Confused About Gluten Sensitivity (been Asked Before, Sorry! )

[dizzygrinch]

Sorry if this has been asked before. I think I stumbled upon someone bringing this up yesteday, but I cant find the post. Anyway, if you suspect gluten is causing problems, and your gluten free for a while, then, if you eat gluten, and get sick, does that mean your gluten sensitive? or, does that happen to anybody, if they arent gluten sensitive, but have been off of it for a while, then eat it, and will they get bad reactions too? Im just wondering, if that was true, if you know you have a big reaction when you do react to it, then why do all these GI docs want to do all the blood test and biopsies, before telling you that your gluten intolerant? Im confused. Any input?

[Lisa]

I'm not sure I understand your question, but here goes...

If you get sick after eating gluten, you are at the least gluten intolerant/sensitive, have a gluten allergy, or have Celiac Disease. That is something that would would know without a doctor - gluten makes you sick.

If you have Celiac Disease you will get sick, in addition, the autoimmune reaction will make your body turn against itself and attack you small intestines. A doctor can run a blood test and/or endoscopy and biopsy to confirm Celiac Disease. The reaction is the same. One does damage, the other does not.

In both cases, when you no longer eat gluten and feel better there is no way to tell if you are gluten intolerant/sensitive or have Celiac Disease, so therefore the testing.

The RX for both, is the gluten free diet.

[Darn210]

  dizzygrinch said:

or, does that happen to anybody, if they arent gluten sensitive, but have been off of it for a while, then eat it, and will they get bad reactions too?

If you don't have a problem with gluten and are off of it for awhile and then eat it again you shouldn't have a reaction.

When my daughter was diagnosed, the rest of the family got tested (blood test) and all tested negative. Because there are false negatives, my son went on a gluten-free trial diet for 6 months. He had no reaction when he started eating gluten again. Likewise, I went gluten-free for 6 weeks and noticed no issues when I had gluten again.

[happygirl]

To add to the posters explanations above - The other part of the story is that not everyone who has Celiac has Celiac. So the absence of symptoms of someone eating gluten/reintroducing gluten is not a reliable predictor of all Celiacs. Many with Celiac are 'silent' Celiacs and don't have the 'traditional' symptoms.

[sbj]

  dizzygrinch said:

why do all these GI docs want to do all the blood test and biopsies, before telling you that your gluten intolerant?

I'm thinking that the doctors want to do all of those tests because they want to give you an accurate diagnosis? Symptoms like diarrhea, bloating, gas, weight loss, nausea, and so on can be caused by all sorts of things other than gluten intolerance. A doctor wants to be as sure as possible that you have celiac disease before s/he tells you that you can't eat gluten for the rest of your life! Personally, I am a silent celiac. I didn't have any symptoms. The only way to tell I have celiac disease is by blood test and biopsy. Doctors who work for an HMO aren't just putting you through tests for no good reason: they must 'do no harm' and they don't get paid extra for ordering extra tests. In fact, the health care insurer gets a bit ticked at doctors who order unnecessary tests!