While the scientific community has widely accepted celiac disease as a condition caused by gluten and other related proteins, non-celiac gluten sensitivity has remained a topic of heated debate in the media and among the general public.
In this article, I’ll talk about the reasons I have acknowledged non-celiac wheat sensitivity as a real condition for many years, and I’ll describe the results of a new research study performed at Columbia University that adds supportive evidence. Before we jump in, though, let’s review the difference between celiac disease and non-celiac wheat/gluten sensitivity.
Celiac Disease vs. Non-Celiac Wheat Sensitivity
Celiac disease and non-celiac wheat sensitivity are two distinct conditions, with a few major differences.
Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disease characterized by an inflammatory immune response to wheat gluten, rye, barley, and related proteins. It results in marked disruption of normal gut tissue structure, including atrophy of epithelial cell projections called villi and an enlargement of intestinal crypts where new epithelial cells form from stem cells. CD is strongly associated with the haplotypes DQ2 and DQ8 of the HLA gene (1). In terms of blood markers, transglutaminase 2 (TG2) autoantibody is considered the most sensitive marker for celiac disease (2).
Non-celiac wheat sensitivity (NCWS, and also called non-celiac gluten sensitivity) is a term applied to individuals who experience symptoms in response to wheat or gluten ingestion but lack the characteristic markers of celiac disease. Symptoms can range from GI discomfort to fatigue and other neurological issues. These people tend to improve on a gluten-free diet (3). Unfortunately, many are mocked or ridiculed for avoiding wheat and told that their sensitivity is “all in their head.”
New research confirms gluten intolerance is real—and the haters are wrong.
Wheat Sensitivity: Is It All in Your Head?
In response to continued suggestion by the media and some of the medical community that wheat sensitivity is merely psychological, I have written extensively on my blog in support of NCWS as a real condition. For one thing, a variety of different proteins in wheat can elicit an immune response beyond gluten. NCWS might even be more serious than celiac disease, as many people who test negative for celiac disease continue to eat wheat and put themselves at serious risk for developing autoimmunity.
However, as I addressed in a previous article, the researchers chose whey protein for their control group, a pretty poor choice considering that many of their subjects likely had inflamed guts and multiple food sensitivities. The evidence, both on paper and from my own clinical experience, clearly points to the existence of NCWS.
The Latest Research Study
Still not convinced? In a recent study, researchers at Columbia University Medical Center sought to obtain objective evidence to determine if NCWS is real (4). They enrolled 80 individuals with self-reported non-celiac wheat sensitivity (NCWS), 40 individuals with celiac disease, and 40 healthy subjects for the study. NCWS patients were excluded if they showed any of the characteristic diagnostic markers of celiac disease (celiac-specific IgA, anti-TG2 autoantibody, or celiac-like histology).
The researchers took blood samples and intestinal biopsies from all 160 patients. The blood samples were used to look for particular signaling molecules and proteins in the blood, while the biopsies were used for histological analysis of the tissue microstructure. In addition to comparing these measures between conditions, they also took a subset of 20 NCWS patients who had adhered to a gluten-free diet for six months and compared their blood and biopsy samples before and after gluten avoidance.
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Gluten-Sensitive Individuals Have Leaky Gut
This is not really all that surprising, since we know that gliadin, a component of gluten, can affect tight junction proteins (5).
In addition, subjects in the NCWS group had systemic immune activation. Serum levels of both lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) and sCD14 were significantly elevated in individuals with NCWS in comparison with individuals with celiac disease and healthy controls. These are sensitive markers of microbial translocation. In other words, they indicate that bacteria and other microbes from the gut interior are “leaking” into the bloodstream, inducing a low-grade, chronic inflammatory response from the immune system (6).
Histological analysis of biopsy tissues showed that the NCWS group also had epithelial cell damage similar to the celiac disease group, a result supported by elevated levels of serum marker FABP2 (7). Moreover, in the subset of NCWS individuals analyzed before and after adherence to a gluten-free diet, they found that inflammation and cell damage markers improved significantly after six months of gluten avoidance.
