Gluten Doctor's : Is Gluten Sensitivity Valid ?

[xchocoholic]

This is GREAT NEWS !!! It will be interesting to see how the acceptance of gluten sensitivity verses celiac disease changes the way the medical profession approaches chronic illnesses. X

http://glutendoctors.blogspot.com/2010/06/is-gluten-sensitivity-valid.html

 

[caledonia]

This is in response to some of the commenters of this article.

I don't get it. Who cares if your doctor or tests say if you are gluten sensitive or not? The proof is in the pudding.

If you stop eating gluten for awhile and some of your mysterious problems clear up, then you retry gluten, and they come back, you are gluten sensitive. Stop eating gluten already.

Your doctor is not in control of what you put in your mouth, you are.

 

[xchocoholic]

This is in response to some of the commenters of this article.

I don't get it. Who cares if your doctor or tests say if you are gluten sensitive or not? The proof is in the pudding.

If you stop eating gluten for awhile and some of your mysterious problems clear up, then you retry gluten, and they come back, you are gluten sensitive. Stop eating gluten already.

Your doctor is not in control of what you put in your mouth, you are.

Hi Caledonia,

I agree you except that if a person has celiac disease getting a diagnosis of celiac disease is still a good idea until mainstream gets up to speed on gluten sensitivity. I asked my GI to diagnose me with celiac in 2007, even though my biopsy was negative because I'd already run into an ER doc who didn't seem concerned about giving me some gluten in my meds. So, now it's in my medical records. My biopsy wasn't done until 17 months post GF so a proper biopsy wasn't possible. I "think" my GI based it on the damage he saw, my DQ2 gene, gluten antibodies in my stool, and my reaction to the GF diet. TC ... X

 

[Athene]

In Italy gluten allergy, as distinct from celiac disease, is fully recognised and understood by all doctors. The problem is, if you have celiac disease you can get 300 Euros a month of free food vouchers to buy gluten free foods. If you have gluten allergy, you get nothing. Very irritating.

 

[caledonia]

You're right, I was going to mention except for hospitals and nursing homes. You have much less control in those situations.

 

[BEG]

In Italy gluten allergy, as distinct from celiac disease, is fully recognised and understood by all doctors. The problem is, if you have celiac disease you can get 300 Euros a month of free food vouchers to buy gluten free foods. If you have gluten allergy, you get nothing. Very irritating.

Athene, my CFS doctor corrected me when I said gluten "allergy." He said it is a gluten sensitivity. My primary doc thinks if you don't have celiac disease, then you can eat gluten containing foods. Like Caledonia, I ignore him and try to eliminate gluten. Gluten free products are not readily available here, in my area anyway. They are very expensive if you do find them. Also, it's very expensive to buy online.

I can appreciate your irritation about the distinction your gov't makes between celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. Doesn't seem fair. My mother is Italian/Sicilian. I wonder sometimes is she has the sensitivity and passed it on to me.

 

[Athene]

Hi brown eyes!

Your mother probably passed it on to you. There is a genetic test that identifies the potential to become celiac - I have it and so does my son.

Gluten sensitivity and allergy are 2 different things separate from celiac.
1. In gluten allergy you have antibodies to gluten but not flattened villi.
2. Celiac disease is antibodies and damaged villi.
3. Gluten sensitivity is a lack of antibodies but toxicity symptoms from gluteomorphine (incopletely digested gluten) entering the blood stream via a leaky gut.

But doctors are very vague about these terms and mix them up quite randomly in my experience. In the past they used the word intolerance for all allergies other IgE ones. Nowadays the WHO has defined allergy as any immune mediated reaction, but most doctors have not updated their terminology!

I think the bast advice is Caledonia's - If gluten makes you feel ill, don't eat it, end of story.