Good afternoon,
I was diagnosed with LC back in Sept. 2018. The first thing I did was find this website (awesome) and then bought and read Tex's book (Thank you!). After that, I completely changed my diet and I've been on a gluten-free diet ever since. I have been eating homemade chicken bone broth, rice and chicken almost everyday as my primary meal. My episodes of D have been good and bad. I finally decided to give EnteroLab a try after doing EverlyWell and it basically said I have no gluten issues. I just received my Enterolab results and was SHOCKED at my gluten number, as well as, my 2 & 3 foods. I'd appreciate any help interpreting them, and what it means moving forward, especially since it looks like I react to the foods that I thought were my safe foods.
Quantitative Microscopic Fecal Fat Score Less than 300 Units (Normal Range is less than 300 Units)
Fecal Anti-gliadin IgA 702 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-casein (cow’s milk) IgA 50 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-ovalbumin (chicken egg) IgA 26 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-soy IgA 22 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Mean Value 11 Antigenic Foods 23 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
While all of the foods tested can be immune-stimulating, the hierarchy of reactions detected were as follows:
Food to which there was no significant immunological reactivity: None
Food to which there was some immunological reactivity (1+):
Beef
Pork
Walnut
Almond
Cashew
White potato
Food to which there was moderate immunological reactivity (2+):
Rice
Corn
Oat
Tuna
Chicken
Food to which there was significant and/or the most immunological reactivity (3+):
None
Within each class of foods to which you displayed multiple reactions, the hierarchy of those reactions detected were as follows:
Grains:
Grain toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Rice
Grain toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Corn
Grain toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity:Oat
Meats:
Meat toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Tuna
Meat toward which you were next most immunologically reactive: Chicken
Meat toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Beef
Meat toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity: Pork
Nuts:
Nut toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Walnut
Nut toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Almond
Nut toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity: Cashew
Nightshades:
You displayed immunologic reactivity to white potato, the member of the nightshade family usually consumed most often and in greatest quantities. While this does not necessarily mean you would react to all other nightshade foods (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant), it is possible. In the realm of elimination diets for immunologic disorders, nightshades are usually eliminated as the entire food class (i.e., all four previously mentioned foods in this class). This is especially important to the clinical setting of arthritis.
I'm pretty anal (no pun intended) about keeping a food log of the foods that trigger D. Chicken, rice, potatoes, tuna and almond milk didn't seem to trigger anything. That's why I'm shocked at the foods listed above.
Thanks, in advance, for any and all comments/feedback. Brian!
EnteroLab Results were Shocking and Interpretation Help!
Moderators: Rosie, JFR, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Hi Brian,
Welcome to the group. Your anti-gliadin score is quite high (at 702). There are three possible explanations for that:
1. You're a celiac.
2. You've got non-celiac gluten sensitivity, but you've been reacting to gluten for a very long time (multiple years).
3. You've got non-celiac gluten sensitivity and your GF diet is cross-contaminated, that is to say, either an unrecognized source of gluten is still in your diet, or your diet is not strict enough. The GF diet requires 100 % compliance, as virtually all of us react even to trace amounts of gluten.
A strong gluten reaction makes our immune system extra sensitive, so this will tend to promote an increased likelihood of reactions to additional foods. Consequently, it's not unusual to have that many food sensitivities.
It's not clear what your score was on the 11 other antigenic foods. In one line you state it is 10. and on the next line you say it is 23. Which is correct? The distinction is important. It's also unclear which foods scored in the different categories.
With an anti-gliadin score that high, it's not surprising that you cannot identify reactions to other foods. When I initially adopted a GF diet, I kept a food and reaction log also, and for about six months or so, I couldn't tell which foods caused a reaction and which foods didn't. I seemed to react at random to everything and anything. My food journal made no sense at all. Only after I was able to get my anti-gliadin level way down was I able to detect which foods caused reactions, and which ones didn't.
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.
Tex
Welcome to the group. Your anti-gliadin score is quite high (at 702). There are three possible explanations for that:
1. You're a celiac.
2. You've got non-celiac gluten sensitivity, but you've been reacting to gluten for a very long time (multiple years).
3. You've got non-celiac gluten sensitivity and your GF diet is cross-contaminated, that is to say, either an unrecognized source of gluten is still in your diet, or your diet is not strict enough. The GF diet requires 100 % compliance, as virtually all of us react even to trace amounts of gluten.
A strong gluten reaction makes our immune system extra sensitive, so this will tend to promote an increased likelihood of reactions to additional foods. Consequently, it's not unusual to have that many food sensitivities.