Gluten Sensitivity Exists—Here’s How to Know If You Might Have It
Evidently, there are certain individuals who possess non-celiac wheat sensitivity and would benefit greatly from avoiding wheat. It’s unfortunate that so many people who might benefit from a gluten-free diet never try it or don’t stick with it because of the lack of support from media, the medical community, and the general populace. I hope that this new research study (and others that will surely follow) will make it just a bit easier for people to make the right choice for their health.
So how can you know if you have NCWS? The biological markers used in this particular study may be used in the future to help diagnose NCWS, but at the moment, they are purely used for research purposes. Nevertheless, there are two ways to determine your gluten tolerance:
- A Cyrex panel: Cyrex Array 3 is a panel that tests your potential for wheat and gluten protein reactivity and autoimmunity. It must be ordered by a healthcare practitioner.
- A self-experiment: Eliminate gluten from your diet for 60 days and then perform a gluten challenge, taking careful note of any symptoms. I still hold that this is the best way to determine your tolerance for gluten.
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I’ve been nearly entirely off of grains (except quinoa), rice, soy and beans for at least ten years now. I’m still discovering ways in which my health is getting better- and how even a little wheat can put me down for days. I’ve never been tested for gluten-intolerance but it seems pretty plain to me that grains are NOT my friends!
What are your symptoms Felicia when you eat gluten? Ive been gluten free for a year and a half. I have leaky gut.
I’m not sure if it’s gluten that causes my symptoms as ANY grain, rice, soy and beans make me miserable. So it’s probably not gluten but something else. My symptoms are fairly variable but mostly include either or both constipation and diarrhea (at the same time which is weird but possible), headaches, mood swings (eating tofu made me incredibly suicidal within three days- gave that up instantly!), itchy ears (mostly the left one- go figure), foggy thinking, major bloating, noxious gas, exhaustion (as in can’t get out of bed for days at a time), depression, anxiety, weight gain (like five pounds or more in a couple of days if I eat ANY grains at all) and a host of other weird things that I can’t quite describe. Luckily, going mostly “paleo” has been most of my answer. Also, being correctly diagnosed as hypo-thyroid and having adrenal exhaustion was part of my healing. These days I’m off the Armour Thyroid I was taking as it has healed up enough that I don’t need it. My ND thinks that’s due to all the rest plus doing tincture of Ashwaghandha (sp?) and a few other simple supplements. I can eat a tiny bit of rice now and then if I don’t do it too often so it’s a treat- but it tastes like candy so I don’t eat it much anymore. It’s just not worth it. The more careful I am the better I feel so here I am, ten plus years into not eating the crap that makes me ill and feeling SO much better. I’m always noticing some little thing that’s better than I didn’t even know was wrong… My blood tests really freak out my western docs, too- I eat a LOT of meat and fats plus veggies (of course) and my cholesterol is exactly where they would like it, as is my husband’s. Heart, blood pressure, skin, weight, it’s all good- unless I slip up too much and then it very quickly all goes to hell. Oh, and I have my libido back!!! So that’s a happy plus. 😀 And I’m now easily within two pounds of my mid-twenties weight when I was running, working out and riding motorcycles. I’m not nearly as fit as I was then (I’m 58, do a lot of car travel for work and the exhaustion really screwed me up) but I’m getting there very slowly through yoga, stretching and the occasional horse ride or walk. I figure it’s just a work in progress.
Felicia, that is EXCELLENT ! Thank you for sharing….
You’re very welcome. 🙂
I’m a firm believer in gluten sensitivity and I myself I have Hashimoto’s and try to avoid all grains. But the question I have is this: celiac disease was unknown in the 70’s when I was growing up and yet people were eating gluten then. How did so many people all of a sudden in our generation get celiac or NCWS? What started it all?
If you review the “history” of wheat, it has been “modified” more in the last hundred years than in the ten thousand years before that… not to mention the use of defoliants prior to harvest…
But if my husband and I eat Einkorn, we still have symptoms.
Perhaps I was not clear… I am MR PALEO… I do not eschew grains in ANY form, no matter what their origin or makeup…
That goes for legumes, as well…
I have symptoms from ANY grains, no matter how old or modern. It’s very annoying but I’m used to it now. 🙂
There are still the same percentage of genetic celiacs in the world but the modification of grains, industrial processes & their products and an ever increasing stress load means they suffer more along with the rest of the population as they realize NCWS
Of course establishing the food pyramid in the 70’s as the recommended Standard American Diet, SAD, had a lot to do with that!
