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Red Heads


ctenny

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sharilee Rookie

I was diagnosed with celiac disease a little over a week ago and I am a red head.

  • 2 weeks later...

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ncteacher Newbie

I'm a redhead!

I heard from a fellow celiac (who is brunette, by the way) that celiac disease seems to be more common along the Irish/Scottish hereditary line. If that's true (I'm skeptical), maybe there is a link!

IrishHeart Veteran

New here...Hi all.......I have red orange hair, no freckles and light olive complected and the only one in the family with red hair......I can't find anyone in the family who knows any relatives with Celiac.......My heritage is French, Irish and German.

Trying to get a hang of the board.

Hi Hon! Welcome to the forum!

Ditto for me-- French, Irish, German ---and Armenian.

There's no one in my family with Celiac (that we know of anyway )--except me--but there are others (of this, I am quite sure) as the family is loaded with auotimmune diseases. My Dad certainly had it, we know now. And in our grandparents' time, no one kept records.

...and well, someone has to be diagnosed FIRST, right? :)

Guess that's us!

IrishHeart Veteran

I'm a redhead!

I heard from a fellow celiac (who is brunette, by the way) that celiac disease seems to be more common along the Irish/Scottish hereditary line. If that's true (I'm skeptical), maybe there is a link!

There is quite a bit written about the celtic association (some folks kiddingly calling this " Celtic Disease".) and the genetic markers that are prevalent in Ireland/the UK. Interesting stuff! :)

Ryniev Apprentice

My hair is brown but tends to have reddish highlights. I don't think that counts though because I look very Italian and I don't think there are many Italian redheads running amok.

PatSch Newbie

Redhead w/freckles here. But the rest of my large family with gluten issues are not.

xJalin Newbie

I'm a redhead too. :) Interestingly enough, my brother's friend is a celiac, and he's a redhead too.


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xJalin Newbie

Come to think of it, all the people I know who are celiacs or are of Irish descent. My aunt, myself, and 2 friends (all redheads), and another friend who isn't a redhead but is 100% Irish

  • 2 weeks later...
SugarBiscuit Newbie

Interesting...I am half Native American, half Irish. I was born with back hair, but turned brown with red tinting when I was a teenager.

  • 2 weeks later...
ctenny Rookie

Celiac is called the Celtic disease...

ChuGotItDood Newbie

I am blonde, my bf is a red head, and our friend is brunette. And we are all Celiacs. I'm new to this too( diagnosed this week ), but knew a bit about Celiacs from them before.

ctenny Rookie

Welcome to the club! I've been diagnosed for 2 and a half months now.

frieze Community Regular

My hair is brown but tends to have reddish highlights. I don't think that counts though because I look very Italian and I don't think there are many Italian redheads running amok.

virna lisi, natural blonde/blue eye italian actress....about 2% are red heads, so I just read.

  • 3 weeks later...
vickimini Newbie

First post for me! I have some Irish blood and some (unconfirmed) native blood. My hair is unremarkable brown but I used to get red highlights in the summer, when I was young. All highlights are gray now!

Glad to be here. You all know so much about this! I have no Dx but have had an explosion of symptoms, fierce anxiety and irritability being the worst, since quitting gluten about five months ago.

EJR Rookie

Another redhead here. My grandparents were from Norway so have the fair skin, freckles, etc.

Stubborn red head Apprentice

I have red in my hair. I have always been the red head of the family. We all have some in our hair but mine shows the most. Im strawberry blonde, I have pail skin and freckled from head to toe with all kinds of moles.

Takala Enthusiast

The only place that's left red is some of my thinning eyebrows and eyelashes. I was born light blonde that went to strawberry blonde and then it darkened to dark medium ashy mixed by high school, so it was very easy to bring it back up to lighter with mild highlighting solutions. It got very dark (the roots) by my forties, then started to go dull ashy mudd grey mixed with the red and blonde. After gluten free, it changed texture again (thank God, it got thicker) and came in curlier and lighter colored. That was the strange part, my hair changed color, too. But I kept highlighting, at least the roots blended nicely. I am pale skinned, why not.

