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Pre-Endoscopy Gluten Challenge


Eclara

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Eclara Explorer

I have a colonoscopy/endoscopy to test for celiac, Crohn's, etc. scheduled for the 12th of December. I was gluten light for about 1-1.5 years, and I have been back on gluten for about 6 weeks. The procedures are actually scheduled 8 weeks to the day of reintroducing gluten, which means it will be a few days short of 8 weeks total. I have been eating a rather impressive amount of gluten (definitely more than the equivalent of 4 slices of bread a day) in the hopes that it will better the odds of it showing up, but I am getting nervous that I will have it and it just won't show up.

I know it's different for everyone and there is no perfect formula, but in your opinions is 8 weeks a good enough run to give it a fair shot of showing up on the scope?


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shadowicewolf Proficient

Considering you were gluten lite, you were still getting some in. Furthermore, with the 8 weeks, it should be enough to see something imo.

tom Contributor

Yes, and especially, like shadow noted, you never really were 100% gluten-free, true? (Though 8 wks is also a common duration for those whoe were gluten-free)

A bigger factor will be that if the damage is spotty, whether the Dr biopsies (that's a verb 'round here isn't it?) enough areas enough times to get a diagnostic piece.

Have you been having symptoms during the challenge?

That needs to be treated as a datapoint, but some Drs still don't.

Eclara Explorer

Thank you for the replies!

Yes, and especially, like shadow noted, you never really were 100% gluten-free, true? (Though 8 wks is also a common duration for those whoe were gluten-free)

A bigger factor will be that if the damage is spotty, whether the Dr biopsies (that's a verb 'round here isn't it?) enough areas enough times to get a diagnostic piece.

Have you been having symptoms during the challenge?

That needs to be treated as a datapoint, but some Drs still don't.

I was trying to be gluten-free, but I wasn't figuring in cross contamination or hidden sources like oats and soy sauce. I don't really know how much gluten I was getting.

I have been reacting to it, physically and mentally, so I'm pretty excited to be done with it. I would just hate for it all to have been for nothing!

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