I have been reading allot of these posts and wonder if you are all aware of fructose malabsorption.
It’s actually fructans in the wheat that cause all the problems.
You can get a hydrogen breath test done through you Dr.
Its very simple and takes an hour or so. They give you a large dose of fructose and measure the hydrogen levels in you breath.
The hydrogen is produced by the bacteria in your intestines. When you don’t absorb the fructans/Fructose through your bowel wall the sugars go into your large intestine where they feed bacteria.
This often leads to SIBO small intestinal bowel overgrowth were these bacteria move up into the small intestine where they shouldn’t be.
It can cause all sorts of problems like leaky gut and autoimmune conditions.
I have had it for over 10 years and am still trying to work out what’s the best diet.
Ive got my guts under control but suffer from Depression and have ADD as well. It seems to me like they are all some how related to diet
I have to follow the FOD map diet . You can buy the app. Monarch University . I am celiac and dissacaride deficient . . ?
You are 100% correct–as the Gut-Brain connection has already been studied by scientists-and have been proven-JM.
certificate errors and possibly other website configuration errors are stopping me from accessing the 42 paleo recipes offerred in the popup presented when I navigate to this page. Please send me the “week of paleo recipes” free ebook promised but not delivered by your site. :o)
just to add to the above query, I also have big trouble with exhaustion every afternoon around 3-4… I take extra magnesium then and a protein snack, and rest, but it takes a good 3 hours before my energy comes back up again grrr…
This is after a good lunch, morning tea and good breakfast.
Jena
Magnesium can make you sleepy and is best to take 30 min. before bed. Look into that. Also determine whether your protein snack is actually a benefit. You may feel sluggish if you are not digesting it well. Most bars are not digested very well. Sticking to whole foods, stress management, rest, avoidance of foods that disagree by making you tired, etc., lots of water between meals, and not using caffeine are the best ways to maintain energy levels.
Excellent advice
My bloods showed low Mg & Zn. I supplement throughout the day & am achieving better sleep results at night.
Maintaining blood glucose levels, with a BG monitor, was the way I overcame similar energy problems. A BG monitor will send you down the slippery slope diabetes understanding.
A good starting place is The Fat Emperor.
Good Luck
Most people experience a downturn in energy at that time of day, even perfectly healthy people. If you can lie down for even a few minutes (not to sleep necessarily) that might help. I agree with the others on taking magnesium later in the evening. It really helps me sleep well. 🙂
According to my board certified nutritionist (who has helped me greatly) a meal should result in neutral energy flow. In other words, a meal should neither provide a feeling of more energy or less energy. If it does, then something is wrong.
Having said that, I often feel somewhat lethargic after lunch.
The only reason I eat only two meals a day (normally), is because I am not hungry. I have to question the validity of the statement that one’s energy should not change with a meal… let me give an example. Let’s say I am a triathlete, preparing for a race. Many times these guys will carb-load before the bike part… and I know from dealing with them they FEEL the effect. Also, that statement is a BLANKET statement, which most of us do make an attempt to avoid, as nothing is 100%…
First & second phase insulin release should only result in minor BG fluctuation. That Large fluctuations are accepted as within the ‘normal’ range is criminal in our prediabetic society.a
Hi… I wonder if you can give me any advice or feedback. 25 years ago I developed chronic fatigue and then fibromyalgia after a period of intense stress + ross river virus and now I suffer from frequent intense bouts of pain and inflammation/arthritis like pain and swelling in all of my joints, … I have tried all sorts of treatments, including acupuncture Chinese herbs, diet change. I do not eat wheat, no soy, no dairy, no red meat, no sugar … I do eat brown rice, i eat seeds and nuts. Still I have +++ inflammation, which also effects my thinking and sleep ie foggy brain during the day, restless sleep at night. I am an optimistic person, really trying to get to the bottom of all of this inflammation and turn it down or off … I know I have trouble with wheat and other grains I am glad to be off them but are there any other suggestions I can try. I take st johns wort, magnesium, Vit B, C, D, tumeric +++, and apple cider vinegar … any advice would be very much appreciated. I really appreciate this and all of your articles. If I could break out of this constant pain cycle I would be such an extra extra happy gal.
x
Jena,
My girlfriend was suffering from body pains and tiredness, symptoms resembling fibromyalgia. She seemed to find putting D-Ribose powder in her drinking water was a significant help.
