Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Reacting To Trace Amounts Of Wheat

happylittlemama

Recommended Posts

happylittlemama Rookie
happylittlemama
Posted

Ugh. Today I have spent the day bonding with the toilet. And the only thing I can think of that has caused this bad of a reaction is a trace amount of wheat warning on a bottle of paprika my son used in spaghetti sauce last night. It seems that now 4 months on the gluten-free diet has caused knee jerk reactions to even trace amounts of wheat in spices. Is this normal? Do others have this reaction? And ohmigosh it's in everything! Almost immediately after eating anything risky I'm getting migraines, joint pain, canker sores and then the emergency dash to a bathroom. It was never this bad except on rare occasions before I got diagnosed. My husband gave me 5 small bottle cap candies to eat a few weeks ago and I had horrible stomach cramps from those, which we later realized had been processed on machinery that processes wheat containing products.

Is there anything you can do to speed up the "elimination" procedure on getting wheat out of your system (besides befriending the nearest toilet)?

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


dilettantesteph Collaborator
dilettantesteph
Posted

It is perfectly normal for some of us to react to minute amounts of gluten. It is not normal for the rest of us. When I first got diagnosed I couldn't understand how it was that I reacted to things that other celiacs ate without any problems. We aren't all the same. It was such a relief when I finally figured that out. I only use fresh spices which I can wash first. I pretty well only eat things that I can wash first. I even wash my whole grains. I don't eat the processed ones. I also sort them and every once in awhile I find gluten grains in there. No wonder. I haven't figured out a way to make it go away faster except to wait for my body to heal. Glutenings are not nearly as bad now and they go away faster too.

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

I went through a phase this spring where I was reacting to trace amounts of gluten. Fortunately, now that I'm on the right amount of thyroid medicine, my immune system seems to have decided that a molecule or two of gluten is actually not going to kill me. The high sensitivity can come and go.

Drink lots of fluid to help your body flush the gluten out and keep you hydrated from the D.

jerseyangel Proficient
jerseyangel
Posted

I've been gluten-free for over 5 years and I continue to be extremely sensitive to trace amounts of gluten. I was hoping that it would settle down, but I've about given up hope on that and stick with what I know is safe for me which is mostly whole foods that I cook myself.

It's different for everyone :)

Mari Contributor
Mari
Posted

I'm still very sensitive to gluten after 5 years gluten-free. I don't have a wheat allergy so my symptoms start about 6 hours after eating gluten. If I inhale gluten as with a pot of boiling pasta I begin reacting almost immediately with brain fog, poor balance and decreasing energy.

polarbearscooby Explorer
polarbearscooby
Posted

It seems every month I get more and more sensitive to wheat...I used to be able to eat out more...at certain places...and now I can't eat out hardly at all. I can't eat anything that's "made in the same facility as".... It's a struggle

GFinDC Veteran
GFinDC
Posted

Try searching on "glutened" and see what other people have tried.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Marz Enthusiast
Marz
Posted

Unfortunately yes, some of us are that sensitive. Anything with "traces of gluten" makes me just as ill as the "real thing". I took a flavoured version of maize/corn porridge a few weeks ago when the non-flavoured was out of stock, not checking the label, and found out only after eating a bowl that it had "traces of gluten". I checked after the unexpected loo befriending, and lo and behold! Love that choice of words btw :)

I sometimes use products that are "made in the same factory as", hoping they've at least kept the products separate, but I'm sure some people don't even risk that.

Rowena Rising Star
Rowena
Posted

*runs* I'm gettin outta yer way! Don't push me! Darn it! *falls from running so fast*

Ugh. Today I have spent the day bonding with the toilet.

Ah, John and I have become quite good friends. I've talked with him a lot in the past year and a half. *grin*

Anyway, I've only been on this diet for just under a month. ( five days till its been a month!) But I can tell ye, ye ain't the only one who reacts like that to traces of gluten. (But for me its very annoying because I cannot throw up. Not for the life of me. Only times I throw up are when I eat fish. Strange thing is I don't throw up when something contains fish oils or something, I just get nauseous and the pain is awful.) As for how to cope with it, I don't cope well probably. I curl up in my bed with a bowl, just in case, ye know. Then I read or play video game. (By which I mean watch my hubby play video games. I never have enough energy to do more than that. And I only do so for a few minutes before falling asleep.) Sometimes I'll eat a larabar... (My version of the whole eat crackers to settle your stomach deal.)

happylittlemama Rookie
happylittlemama
Posted
  • Author

Thanks for your posts. It's always nice to know you aren't the only one suffering out there. I've been getting a little better that when I am glutened within two days I'm ok again. I used to never throw up, and now I notice I have a lot more nausea with cases of throwing up as well. My iron is back up (thanks to IV infusion iron) so I think that helps me not feel like I'm dragging and keeps me down for days at a time. All part of the healing, I suppose. I had read that eating apples helps? Anyone tried that? I take benedryl that helps with the hives I'll get. Oh, and I didn't think this was going to be an issue but I got suckered into trying some kind of facial stuff in the mall one day and while the reaction was immediate, I had acne and hives within a few days of using it. So, now I know I have to watch for what is going on me externally too.

Thanks again for the posts. HOpe you all have faster recoveries after your glutenings.

