Another Newbie

[dsylve914]

Hello all. I'm new to this board. I've been going through tons of allergy testing, etc, over the last month and my Dr. and now testing for Celiac. My allergy testing came back positive for wheat, rye, corn, barley, and oat so he is feeling pretty confident that Celiac is the way to look. I had my blood test last week and have not gotten my results back yet, but my Dr. has me on a wheat free diet. You are talking to the BIGGEST junk food junkie just this no wheat diet is killing me, I can't imagine a completely gluten free diet. So I guess I have 2 questions....

1) Now that I've had my blood test, what comes next if it's positive.

2) Any suggestions on how to transition my diet?

Thanks all!

[Dyan]

Hello, welcome. I am glad you are finding out what is wrong with you. Even if you are not Celiac, you are allergic to everything a celiac cannot eat. I don't think you can transition into gluten free, I think you have to omit it all at once. You can either look at this as a great opportunity to change some bad eating habits, or eat VERY expensive junk food. Good luck, I am happy you will be getting well

[Bell]

I don't know the answer, because I'm a newbie too, but I read somewhere on this board that testing positive for an allergy to wheat or rye or other gluteny grains is unconnected to testing positive for celiac disease. I didn't quite understand it myself, but could anyone else explain? It was written in the opposite context of testing negative for an allergy to gluten grains, but this not necessarily ruling out celiac disease itself.

??

[MollyBeth]

I was diagnosed through a biopsy. In the six weeks leading up to my biopsy I ate every favorite piece of glutenous food I could get my hands on. I planned to go gluten free the day the day after my endoscopy. I didn't want to wait for results because I had so many symptoms that I figured even if the results came back negative the diet would be worth trying to see if I had a positive result.

In the last week before my endoscopy...I rounded up all my wooden food utensils and my toaster and took it to the salvation army. I gave a bag of flour I had in my cupboard to my neighbor. By this time I had binged on all the other food that had gluten so there wasn't much else to get rid of.

The day after my endoscopy I went on a diet that mostly consisted of meat, veggies and nuts. I still had some dairy but limited it. (I couldn't give up cheese, bread and beer in the same week)

I've been on the diet for about five weeks now. It's day by day. I've found some good bread that I just started using last week and when I want a snack I eat some Glutino Pretzels.

For me...taking it very slow and starting off simple has been the best way to transition. Right now I'm trying to learn about different flours and stuff andI plan to start baking soon.

Some people will tell you that the diet is impossible but it's not!!!! This is a great site for you to be on...so already you are on the right track! The people here can answer almost any question you have!

[purple]

Go to the baking/cooking section and google whatever you want...chocolate chip cookies for instance and you will get tooooo many recipes and lots of tips.

Somewhere there is a web site for chips so you can find out whats safe...Mission chips are ok. Google the product section to see if its posted there. Might be called frito-lay. Ask HappyGirl or another moderator for the links to junk foods.

Products that say wheat free may not be gluten free.

[lizard00]

I don't know the answer, because I'm a newbie too, but I read somewhere on this board that testing positive for an allergy to wheat or rye or other gluteny grains is unconnected to testing positive for celiac disease. I didn't quite understand it myself, but could anyone else explain? It was written in the opposite context of testing negative for an allergy to gluten grains, but this not necessarily ruling out celiac disease itself.

??

It is quite possible to be allergic to wheat, barley, rye and oats, and NOT have celiac. It is possible to be allergic to those things AND have celiac. They can exist separately or together, but having celiac doesn't mean you'll be allergic and being allergic doesn't mean you have celiac.

(Did that make ANY sense??? LOL )

To the OP:

If your blood work comes back negative, and you TRULY do not have celiac disease, then you still need to be as gluten free as possible. Continued ingestion of foods that you are allergic to, even mildly, puts an extra burden on your immune system. And you'll find that you won't feel all that great, either. I am mildly allergic to egg whites. For a while, I would eat eggs occasionally, or bake with them... as soon as I cut them out completely I felt 100% better. I was in a constant state of irritation because of the reaction.

If your blood work comes back positive, then you definitely need to be gluten-free. But for the autoimmune reasons, not just the allergic reasons.