Have you have a thorough hormonal panel? cortisol or adrenal tests? I suggest seeing a Endroconolgist if you haven’t already
Hi, Jena! I too have experienced chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia and joint pain and swelling. I do not eat wheat and try to avoid other grains (including brown rice, which I find inflames my bowels). About 6 weeks ago I stumbled upon zerocarbzen.com and began eliminating other things from my diet, but adding back meat, especially beef, and I feel really good. I know it seems counter-intuitive to all the “avoid red meat” teaching out there, but I can’t argue with my own results.
Yes, I too had much less pain when I went back to eating meat-especially red meat every day, and dropped all grains. Add red meat back in gradually, and do not cook it well done. Some do better cooking meat in water-stewing it. For a while, I made me a drink with 1/2 fresh lemon juice, and sea salt, and drank it with my meal. I think it helped me digest the meat. Apple cider vinegar may do the same thing.
There’s your issue. Brown rice. Don’t eat that. It’s a grain and if you have inflammation and pain, it will really mess you up. It does me. In fact, I tried eating the “Forbidden Rice” which is black and highly nutritious – for people without autoimmune. As much as I want to be able to eat it, I can’t. You gotta cut out ALL grains.
Jena, have you had a thyroid panel done ?
Eliminate brown rice and all grains for a few weeks.
Eliminate grains, go on a moderate histamine, healing diet, and start doing meditation. It’s done wonders for my healing.
Sorry to hear that Jena! It’s so tiring to feel low grade all the time. Agree with Jose. My inflammation decreased in a month (shown on a live blood analysis) when I eliminated most GF grains. I had a super clean diet like yours but every day I ate some sort of organic grain or legume/pulse: brown rice, quinoa, GF bread and chickpeas in hommus. Gut settled pretty quickly when I eliminated those, though it may have been only one culprit or the fact that they were in my diet all the time. I still have some organic buckwheat but not every day and I soak it for a day before cooking. Also essene (sprouted) bread here and there. Maybe you just need to give grain or legume related foods a rest for a bit or decrease the amount of times you are eating them through the week. All the best hope you feel better ASAP.
I suggest having a thyroid panel done as well as a Western Blot Test done by the lab in California.
While I was sailing through the Grenadines, I met a woman from the U.S. with Celiac. Her nutritionist had told her as long as she made sure it was local wheat, grown in the Grenadines, she would be able to eat it. Sure enough, she was able to eat things made from wheat there without the adverse effects she had at home, which were severe. So, I tried it. I ate croissants, baguettes, and pizza without intestinal issues like I usually have. I told another person who would normally have intestinal issues as well as skin rashes from wheat. She ate their local wheat without any adverse effects. The first woman told me she was told the Grenadines grow a grain from before modern modifications. Obviously, others with Celiac have also been able to eat wheat from there for it to have been known by the nutritionist.
Have you heard of this before?
Yes. See my comments below about Europe. We have destroyed our food supply in the U.S.
I am wondering whether it is the ..M.O. for pesticides that are used in the Grenadines.On the website-beyondpesticides.org-there is a lot of info re pesticides and human diseases-JM
I have suffered with significant GI issues for 4 years and Hashimotos for 12 years. I would go through periods of extreme exhaustion and achy joints….almost feeling like I had the flu (all tests negative for Celiac).
I have good news to support his article!!!: I have been gluten-free for 12 months and am proud to say my symptoms are not only 90% better, but my endocrinologist has had to reduce my thyroid medication by half (Although he still thinks it’s all in my head), but I’m convinced I will continue to heal my gut AND my thyroid. I’m reversing my Hashimotos!! I’m a firm believer that wheat has been the major source of all my problems. This has been life changing for me.
