Returning to gluten on occasion ?
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BuggityBoo
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2011 12:44 pm
Returning to gluten on occasion ?
GF, DF for about 2 weeks and on Asacol. Started to feel a little better. Got a little careless over the weekend and had some gluten containing foods. Today I am home from work, sick in bed with slight nausea an lots of watery D. I never felt like this before when I ate gluten. Does going GF make symptoms worse when you do eat it again?
Oh, yes.
Basically, your body finally got some relief, and started heading in a healthy direction, and it just got thrown for a violent tailspin. It's a powerful immune response, and one most of us avoid at all cost. I know how hard that is to do in practice - with practice, though, it does get easier.
If Imodium or Pepto would be effective for you, it might make it easier for you to recover. The last time I got 'glutened' I felt truly horrible for a couple of days, but it took a full week to be back where I had started.
Hope you feel better quickly,
Sara
Basically, your body finally got some relief, and started heading in a healthy direction, and it just got thrown for a violent tailspin. It's a powerful immune response, and one most of us avoid at all cost. I know how hard that is to do in practice - with practice, though, it does get easier.
If Imodium or Pepto would be effective for you, it might make it easier for you to recover. The last time I got 'glutened' I felt truly horrible for a couple of days, but it took a full week to be back where I had started.
Hope you feel better quickly,
Sara
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BuggityBoo
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2011 12:44 pm
Yes, that's what I'm saying. Your body as an immune response to gluten. So eaten "a little bit," to your body, is like being exposed to "a little bit" of cholera pathogen. It is an emergency, and your body mounts an immune response to "fix" it.
Presumably, for much of your life, this full-on reaction had not been triggered, but now that it has been triggered, it's like a simmering flame, and gluten is like gasoline. A little can do a lot of damage, as you've unfortunately found out - to your immediate experience and potentially to your health (not to mention enjoying your life). Also, every time you "cheat" or get "glutened" by mistake, you set back the healing process your body is struggling to get back on track.
I found thinking about it this way kind of empowering - I know it sounds a little dire, and I apologize for that. As I said, last time this happened to me, it took me a week to recover. I truly hope your luck is better.
And I hope you feel better soon,
Sara
Presumably, for much of your life, this full-on reaction had not been triggered, but now that it has been triggered, it's like a simmering flame, and gluten is like gasoline. A little can do a lot of damage, as you've unfortunately found out - to your immediate experience and potentially to your health (not to mention enjoying your life). Also, every time you "cheat" or get "glutened" by mistake, you set back the healing process your body is struggling to get back on track.
I found thinking about it this way kind of empowering - I know it sounds a little dire, and I apologize for that. As I said, last time this happened to me, it took me a week to recover. I truly hope your luck is better.
And I hope you feel better soon,
Sara
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Joefnh
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2010 8:25 pm
- Location: Southern New Hampshire
BuggyBoo your reaction confirms how problematic gluten is for you. You have stopped eating gluten and your body has been able to recover from it's effects, and now that you accidentally reintroduced it your body is really reacting to it's presence. This is a common reaction to substances that you are allergic to, the response is heightened after a period of no exposure.
Take care and I hope you feel better soon
Joe
Take care and I hope you feel better soon
Joe
Joe
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BuggityBoo
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2011 12:44 pm
BuggityBoo,
I'm sorry you have had this experience, but I appreciate your sharing your experience here. I've been GF, DF for the last month. I'm going to go visit my MIL this weekend and know we are going to some risky restaurants that she loves ... Pennsylvania Dutch food .... fortunately there will be buffets so I should be able to eat salads and plain meats. Your experience drove home the point of how careful I need to be. Thank you again for sharing and helping me. I agree, this website is invaluable.
I'm sorry you have had this experience, but I appreciate your sharing your experience here. I've been GF, DF for the last month. I'm going to go visit my MIL this weekend and know we are going to some risky restaurants that she loves ... Pennsylvania Dutch food .... fortunately there will be buffets so I should be able to eat salads and plain meats. Your experience drove home the point of how careful I need to be. Thank you again for sharing and helping me. I agree, this website is invaluable.
BuggityBoo,
The good news is that after you manage to stay away from gluten long enough for your gut to heal, (and long enough for the residual antibodies to fade away), if you accidentally get a taste of gluten one day, you will still react, but it will typically be a very mild reaction, and won't last very long. Those of us who have been in remission for years can attest to that. Of course, if we should continue to eat gluten, we would soon be back to square one.
I hope you're feeling much better tomorrow.
Tex
The good news is that after you manage to stay away from gluten long enough for your gut to heal, (and long enough for the residual antibodies to fade away), if you accidentally get a taste of gluten one day, you will still react, but it will typically be a very mild reaction, and won't last very long. Those of us who have been in remission for years can attest to that. Of course, if we should continue to eat gluten, we would soon be back to square one.
