Tummy Issues Worse Now Being gluten-free

[foodiegurl]

i found out I had Celiac, by total freak accident. Went in for a physical..told dr about reflux I have been having off and on...turns out I have h.pylori, and Celiac...but I think the reflux was/is from the h.pylori. I wasn't having any lower GI issues, only gas, which I always had, but I guess this is from the Celiac.

I cut out week 3 weeks ago and now I feel so sensitive to everything! I went from feeling fine and never having a sore tummy, to now always having one, and this is no fun. I am scared to eat. I am tired of living on rice, apples, bananas, sometimes salmon, potatoes and yogurt. When I stray, I will often a tummy ache. We ate out last night, and I was so nervous, but I called the places a head of time, and they assured me it would be safe...and it was...I went in with a tummy ache, and felt great the rest of the night. It was a felafel place, and they assured me the only gluten was in their pita, which I did not have.

This morning, I had an egg-white omelette, and an hour later..owie! I am pretty sure it was the eggs, becase they have always been hit or miss with me..sometimes I get a tummy ache, sometimes I don't.

I then took a nap this afternoon..woke up felt fine...got up, walked around, tummy sore again.

I am not sure if it is the h.pylori or the celiac. I have yet to treat the h.pylori, because I am terrified of the heavy dose of antibiotics I need to to take (and I am already allergic to 3, and they want me to take 2 different ones, 7 times a day for 2 weeks

I felt better eating eating wheat. I don't get it...I feel fine...find out I have this...cut out gluten....and now my tummy hurts

[psawyer]

As you begin to heal from the damage that gluten has been doing to your body, other sensitivities may appear. Some will be temporary; others may be permanent. As your villi heal, you begin absorbing things that you were not before. This causes many changes. It will take time. Stick with the gluten-free diet. For now, avoid things which seem to bother you.

After two or three months, begin slowly reintroducing these things to your diet, one at a time. If you still react to something, then you should probably give it up for good. But there may be many things that your fully healed digestive system can once again handle.

Dairy is one thing I would pay special attention to. Transient lactose intolerance can result from damaged villi. Casein intolerance is also quite common among celiacs--it is usually permanent.

[foodiegurl]

As you begin to heal from the damage that gluten has been doing to your body, other sensitivities may appear. Some will be temporary; others may be permanent. As your villi heal, you begin absorbing things that you were not before. This causes many changes. It will take time. Stick with the gluten-free diet. For now, avoid things which seem to bother you.

After two or three months, begin slowly reintroducing these things to your diet, one at a time. If you still react to something, then you should probably give it up for good. But there may be many things that your fully healed digestive system can once again handle.

Dairy is one thing I would pay special attention to. Transient lactose intolerance can result from damaged villi. Casein intolerance is also quite common among celiacs--it is usually permanent.

Interesting. Egg cooked in baked goods don't seem to bother me (is this common?). Dairy has seemed ok, but maybe it is not and I haven't noticed. I know yogurt makes me feel good, but yogurt is usually ok even with a lactose intolerance, right?

I would hate to have to cut out dairy, can most people introduce it back in their diets without a problem in a few months?

[foodiegurl]

As you begin to heal from the damage that gluten has been doing to your body, other sensitivities may appear. Some will be temporary; others may be permanent. As your villi heal, you begin absorbing things that you were not before. This causes many changes. It will take time. Stick with the gluten-free diet. For now, avoid things which seem to bother you.

Also, since I have only been gluten-free for 3 weeks, are my villi already starting to heal? So, is the pain a good thing then..meaning i am starting to heal? Because I have been freaking out something else is wrong with me

I actually had a thai dish last week with egg and tofu in it...no problem whatsoever. I had an omelette last week, again, no problem.

Sometimes i get pain that I can tell is like bad heartburn, and I assume that is the h.pylori and not the celiac? but maybe it is the celiac as well?