Conditions that were rare or nonexistent 40 years ago are now pervasive. We’ve become so obsessed with symptoms we often fail to look for the base causation’s. Causation research has become extremely difficult. Academic/corporate scientific research is a captive system beholding to those entities issuing grant funding. If the results of the research conflicts with the desired expectations of those entities issuing the grants, the research never sees the light of day and you stand to loose all current and future funding from that entity.
On rare occasions valid independent research does find its way into the light:
Just read article on non-celiac gluten sensitivity. I am approaching 3 years gluten free and feeling better than I have EVER felt in all of my 74 years! I suffered from migraines, actually a constant headache that erupted into migraine stage 2-3 times weekly. I also had aching joints, mouth sores, reflux, and various other ailments on a frequent basis. Before finishing Perlmutter’s “Grain Brain”, I quit gluten. About 3 months later I noticed a “fog” seemed to lift; I felt better and seemed to have some relief from head pain. After about 6 months I quit all migraine meds and “fired” my neurologist; he said, “You’ll be back.” I am totally migraine free and also off virtually all otc meds. I also actively treated myself for leaky gut. Friends still ask for my gluten when we order out and refuse to heed advice as they describe symptoms I happily see in the rear-view window. Thanks for the article.
… I also took some L Glutamine for leaky gut and that seemed to really help!! 🙂
I have struggled for around 3 years now with a flare up of stress related IBS. There was a time it seemed that everything I ate affected me. Through trial and error and a series of elimination diets and persistent consultations with my doctor, I was diagnosed as having a dairy allergy! I thought that was it but I know for sure that gluten/wheat affects me too. Whenever I think, i’ll just try that (french bread) again just to see, I wish I hadn’t. I was tested for CD which was negative. I know I’m NCGS even if I can’t prove it!!
It was my doctor who suggested I had NCGS and candida-overgrowth. I found changing my diet a real challenge – particularly with a family to feed. I followed the candida diet for two weeks, this seemed to give my gut a rest and I found as I introduced new foods, my gut response to sensitive foods became very quick – from slight discomfort to cramps. I am now following a low fodmap diet with the added inclusions of being yeast and dairy free. I have been gluten free for only eight weeks. My sleep has increased from two to 5.5 hours a night, so I don’t feel fatigued all the time, my knees have stopped creaking, I feel clearer in the head and don’t feel stressed all the time. Concentration levels have increased and joint and muscle aches have decreased. I am starting to feel so much better and think I may even achieve getting my life back. One friend has been particularly disparaging about my new diet, so I think the wheat board must be doing a good job with their propaganda. I personally don’t care, I just feel a whole lot better.
Some friend!
I believe I have a wheat sensitivity and avoid it despite a blood test showing negative for coeliac disease. I used to eat a lot of wheat and had constant bloating, pain and alternating diarrhoea and constipation. I lost a lot of weight despite eating well and my periods also stopped. I also suffer from reactive hypoglycaemia and did some research as my GP was less than helpful. I cleaned up my diet, cutting out most sugar, but still felt no better. I was still having sugar crashes and all the other symptoms mentioned. There was a light bulb moment when I discovered the Wheat Belly book by Dr William Davis. Within days of cutting out wheat my symptoms disappeared and after not having periods for 4 years they returned and my weight normalised. I have recently been on holiday and although I endeavoured to avoid wheat while eating out I must have ingested some as within a very short time I was in a lot of pain and constantly on the toilet.
Hi Sharon
Have you been tested for fructose malabsorption.
its in the starch of wheat and most fruits and veg.
The test is a hydrogen breath test you get through you Dr.
No I haven’t, but my GP couldn’t have been any less interested at the time. He more or less said I should go away and live with it. That’s when I did my own research and experimentation. I have now found a diet that keeps me well, so I suppose it doesn’t really need a name for the condition as long as I know what triggers to avoid.
I developed hypoglycemia in my 20’s, was diagnosed with subclinical hyperthyroid in my early 40’s at the same time I crossed over into pre-diabetes.
In my late 40’s I was diagnosed with non-celiac gluten sensitivity.
