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

More Susceptible To Illness?

Loey

By Loey
in Related Issues & Disorders

Recommended Posts

Loey Rising Star
Loey
Posted
  • Author

My understanding of Celiac is that the damage to the gut wall means that proteins from other foods and other ? can pass into the body and be seen as invading pathogens. Usually foods are broken down and absorbed before they pass through the gut wall, and so do not appear as invaders by the immune system. This adds stress to all the systems, alows opportunistic things like candida to take hold, and also means that the body does not get enough nutrients required for a healthy immune system. The organs get stressed, like the liver whose role is to break down the toxins. The net result is that there is a tendency to get a systemic breakdown, our immune systems are less effective, so we are more susceptible to illness, and gluten appears to be a fundamental culprit behind this. Other food intolerances like lactose, soy etc often appear to be made better by fixing gluten issues. I also suffer from allergies to dust mite and cold water urticaria (hives), and it appears these are linked to the damage caused by gluten. Unravelling the cause and effect chain is not easy but it seems like a very sure bet if you can succesfully get gluten out of your diet, over time (6 months to 5 years), overall health should improve. As you get older the longer it takes to recover. It is critical to be disciplined with gluten and other foods for at least 6 months - 1 year, gluten avoidance needs to be lifelong, other foods might be tolerated after time. I have been working through this for around 3 years, and made numerous mistakes and assumptions by being over confident, ignorant or ill disciplined, yet I have have had moments of excellent health that give me hope I will get on top of this. Forums like this where we exchange experiences are invaluable.

Thank you for your informative and thoughtful reply. I wasn't as strict as I should have been over the holidays (remained totally gluten-free but didn't adhere to IBS restrictions) and I'm still paying for it. I'm changing doctors and have heard excellent things about my new one. My appointment is on the 20th and I'm counting the day. I did finally get over the bug I had but think I was CC'd at the New Year's party I attended. in the future I'll bring a ziplock bag of food. it was the first time we met everyone in our neighborhood (we just moved to a new city and state in June) so I was concerned about looking batty. When it comes to health I don't think it should matter and I learned my lesson.

Wishing all of you a healthy and happy New Year,

Loey

P.S. my old GI in NJ thought that my Celiac had gone undiagnosed for decades.

  • 7 years later...
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted
On 12/28/2010 at 12:58 PM, Gemini said:

 

 

Low white cell counts are entirely normal for people with autoimmune conditions, especially multiple autoimmune problems. I have had life long low white cell counts, which did not improve with the gluten-free diet. Even though all my nutritional deficiencies are now gone and it's been 6 years gluten-free for me, I still have low white cell counts yet I am never sick. I don't catch colds, I have never had the flu and have been around sick people for the past month and haven't become ill. All of their illnesses are highly communicable also. I attribute this to an awesome diet, lots of exercise and the fact I do not share food or drinks with anyone, due to risk of CC for gluten.

 

It sounds like you are still in the healing process and it does take time for things to improve. It took me 3 years, total, to get back to normal. I didn't get sick that much before diagnosis, which is bizarre considering I was suffering from advanced malnutrition. However, now I seem to do very well, even with exposure to germs and bacteria. You'll get there....be patient!

OK...old posts but I thought I would update.  I have been gluten-free for 13 years and had my blood work done recently.  I was gob smacked to see that, for the first time in my adult life, my white cell count is in the normal range!  I asked the doc if they mixed up my blood with someone else's.  :lol:  The scale starts with normal being 3.8 and that is what mine was.  OK, I just barely passed but I always had counts in the 2's, up to 3.0 for a high.  So, I think you can raise them up, I just didn't expect to see it take this long but I am almost 59 so probably the age thing.

Archived

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

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


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,668
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    CDR40
    Newest Member
    CDR40
    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

    • Rejoicephd
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Rejoicephd · Posted

      That and my nutritionist also said that drinking cider is one of the worst drink choices for me, given that I have candida overgrowth.  She said the combination of the alcohol and sugar would be very likely to worsen my candida problem.  She suggested that if I drink, I go for clear vodka, either neat or with a splash of cranberry.   So in summary, I am giving ciders a rest.  Whether it's a gluten risk or sugars and yeast overgrowth, its just not worth it.
    • Inkie
      Tea Bags and Gluten

      By Inkie · Posted

      Thank you for the information ill will definitely bring it into practice .
    • Scott Adams
      Tea Bags and Gluten

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      While plain, pure tea leaves (black, green, or white) are naturally gluten-free, the issue often lies not with the tea itself but with other ingredients or processing. Many flavored teas use barley malt or other gluten-containing grains as a flavoring agent, which would be clearly listed on the ingredient label. Cross-contamination is another possibility, either in the facility where the tea is processed or, surprisingly, from the tea bag material itself—some tea bags are sealed with a wheat-based glue. Furthermore, it's important to consider that your reaction could be to other substances in tea, such as high levels of tannins, which can be hard on the stomach, or to natural histamines or other compounds that can cause a non-celiac immune response. The best way to investigate is to carefully read labels for hidden ingredients, try switching to a certified gluten-free tea brand that uses whole leaf or pyramid-style bags, and see if the reaction persists.
    • Scott Adams
      Inconclusive results

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      This is a challenging and confusing situation. The combination of a positive EMA—which is a highly specific marker rarely yielding false positives—alongside strongly elevated TTG on two separate occasions, years apart, is profoundly suggestive of celiac disease, even in the absence of biopsy damage. This pattern strongly aligns with what is known as "potential celiac disease," where the immune system is clearly activated, but intestinal damage has not yet become visible under the microscope. Your concern about the long-term risk of continued gluten consumption is valid, especially given your family's experience with the consequences of delayed diagnosis. Since your daughter is now at an age where her buy-in is essential for a gluten-free lifestyle, obtaining a definitive answer is crucial for her long-term adherence and health. Given that she is asymptomatic yet serologically positive, a third biopsy now, after a proper 12-week challenge, offers the best chance to capture any microscopic damage that may have developed, providing the concrete evidence needed to justify the dietary change. This isn't about wanting her to have celiac; it's about wanting to prevent the insidious damage that can occur while waiting for symptoms to appear, and ultimately giving her the unambiguous "why" she needs to accept and commit to the necessary treatment. This article might be helpful. It breaks down each type of test, and what a positive results means in terms of the probability that you might have celiac disease. One test that always needs to be done is the IgA Levels/Deficiency Test (often called "Total IGA") because some people are naturally IGA deficient, and if this is the case, then certain blood tests for celiac disease might be false-negative, and other types of tests need to be done to make an accurate diagnosis. The article includes the "Mayo Clinic Protocol," which is the best overall protocol for results to be ~98% accurate.    
    • Scott Adams
      Medication

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Welcome to the community! Generally, for a gluten challenge before celiac disease blood tests, Tylenol (acetaminophen) is considered safe and should not interfere with your antibody results. The medications you typically need to avoid are those like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or naproxen (Aleve) that can cause intestinal irritation, which could potentially complicate the interpretation of an endoscopy if you were to have one. However, it is absolutely crucial that you confirm this with either your gastroenterologist or your surgeon before your procedure. They know the specifics of your case and can give you the definitive green light, ensuring your surgery is comfortable and your celiac testing remains accurate. Best of luck with your surgery tomorrow
×
×
  • 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.