Jump to content

  • 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

Undiagnosed Celiac On Gluten-free Diet

bchrisc

Recommended Posts

bchrisc Newbie
bchrisc
Posted

Hello. My mom was diagnosed with Celiac Disease two years ago and has been on a gluten-free diet ever since. I joined her on the diet about a year ago, because of chronic stomach troubles and severe depression. I was never formally diagnosed and, while my stomach troubles seem to have gone away, I still am experiencing severe depression. Should I leave the diet and go through the formal testing process? Or is the cessation of my stomach issues a sign that I am, indeed, a Celiac? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I also hope this is the right forum for my question.

Thanks!

Brian

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted
Hello. My mom was diagnosed with Celiac Disease two years ago and has been on a gluten-free diet ever since. I joined her on the diet about a year ago, because of chronic stomach troubles and severe depression. I was never formally diagnosed and, while my stomach troubles seem to have gone away, I still am experiencing severe depression. Should I leave the diet and go through the formal testing process? Or is the cessation of my stomach issues a sign that I am, indeed, a Celiac? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I also hope this is the right forum for my question.

Thanks!

Brian

Hi Brian, and welcome.

The disappearance of your symptoms would seem to implicate gluten as the culprit for your stomach troubles, whether gluten intolerance or celiac. Could the depression be a separate issue for you, or did the two seem to go hand in hand for you, if you remember?

bchrisc Newbie
bchrisc
Posted
  • Author
Hi Brian, and welcome.

The disappearance of your symptoms would seem to implicate gluten as the culprit for your stomach troubles, whether gluten intolerance or celiac. Could the depression be a separate issue for you, or did the two seem to go hand in hand for you, if you remember?

I think you may be right. The stomach troubles were around for most of my life, whereas the depression is relatively (past 5-6 years) recent. I just got a full blood panel done, and am hoping it's just something that hasn't quite caught up yet. Thanks so much for the quick response. It means a lot to me. :-)

-Brian

Jestgar Rising Star
Jestgar
Posted

It seems to me, if you feel better not eating gluten, then there's no point in getting a formal diagnosis. Your diet is entirely up to you.

gfb1 Rookie
gfb1
Posted
I think you may be right. The stomach troubles were around for most of my life, whereas the depression is relatively (past 5-6 years) recent. I just got a full blood panel done, and am hoping it's just something that hasn't quite caught up yet. Thanks so much for the quick response. It means a lot to me. :-)

-Brian

if you've been gluten-free for a year, and your 'blood panel' is looking for celiac markers... then don't be surprised if the tests are negative. after one year; the celiac panel of tests would definitely be negative EVEN IF YOU ARE A CELIAC.

as for depression; that's one of the worst (and insidious) problems a person can have. get to your primary care doc and talk about it; get some decent meds. the meds these days are MUCH better than the old -- here's some valium -- scripts from my youth. it may take a while to get the proper med and proper dosage; BUT, your quality of life will be much improved. if you don't like the idea of taking pills/meds, then go talk to somebody -- ask around for a reference for a decent psychologist. there isn't the stigma that there used to be; and some are VERY good... to badly mangle robert.zimmerman 'it may be your preacher and it may be your doc; but, you gotta talk to somebody...'

i echo jestgar's comments... if you feel better being gluten free; just do it. while noone i know has done a formal analysis; being gluten free has other added benefits. being an analretentivescientisttype, i have years of dietary intake spreadsheets from my wife's gluten-free diet. in general, her diet is slightly higher in protein (more eggs for breakfast, legumes 2xweek), higher in fiber (legumes, oatmeal, rice bran and more fresh veggies) and, strangely enough, lower in fat. overall its about 10-15% lower in calories than our previous diet -- its not just replacing the gluten; but the associated awareness and behavioural changes that have accompanied it.

gfb1 Rookie
gfb1
Posted

from my mouth to gods ears...

:)

Open Original Shared Link

check it out.

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. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to Hmart's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      13

      Is this celiac?

      @Hmart, The reason why your intestinal damage was so severe, yet your tTg IgA was so minimal can be due to cutting back on gluten (and food in general) due to worsening symptoms. The tTg IgA antibodies are made in the intestines. While three grams of gluten per day for several weeks are enough to cause gastrointestinal symptoms, ten grams of gluten...
    2. Trish G
      - Trish G replied to Trish G's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      10

      Fiber Supplement

      Thanks, that's a great addition that I hadn't thought of.
    3. trents
      - trents replied to Hmart's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      13

      Is this celiac?