Today, now in my mid-50’s, I continue to pop in and out of subclinical hyperthyroid and now have type 2 diabetes which I’ve been successfully managing for the last 18 months with the low carbohydrate ketogenic diet.
I eat the healthiest foods available, pastured, unprocessed, whole foods, organic, non-GMO, etc. And I take quality, whole food nutritional supplements.
Last year I had the $500 genetic test for Celiac Disease. I don’t have the two genes, HLA DQ2 and/or DQ8.
Do I have NCGS? Don’t know. At the time of diagnosis, I had a test result from Enterolabs that suggested I did.
What I now know is that many grains are treated with herbicides, typically a final time three weeks prior to harvest. There is growing evidence that herbicides such as glyphosate, an antibiotic, in Roundup appears to be contributing the diabetes epidemic.
Respectfully, why would Dr. Douillard encourage anyone to eat or resume eating any grain?
I will watch Dr. Douillard’s presentation on September 12th, but I don’t think the problem is limited to the gluten contained in wheat.
I also suggest viewing the new documentary, What’s With Wheat? https://whatswithwheat.com/
Apologies, this post was intended as a reply to Michael’s post today at 12:01 p.m. about Dr. Douillard’s upcoming book on how to reintroduce wheat to the diet.
Lisa, I think you hit the nail on the head when it comes to Round Up. I have not been able to heal until I cut out most grains, all GMOs, kept organic, grass fed and free range. Once I did that the healing has been astounding. To go from chronic diarrhea, fatigue, bloating, and all the other symptoms to bolting out of bed in the morning and having a happy gut and life tells me there is more here than Monsanto wants us to know.
Gluten free for year and a half. Dairy free for three months.
Legumes free for a yea.
Night shade vegetables free for over two years.
My lupus markers under control, however, going through tremendous digestive issues.
Taking enzymes..no help.
Two months ago diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy. Muscle pain, tendons and nerve pain on legs.
Still not taking meds…seeing a PhD for help with supplements..D with k2, Complex B, passion flowers concentrate, magnesium, calcium.
I feel, this due to my diet restriction. If I lose one more pound, I will disappear.
The pain is unbearable at times, poor balance and limited amount of walking or standing.
I don’t know where to go from here suggestions, please.
Susie, Check out Datis Kharazian’s book What’s Wrong with my BraIn… I have been dealing with many of your issues as well- but the brain issues were the scariest. Dr Kharazian is a terrific educator and clinician and this book and the interventions he presents were very helpful for me…. Good luck, I wish you ( and me!) well.
Sent from Tam’s
iPhone
Have you ruled out parasites? I too have been on a path of healing for 3 years, following a paleo diet although not super strict. The bloating and tummy pains was definitely due to gluten. I have slowly been feeling better and better but there are a few small niggles still, like lack of energy and constipation, although I take extra cod liver oil, vit C, K, Magnesium citrate etc. Reliable stool tests are expensive unfortunately. So, after doing some research myself, I have been taking Diatomaceous Earth for a few months (plus giving it to all in the family including cats) and I did notice improvement in energy and my nails were finally healthy. I’m currently doing Hulda Clark’s Cleanse. It makes sense that us humans need to take care of ourselves too in regards of parasites, as we do with our animals. Something else I came across recently is Ashwaganda, Indian Ginseng. I take it now and then and it does boost energy and helps with all sorts of problems. Also good of course is natural sun, good sleep, exercise in moderation – particularly yoga. I really hope you feel better soon, good luck!
The pain from peripheral neuropathy is horrendous. I used P-5-P along with a rife machine. I was able to get out of a wheelchair. I also latered discovered that I have a heavy parasite infection. Use organic Apple cider vinegar. I make my own with the mother. Detox detox detox. Epsom salt baths are great! The medical community is so slow to the game when it comes to parasite infections. They do not know how to test for it. You can show them pictures, give samples of 14 inch long flukes and they will say, “you do not have parasites”. Also medical marijuana helps the pain of peripheral neuropathy
thank you, I am taking the organic apple cider.
Last year I gave a friend a research paper regarding the positive effects of Apigenin on Lupus. I can’t quite recall but IL-17 might be involved in Lupus. If so Tulsi and other ursolic acid containing herbs help block it’s effects. Bifidobacterium Bifidis also increases IL-17.
