Will Cc Stop Me Getting Better Initially?

[MarkR555]

Hi folks. Newly diagnosed celiac here as of last friday, although my doc told me he thought I had it about a month ago - so i've been gluten free for 2 weeks now.

I am being very strict about what I eat, but I live in a shared house with 5 other young professionals. I was wondering if cross contamination is going to stop me getting better at all in this initial phase of healing after going gluten free? I understand CC is bad and damaging and should be avoided, but i'll need to buy a bunch of new kitchen stuff and telling everyone not to use it is going to be a pain in the bum.

Specifically, I am asking if CC is going to stop me getting better at all and making any progress during these first few weeks / months? Or is CC something I have to worry about more when I become more sensitive to gluten since i've been on a gluten free diet for a while?

I do understand I need to avoid CC at all costs, i'm just wondering if a few slip ups will stop me making any progress and healing at all.

Thanks,

Mark

[aderifield]

Hi, Mark, I'm new to this, also. By no means an expert, but I can tell you this.... Depending on the severity and progression of your disease, going gluten-free even when you totally control your environment and personally handle and fix all your own food can be a very hard road and recovery can be confusing and fraught with uncertainty over whether you are advancing under the best of conditions. I would explain your predicament to everyone in the household, buy those new utensils and keep them in a baggie. Ask for their agreement that you have a cabinet and a countertop that is for your use alone. I'm sure you'll get a lot of good advice here from ppl who are much more familiar with the ins and outs of having gluten eaters in the house, but I wanted to encourage you not to take this frivolously.

Good luck to you.

[Skylark]

Sorry, but there is no answer for you about CC. A lot of celiacs heal fine in shared kitchens. Problem is, some folks find that their TTG doesn't drop until they take their whole kitchen gluten-free. There's no way in advance for you to know, and symptoms don't necessarily correlate with the amount of intestinal damage.

Do your best, and see how things look on followup.

[BeckyWJ]

My 10 yr old kept reacting at odd times once she went gluten free. Among a few other similar things, the peanut butter was contaminated because my son would make pb sandwiches with it...putting the knife in the peanut butter more than once. She would also react to some foods that were gluten free but were "processed in a facility with gluten." Now that she's been gluten free for a year, the foods that were processed in a facility with gluten don't bother her. I know her experience goes against the flow of most people's experiences.

My thoughts are: yes, cc at the beginning can dramatically impede your recovery. It will be hard. I have 5 children, 13 and under, so I feel your pain in living with others and being gluten-free. As another poster said, having dediated things for yourself along with a dedicated place to put them is a great idea! Good luck!