Underactive thyroid and celiac disease
Posted , 2 users are following.
Hi I have underactive thyroid (but not hashimotos) and I'm due to be tested with the gastroscopy for celiac disease in a couple of weeks.
I was mostly avoiding gluten but not completely and have been told to eat the equivalent of four slices of bread a day prior to the test. Im about five days into eating this and I feel awful, so exhausted, dizzy and having stomach cramps.
Does anyone else suffer with this? My main question is, if you don't have celiac disease but still symptomatic, is it worth the hassle of completely cutting our gluten and did it make a significant difference?
When I was mostly avoiding it I found the tiredness was still bad but I wasn't sure whether that was because I was still having some of it in my diet and hadn't completely excluded it?
Any advice around gluten and the tiredness symptoms would be much appreciated!
0 likes, 3 replies
MtViewCatherine Tutu123
Posted
Hi Caz, yes! I didn't believe it when I first heard of this, but yes, absolutely. There does seem to be a strong connection between thyroid disease and gluten sensitivity. As for the pain you're going through, people with celiacs or any wheat sensitivity often cannot endure the wheat exposure needed to trigger a positive anibody test. If you have wheat sensitivity and you continue to consume wheat, you are triggering your immune system to attack your own cells. It can take months to heal damage caused by gluten exposure. Gluten sensitivity is thought to be hugely connected to thyroid disease, as all thyroid disease is autoimmune. Furthermore, the antibody tests are known to have a 50% false negative rate. For this reason, the genetic test is considered more reliable. However, from my own experience, getting the genetic test is impossible. It's really a matter of, how much is it worth it to you to get a piece of paper that says you shouldn't eat wheat? You already know you shouldn't. No one cuts wheat out of their diet unless it's really a problem. Who does that?
Gluten protein triggers an autoimmune response to certain cells in the body because those cells have surface proteins that look similar to gluten. These reactions are noticeably seen in the gut and thyroid, but also the lungs and other organs. This is why it us recommended that's thyroid patients keep a strict gluten free diet. Even the smallest gluten exposure can trigger an autoimmune response and organ damage that can take moths to heal. Celiacs who consume wheat have a 30x higher rate of gut cancer.
People with the celiacs gene may never actually become celiacs, as it needs a trigger. They're just much more likely to become gluten sensitive. It seems the most likely trigger is bacterial infection, though any illness, virus, etc, could potentially trigger the gene to become sensitive.
Tutu123 MtViewCatherine
Posted
Hi Catherine thanks for the info I really appreciate it!
I had the blood test but it came back negative (because they didn't tell me I needed to eat a substantial amount of gluten leading up to the test). Yes they also mentioned it could be a false negative anyway so they are checking with a gastroscopy. I've never heard of a genetic test - is that a blood test I assume?
I've never felt so awful so you're right I think regardless of the result I will cut it out completely to see if it helps. I think I've got quite a way to go with this, the doctor said even after a year or two of completely cutting out gluten some people with celiac disease don't feel much better which really surprised me.
MtViewCatherine
Posted
Caz, good choice to cut out completely. The gastric test also has high false negative because you have a ton of surface area, and they're only taking a small sample, hoping to get some affected tissue. I opted against the gastric testing because of its invasiveness and high false negative.The genetic test does exist. My sister was able to get it done. I tried several times, but then doctors literally don't know how to order this test and I eventually gave up.
Youll need to do some research on glutenfree diet because gluten is virtually in everything. Going gluten free is pretty complicated. Best to prepare all your food athome for a while. Once you've been off the gluten a while, you'll start to know when you've had a reaction. You'll also feel a ton better, and like any lifestyle change, you'll get used to eating without the gluten products.
God luck!