Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×

  • 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

Intestinal Healing

JWood

Recommended Posts

JWood Newbie
JWood
Posted

About 6 Month ago it was suggested I had Celiacs by my Doctor. I had intestinal symptoms and most telling, rashes on my arm that were especially aggravated when I drank beer.

I cut out gluten products, but cheated a few times on an occasional breaded appetizer at an Italian Restaurant. (It was harder to give up than the beer!) My symptoms improved, my skin began to clear up, and it appeared that did a great job.

I am 27, in good shape. About two weeks ago i made a pact to stop even ingesting the smallest quantity of gluten because I felt I was getting more and more sensitive. I would probably "cheat" very minimally, (maybe one mozzerella stick if that) up until this commitment.

These last two weeks have been brutal since this decision early in the week. My intestines feel like they are in knots.

I did do some drinking on the weekends, but the Sunday after there was never a problem. (I will be cutting out the alcohol for a period of time next to isolate this variable) My job as a business owner also involves a high level of stress the past few weeks (could this be why?) I have been drinking a lot of blueberry juice for the nutrition, and eating lean meats such as chicken.

My diet is the following:

Gluten Free Cornflakers for Breakfest, skim milk, OJ, Vitamin C, Multivitamin, Blueberry Juice. i also tried this Activia Yogurt, however, the intestinal symptoms getting worse occured before this variable.

Lunch: Either I skip lunch or have a Chefs Salad with Chicken Eggs, Spinach, Vegetables, Vinegrette

Dinner: Either Chicken, Potato Pasta w/parm cheese, Steak, Spinach, Rice Pasta

I have recently been reading up on healing the intestines. Do your intestines get worse before they get better? How long does this take. on average, if you can heal your intestines, what can i eventually go back to eating.

I am intersted in peopls experiences, because things have gotten worse when i thought they would get better.

Thanks for reading...

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


emcmaster Collaborator
emcmaster
Posted

The simple answer is that your intestines aren't going to heal unless you stop cheating and stop ingesting any trace amounts of gluten.

Lisa Mentor
Lisa
Posted

With your removal of most gluten, your system may be becoming more sensitive. It's often recommended that you give up dairy for a while, which will allow your system to heal. A gradual re-introduction is often successful.

If you do have Celiac (no "s"), your system is pretty beat up. Go easy, with simple foods like meat, fish, rice, potatoes, veggies and fruit. Yoplait yogurt is gluten free (aside from the crumbs and cookies), but not sure about Activia.

Get yourself a toaster just for your use and check your meds, vitamins, lotions, lipsticks/balms and shampoos. Review anything that can get into your mouth.

Good luck and hope this was helpful.

Armae Newbie
Armae
Posted

Hi Jwood, I'm sorry I don't think I can be of much help but I am in a similar position and it has been about the same time since diagnosis for me too, so it would be interesting to see what other people have to say about it.

In my experience at least, I've felt worse before I've gotten better, and I am yet to actually get better! heh

My gastroenterologist told me that the longer you have had undiagnosed, untreated celiac disease, the longer it takes for the intestines to heal, so it can take months for some or years for others, depending on the extent of intestinal damage.

Your diet (sans the beer!) sounds pretty good IMO, especially if you don't skip lunch.

Good luck!

-Armae

chasbari Apprentice
chasbari
Posted

Once I went gluten free I started to feel not worse. When I went very strict paleo I began to feel better. I was crazy hungry at first and, in fact, am going through a patch where I can't get enough to eat regardless. I know that I began to feel everything in my gut once I began gluten-free including raging hunger. It had been about ten years since I had actually felt the feeling of true hunger as I was just constantly bloated. I also encountered intestinal spasms and have, on occasion general pain. I could not tolerate any alternative grains, soy, corn or dairy as I am dealing with leaky gut. I anticipate being able to slowly add things in after I give the gut time to heal. I have lost 20 pounds in the two months and the temptation is always there to dive in to a box of jelly donuts or my wife's chocolate chip cookies but my physical health is getting so much better in spite of all the challenges of dietary compliance. Good luck.

