You can lead a horse (me) to water (Enterolab) but you can't make it drink. I've known I should for months and now I'm ready. I called my insurance company, they won't cover it as I suspected. So my question is, which emberassingly I think I asked months ago, which ones should I order?
Thanks,
Tex
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Hi Becky,
Don't feel like the Lone Ranger - I had been GF for over 3 years before I got around to taking the Enterolab tests. LOL.
That's a tough question, because if you get very many of the tests, it might be more practical to get a "package" deal. IMO, though, the most important test by far is the Fecal Antigliadin IgA test, followed by the Fecal anti-casein (cow's milk) IgA test, and then the Fecal Anti-Soy IgA test.
As for the other tests: Only a few of us, (percentage-wise), are sensitive to eggs and yeast, so skipping them, is simply a matter of playing the odds. The gene tests are nice for general information, but they don't tell you a thing about your actual intolerances, so they are definitely not vital. The Fecal Antitissue Transglutaminase IgA test gives information on autoimmune reactions, but if you're sensitive to gluten, then the tissue transglutaminase test is virtually always going to be positive, so I wouldn't consider it to be a "must have" test. The fecal fat test is a measure of the residual damage to the small intestine, but since it doesn't tell you what caused the damage, I don't consider it to be an "essential" test. I had that one done, but it was because I had already been GF for too long to do a valid test on either gliadin antibodies, or tissue transglutaminaise, so in place of them, I used the fecal fat test as a way to get an estimate of residual damage caused by gluten.
One thing about the Enterolab tests - they keep your sample for about a year, so if you should decide that you want one or more of the other tests later, you can still request it, without sending in another sample. You could use that as sort of a "pay-as-you-go" option, if you wanted, I suppose, (except for the gene test - it's based on DNA samples obtained by swabbing the inside of your cheek). Gliadin antibody stool testing can be done up to about a year after you have eliminated gluten from your diet, and still yield accurate results. (This shows you how persistent gluten actually is). For the other food intolerance tests, though, a few weeks after you cut them out of your diet, the antibodies may no longer be detectable in your stool sample, so you don't have near as much leeway with them.
Incidentally, here's that previous thread that you mentioned:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewt ... olab+tests
Tex
Don't feel like the Lone Ranger - I had been GF for over 3 years before I got around to taking the Enterolab tests. LOL.
That's a tough question, because if you get very many of the tests, it might be more practical to get a "package" deal. IMO, though, the most important test by far is the Fecal Antigliadin IgA test, followed by the Fecal anti-casein (cow's milk) IgA test, and then the Fecal Anti-Soy IgA test.
As for the other tests: Only a few of us, (percentage-wise), are sensitive to eggs and yeast, so skipping them, is simply a matter of playing the odds. The gene tests are nice for general information, but they don't tell you a thing about your actual intolerances, so they are definitely not vital. The Fecal Antitissue Transglutaminase IgA test gives information on autoimmune reactions, but if you're sensitive to gluten, then the tissue transglutaminase test is virtually always going to be positive, so I wouldn't consider it to be a "must have" test. The fecal fat test is a measure of the residual damage to the small intestine, but since it doesn't tell you what caused the damage, I don't consider it to be an "essential" test. I had that one done, but it was because I had already been GF for too long to do a valid test on either gliadin antibodies, or tissue transglutaminaise, so in place of them, I used the fecal fat test as a way to get an estimate of residual damage caused by gluten.
One thing about the Enterolab tests - they keep your sample for about a year, so if you should decide that you want one or more of the other tests later, you can still request it, without sending in another sample. You could use that as sort of a "pay-as-you-go" option, if you wanted, I suppose, (except for the gene test - it's based on DNA samples obtained by swabbing the inside of your cheek). Gliadin antibody stool testing can be done up to about a year after you have eliminated gluten from your diet, and still yield accurate results. (This shows you how persistent gluten actually is). For the other food intolerance tests, though, a few weeks after you cut them out of your diet, the antibodies may no longer be detectable in your stool sample, so you don't have near as much leeway with them.
Incidentally, here's that previous thread that you mentioned:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewt ... olab+tests
Tex
Becky....I ordered the "whole enchilada" 
to cover all the bases....it helps to see in print what your body is reacting to and then to see what choices you NEED to make...that one ws so hard for me.....but I see the benefits every day now.....
to cover all the bases....it helps to see in print what your body is reacting to and then to see what choices you NEED to make...that one ws so hard for me.....but I see the benefits every day now....."It is very difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it. "
Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair