Jump to content

  • 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):

If I Was Only Off Gluten For A Month, How Long Back On B/f Blood Test?

JoyMC

Recommended Posts

JoyMC Newbie
JoyMC
Posted

hi,

this is my first post, but i've been reading for a bit. looks like a great community.

i have only been off gluten for about a month, and i wasn't super careful about cross-contamination; i continued to eat oats and bake bread for my family, etc. now i want to do the blood panel (i understand it's not totally conclusive and i also understand why many people don't bother testing), and i'm wondering how long i need to be back on gluten before the blood test. i looked through the other thread on this question, but that person had been off gluten for like a year.

i'm thinking since i wasn't super seriously off gluten for very long, it shouldn't matter too much? i've been very sick for about ten years prior. i feel awful back on the gluten and could stick it out, but after one day back on gluten, my breastfed baby had an insane diaper rash, and i don't want to put him through more than a week of gluten, if it's affecting him too.

thanks!

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Nugget Newbie
Nugget
Posted

hi,

this is my first post, but i've been reading for a bit. looks like a great community.

i have only been off gluten for about a month, and i wasn't super careful about cross-contamination; i continued to eat oats and bake bread for my family, etc. now i want to do the blood panel (i understand it's not totally conclusive and i also understand why many people don't bother testing), and i'm wondering how long i need to be back on gluten before the blood test. i looked through the other thread on this question, but that person had been off gluten for like a year.

i'm thinking since i wasn't super seriously off gluten for very long, it shouldn't matter too much? i've been very sick for about ten years prior. i feel awful back on the gluten and could stick it out, but after one day back on gluten, my breastfed baby had an insane diaper rash, and i don't want to put him through more than a week of gluten, if it's affecting him too.

thanks!

Hello,

I had a similar experience as you. I had gone low-gluten (not totally gluten-free.... didn't worry about cc) for about three months on my own because I knew I had an issue with wheat and so I thought I'd try out gluten-free to see how I feel. When I had my check-up with my doctor I told him how great i was feeling and he sent me for an antibody blood test that day. It came back a raging positive. That was after three full months. So, as far as blood tests are concerned, just get it done ASAP. It takes a long time to heal. My doctor had me get a endoscopy to confirm the diagnosis and that is where I had to eat gluten again...four servings a day for a whole month. It was horrible.

My advice: Get all your testing done before healing any further. After blood tests, if your doctor decides to do an endoscopy and wants you to eat gluten in preparation, the less healed you are, the less awful you'll feel consuming gluten to prepare for the test.

Good luck!

heather Goble Rookie
heather Goble
Posted

hi,

this is my first post, but i've been reading for a bit. looks like a great community.

i have only been off gluten for about a month, and i wasn't super careful about cross-contamination; i continued to eat oats and bake bread for my family, etc. now i want to do the blood panel (i understand it's not totally conclusive and i also understand why many people don't bother testing), and i'm wondering how long i need to be back on gluten before the blood test. i looked through the other thread on this question, but that person had been off gluten for like a year.

i'm thinking since i wasn't super seriously off gluten for very long, it shouldn't matter too much? i've been very sick for about ten years prior. i feel awful back on the gluten and could stick it out, but after one day back on gluten, my breastfed baby had an insane diaper rash, and i don't want to put him through more than a week of gluten, if it's affecting him too.

thanks!

So glad to see this post as I have the exact same question! I went gluten free for just about a month as well. I wasn't super careful at first of cross contamination, but ended up having bad reactions with even the smallest amount after a week, so was very careful the last three weeks. I went to see a GI who wants to run the blood tests (looks like not the full panel though) and then do the endoscopy as well. I've been reading everyone's posts for a bit and have heard mostly the rule of thumb is 3 months back on gluten. The GI told me I only needed to be on gluten for 3 days! I scheduled the endoscopy and blood tests so that it was a month back on gluten. Anyway, I was hoping that with only doing a month off, a month back on would be enough.