I would look at herbs like nettle which blocks TNFalpha which may be involved in Lupus. Some other herbs to check out that may or may not help are Baikalein Skullcap(Chinese Skullcap) and Boswella Serrata which suppress a number of inflammatory promoters. Perhaps wild fish would decrease inflammatory symptoms (?).
I’ve known something was going on with my digestion, most particularly following a series of surgeries & antibiotics & pain meds. I did several months of good pro-biotics, still felt unsure of the whole gluten/wheat thing. What convinced me was my body’s almost immediate response to having a series of lunches at a particular cafe, following a 2 hour morning yoga class, soup with bread… each time i became increasingly sleepy to the point of almost fainting… quite a contrast to feeling energized post yoga… then it happened again on semi-camping. witnesses saw me droop forward, again almost faint, after eating a piece of freshly baked packaged corn bread… this doesn’t happen when eating stone ground spelt sour dough bread or ivory teff tortillas or fresh Green Gulch bread. This occurs in varying degrees depending upon the type & amount of bread or 1/2 glass wine. Appreciate your article; makes sense. Unfortunately have to figure it out on my own as Kaiser doesn’t address such things.
That was a Reactive Hypoglycemic reaction to carbs.
Not saying that an over stressed immune response didn’t get you there.
Corn bread? I recently bought some round toasties and have been headachy and no energy.
Chris, after following a non gluten diet- on advise of my clinic nutritionist- for a year, I became extremely sensitive to starchy food. It took a while to realize what had happened. There are still certain starchy vegetables that I cannot put back into my diet. It has been a miserable recovery from the pain and bloating all this caused me to suffer.
Your thoughts on this.
Monica
This is a ‘new’ problem but also consider there are ‘new’ things the agricultural industry via the FDA use to grow wheat. This is not a huge issue in Europe for instance. (Different soil, different fertilizer, different requirements).
This became an issue for me when I moved to America.
Pesticides and fertilizers are not what they used to be here. This wheat sensitivity is not what it used to be. I don think it’s ok to write it off as it was just understudied. I think it’d be beneficial to research the effects of the pesticides and fertilizers directly on the gut skipping the actual wheat itself and I’m betting you get the same terrible results.
My own battle with self diagnosed celiac disease 30 yrs ago has seen me go paleo then ketogenic progressively by necessity.
I now question how many of my ‘allergy’ responses where Carbohydrate Intolerance of a pre diabetic state.
Hi Monica, I would guess that your change in diet caused a shift in your gut microbiome and maybe SIBO. This would be especially likely if eliminating gluten led to consumption of more highly processed GF products or the gluten elimination could have coincided with another cause like a round of antibiotics. I’m sure Chris has lots of info about SIBO on his website as does Alison Siebecker at siboinfo.com.
Hi Monica, I would wonder if the change in your diet provoked a shift in your gut microbes to dysbiosis or maybe even SIBO. Eliminating gluten could cause this particularly if you replaced the gluten food with more highly processed GF foods or maybe it just coincided with another factor that predisposed you to dysbiosis or SIBO like a round of antibiotics. I’m sure Chris has lots about SIBO on his site or look at siboinfo.com. I apologize if my response is posted twice. The first time I wrote it, it disappeared. Hope you feel better.
Just because you might not have reacted before going gluten-free doesn’t mean that the problem didn’t exist before. Remember, a lot of people might have several “abstract” problems with gluten, then stop eating gluten for a few weeks, then eating a pizza, and then have the problems returning 10x the strength (e.g. vomiting, headaches, diarrhea etc).
This doesn’t mean that the problem wasn’t always there. It just means that your immune system was so suppressed for so many years that it had given up reacting. When your immune system woke up after getting healthier, and then you ate starches again, it reacted as it thinks it should have always done, but couldn’t.
If you’re intolerant to gluten, you can never go back and eat it again. Other foods, e.g. legumes, are possible to re-introduce successfully after your gut has healed. But gluten, never.
Eugenia:
“If you’re intolerant to gluten, you can never go back and eat it again.” That seems to be the majority position but, having read extensively, there is a minority position that states that you can occasionally eat gluten products after your gut lining heals.
