Ciliacs and long covid

[Eileenmm]

Hallo everyone I'm new here. I got long covid after my 4 covid infection ( I work in care) . I was so tired and couldn't do anything for more than an half hour then needed to rest for 15 minutes. Someone with MS suggested trying an antihistamine diet so I did and after a week I got a lot of my energy back. I still wasn't better but definitely a lot than I was. 

I realised that it was mainly the gluten and milk where I reacted to. After a few months I reintroduced gluten and milk in my diet and was right  back to the zero again.

After stopping I was feeling better again after a week. And everything was going well. Until last week when I decided to eat a hamburger with the bun and cheese ( it was my honeymoon) and within an half hour had tummy cramps diarrhea, I'm very tired again and I have a rash on my tummy and back. 

I realised that I have always been very windy the last 10 years maybe and I mean really windy. That has gotten much better since I don't eat gluten . There seems to be so many things pointing to celiac. I haven't been to my GP yet about my concern about Celiac. He was not for me stopping with gluten and dairy and was very surprised with the results. 

I think you are all the experts in this so I wanted to hear first what you think. Could the covid have triggered the Celiac? Does any of this sound familiar ? 

Sorry for the long story.

 

 

[plumbago]

  On 5/20/2023 at 9:29 AM, Eileenmm said:

Could the covid have triggered the Celiac?

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Yes it's possible, but I'm also thinking you already had Celiac and that could have pre-disposed you to so many infections and moderate disease. I also work in healthcare, I have controlled Celiac disease, and to my knowledge I have not been infected with the SARS 2 coronavirus. I do mask fairly diligently.

Plumbago

[trents]

I agree with Plumbago. You had symptoms of either celaic disease or NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) well before COVID. Now that you are on a gluten-free diet, you have eliminated the possibility of valid testing for celiac disease and there is no reliable test for NCGS. celiac disease must first be ruled out to arrive at a NCGS diagnosis.

[Eileenmm]

Thank you for your reply. What do you mean I eliminated my possibility of valid testing? Surely if I stopped with gluten I could be tested ?

[Eileenmm]

  On 5/20/2023 at 1:08 PM, trents said:

I agree with Plumbago. You had symptoms of either celaic disease or NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) well before COVID. Now that you are on a gluten-free diet, you have eliminated the possibility of valid testing for celiac disease and there is no reliable test for NCGS. celiac disease must first be ruled out to arrive at a NCGS diagnosis.

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  On 5/20/2023 at 10:11 AM, plumbago said:

Yes it's possible, but I'm also thinking you already had Celiac and that could have pre-disposed you to so many infections and moderate disease. I also work in healthcare, I have controlled Celiac disease, and to my knowledge I have not been infected with the SARS 2 coronavirus. I do mask fairly diligently.

Plumbago

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Thank you for your reply. I did mask very diligently but so people are just more prone to catching it than others unfortunately.

[trents]

  On 5/20/2023 at 2:57 PM, Eileenmm said:

Thank you for your reply. What do you mean I eliminated my possibility of valid testing? Surely if I stopped with gluten I could be tested ?

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What the blood tests are checking for is the immune system antibodies connected with the inflammation celiac disease produces in the villous lining of the small bowel. The second stage of testing is the endoscopy with biopsy to microscopically examine the damage to the villous lining of the small bowel produced by that sustained inflammation over time. If you take away gluten from the diet, the inflammation subsides, antibodies begin to disappear and healing of the villous lining begins to happen. The only thing that can be validly tested  after gluten has been withdrawn from the diet for some weeks is the genetic potential to develop celiac disease. But 40% of the population has the genetic potential whereas only about 1% actually develop celiac disease.

[Eileenmm]

But if I started eating gluten before the blood test?

[trents]

  On 5/20/2023 at 6:40 PM, Eileenmm said:

But if I started eating gluten before the blood test?

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Yes, that's an option. The Mayo Clinic guidelines for doing that, the pretesting "gluten challenge" as they call it, is the daily consumption of two slices of wheat bread (or the gluten equivalent) for 6-8 weeks leading up to the antibody test and the same amount for two weeks leading up to the endoscopy/biopsy. Be aware, however, that if you have been gluten free for a significant amount of time, say, months or years, you are likely to have a stronger, even violently ill, reaction to resuming gluten intake.

[yuluyouyue]

  On 5/20/2023 at 10:11 AM, plumbago said:

Yes it's possible, but I'm also thinking you already had Celiac and that could have pre-disposed you to so many infections and moderate disease. I also work in healthcare, I have controlled Celiac disease, and to my knowledge I have not been infected with the SARS 2 coronavirus. I do mask fairly diligently.

Plumbago

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I don't think celiac necessarily makes you more succeptible to infections. I must have haD celiac my whole life but I never even got so much as a cold, let alone flu. I take it that my immune system is just strong, for better or worse. 

[plumbago]

I don't know @yuluyouyue, it seems fairly well-established that (untreated) celiac disease can predispose to infections. Take iron deficiency anemia. This is not as obvious and straightforward a cause of moderate disease resulting from infection as neutropenia (deficiency of white blood cells) is because it is both a cause of and result from infection, but having enough iron is definitely a key to a well-functioning immune system, and many of those with untreated celiac disease have iron deficiency anemia. Zinc is another key component that is often reduced in those with celiac disease, which is also important in the immune system. There are of course others, including the white blood cells, which are often reduced in untreated celiac disease. I imagine a degraded mucosal layer would contribute to many of these key deficiencies. The source of my information is Recognizing Celiac Disease: Signs, Symptoms, Associated Disorders & Complications.