The first few days to a week I had pretty bad reactions to being back on gluten, but they have become less severe and are pretty much back to what they were before going gluten free- mostly extreme fatigue, headaches and constipation. The only thing that is worse is joint pain, my knees are really bothering me and I have nausea after eating.

Cara in Boston Enthusiast
Cara in Boston
Posted

I was only gluten free for 10 days. I guess I was pretty good at it because my blood test went from "absolutely positive" to perfectly fine. My Dr. said eat gluten (4 slices whole wheat bread/day) for three months then come back to be re-tested.

Since it is different for everyone, I have convinced him to at least check (blood test) after 6 weeks to see if the full three months is necessary. He agreed but seems skeptical.

He is a celiac specialist, so I have to assume he knows what he is talking about.

I am hoping my blood shows something going on . . . I'm ready to be done with this.

I read ("Dangerous Grains") that the damage can heal in as little as a week but could take up to 6 months to show again.

Cara

JoyMC Newbie
JoyMC
Posted
  • Author

wow, such different responses. i'm not putting my baby through three months of this, though. (or my five year old, b/c i feel about a million times worse now than i did BEFORE i even went off gluten and i'm not exactly a fun, awesome parent in my current state.)

i'd rather just go off gluten w/o answers than do this for three months.

Archived

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

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. trents
      - trents replied to ThomasA55's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      Iron loss and potential celiac.

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @ThomasA55! Before I give my opinion on your question about whether or not you should undergo a gluten challenge, I would like to know how you react when you get a good dose of gluten? Are you largely asymptomatic or do you experience significant illness such as nausea and diarrhea? You mentioned intermittent joint...
    2. Joseph01
      - Joseph01 replied to bethmon's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      14

      We Keep Getting Glutened With Vegetable Oil

      This is way past due for your post. I have Celiac and have been recovering for more than a year. Doing well. Used Essential oil to day to fry some chicken. Read the label all good. Then ate some chicken. Here comes the gluten reaction. I haven't had a gluten reaction since year. I am angry. I have been so careful with this crap and don't wan't any...
    3. ThomasA55
      - ThomasA55 posted a topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      Iron loss and potential celiac.

      Hey everyone. I'm a young adult who had very high iron in 2024. 64% saturation 160 ferritin. In 2025 I had far lower iron. 26% saturation and 130 ferritin. I know this is still in range but it seems to be a large drop. That combined with the fact that I developed some intermittent joint pain between the two years makes me wonder if I could be celiac. My dietary...
    4. Aretaeus Cappadocia
      - Aretaeus Cappadocia replied to Aretaeus Cappadocia's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      2

      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      Sigh. I posted this yesterday based on the Safeway website. I went back again today to their website to double check. On the page where they are selling Vanilla Bean flavor, it has a distinct Certified Gluten Free label. Other flavors on the Safeway website didn't have the gluten-free statement. Today I went into the store. None of the flavors I...
    5. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to Aretaeus Cappadocia's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      2

      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      Do keep in mind that many of the newly diagnosed have lactose intolerance. This is because the villi lining the intestinal tract are damaged, and can no longer make the enzyme lactAse which breaks down the milk sugar lactOse. When the villi grow back (six months to two years), they can again produce the enzyme lactAse, and lactose intolerance is resolved...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      134,086
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      10,442
    Joseph01
    Newest Member
    Joseph01
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.7k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Iron loss and potential celiac.

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @ThomasA55! Before I give my opinion on your question about whether or not you should undergo a gluten challenge, I would like to know how you react when you get a good dose of gluten? Are you largely asymptomatic or do you experience significant illness such as nausea and diarrhea? You mentioned intermittent joint pain before you began experimenting with a low gluten diet. Anything else?
    • Joseph01
      We Keep Getting Glutened With Vegetable Oil

      By Joseph01 · Posted

      This is way past due for your post.  I have Celiac and have been recovering for more than a year.  Doing well.  Used Essential oil to day to fry some chicken.  Read the label all good.  Then ate some chicken.  Here comes the gluten reaction.  I haven't had a gluten reaction since year.  I am angry.   I have been so careful with this crap and don't wan't any set backs!!!!! Good luck to you with your post.   Celiac is HELL!
    • ThomasA55
      Iron loss and potential celiac.