CS

ang1e0251 Contributor
ang1e0251
Posted

My diet is the following:

Gluten Free Cornflakers for Breakfest, skim milk, OJ, Vitamin C, Multivitamin, Blueberry Juice. i also tried this Activia Yogurt, however, the intestinal symptoms getting worse occured before this variable.

Lunch: Either I skip lunch or have a Chefs Salad with Chicken Eggs, Spinach, Vegetables, Vinegrette

Dinner: Either Chicken, Potato Pasta w/parm cheese, Steak, Spinach, Rice Pasta

A couple of things I noticed. Another poster mentioned dairy. If you drop dairy, take the yogurt along with it for now. Also I know I could not tolerate fruits for several months until I healed some and you are having a lot. I don't know if that's part of the problem but it's worth a test. Like dairy, fruit can often be added back in after awhile.

The biggest red flag to me was the vinagrette. I've read that some have gluten. What are the ingredients?

MaryJones2 Enthusiast
MaryJones2
Posted

Is Activia gluten-free? I thought they used barley in their natural flavors.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


  • 3 weeks later...
thleensd Enthusiast
thleensd
Posted

Activa is not ok... most of the links I found were old, but many of them indicated that there was either cross contamination or that the flavorings are not ok! So, you should definitely replace that in your diet.

Hang in there! Most of us here have has plenty of trials with patience and frustration!

katerinoula18 Newbie
katerinoula18
Posted

Activia contains gluten!!! Be careful! This is how I got glutened for the first time after going gluten-free and it took me a week to get over my symptoms.

  • 1 year later...
katharos Newbie
katharos
Posted

Yoplait yogurt is gluten free (aside from the crumbs and cookies), but not sure about Activia.

When I was comparing yogurts, I noticed that most say "contains live active cultures including . . ." Yoplait was a notable exception. Also, it seems to have too much other chemical junk added for my comfort. I suspect that the finished yogurt is pasteurized to stop further probiotic growth, and you're therefore not actually getting any beneficial microorganisms from yoplait. Just some food for thought.

Asher

Archived

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

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. trents
      - trents replied to The Logician's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      5

      Gluten Sensitivity

      Diarrhea is a classic symptom of celiac disease and may be the only symptom many people experience until damage to the small bowel lining becomes severe enough to spinoff other health issues. There are many with what we call "silent" celiac disease whose symptoms are so minor or occasional like yours that they blow them off. The only way to distinguish between...
    2. The Logician
      - The Logician replied to The Logician's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      5

      Gluten Sensitivity

      Not that I can remember but my reaction has never been more than diarrhea and I probably ate a lot of wheat products for years not knowing I was sensitive to it. Dr. never tested me because he attributed it to IBS.
    3. Awol cast iron stomach
      - Awol cast iron stomach replied to Tanya177's topic in Coping with Celiac Disease
      6

      Worried about being isolated

      Hi, I have worked in education in the past. Based on where assigned and building crowding I made adjustments when needed. I understand completely what you mentioned. I brought food from home in my own Pyrex glass container. I kept it in my own lunch tote that I kept with me during the day. In the teacher's lounge/staff lunch room I would wipe down...
    4. trents
      - trents replied to The Logician's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      5

      Gluten Sensitivity

      People get genetic modification confused with hybridization. Wheat, as has most of our food crops, has been altered through hybridization to make it more disease resistant, more drought resistant and even to increase the gluten content. Hybridization uses selective breeding/cross pollination to enhance certain characteristics. Genetic modification, on the...
    5. The Logician
      - The Logician replied to The Logician's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      5

      Gluten Sensitivity

      Thank you for your response. I have had several different antibiotics over the years and none affected my sensitivity to wheat products which I assumed was due to the gluten in them. However I do believe this time it was an antibiotic I’ve never had before so if your explanation is correct it would seem this antibiotic (cefuroxime 500 MG tablet Commonly k...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      129,991
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Jubaroo
    Newest Member
    Jubaroo
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.3k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Gluten Sensitivity

