Can you have a wheat allergy and not have Celiac disease?

How can I tell if I have celiacs, or just a wheat allergy?

• Is there any real way to tell if I have celiacs disease, or just a wheat allergy? I had a blood test that came up negative for celiacs, but I know that's not reliable (especially since I had been totally gluten free when I had the test done, and I heard you need to eat a lot of gluten before it, or it'll register nothing anyway...). I also heard there's another *horrible* test that can be taken which is pretty much infallible, but I don't think I want to go through it. I know that I feel a lot better when I am wheat/gluten free, and I have been for about a year now. But I don't actually know if gluten is the problem, or just wheat (if I could eat barley, that would make things so much easier!). :) I know some people might just say "experiment and see what happens" but I really don't want to risk that. I lived with *horrible* mental problems (moreso than the stomach problems - they were there, but not as bad) and I really don't want to risk those coming back. The anxiety/depression was really bad, and I feel like I was practically schitzo, and I really don't want to risk that coming back even for a day. At any rate, I just find it really difficult and expensive to follow a full gluten-free diet, and I'd like to be able to tell if it might just be wheat that's the problem, and not gluten specifically. Know what I mean? ^_^; Thanks!

• Answer:

  Bottom line, you have to be eating wheat for the blood test to show anything or get a colonoscopy to check for damage. They're not actually that bad. From what I can tell (I'm celiac myself), it sounds more like celiac due to the severity of your symptoms. My brother is has aspergers and has the same emotional issues when he eats wheat (he is celiac too). Celiac disease is an auto-immune disease that is triggered by gluten (the protein gliadin). It is contained in wheat, barley, and some oats due to contamination in the processing facilities. Gluten and wheat are pretty much the same thing: all wheat contains gluten. It only has to be expensive to follow a gluten free diet if you buy the gluten free bread products. I don't bother, and just steer clear of it entirely. I don't use bread, and I only have small amounts of rice pasta occasionally. It will be an adjustment to learn to eat new things, but you will get used to it. From my experience, if I continue to eat wheat, my reaction gets worse each time. You are also doing more damage to your intestinal tract, and getting your immune system riled up by triggering the auto-immune response again and again can lead to other food allergies. If you have any more questions, post them here or message me.