  • 2 months later...
Gormur Newbie
Gormur
Posted

yea i'm more sensitive than i thought. i went out for dinner (big mistake) and only had a salad, but apparently the salad dressing had gluten in it cause within 30min i was feeling really depressed, anxious, dizzy and hot..sweating.. Luckily my mom was there and had an epipen, so i gave myself a shot and started to better within a few hours

Visiting my family over the holiday, i found out my cousin is also celiac. Apparently her allergy is so severe she has a reaction from the smell of wheat/gluten in the room

I also can't eat anything with trace amounts or possible traces of wheat/gluten/etc. I ate a couple nuts today, got a headache, rash and my body started to itch like i had fleas. My joints are still really rigid. Then i looked at the back of the container - may contain wheat, soy and other nuts. :angry:

Beware!

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,902
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Patty6133
    Newest Member
    Patty6133
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      New (possible) celiac diagnosis

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the forum, @Judy M! Yes, he definitely needs to continue eating gluten until the day of the endoscopy. Not sure why the GI doc advised otherwise but it was a bum steer.  Celiac disease has a genetic component but also an "epigenetic" component. Let me explain. There are two main genes that have been identified as providing the "potential" to develop "active" celiac disease. We know them as HLA-DQ 2.5 (aka, HLA-DQ 2) and HLA-DQ8. Without one or both of these genes it is highly unlikely that a person will develop celiac disease at some point in their life. About 40% of the general population carry one or both of these two genes but only about 1% of the population develops active celiac disease. Thus, possessing the genetic potential for celiac disease is far less than deterministic. Most who have the potential never develop the disease. In order for the potential to develop celiac disease to turn into active celiac disease, some triggering stress event or events must "turn on" the latent genes. This triggering stress event can be a viral infection, some other medical event, or even prolonged psychological/emotional trauma. This part of the equation is difficult to quantify but this is the epigenetic dimension of the disease. Epigenetics has to do with the influence that environmental factors and things not coded into the DNA itself have to do in "turning on" susceptible genes. And this is why celiac disease can develop at any stage of life. Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition (not a food allergy) that causes inflammation in the lining of the small bowel. The ingestion of gluten causes the body to attack the cells of this lining which, over time, damages and destroys them, impairing the body's ability to absorb nutrients since this is the part of the intestinal track responsible for nutrient absorption and also causing numerous other food sensitivities such as dairy/lactose intolerance. There is another gluten-related disorder known as NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity or just, "gluten sensitivity") that is not autoimmune in nature and which does not damage the small bowel lining. However, NCGS shares many of the same symptoms with celiac disease such as gas, bloating, and diarrhea. It is also much more common than celiac disease. There is no test for NCGS so, because they share common symptoms, celiac disease must first be ruled out through formal testing for celiac disease. This is where your husband is right now. It should also be said that some experts believe NCGS can transition into celiac disease. I hope this helps.
    • Judy M
      New (possible) celiac diagnosis

      By Judy M · Posted

      My husband has had lactose intolerance for his entire life (he's 68 yo).  So, he's used to gastro issues. But for the past year he's been experiencing bouts of diarrhea that last for hours.  He finally went to his gastroenterologist ... several blood tests ruled out other maladies, but his celiac results are suspect.  He is scheduled for an endoscopy and colonoscopy in 2 weeks.  He was told to eat "gluten free" until the tests!!!  I, and he know nothing about this "diet" much less how to navigate his in daily life!! The more I read, the more my head is spinning.  So I guess I have 2 questions.  First, I read on this website that prior to testing, eat gluten so as not to compromise the testing!  Is that true? His primary care doctor told him to eat gluten free prior to testing!  I'm so confused.  Second, I read that celiac disease is genetic or caused by other ways such as surgery.  No family history but Gall bladder removal 7 years ago, maybe?  But how in God's name does something like this crop up and now is so awful he can't go a day without worrying.  He still works in Manhattan and considers himself lucky if he gets there without incident!  Advice from those who know would be appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!
    • Scott Adams
      Patiently Waiting to See Results

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      You've done an excellent job of meticulously tracking the rash's unpredictable behavior, from its symmetrical spread and stubborn scabbing to the potential triggers you've identified, like the asthma medication and dietary changes. It's particularly telling that the rash seems to flare with wheat consumption, even though your initial blood test was negative—as you've noted, being off wheat before a test can sometimes lead to a false negative, and your description of the other symptoms—joint pain, brain fog, stomach issues—is very compelling. The symmetry of the rash is a crucial detail that often points toward an internal cause, such as an autoimmune response or a systemic reaction, rather than just an external irritant like a plant or mites. I hope your doctor tomorrow takes the time to listen carefully to all of this evidence you've gathered and works with you to find some real answers and effective relief. Don't be discouraged if the rash fluctuates; your detailed history is the most valuable tool you have for getting an accurate diagnosis.
    • Scott Adams
      Gluten free beer ?

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      In this case the beer is excellent, but for those who are super sensitive it is likely better to go the full gluten-free beer route. Lakefront Brewery (another sponsor!) has good gluten-free beer made without any gluten ingredients.
    • trents
      Patiently Waiting to See Results

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the forum, @catsrlife! Celiac disease can be diagnosed without committing to a full-blown "gluten challenge" if you get a skin biopsy done during an active outbreak of dermatitis herpetiformis, assuming that is what is causing the rash. There is no other known cause for dermatitis herpetiformis so it is definitive for celiac disease. You would need to find a dermatologist who is familiar with doing the biopsy correctly, however. The samples need to be taken next to the pustules, not on them . . . a mistake many dermatologists make when biopsying for dermatitis herpetiformis. 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.