Anti-gliadin Antibody Test

[nobigideas]

Hi, my doctor has been terribly unhelpful over the last year or so since he diagnosed me with celiac disease. Initially, he even told me that gluten present in condiments or products that are not wheat-based wouldn't cause me any problems. This past monday even, he said most people cheat and get along fine anyways. I'm not sure if any of this is true, but I've often read that even the most negligible amounts of gluten can cause quite severe reactions. So I have been struggling with continued symptoms despite being gluten free for the last eight months. In January my AGA levels were at .2 (down from 17 at diagnosis) and, as of this week, they are at .8. My doctor does not believe these levels should be causing my symptoms. I was just wondering if any of you could share what your doctors have said regarding this issue, or if you have heard contradictory information.

I understand that a gluten free diet must be very strict, I am just wondering specifically about the AGA levels.

Thanks, John.

[gf4life]

Hi nobigideas,

Welcome to the board!

I don't know specifically about the numbers since all labs seem to use a different system of calculating. But I do knoww that ANY amount of gluten is too much. And certainly enough to cause symptoms in some people. You might have to get much more strict than you have been and not go by this particular doctors comments about the diet. Maybe he had other Celiac patients who cheated and didn't suffer from outward symptoms, but they certain suffered inside. Even the tiniest amount of gluten consumed over a time period can cause damage to the intestines and put you at risk for developing other related illnesses. There is plenty of information already posted here at this site, and at lots of other. If there is a specific question about something, don't hesitate to ask. Someone here should have an answer for you.

God bless,

Mariann

[KaitiUSA]

Welcome to the board Ask any questions there are great people on here.

Any amount of cheating is bad..it is not fine. It does damage to your intestines. Your body not only attacks the gluten but it attacks where the gluten is starting to be absorbed, your villi. There will be accidents though. Your doctor may not know alot about celiac if he thinks that cheating is ok. What would be the point of the diet if we were allowed to cheat on it? hello doctors?

Think about this...you have a car and you crash it and there is damage...does this mean you should keep crashing it and giving it more damage? Eventually the car will get too much damage to it and you will see signs of wear and tear until it shuts down....

This is a link to some lists that might be helpful to you. The forbidden list may help as a guideline while you learn the ropes to celiac.

https://www.celiac.com/st_main.html?p_catid=12

There are also brands that will not hide any wheat,rye,barley, or oats on their label. So on these brands below they are safe unless WRBO is listed on the label.

Aunt Nelly's

Balance

Baskin Robbins

Ben & Jerry

Betty Crocker

Blue Bunny

Breyers

Campbells

Cascadian Farms

Celestial Seasonings

Country Crock

Edy's

General Mills

Good Humor

Green Giant

Haagen Daz

Hellman's

Hershey

Hormel

Hungry Jack

Jiffy

Knorr

Kozy Shack

Kraft

Libby's

Lipton

Martha White

McCormick

Nabisco

Nestle

Old El Paso

Ortega

Pillsbury

Popsicle

Post

Progresso

Russell Stover

Seneca Foods

Smucker

Stokely's

Sunny Delight

T Marzetti

Tyson

Unilever

Wishbone

Yoplait

Zatarain's