      By trents · Posted

      Diarrhea is a classic symptom of celiac disease and may be the only symptom many people experience until damage to the small bowel lining becomes severe enough to spinoff other health issues. There are many with what we call "silent" celiac disease whose symptoms are so minor or occasional like yours that they blow them off. The only way to distinguish between celiac disease and NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) is to get tested. I strongly recommend that you request your doctor to run these two blood antibody tests: total IGA and tTG-IGA. The antibiotic seems to have put you into some kind of remission at the present time but that may not last.
    • The Logician
      Gluten Sensitivity

      By The Logician · Posted

      Not that I can remember but my reaction has never been more than diarrhea and I probably ate a lot of wheat products for years not knowing I was sensitive to it. Dr. never tested me because he attributed it to IBS. 
    • Awol cast iron stomach
      Worried about being isolated

      By Awol cast iron stomach · Posted

      Hi, I have worked in education in the past. Based on where assigned and building crowding I made adjustments when needed.  I understand completely what you mentioned. I brought food from home in my own Pyrex glass container.  I kept it in my own lunch tote that I kept with me during the day. In the teacher's lounge/staff lunch room I would wipe down the area I sat at with soap and water with disposable paper towel.  I also placed down a fabric placemat prior to unpacking my meal. Unfortunately, one district I could never use the microwaves as they were filled with splatters and crumbs. (To be honest at that one school even if I didn't have this condition, I would not have used those microwaves based on their state of cleanliness). There were mini lockers nearby that I kept my placemat in. I brought my placemat  home weekly to launder.  There were times if the staff had a celebration with cake or pizza I would eat outside or in my car . As the  eating tables also had to display the  party spread. So the pizza and cake was on the communal lunch tables. Those days I just diverted to outside on the grass or my car. When I was fortunate to have a consistent schedule many staff "knew" my spot, and it was usually empty when I arrived. Occasionally, it was taken and it normally was by a substitute who didn't know about me/my situation.  I hope you are able to navigate this new change of building/assignment. I do know these days many districts have crowding and teachers often share classrooms or the same desk. This was often my experience whether in teacher or support staff role. Some districts you don't even have your own desk or space. I hope you do have some space to retreat to when possible. There often times is that awkwardness of a new schedule assignment where they ask why you don't want cake, pizza ,or always bring your lunch etc. For me that happened in every job education or business sector as often times I was the only one with this condition.  I hope this may have offered some support to lessen your anxiety about the new school year  assignment change. Best wishes     
    • trents
      Gluten Sensitivity

      By trents · Posted

      People get genetic modification confused with hybridization. Wheat, as has most of our food crops, has been altered through hybridization to make it more disease resistant, more drought resistant and even to increase the gluten content. Hybridization uses selective breeding/cross pollination to enhance certain characteristics. Genetic modification, on the other hand, uses a "gene gun" to knock out certain genes and replace them with unnatural ones. In some cases, plant genes are replaced with animal genes to achieve certain properties. This is what GMO is about. Have you actually been formerly tested for celiac disease, either by blood antibody testing, biopsy or both, to rule out celiac disease?
    • The Logician
      Gluten Sensitivity

      By The Logician · Posted

      Thank you for your response. I have had several different antibiotics over the years and none affected my sensitivity to wheat products which I assumed was due to the gluten in them. However I do believe this time it was an antibiotic I’ve never had before so if your explanation is correct it would seem this antibiotic (cefuroxime 500 MG tablet Commonly known as: CEFTIN, 1 tablet by mouth 2 (Two) Times a Day for 10 days.)  could be a cure for my sort of sensitivity. I assume the hospital IV was the same antibiotic. The IV was ordered because my blood culture showed bacteria in my blood. I remember hearing years ago the gmo wheat was found in some products but I guess that was a misnomer. Believe me after over 20 years of putting up with this sensitivity, despite the fact that growing up eating subs, pizza and spaghetti regularly never affected me, I am so relieved to no longer have to avoid wheat.. I hope!
×
×
  • Create New...