      Other diseases, medical conditions, medications and even (for some people) some non-gluten foods can cause villous atrophy. There is also something called refractory celiac disease but it is pretty uncommon.
    4. trents
      - trents replied to kpf's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      15

      ttg iga high (646 mg/dl) other results are normal

      knitty kitty asks a very relevant question. So many people make the mistake of experimenting with the gluten free diet or even a reduced gluten diet soon before getting formally tested.
    5. trents
      - trents replied to Trish G's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      10

      Fiber Supplement

      Another great fiber option is dried apricots. Four of them give you 3g of fiber and I find they don't produce all the gas that some other high fiber options do. They taste good too. Costco sells a large bag of them that are labeled gluten-free so you don't have to worry about cross contamination issues like you might in bulk grocery settings.
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,347
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Emhope1107
    Newest Member
    Emhope1107
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • knitty kitty
      Is this celiac?

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @Hmart, The reason why your intestinal damage was so severe, yet your tTg IgA was so minimal can be due to cutting back on gluten (and food in general) due to worsening symptoms.  The tTg IgA antibodies are made in the intestines.  While three grams of gluten per day for several weeks are enough to cause gastrointestinal symptoms, ten grams of gluten per day for for several weeks are required to provoke sufficient antibody production so that the antibodies move out of the intestines and into the blood stream where they can be measured in blood tests.  Since you reduced your gluten consumption before testing, the antibody production went down and did not leave the intestines, hence lower than expected tTg IgA.   Still having abdominal pain and other symptoms this far out is indicative of nutritional deficiencies.  With such a severely damaged small intestine, you are not absorbing sufficient nutrients, especially Thiamine Vitamin B 1, so your body us burning stored fat and even breaking down muscle to fuel your body.   Yes, it is a very good idea to supplement with vitamins and minerals during healing.  The eight essential B vitamins are water soluble and easily lost with diarrhea.  The B vitamins all work together interconnectedly, and should be supplemented together.  Taking vitamin supplements provides your body with greater opportunity to absorb them.  Thiamine and the other B vitamins cannot be stored for long, so they must be replenished every day.  Thiamine tends to become depleted first which leads to Gastrointestinal Beriberi, a condition that doctors frequently fail to recognize.  Symptoms of Gastrointestinal Beriberi are abdominal pain and nausea, but neuropathy can also occur, as well as body and joint pain, headaches and more.  Heart rhythm disruptions including tachycardia are classic symptoms of thiamine deficiency.  Heart attack patients are routinely administered thiamine now.   Blood tests for vitamins are notoriously inaccurate.  You can have "normal" blood levels, while tissues and organs are depleted.  Such is the case with Gastrointestinal Beriberi, a thiamine deficiency in the digestive tract.  Eating a diet high in carbohydrates, like rice, starches, and sugar, can further deplete thiamine.  The more carbohydrates one eats, the more thiamine is required per calorie to turn carbs into energy.  Burning stored fats require less thiamine, so in times of thiamine shortage, the body burns fat and muscles instead.  Muscle wasting is a classic symptoms of thiamine deficiency.  A high carbohydrate diet may also promote SIBO and/or Candida infection which can also add to symptoms.  Thiamine is required to keep SIBO and Candida in check.   Thiamine works with Pyridoxine B 6, so if Thiamine is low and can't interact with Pyridoxine, the unused B 6 accumulates and shows up as high.   Look into the Autoimmune Protocol diet.  Dr. Sarah Ballantyne is a Celiac herself.  Her book "The Paleo Approach" has been most helpful to me.  Following the AIP diet made a huge improvement in my symptoms.  Between the AIP diet and correcting nutritional deficiencies, I felt much better after a long struggle with not feeling well.   Do talk to your doctor about Gastrointestinal Beriberi.  Share the article linked below. Thiamine, gastrointestinal beriberi and acetylcholine signaling https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12014454/ Keep us posted on your progress!
    • Trish G
      Fiber Supplement

      By Trish G · Posted

      Thanks, that's a great addition that I hadn't thought of. 
    • trents
      Is this celiac?

      By trents · Posted

      Other diseases, medical conditions, medications and even (for some people) some non-gluten foods can cause villous atrophy. There is also something called refractory celiac disease but it is pretty uncommon.
    • trents
      ttg iga high (646 mg/dl) other results are normal

      By trents · Posted

      knitty kitty asks a very relevant question. So many people make the mistake of experimenting with the gluten free diet or even a reduced gluten diet soon before getting formally tested.
    • trents
      Fiber Supplement

      By trents · Posted

      Another great fiber option is dried apricots. Four of them give you 3g of fiber and I find they don't produce all the gas that some other high fiber options do. They taste good too. Costco sells a large bag of them that are labeled gluten-free so you don't have to worry about cross contamination issues like you might in bulk grocery settings.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.