There is a second issue. People living gluten-free in the U.S. can visit Europe and eat wheat products without any negative effects. I speak from first-hand experience. Dwarf wheat greatly magnifies the amount of gluten in the American diet. We have modified grains to such a degree in the U.S. that many European recipes will not work in the U.S. — and vice versa.
FWIW, I drank beer and ate bread for over a month in Europe without any issues. My board certified nutritionist also did the same (she is also gluten intolerant).
It just means you ‘cope’ better on a less intensely modified grain, under less stressful conditions of relaxation.
The 2nd woman, I was talking about in my earlier comment, is from the Czech Republic. She is not able to eat wheat there but can eat the wheat in the Grenadines. So, I guess some places in Europe are also growing/shipping in modern modified wheat.
A common misunderstanding that I see so often is the disparity between being ABLE to consume something and that something actually being “healthy” for one to consume… these are not one and the same.
Just because you CAN eat something, doesn’t mean you SHOULD…
Totally agree!!! Holy words
As self diagnosed celiac 30 yrs ago, with associated leaky gut symptoms I went Paleo, lost my Mammalian Meat Allergy, then Keto, all out of necessity. Now I wonder how many of my pre paleo symptoms of allergy, real enough, were symptoms of Carb Intolerance, – pre diabetic.
It takes 6 months for the gut lining to regenerate only to be re-assaulted by the smallest amount of hidden gliadens in cereals, a thyroid hormone like molecule.
@ Renee, Eugenia is right. The Paradoxical Reaction of a healing system.
I have had to overcome out of control cortisone driving insulin to Reactive Hypoglycemia. Sunshine works better than Vit D supplement but you do need fish oils. High Intensity Interval Training instigates the same reaction as ‘Fists of Fury’, a yoga protocol for lowering cortisol. It drives your body into ketosis but it is not being Keto Adapted. Magnesium, our 4th most abundant mineral is represented by less than 1% in our blood. It is very difficult to assimilate by supplementation & takes a long time.
Have you been tested for SIBO?
With a childhood rife with diarrhea, from lactose intolerance & dairy allergy, Leaky Gut induced by Gluten Intolerance & malabsorption led to malnutrition. IBS, SIBO, Candida, Psoriasis are mere Symptoms worthy of treatment by elimination of Gliadins & carbohydrates and introduction of probiotic ferments.
Well I am Italian and about as stubborn as they come. Just a classic rugged guy who grew up alongside a full diet of pastas and breads.
Throughout my young adult life I’ve had complications with attention span, bowels, throat. My stubbornness led me to ignore that I have any type of problem with food allergies. My sister was diagnosed with Celiacs and I still chose to ignore the possibility that I had any ailment that would make me weak.
Well after about 4 years, decreasing health, losing my job, lose of short term memory, and attention span I started to eliminate all gluten from my diet. My memory has sharpened, I lost 100 lbs, I’ve been able to keep a job, my bowels and throat are back on track and I am making better and more accurate decisions.
Kresser, you are an God’s answer to my prayers on how to feel better.
I’m no longer irritable and I have an optimistic outlook that was gained through bettering my health!!
Even if you don’t believe you have any problems you should still try cutting all gluten from your diet. The energy gain is great.
I read all the comments and I am sighing.
Healthy all my life, always eating grains (Eastern Europeans do), moved to the US in 2001. Diagnosed with Hashimoto in 2011. Fibromyalgia followed in 2014. In spite of zero digestive symptoms went gluten free (actually grain free) in early April of 2016 until late July 2016. While on this diet, developed Rheumatoid Arthritis symptoms. If I had one great day while on gluten/grain free diet, I would stick it it.
Started eating gluten and grains – feel exactly the same. I am very much in tune with my body, I know what Im talking about. Confused. Do people like me exist? Or they just keep silent because nobody wants to get attacked for possibly being different?
Jo, there are any number of possibilities, most would require extensive testing… since you claim to have been healthy until moving to the U.S., I would start by evaluating my surroundings(environmental factors), what changed when you moved, and the possible contamination of your food and water…
start with your location, have you lived in one place the entire time ? Etc…