*also, if one does have a lactose intolerance does that damage your body the way gluten does, or it is just an annoyance?

[psawyer]

Lactose intolerance will not do any lasting harm, but will cause unpleasant effects. Gas, bloating and diarrhea are typical. The immune system is not involved--you just have residual sugars that are not digested.

[GFinDC]

Pre-gluten-free, I used to have pain in my stomach which I attribute to gas. Basically I blew up like a balloon but just didn't float away! I actually had a hard time getting food down because the first bite would cause the gas to go into overdrive and it would be difficult to swallow the next bite. That's the only pain I remember in my stomach, was gas/bloating.

[foodiegurl]

Lactose intolerance will not do any lasting harm, but will cause unpleasant effects. Gas, bloating and diarrhea are typical. The immune system is not involved--you just have residual sugars that are not digested.

Is this the same for other food intolerances, such as casein, legumes, soy, etc? Will these not cause harm as wheat does?

[mommida]

H. Ploryi is quite a physical obstacle. It can take a few rounds on different antibiotics. Until your treatment is finished, you will have some issues to deal with.

Keep a food journal to help guide you with foods you need to avoid. Sounds like your identifying eggs as a problem food.

This is gluten withdrawal symptoms too.

It is not uncommon for accidental gluten ingestion symptoms to be excerbated when you are on the gluten free diet.

(I think off it like snake venom.) You don't want to get bit by a snake in spring. The snake has been in hibernation and has been storing up venom. The first strike of the season has the most potent venom. In the fall, a snakes venom is weaker. It has been striking all summer long. Like your body's immune system has stopped attacking the gluten. The first time it identifies gluten it goes all out. People who were not symptamatic before can become symptamatic after being on the gluten free diet.

This can explain why you can now identify other food intolerances.

[foodiegurl]

thanks for the advice. i started a food journal today.

interesting, that i noticed on 2 of the days that i had the worst tummy pain, i had spinach. i sure hope spinach is not a culprit, since i love it. however, my sister who is allergic to wheat (and i am suspecting celiac as well) can not tolerate spinach. wow that would not be fun.

i am pretty sure i can tolerate eggs when they are in baked goods, but on their own, i am not sure yet. is that common...some people can tolerate them in baked goods, but not as an omelette or scrambled eggs?

[mikehall117]

Hi Foodiegurl.

I am going through exactly the same problem! I have been gluten-free for about 10 days and mostly gluten-free for another 8 weeks prior to that. I have noticed that I am getting acid reflux and occasional stomach discomfort after eating. This only started in the last 3 or 4 days. I am keeping a diet journal and hopefully will be able to dientify what is causing this and also whether its just transient as the villi start to heal.

It all awfully confusing! I bought some own brand cereal the other day from my local supermarket only to find that it had hidden gluten which made me very bloated and uncomfortable and for the next 24 hours I was very lethargic.

The only advice I can give is the advice I give myself. Persevere. Speak to a doctor. Keep a record of your symptoms and note everything you eat, including the brand names. Have patience.

I have a lot of optomism and feel that I am on the right track. Hopefully you feel the same too. Good luck!

[mommida]

I can't handle spinach either. Eggs are hit or miss too. Raisins cause some issues. Lobster makes me vomit.

[julirama723]

Here's my experience:

Before gluten became a problem. I had a relatively tough digestive system. There were only a handful of foods that I stayed away from that gave me obvious problems. (Cucumbers, zucchini, cashews.) Over time I began to develop GI problems, which eventually became so bad that I was compelled to figure out what the heck was wrong with me. My mother's diagnosis with celiac disease steered me in the right direction.

After I eliminated gluten, I felt amazing, but only for a couple of weeks, then a dairy intolerance reared its ugly head. So I eliminated that. Then corn needed to go, too. Then rice. Then soy. You get the picture. My belief is that I had problems with ALL of these foods, but the gluten was so attention-grabbing/over-powering/deafening (however you want to describe it) that it drowned out the other food sensitivities and intolerances.