      By ThomasA55 · Posted

      Hey everyone. I'm a young adult who had very high iron in 2024. 64% saturation 160 ferritin. In 2025 I had far lower iron. 26% saturation and 130 ferritin. I know this is still in range but it seems to be a large drop. That combined with the fact that I developed some intermittent joint pain between the two years makes me wonder if I could be celiac. My dietary intake of iron was pretty steady (mostly in the form of red meat). I did carnivore (therby eliminating gluten) for a bit after the second test and felt improvements in my joints and digestion. I still consume gluten occasionally socially, for religious reasons, and through cross contamination/food sharing. For these reasons, I would need to know if I had it, because although my lifestyle is low gluten its not at the strict level it should be if it turned out I was celiac. I will get a gene test first and hope I don't have DQ2.5,DQ2.2, or DQ8, but if I had any combination of those do you guys think I need proper screening through a gluten challenge / blood test? Other context. From 2024-2025, my b12 stayed about the same in the mid 600s folate went up slightly, but I heard it takes longer for celiac to affect the absorption of these. ANA negative, CRP low, ESR low.  I don't know how much noise exists around the saturation and ferritin, but it caught my eye and Celiac seemed like a possibility. I'm under no illusion that it is probable that I have celiac, only that it may be worth screening given my overall profile.   
    • Aretaeus Cappadocia
      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      By Aretaeus Cappadocia · Posted

      Sigh. I posted this yesterday based on the Safeway website. I went back again today to their website to double check. On the page where they are selling Vanilla Bean flavor, it has a distinct Certified Gluten Free label. Other flavors on the Safeway website didn't have the gluten-free statement. Today I went into the store. None of the flavors I looked at, including Vanilla Bean, have a Gluten Free statement. Is it safe? Who knows. The ingredients are either safe or nearly safe (some have "natural flavor"). There are warnings about "contains milk and soy" but not about wheat - this implies they are safe, but again, who knows. On the other hand, every flavor I checked of their Slow Churn line of ice creams has wheat as an ingredient. 100% not safe.
    • knitty kitty
      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Do keep in mind that many of the newly diagnosed have lactose intolerance.  This is because the villi lining the intestinal tract are damaged, and can no longer make the enzyme lactAse which breaks down the milk sugar lactOse.  When the villi grow back (six months to two years), they can again produce the enzyme lactAse, and lactose intolerance is resolved.  However, some people (both those with and without Celiac Disease) are genetically programmed to stop producing lactase as they age.   Do be aware that many processed foods, including ice cream, use Microbial Transglutaminase, a food additive commonly called "meat glue," used to enhance texture and flavor.  This microbial transglutaminase has the same immunogenicity as tissue transglutaminase which the body produces in response to gluten in people with Celiac Disease.  Tissue Transglutaminase (tTg IgA) is measured to diagnose Celiac Disease in blood tests.  Microbial Transglutaminase acts the same as Tissue Transglutaminase, causing increased intestinal permeability and inflammation.   New findings show that microbial transglutaminase may be able to trigger Celiac Disease and other autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases.   Microbial Transglutaminase is not required to be listed on ingredients labels as it's considered a processing aid, not an ingredient in the U.S.  Microbial Transglutaminase has been GRAS for many years, but that GRAS standing is being questioned more and more as the immunogenicity of microbial transglutaminase is being discovered. Interesting Reading:  Microbial Transglutaminase Is a Very Frequently Used Food Additive and Is a Potential Inducer of Autoimmune/Neurodegenerative Diseases https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8537092/
×
×
  • Create New...