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Gluten Free Thanksgiving?

Can you have a gluten rash(dermatitis herpetiformis) without being having celiac disease?

  • Early last summer I went on a gluten free diet as recommended by my chiropractor when I told him of all my digestive issues I was having at the time, heartburn, constipation, diarrhea,... Anyway, for two and a half months I went almost completely gluten-free. About two weeks after starting a new job I was busy so I decided to try quitting the diet. I had no ill effects initially. About a month later I got a nasty rash on my face that was diagnosed as impetigo, which got infected with staph. My dermatologist seemed to think that I didn't know how to shave correctly and was getting razor bumps, I followed his plan of using an electric razor, lotions, special soaps... to the letter. NO improvement. Around thanksgiving I noticed I felt like absolute garbage and my face was itching like crazy, I had eaten alot of wheat-filled foods like stuffing and rolls and pie and up to that point hadn't really had a high concentration of flour intake, just a little here and there. I decided to ditch the Dermatologist and go on a gluten-free diet(which he laughed at to my face btw). The rash on my face cleared up completely, the overall trashy feeling I'd been having improved and I was having less intestinal difficulties. Every time I have either cheated or accidentally had something to eat with gluten in it my face has started to itch. My question is: I know I can't have gluten, and it causes a rash and digestive problems, but how do I know if I am intolerant or celiac, and what specialist should I look into to find out for sure?

  • Answer:

    You should check in with your local or family doctor

Thomas at Yahoo! Answers Visit the source

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If the rash is Dermatitis Herpetiformis, then you have Celiac Disease. That is the only known cause of DH, at this point, and is considered a positive diagnosis of Celiac Disease. Iodine intake will actually have an affect on how badly you react, so many people with DH have to watch their iodine intake closely (more is NOT better, for people with DH). I'd go check out some DH forums to see what others do to lower their iodine levels. A dermatologist would need to diagnose the rash (well, a competent one), but they can only do this while you HAVE a rash. They must take a biopsy of your skin from the clear skin right next to the lesions of the rash (taking a biopsy of the lesion itself will always produce a negative result). A gastroenterologist would diagnose you will celiac disease with a blood test and/or a biopsy of your intestine through an endoscopy. However, and this is the crummy news, you need to be sick for any of the current tests for celiac disease to work. They don't actually test FOR the disease, they only test for the damage of the disease. This is the reason why many people who have gone gluten free before testing choose, in the end, not to get diagnosed. Because they don't wish to damage themselves horribly just to get the diagnosis. There are some promising looking tests that are being researched at the moment, that wouldn't require you to be sick to diagnose you, but they are going to be a ways down the line. I haven't heard of any companies even picking them up, just researchers checking out whether certain methods are viable.

Shauna

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