Regarding the eggs--I have a friend who gets stomach pain if she eats eggs on their own, but she is fine when they are used as an ingredient. I don't know why or what causes it, but that's her story.

[ginnybean32]

Foodigurl,

There is nothing other than antibiotics that can kill the H.Pylori bacteria. I researched it thoughly when I was dx because I did not want to take all that medicine for a month but it is a nasty bacteria you dont want in your stomach. It really does cause a lot of pain and you really dont need to suffer with it anymore. Its called a Prev-Pack and contains two antibiotics and Prevacid a anti ulcer med. I got dx with H. Pylori in November 08 and I was in so much pain I took the meds no problem and it worked. The pain got better for me for awhile and then it eventually came back in Feb 09 and found out I had GERD and lesions on my esophagus. He also did a biopsy and found my Celiac at this time. My GI said it was the H.Pylori that caused the GERD and lesions. H. Pylori can also lead to stomach and esophagus cancer so as far as Im concerned treating it with meds is just like treating our Celiac with gluten free diets because Celiac can lead to intestinal and colon cancers as well.

It may be possible you have already gotten some damage done by your H.Pylori. I would take the medicine and follow up in a month and make sure you are H.Pylori free. Some people need two treatments to get rid of it. Dairy products probably actually make your stomach feel better but you may get diahrrea if your intestines cant handle them. I know this is still the case for me. Im also still on a Protonix to control the acid in my stomach. If I miss a day my stomach kills me, so Im starting to learn what are my Celiac symtoms and what are my GERD symtoms.

I know for me its nice to know "what is causing what symptoms" like is it H.pylori or is it the Celiac? Good luck with the treatment if you deceide to do it...I know I felt like I was in heaven 3 days after I started the treatment and up until the Prevacid wore off after my last does...

[foodiegurl]

Foodigurl,

There is nothing other than antibiotics that can kill the H.Pylori bacteria. I researched it thoughly when I was dx because I did not want to take all that medicine for a month but it is a nasty bacteria you dont want in your stomach. It really does cause a lot of pain and you really dont need to suffer with it anymore. Its called a Prev-Pack and contains two antibiotics and Prevacid a anti ulcer med. I got dx with H. Pylori in November 08 and I was in so much pain I took the meds no problem and it worked. The pain got better for me for awhile and then it eventually came back in Feb 09 and found out I had GERD and lesions on my esophagus. He also did a biopsy and found my Celiac at this time. My GI said it was the H.Pylori that caused the GERD and lesions. H. Pylori can also lead to stomach and esophagus cancer so as far as Im concerned treating it with meds is just like treating our Celiac with gluten free diets because Celiac can lead to intestinal and colon cancers as well.

So, your h.pylori came back?

See that is one of my major issues with taking the meds...everyone I know who has had it, said the meds didn't work. And 2) since I am highly allergic to 3 different antibiotics already, and can't take the prev-pack, i have to take 2 other antibiotics at 7 pills a day, and am worried i will have an allergic reaction. And it doesn't really seem worth it, if it is a strain that is not receptive to meds.

[Pegleg84]

Hi foodiegirl.

I don't know much about h.pylori, so that could be causing some extra problems for you, but the rest of your symptoms sound a lot like what i'm going through. I've only been gluten-free for a few weeks, but I am feeling much better, though am starting to notice that other non-gluten things bother me. like eggs! Are you partially vegetarian? I've been eating fish occasionally and rarely meat for the past year or two, so could be lacking digestive enzymes to help digest things like eggs. If they're cooked in something or not eaten on their own, i'm fine. before I never noticed it because I was used to feeling kind of crappy after eating. I think a milk sensitivity, and maybe soy, might be kicking in too. I'm hoping these will go away as I heal.

Anyway, If you are diagnosed celiac, then stick to the diet. It'll pay off in time (so they tell me)

good luck