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Gluten Free Diet Stops Working After A While?

Leeis2k

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Leeis2k Newbie
Leeis2k
Posted

Hi, new to the forum and Celiac disease. I was never officially diagnosed with Celiac disease but i have all the symptoms, so i went on a gluten free diet and it was amazing how much better i felt but then slowly i started to revert back.

After 2 months or so after the diet stopped working started to eat normal foods again and i had a HUGE burst of energy and still felt a little off but much better then i had been feeling. Now im right back were i was before the diet. (horrible Brain fog,tired all the time,etc)

Is it normal to keep changing diets back and forth? Or was i missing something important while i was on the gluten free diet?

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ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted

There could have been something you were missing on the diet. It is more than just food, it is how it is prepared, what the foods are that you are eating, are they produced in the same plant as gluten foods, are they actually gluten free or 'gluten free by ingredients', eliminating gluten in the stuff you cook with, for example we can't share toasters, colanders and wooden utensils need to be replaced, drugs and supplements need to be checked etc. The diet isn't easy and it is easy for gluten to slip in from places you would not expect.

Since you are back on gluten stay on it for a couple of months then get to the doctor and get a celiac screening done. Then when all testing is over get back on the diet, strictly, and also eliminate dairy at first.

T.H. Community Regular
T.H.
Posted

Yeah, I'd say you were missing something, because I don't believe I've ever heard of the diet not working suddenly. Two things that might apply?

1. Many people who go off of gluten get more sensitized to it, so foods with no gluten but with gluten contamination might not bother you at first, but could start to bother you the longer you stay away from gluten.

2. You might have other food issues. I have had food allergies for quite a while that I never had a clue about. I only started having trouble with them AFTER I went gluten free (brain fog, exhaustion, dizziness, and aches and pains were my reactions to these foods I was allergic to). I had to cut lots of food from my diet and start a food journal recording my foods and my reactions for me to hunt down some of them, and an allergy test got some more.

Maybe one of those? Or...hmmm...parasites? Some parasites affect your digestion and are affected by what you eat in better and worse ways. I wonder if a parasite might adjust to changes in diet after a certain time period, which could explain why you started feeling bad again? I honestly have no idea, it just popped to mind as a 'way out in left field' possibility, ya know? :)

Hi, new to the forum and Celiac disease. I was never officially diagnosed with Celiac disease but i have all the symptoms, so i went on a gluten free diet and it was amazing how much better i felt but then slowly i started to revert back.

After 2 months or so after the diet stopped working started to eat normal foods again and i had a HUGE burst of energy and still felt a little off but much better then i had been feeling. Now im right back were i was before the diet. (horrible Brain fog,tired all the time,etc)

Is it normal to keep changing diets back and forth? Or was i missing something important while i was on the gluten free diet?

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

You really need to work with a doctor and get celiac tests and a full medical workup for the chronic fatigue and GI trouble. Celiac is not the only thing that can cause bowel issues and there are some things like Crohn's that need to be ruled out.

Leeis2k Newbie
Leeis2k
Posted
  • Author

Well i was strictly on the gluten-free diet. I even got off all the allergy causing foods. I also made sure not use ANYTHING that could have been contaminated by gluten. It really seems like for some reason when i start the diet i feel great for a week or so then by body misses something that the gluten free diet isn't giving me. It feels like a vitamin deficiency that i somewhat get back eating normal foods but slowly lose on a gluten-free diet.

As far as getting checked out i have no insurance and all the moron doctors keep saying "you look healthy so it can only be depression" without running any tests i ask for. Without them getting paid they really could care less.

Leeis2k Newbie
Leeis2k
Posted
  • Author

You really need to work with a doctor and get celiac tests and a full medical workup for the chronic fatigue and GI trouble. Celiac is not the only thing that can cause bowel issues and there are some things like Crohn's that need to be ruled out.

I was thinking Chohn's too because my mother has it. The only problem is i have NO pain at all. That seems to be the main symptom of Chohn's.

Wolicki Enthusiast
Wolicki
Posted

You need to stick with the diet strictly. You are very likely experiencing gluten withdrawal. It can be pretty severe. You have to just ride through it- the fatigue, brain fog, etc. It does go away! Good luck.

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mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted

If you are a celiac and have been having malabsorption problems, it is highly likely that you are deficient in many vitamins and minerals, and that your pancreas is not putting out enough digestive enzymes to digest your food properly. As others have said, you may also have other intolerances that only appear after the gluten is gone because the gluten tends to mask the other problems.

Do go to your doctor and have your vitamins and minerals checked and get on a gluten-eating program (2-3 months) to allow for the antibodies to build up in your body and render a positive test result (blood and biopsy). While you are going through this gluten-eating fest you might try taking some digestive enzymes to supplement what your pancreas is failing to do so that you do not suffer unduly.

Good luck with whatever route you decide to take. Doctors are notoriously ill-informed about celiac and many still believe it is a very rare disease :blink:

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      Son's legs shaking

      By lizzie42 · Posted

      Neither of them were anemic 6 months after the Celiac diagnosis. His other vitamin levels (d, B12) were never low. My daughters levels were normal after the first 6 months. Is the thiamine test just called thiamine? 
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      Yes, I do think they need a Thiamine supplement at least. Especially since they eat red meat only occasionally. Most fruits and vegetables are not good sources of Thiamine.  Legumes (beans) do contain thiamine.  Fruits and veggies do have some of the other B vitamins, but thiamine B 1 and  Cobalamine B12 are mostly found in meats.  Meat, especially organ meats like liver, are the best sources of Thiamine, B12, and the six other B vitamins and important minerals like iron.   Thiamine has antibacterial and antiviral properties.  Thiamine is important to our immune systems.  We need more thiamine when we're physically ill or injured, when we're under stress emotionally, and when we exercise, especially outside in hot weather.  We need thiamine and other B vitamins like Niacin B 3 to keep our gastrointestinal tract healthy.  We can't store thiamine for very long.  We can get low in thiamine within three days.  Symptoms can appear suddenly when a high carbohydrate diet is consumed.  (Rice and beans are high in carbohydrates.)  A twenty percent increase in dietary thiamine causes an eighty percent increase in brain function, so symptoms can wax and wane depending on what one eats.  The earliest symptoms like fatigue and anxiety are easily contributed to other things or life events and dismissed.   Correcting nutritional deficiencies needs to be done quickly, especially in children, so their growth isn't stunted.  Nutritional deficiencies can affect intelligence.  Vitamin D deficiency can cause short stature and poor bone formation.   Is your son taking anything for the anemia?  Is the anemia caused by B12 or iron deficiency?  
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