I hope you're feeling much better tomorrow.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
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Joefnh
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2010 8:25 pm
- Location: Southern New Hampshire
Tex a question for you... You mentioned that future exposure to gluten would produce a mild response. I have noticed that for both gluten and soy now that I have a significant reaction, much worse that before I removed them from my diet. Is this to be expected or will this reaction fade over time? It's been a little over a year now that I have removed them form my diet.
Joe
Joe
Joe
Joe,
Yes, you're almost surely still in the ultra-sensitive category. It takes a long time for the gut to heal, and I doubt that your healing has proceeded very far, to be honest. Immune system suppressants, (including corticosteroids and azathioprine), also suppress healing, unfortunately. I have no idea if the effect is huge, moderate, or minor. The anti-TNF drugs may be exceptions to that rule, though - as far as I'm aware, they don't significantly slow down healingl, (but I could be wrong about that).
You can't always believe such admonishments, though, because I once had a doctor tell me, (as he was splinting my broken arm), that I should stop smoking cigars, "because they will slow down the healing process".
Apparently they didn't slow down the healing process by much, because he removed the cast at least 2 weeks earlier than he had originally specified. 
But even without those meds, healing of the gut is still excruciatingly slow. Only kids heal quickly. I still had significant small intestinal damage, over 3 years after adopting the diet, and most adult celiacs don't show a return to normal small intestinal histology, (on biopsy), for at least 3 to 5 years, after adopting the diet, and some never completely heal. We feel fine, and we don't have any symptoms, but our gut is still healing, for years.
I believe that Polly has mentioned that she has had the same experience - far less serious reactions to an accidental gluten event, after many years of remission.
Tex
Yes, you're almost surely still in the ultra-sensitive category. It takes a long time for the gut to heal, and I doubt that your healing has proceeded very far, to be honest. Immune system suppressants, (including corticosteroids and azathioprine), also suppress healing, unfortunately. I have no idea if the effect is huge, moderate, or minor. The anti-TNF drugs may be exceptions to that rule, though - as far as I'm aware, they don't significantly slow down healingl, (but I could be wrong about that).
You can't always believe such admonishments, though, because I once had a doctor tell me, (as he was splinting my broken arm), that I should stop smoking cigars, "because they will slow down the healing process".
Apparently they didn't slow down the healing process by much, because he removed the cast at least 2 weeks earlier than he had originally specified. But even without those meds, healing of the gut is still excruciatingly slow. Only kids heal quickly. I still had significant small intestinal damage, over 3 years after adopting the diet, and most adult celiacs don't show a return to normal small intestinal histology, (on biopsy), for at least 3 to 5 years, after adopting the diet, and some never completely heal. We feel fine, and we don't have any symptoms, but our gut is still healing, for years.
I believe that Polly has mentioned that she has had the same experience - far less serious reactions to an accidental gluten event, after many years of remission.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
That's interesting, Tex - and Joe, I was wondering whether having a known autoimmune condition affecting the gut might also be 'distracting' the body from healing. So maybe the combo of Crohn's and medication both slow your pace of recovery, but maybe it would actually be even slower without that medication keeping the Crohn's in check?
My reaction is also much worse now than it was *efore I removed them from my diet. When I was eating gluten regularly, symptoms were mild and came and went (as Tex has described, impossible to tell what caused what - I was very lucky that the symptoms were relatively mild, right up till they weren't). I suspected that gluten and dairy weren't my friends, but never went GF/DF for long enough, or strictly enough, to prove it to myself (until I had to - and boy, am I persuaded). I actually dreamed about inadvertently eating gluten just last night. I have definitely upped my vigilance when awake... hopefully I won't have to worry about it in my dreams any more!
Maybe with that 'piece of you' that had active inflammation recently removed, your healing can proceed more smoothly in less-affected tissue? Sure hope so.
Love,
Sara
My reaction is also much worse now than it was *efore I removed them from my diet. When I was eating gluten regularly, symptoms were mild and came and went (as Tex has described, impossible to tell what caused what - I was very lucky that the symptoms were relatively mild, right up till they weren't). I suspected that gluten and dairy weren't my friends, but never went GF/DF for long enough, or strictly enough, to prove it to myself (until I had to - and boy, am I persuaded). I actually dreamed about inadvertently eating gluten just last night. I have definitely upped my vigilance when awake... hopefully I won't have to worry about it in my dreams any more!
Maybe with that 'piece of you' that had active inflammation recently removed, your healing can proceed more smoothly in less-affected tissue? Sure hope so.
Love,
Sara
Sara,
I too, have had similar dreams. I've been GF for almost 9 years now, and so avoiding the stuff is strictly second-nature, but about once every year or so, I'll have a dream where I suddenly realize that I'm casually eating something loaded with gluten, and I had apparently forgotten that I was supposed to be avoiding it. Interestingly, at that point, it always dawns on me that I'm dreaming, so I don't worry about it in the dream, and the dream usually shifts to some other topic. Weird, huh?
