Self Test With Gluten(on Purpose)

[daylilyblue]

Hi Has anyone ever glutened themselves on purpose? I have been gluten free for over 6wks and am tempted to gluten myself to see if there is a difference. Sounds crazy I know but blood results were negative 2 mos ago but FNP recommended I try the diet. I felt much better for a couple of days but since then it has been up and down. Some of those times when I felt bad I knew I'd been glutened but sometimes I couldn't figure out 1 thing that I ate that could have made me feel bad. Some days I have 0 pain and have energy. Some days-like today-my joints hurt, I have no energy and feel like I'm in a fog. So could the good days just be coincidence? I have been like this for at least 4 yrs. Have had tons of blood work-all negative except a constantly elevated sed rate. Fatigue has been another constant. I have had 3 minimally positive RF. I have had GI problems for years-reflux, IBS with diarrhea, bloat, horrible gas and abdominal pain. Gall bladder removed 10 yrs ago. Mom and sister have IBS symptoms also(pain and diarrhea). Now I'm having constipation problems. Constipation was the usual for me when I was a child and up to my 40's. I'm 51 now and back to it. The change of diet has made no difference at all. I saw my new Rheumatologist today(2nd visit) and she thinks i may have rheumatoid arthritis in a mild form considering my symptoms of joint pain(hands and feet),fatigue and elevated RF. Symptoms could go both ways-celiac disease or RA. I'm thinking of trying over the wkend so if I feel like crap I won't have to struggle thru work. Just curious if anyone else has put it to the test? Thanks Debi

[happygirl]

I think lots of people do it, especially people who don't have definitive diagnoses. If one's symptoms aren't resolved on the diet (and not a diagnosed Celiac), then i don't think many pople would stay on the diet if it isn't their answer.

You may want to consider doing the 'gluten challenge' a little while later, after you have been gluten free a bit longer, to see if you improve at all. You indicated that you have eaten some gluten, so you haven't been gluten free the whole time. If gluten is your problem, for many, it takes longer than 6 weeks to see results, especially when its not 100% gluten free. (Don't worry, its a steep learning curve)

Have you been evaluated for vitamin/mineral deficiencies that are common with Celiac?

Welcome to the board.

[daphniela]

I'm the only one in my house gluten free so I get tempted by cakes and cookies to ingest gluten. Whenever I have gluten, I get bad gas. I also get diarrhea. Your symptoms may be different. You will only know if you start ingesting gluten again what your reaction will be.

[GFinDC]

I agree you really should stick with the diet another month or so before doing a challenge. Are you eating whole foods or processed foods?You can lower your potential for cross contamination to gluten by using whole foods and cooking them yourself at home. A little bit of gluten can have a big affect on us. Another thing to think about is other possible food sensitivities you might have. Like dairy, many people have a dairy intolerance, especially at first.

[smalltownslackermom]

I glutened myself on purpose. I had been gluten-free for months through the winter. Then just this spring I was aiming to eat gluten long enough to get bloodtests but I couldn't hack the gluten-challenge I got so sick. All the stomach pain and diarrhea and acid reflux and trouble breathing and fatigue and pain! My son has the definitive diagnosis and one sister is self-diagnosed, as they say.

When I first went gluten-free it took a few months for all the symptoms to go away and to get the hang of not-accidentally glutening myself. Even after a couple months for example I would still occasionally grab a handful of chex mix and down it, totally forgetting there would be Wheat Chex in it! Or I remember popping a chicken nugget in my mouth and eating it and then realizing what I'd done.

[Tim-n-VA]

For years I thought I regularly got mild food poisoning (two or three times a month? What was I thinking?). My diagnosis wasn't in response to those symptoms but as part of investigating liver issues. I just went gluten free when I got the diagnosis and the occasional "food poisoning" stopped.

I have been tempted to try something so that I could get a definitive link to the symptoms to allow me to identify accidental gluten in the future. That lead to the whole "If you can only have one more gluten product, what will it be?" issue.

While I haven't actually tried it yet, I finally decided that if/when I do this, it should be something relatively isolated. That is, something that cannot cause anything except gluten reactions. That eliminated my candidate test foods of burgers, pizza, pasta, etc. because there would still be the chance that one of the toppings and/or side items caused a problem.

If you want to do this, I'd do it almost like a fasting blood test. Stop eating a few hours before bed and eat a single slice of bread on an empty stomach the next morning with just water. While that doesn't sound appetizing, you will have reduced the chance of any symptoms being caused by anything else.