Am I Gluten Or Diary Intolerant?

[beals]

I'm pretty sure I have some type of food allergy, but I'm confused about which one. Here are some of my symptoms: constant fatigue, sinus cold symptoms, stomach problems (intestines growling, diarrhea, stomach pain), post nasal-drip, and diziness. I originally thought I was allergic to gluten, because each time I eat a meal with bread (hamburgers at fast food places are a big trigger) I get severe mucus in the back of my throat, I get tired and very dizzy. But now I'm starting to think I might also have a dairy allergy, because I just ate some yogurt and my intestines started making crazy noises and I feel like I might have to go diarrhea.

What should I do? I would rather not go to the doctor's just yet because I'm poor and can't afford all the testing. Should I cut out all gluten first? Or cut out dairy AND gluten? I'm so sick of these awful symptoms, so please if someone can give me some advice I would be so so grateful!

[lisa25]

My experience with experimenting with my diet went like this. I tried gluten free, felt a tiny bit better but not enough to know that it wasn't just psychological and wishful thinking. Then I got anti-body testing for gluten and it came back positive for gluten sensitivity. Several months later, still not feeling good I found out that it is common to have other food intolerances. I had read that dairy problems can cause sinus, ear, and mucus issues, which I have had since an infant. I tried dairy free along with gluten free and couldn't tell a difference. This was probably due to the fact that I replaced all of my dairy items with soy items. When I finally broke down and got more anti-body testing I found out I was intolerant to dairy and soy...which is most likely the reason the trial gluten free & dairy free diet didn't help. After starting gluten, dairy, and soy free diet, I felt tons better, but still not 100%. I have now been experimenting with egg free and corn free. I also was recently diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia. So, it has been frustrating figuring everything out, but I finally feel like I am getting somewhere. I hope this helps in deciding what you should do.

[beals]

Hello and thank you for replying!

Man, that must have been frustrating to find out you're allergic to three kinds of foods rather than one! Glad you finally found the culprits, though. Hmm. Well I'm pretty sure that I'm allergic to gluten because of how severe my post nasal drip symptoms get after I eat hamburger buns...the dairy I'm not so sure. I guess I will try a gluten free only diet first, then cut out diary as well if I don't feel better. How long do you reckon I will start to see a difference? I've read that it's different for everyone, but is a month a decent amount of time?

[ravenwoodglass]

The first thing you need to know is that if you are gluten free you can't be tested for celiac. You have to be eating gluten. What that means is if you go gluten free and feel better but you still feel you need a diagnosis you will have to go back on gluten for 2 to 3 months. If your body wants to be gluten free those 2 or 3 months will be miserable months.

That said you don't need a doctors permission to be gluten free and it may well help your problems disappear. If you want to do a trial of the diet you have to be strict. It would be a good idea to read as much as you can here and when you go gluten free you should also give up dairy for at least a couple months. After you have been feeling good for a while then you can challenge dairy starting with hard cheeses like cheddar and yogurt. It is also a good idea, as the other poster stated to go easy on soy at first. Start out with whole foods and leave the specialty gluten free stuff alone at first.

[beals]

Thank you for replying, ravenwoodglass.

Okay, I'm going to go on the diet and I'm reading as much as possible but still a little foggy in some areas. Are condiments such as ketchup, BBQ sauce, and ranch dressing not allowed? Can someone give me an example of what they eat on a daily basis?