Gluten Reaction But Where Was The Gluten?!?!

[BeigeBaby]

I had a pretty severe reaction last night.. gas, bloating abdominal pain, etc. even though I didn't think I have had gluten. I went over my diet the last few days and the last time I think I could have had gluten or CC was over a week ago (the last time I ate out) I'm at my mom's for the holidays and she runs a very tight ship - absolutely no gluten in the house at all. The only things I'm not 100% sure about are Dove Promises Milk Chocolate caramels and Sara Lee sliced cheese but their ingredient lists and everything on the web says they are gluten free. So is it possible I'm esperiencing symptoms from long ago gluten? I ate kinda late last night so is it possible the eating so soon before bed agravated the damage done a week ago?

...or should I be looking for another food allergy/intolerance?

[Mother of Jibril]

Welcome to the group!

Another food intolerance seems like a possibility... a lot of people have problems with dairy, corn, soy, etc... How long have you been gluten-free? Is there anything you've been eating a lot more of lately? Corn was one of my main substitutes for gluten before I realized it was causing problems for me as well as my breastfed son.

Also... what about a virus? The stomach flu is going around where I live. It's easy to think all your symptoms are related to gluten, but it could be something else... something temporary

[BeigeBaby]

Thanks for the welcome! I've been off gluten for 2 years (i haven't been the best at adhereing to the diet though)

I haven't really noticed a problem with anything else. What would be the best/easiest way to identify the culprit if it's not gluten? I don't think it's a stomach virus just by the way I feel and that there was no "D" or "V" just bloating, really horrible smelling gas, burping, slight nausea and lots of pain. A common reaction to gluten for me

[Mother of Jibril]

Finding intolerances can be a slow process, but you can do it on your own and get some solid answers... better than any test or doctor. Here's what I would do:

First... make sure you're being really strict about the gluten-free diet. CC from gluten will interfere with your observations.

Then... try eliminating one food at a time. Dairy is a good place to start. Take it out of your diet for two weeks and really tune into your body. Record any observations... headache, gas, heartburn, rash, constipation... whether you think they're "related" to your digestive system or not. Hopefully you'll notice an improvement. If you're not sure it made a difference, move on to the challenge by eating a lot of that food for three or four days. Record your observations. At the end of the challenge look back over your written notes and decide for yourself if that food is a problem for you. If you didn't notice a difference you're probably safe to keep eating it.

A lot of people have problems with dairy, corn, and/or soy. Other culprits can be coconut, grains in general, legumes (beans, lentils, peanuts), yeast, fructose... If you have several intolerances it can take a while to figure them out. If you find yourself giving up a lot of the grains, give the SCD diet a try... it's designed to be very easy on your digestive system and re-balance your gut flora.