It's not clear what your score was on the 11 other antigenic foods. In one line you state it is 10. and on the next line you say it is 23. Which is correct? The distinction is important. It's also unclear which foods scored in the different categories.
Brian wrote:I'm pretty anal (no pun intended) about keeping a food log of the foods that trigger D. Chicken, rice, potatoes, tuna and almond milk didn't seem to trigger anything. That's why I'm shocked at the foods listed above.
With an anti-gliadin score that high, it's not surprising that you cannot identify reactions to other foods. When I initially adopted a GF diet, I kept a food and reaction log also, and for about six months or so, I couldn't tell which foods caused a reaction and which foods didn't. I seemed to react at random to everything and anything. My food journal made no sense at all. Only after I was able to get my anti-gliadin level way down was I able to detect which foods caused reactions, and which ones didn't.
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.
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.
Hi Tex,
Thank you very much for the reply. I went back and edited my mistakes - sorry about that. To clarify, my score was 23 for the antigenic foods. I did have a celiac test and was negative for celiac disease. Also, do you think I need to cut out chicken and beef bone broth? I guess I could try turkey. I also drink almond milk and didn't think I react to it. Very confusing. Thanks for your help, Tex!
Thank you very much for the reply. I went back and edited my mistakes - sorry about that. To clarify, my score was 23 for the antigenic foods. I did have a celiac test and was negative for celiac disease. Also, do you think I need to cut out chicken and beef bone broth? I guess I could try turkey. I also drink almond milk and didn't think I react to it. Very confusing. Thanks for your help, Tex!
bdb
Hi Brian,
You need to avoid Rice, Corn, Oat, Tuna, and Chicken. Switch to turkey (or duck, goose, pheasant, quail, rabbit, venison, etc.). You may be able to eat beef and pork if you rotate them so that you don't eat each of them more than once every 3 days.
The celiac screening (blood) tests have very poor sensitivity, even for fully developed celiac disease. They won't detect any of the earlier stages of celiac disease at all. I never cease to be amazed at how many new MC patients (who cannot reach remission) doubt that they are sensitive to gluten. Trust me, all of us wish we weren't, but unfortunately it's a fact of life for us. Even the doctors are confused by the celiac tests. Those tests are meaningless for MC patients.
For some unknown reason, those of us who are sensitive to almonds are able to use almond milk without any problems, but we have to avoid whole almonds and almond butter.
I hope this helps.
Tex
You need to avoid Rice, Corn, Oat, Tuna, and Chicken. Switch to turkey (or duck, goose, pheasant, quail, rabbit, venison, etc.). You may be able to eat beef and pork if you rotate them so that you don't eat each of them more than once every 3 days.
The celiac screening (blood) tests have very poor sensitivity, even for fully developed celiac disease. They won't detect any of the earlier stages of celiac disease at all. I never cease to be amazed at how many new MC patients (who cannot reach remission) doubt that they are sensitive to gluten. Trust me, all of us wish we weren't, but unfortunately it's a fact of life for us. Even the doctors are confused by the celiac tests. Those tests are meaningless for MC patients.
For some unknown reason, those of us who are sensitive to almonds are able to use almond milk without any problems, but we have to avoid whole almonds and almond butter.
I hope this helps.
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.
Hi Tex,
Thank you for the follow up. As for Celiac, I guess at this point whether I have it or not, if I stay on a gluten-free diet, I should hopefully be good. I'm doing everything I can to stay away from medications and I don't feel like my MC is out of control. I do have some muscle cramps but hoping my B-12, D3 and magnesium will take care of that.
Another question: with chicken and beef being a 1+ and 2+ food, does that mean I should stop eating chicken and beef bone broth?
Thanks!
Thank you for the follow up. As for Celiac, I guess at this point whether I have it or not, if I stay on a gluten-free diet, I should hopefully be good. I'm doing everything I can to stay away from medications and I don't feel like my MC is out of control. I do have some muscle cramps but hoping my B-12, D3 and magnesium will take care of that.
Another question: with chicken and beef being a 1+ and 2+ food, does that mean I should stop eating chicken and beef bone broth?
Thanks!
bdb
Right! The GF diet resolves many health issues in the long run, above and beyond celiac disease. Hopefully, the magnesium will resolve the muscle cramps, but they can also be caused by a deficiency of potassium or calcium.
That's a good question on the broth. In my opinion, you're suspicions are correct, you should stop using beef or chicken broth. If you want to continue eating/drinking broth, turkey broth should be safe. Some members use lamb, since that's safe for virtually all of us, also.
Tex
That's a good question on the broth. In my opinion, you're suspicions are correct, you should stop using beef or chicken broth. If you want to continue eating/drinking broth, turkey broth should be safe. Some members use lamb, since that's safe for virtually all of us, also.
