Amy asked: Is it uncommon to have blood work say you are fine but every time you eat gluten you are in severe pain? Can you still have celiac even if blood work says no? I answered: Yes, it is common to have blood work be negative. Some of the slip ups to false-negative bloodwork are 1) not eating gluten for 1-2 months daily before your blood work 2) not eating enough gluten for that time - should be the equivalent of 1-4 pieces of bread daily and 3) the doctor did not do a thorough panel. I recommend the following tests: total IgA tissue transglutaminase IgA and IgG deaminated gliadin peptide IgA and IgG endomysial antibody (optional) If you are already on a gluten-free diet, then ask for the genetic test. If you are in the 30-40% of Americans who are seronegative (negative blood tests) but with the gene, you might have your physician refer you to a gastroenterologist for endoscopy and biopsy. For the biopsy, you need to be eating gluten again for 1-2 months. The biopsy will reveal whether there is damage to the lining of the small intestine. There MUST be 4-6 biopsies performed, 2 in the duodenal bulb, or they will miss celiac disease. Once all this is done, then and only then can you go gluten-free, or else you risk having false-negative tests. If you have followed the above and everything is negative, then you fall into the category of non-celiac gluten sensitivity. This is NOT an autoimmune reaction to gluten but another form of reaction to gluten with a different part of your immune system. OR, if you have the gene, you might be a celiac who has latent celiac disease and it just hasnt expressed itself yet. We still have so much to learn with gluten. There are some alternative tests for gluten sensitivity that you naturopathic doctor (ND), and more and more intergrative MDs or functional medicine MDs are running that do further tests for gluten sensitivity. If your doctor doesnt know about these tests or refuses to test you further, then you need to seek help with another provider until you get your answers. Good luck, Amy!
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 16:08:29 +0000
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