since you say you have been reading a lot I am going to assume that you have checked all meds and supplements with the maker. Hopefully you have also eliminated it from your lotions shampoos and such. I think you are smart to drop the dairy for a bit and if you are still feeling ill make sure you are not overdoing soy. Or drop it altogether for a bit. The easiest way to speed healing is by eating as many whole foods as you can and avoiding processed stuff.

Some folks also get some healing assistance from digestive enzymes, I have use them and had good luck with them.

I had a lot of hair problems, as many of us do, and these did resolve. It can take a while though. I have had a real hard time finding a safe conditioner (I am also allergic to soy) so I use warm olive or coconut oil. A little goes a long way. I brush it through my hair, wrap it in a warm towel and then wash it out using a castile (coconut based) soap. It helped to rehydrate and soften my hair a bit and is quite relaxing. I also use Royal Jelly, a bee sourced supplement high in B vitamins and lots of other stuff and try to make sure I am getting enough good fats in my diet.

Hang in there, it took a long time for you to get as ill as you were before diagnosis and it will take you a while to heal. Many doctors don't rebiopsy until 6 months to a year for this reason. How are you feeling? Have you had any resolution of any of your problems? If overall you are feeling better I would try not to worry too much about the damage he found.

[tazmic109]

Hi Wendy,

Try eating more of the healthy fats, mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated. Olive oil, avocados, pumpkin seeds and salmon are some good choices. These fats help maintain and nourish skin and hair. Dry and brittle hair is a sign of deficiency of these essential fatty acids. The B vitamins are also involved in hair growth so malabsorption may also be playing a role.

As your intestine heals, you should eventually notice your hair strength returning. I wouldn't worry about a female hair loss problem, worrying about gluten is enough to handle! Just keep aiming to eat healthy meals.

hope this helps

Michele