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.
Is it possible that my EnteroLab results were inaccurate?
Hello,
So, I was diagnosed with LC in Sept. 2018. As stated in my original post above, I found this site (Awesome!), read Tex's book (Awesome!) and switched my diet to chicken broth, chicken, rice and carrots. For the most part, I was doing pretty well with less D. In April 2019, I decided to do the EnteroLab tests as I was starting to get more frequent D's (most likely due to my occasional pizza, ice cream and gluten exposure). I received my results which you can see above and the foods that had a 2+ reaction were the foods I ate on a daily basis (rice, chicken, tuna and corn). I was a bit confused by this as I was doing fairly well on these foods. Since April, I have been gluten, soy and dairy free. I cut out the rice, chicken, tuna and corn and switched to turkey, lamb, pork, salmon and some veggies. My flair ups have gotten worst since cutting out my daily chicken broth, rice, chicken and carrots back in April. So, as of last Saturday, I went back to chicken broth, rice, chicken and carrots and have cut down my D from 5-6 times a day to about 1-2 (more solid) D's a day. My stomach is less upset and I feel very good.
Has anyone else experienced this? Its a bit confusing and frustrating, however, the fact that I feel more or less normal, is a step forward. I just find it coincidental that everything that I was eating before the test (and felt pretty good most of the time) was what showed up as a +2 reactor. Thanks, in advance, for any feedback!
bdb
So, I was diagnosed with LC in Sept. 2018. As stated in my original post above, I found this site (Awesome!), read Tex's book (Awesome!) and switched my diet to chicken broth, chicken, rice and carrots. For the most part, I was doing pretty well with less D. In April 2019, I decided to do the EnteroLab tests as I was starting to get more frequent D's (most likely due to my occasional pizza, ice cream and gluten exposure). I received my results which you can see above and the foods that had a 2+ reaction were the foods I ate on a daily basis (rice, chicken, tuna and corn). I was a bit confused by this as I was doing fairly well on these foods. Since April, I have been gluten, soy and dairy free. I cut out the rice, chicken, tuna and corn and switched to turkey, lamb, pork, salmon and some veggies. My flair ups have gotten worst since cutting out my daily chicken broth, rice, chicken and carrots back in April. So, as of last Saturday, I went back to chicken broth, rice, chicken and carrots and have cut down my D from 5-6 times a day to about 1-2 (more solid) D's a day. My stomach is less upset and I feel very good.
Has anyone else experienced this? Its a bit confusing and frustrating, however, the fact that I feel more or less normal, is a step forward. I just find it coincidental that everything that I was eating before the test (and felt pretty good most of the time) was what showed up as a +2 reactor. Thanks, in advance, for any feedback!
bdb
bdb
Hi Brian,
You've pinpointed one of the paradoxes associated with food sensitivities. Many of us tend to develop a tolerance for certain foods (to which we are sensitive) if we continue to eat them. For example, I developed a tolerance to casein and I can eat it without any digestive issues. The problem is, I continued to produce antibodies to casein so I was maintaining a constant state of background inflammation, and eventually I began to develop serious osteoarthritis problems. So I cut casein out of my diet forever. There are many celiacs who are unaware that they're sensitive to gluten, because they have no digestive symptoms.
But if turkey, lamb, pork, salmon and "some" veggies were making symptoms worse, that's rather an atypical reaction, to say the least, unless you are sensitive to pork or salmon, because virtually none of us react to turkey or lamb. A few of us do react to pork.
If it were me, I would see how I do on turkey and/or lamb and I would make sure that any vegetables were well-cooked and safe for most of the rest of us. If that doesn't work, we've got a mighty puzzling situation here.
Tex
You've pinpointed one of the paradoxes associated with food sensitivities. Many of us tend to develop a tolerance for certain foods (to which we are sensitive) if we continue to eat them. For example, I developed a tolerance to casein and I can eat it without any digestive issues. The problem is, I continued to produce antibodies to casein so I was maintaining a constant state of background inflammation, and eventually I began to develop serious osteoarthritis problems. So I cut casein out of my diet forever. There are many celiacs who are unaware that they're sensitive to gluten, because they have no digestive symptoms.
But if turkey, lamb, pork, salmon and "some" veggies were making symptoms worse, that's rather an atypical reaction, to say the least, unless you are sensitive to pork or salmon, because virtually none of us react to turkey or lamb. A few of us do react to pork.
If it were me, I would see how I do on turkey and/or lamb and I would make sure that any vegetables were well-cooked and safe for most of the rest of us. If that doesn't work, we've got a mighty puzzling situation here.
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.