Just Need Some Reassurance

[Aries]

Hi everyone, I just need some reassurance. I have 1 more full week in my gluten challenge but am considering asking if I can do my blood work sooner. I've had an ultrasound of my liver, and gallbladder but they say my pancreas had suboptimal visualized due to gas, which I find odd since I had fasted for over 14 hours before my ultrasound and my Dr says they are all fine. All other blood work has been normal. I'm worried this wont be Celiac but something worse. I'm sick of feeling sick, I just want to feel better. I am so confused as to how I can feel good for a day or even a few days and then I can wake up in the middle of the night with nausea, abdominal pain, a lot of bloading and fatigue since I have been very good about eating my 4+ slices of wheat bread a day. I would think I would feel really bad every day, not have a few days of feeling good between the bad ones. Is this normal during a challenge? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[stef-the-kicking-cuty]

I don't really know, what to say here, because everyone is reacting different with their gluten problem. All I can say is, in the beginning, when my whole problems started, yes, I did have good days and bad days with pretty much the same amount of gluten. Another thing, that is odd, that there are also people, who apparently have celiac disease and show no symptoms at all. Please, wait for some other answers, because only one answer (mine) might not be enough for you to figure it out.

Wishing you the best, Stef

[Mari]

I found that 14 hours or even a several day fast wasn't enough time to stop gas formation even tho most of the food had come thru. The bacteria which cause fermentation in the gut can produce an amazing amount of gas from a small amount of carbohydrates. Your symptoms suggest to me that your intestinal flora are out of balance and you have toxin producing bacteria in the mix and possibly yeasts. Gluten is a high in carbohydrates and these organisms grow too well in it.

I can think of two common causes of the pain you have - one is the gluten autoimmune reaction which in me causes inflamation and swelling of the small intestine. This impedes the partially digested food from progressing through you giving the bacteria and yeasts plenty of time to cause an explosion of gas. Gas pains can be intensely painful. Getting the small intestine to clear out can be difficult, magnesium laxatives only work on the large intestine so you need to increase peristalsis in the small intestine. I use a herbal laxative, Cascara sangrada and other herbal laxatives are available at most health food stores. Some seem to get relief using PeptoBismo. Cut down on carbohydrates and take more digestive enzymes even between meals. Increase probiotics and yogurt. The spice turmeric amy help - information and instructions online.

The other is that your bile system is conjested. It is not uncommon to have this problem with no indication on the ultrasound. When there is congestion in the bile duct it tends to also partially obstruct the pancreatic duct which is right next to it so you are low in pancreatic enzymes. If this persists you might want to look at the CureZone Liver Flush Support Forum to see what other people do.

Hope this helps and let us know if you go back to normal on a gluten-free diet.