Love,
Tex
I too, have had similar dreams. I've been GF for almost 9 years now, and so avoiding the stuff is strictly second-nature, but about once every year or so, I'll have a dream where I suddenly realize that I'm casually eating something loaded with gluten, and I had apparently forgotten that I was supposed to be avoiding it.
Interestingly, at that point, it always dawns on me that I'm dreaming, so I don't worry about it in the dream, and the dream usually shifts to some other topic. Weird, huh?Love,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
That is really interesting. And weird 
I kind of knew it wasn't real, too. (The rest of the dream was some 'epic quest' I don't remember, combined with one of those houses that is (and isn't) familiar, and that has rooms I never knew about... but there were two 'gluten incidents' mixed in...)
Somehow the body nudges the mind to remind the body... I wonder whether this sort of thing happens to Paleo (or other strict-regimen) eaters who don't have a health-alarm bell starting them down that path.
Love,
Sara
I kind of knew it wasn't real, too. (The rest of the dream was some 'epic quest' I don't remember, combined with one of those houses that is (and isn't) familiar, and that has rooms I never knew about... but there were two 'gluten incidents' mixed in...)
Somehow the body nudges the mind to remind the body... I wonder whether this sort of thing happens to Paleo (or other strict-regimen) eaters who don't have a health-alarm bell starting them down that path.
Love,
Sara
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trialanderror
- Little Blue Penguin
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:20 pm
- Location: Pittsburgh
Just curious, when people talk about symptoms from accidentally or intentionally eating gluten when on a gluten free diet, what are the symptoms? Is it just diarrhea, bloating, and gas -- or more?
The reason is that the post below seems to indicate bad bacteria as a cause -- but I wonder how eating gluten would result in an increase in bad bacteria.
From the "overview of microscopic colitis post:
The most common symptoms of MC include diarrhea (often with much frequency and urgency), abdominal pain, and abdominal bloating. Other symptoms and signs, such as fatigue, joint pains, muscle aches, fibromyalgia, and fever, are not unusual. Bloody stools are not a typical characteristic of MC but can be due to related problems such as hemmorhoids, rectal fissure, or infection.
It is thought that MC occurs when the body mistakenly recognizes the "good" bacteria in its colon as foreign and begins to make antibodies to kill it off. This upsets the natural balance of "good vs. "bad" bacteria in the colon, which allows for an overgrowth of "bad" bacteria and leads to chronic inflammation.
What initiates the autoimmune process in the first place? It is believed that there is a genetic component......a gene that makes certain individuals more likely to get MC. In addition, other factors have been suggested, including the use of aspirin and other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatoy drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen), prolonged antibiotic use, infection (Clostridium difficile infection, for example), ingestion of certain foods, and possibly female hormones.
Other autoimmune problems can be associated with MC. Examples include thyroid disease, diabetes type I, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. However, the most common autoimmune problem associated with MC is gluten sensitivity, where the body also begins making antibodies to ingested gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, oats, and barley). This can prolong and heighten the original colitis until gluten is eliminated from the diet. The type of gluten sensitivity that is associated with MC is usually a milder or earlier stage than that found in classic celiac disease, and as a result, will not show up on the standard tests used to diagnose celiac disease.
The reason is that the post below seems to indicate bad bacteria as a cause -- but I wonder how eating gluten would result in an increase in bad bacteria.
From the "overview of microscopic colitis post:
The most common symptoms of MC include diarrhea (often with much frequency and urgency), abdominal pain, and abdominal bloating. Other symptoms and signs, such as fatigue, joint pains, muscle aches, fibromyalgia, and fever, are not unusual. Bloody stools are not a typical characteristic of MC but can be due to related problems such as hemmorhoids, rectal fissure, or infection.
It is thought that MC occurs when the body mistakenly recognizes the "good" bacteria in its colon as foreign and begins to make antibodies to kill it off. This upsets the natural balance of "good vs. "bad" bacteria in the colon, which allows for an overgrowth of "bad" bacteria and leads to chronic inflammation.
What initiates the autoimmune process in the first place? It is believed that there is a genetic component......a gene that makes certain individuals more likely to get MC. In addition, other factors have been suggested, including the use of aspirin and other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatoy drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen), prolonged antibiotic use, infection (Clostridium difficile infection, for example), ingestion of certain foods, and possibly female hormones.
Other autoimmune problems can be associated with MC. Examples include thyroid disease, diabetes type I, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. However, the most common autoimmune problem associated with MC is gluten sensitivity, where the body also begins making antibodies to ingested gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, oats, and barley). This can prolong and heighten the original colitis until gluten is eliminated from the diet. The type of gluten sensitivity that is associated with MC is usually a milder or earlier stage than that found in classic celiac disease, and as a result, will not show up on the standard tests used to diagnose celiac disease.