Then, tragically, L'Oreal stopped making my color, :( so I had to switch. :lol: And we have real funky well water minerals around here, all my neighbors my age are sort of in need of a rainwater rinse and conditioning. My hair is currently not quite the right color, especially since skin tends to change with age (could I be any whiter than this ? not by much) but when I've tried others with the Garnier (no gluten) they are not coming out the way I wanted, yet. Grey is funky to dye over.

My mother, by this age, was much more light silver grey than I am, and her hair was much more brunette than mine ever has been. I let my hair grow all the way out natural color last year, looked at it, said, NOPE, I'm no silver fox, :blink: and went to the cabinet for the color.

I have very mild freckling, pale skin, pale blue eyes, and the whole Celt/Indigenous/Irish/English/German routine. Both parents were dark haired and all the kids were born blonde.

  • 2 months later...
FruitEnthusiast Enthusiast

I was just diagnosed a week ago, so as of today, I have not met a single other person with Celiac's in real life. I have no idea what they look like! I have heard, through the grapevine of the internet, that there seems to be a high frequency of red heads in the Celiac population.

Is this just because of the two gene's common European upbringing?

Who here is a red head? I am!

What do you think of this odd coincidence?

Hi, I'm a redhead too! I've also heard celiac is prevalent among redheads. Though I'm gluten intolerant and tested negative for celiac, my GI said to be extra careful "cause I'm a redhead. I've heard that redheads have one less layer of epidermis on the outer most layer of their skin and also on the inner most layer internally too. Food for thought.

RL2011 Rookie

You Gingers have all kinds of added issues (said laughingly).

FruitEnthusiast Enthusiast

You Gingers have all kinds of added issues (said laughingly).

Hmmm... perhaps... but it's soooo worth it! :)

Chad Sines Rising Star

I like redheads and I have celiac? Coincidence?? Who knows...

FruitEnthusiast Enthusiast

laughing...

RonSchon Explorer

I was married to a Redhead when I came down with celiac disease. Coincidence? I think not.

jerseyangel Proficient

I was married to a Redhead when I came down with celiac disease. Coincidence? I think not.

Celiac by association? :D

katt983 Newbie

Medium brown hair here, with some reddish highlights that have faded a bit with time.

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    • Scott Adams
      The first set of results show two positive results for celiac disease, so at the very least it looks like you could have it, or at the least NCGS.   Approximately 10x more people have non-celiac gluten sensitivity than have celiac disease, but there isn’t yet a test for NCGS. If your symptoms go away on a gluten-free diet it would likely signal NCGS.      
    • Scott Adams
      Elevated tissue transglutaminase IgA (tTG-IgA) levels are highly specific for celiac disease, and they are a key biomarker used in its diagnosis. However, there are some rare instances where elevated tTG-IgA levels have been reported in conditions other than celiac disease. While these cases are not common, they have been documented in the literature. Below are some examples and references to studies or reviews that discuss these scenarios:  1. Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS)    - NCGS typically does not cause elevated tTG-IgA levels, as it is not an autoimmune condition. However, some individuals with NCGS may have mild elevations in tTG-IgA due to intestinal inflammation or other factors, though this is not well-documented in large studies.    - Reference: Catassi, C., et al. (2013). *Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: The New Frontier of Gluten-Related Disorders*. Nutrients, 5(10), 3839–3853. [DOI:10.3390/nu5103839](https://doi.org/10.3390/nu5103839)  2. Autoimmune Diseases    - Elevated tTG-IgA levels have been reported in other autoimmune conditions, such as type 1 diabetes, autoimmune hepatitis, and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This is thought to be due to cross-reactivity or polyautoimmunity.    - Reference: Sblattero, D., et al. (2000). *The Role of Anti-Tissue Transglutaminase in the Diagnosis and Management of Celiac Disease*. Autoimmunity Reviews, 1(3), 129–135. [DOI:10.1016/S1568-9972(01)00022-3](https://doi.org/10.1016/S1568-9972(01)00022-3)  3. Chronic Liver Disease    - Conditions like chronic hepatitis or cirrhosis can sometimes lead to elevated tTG-IgA levels, possibly due to increased intestinal permeability or immune dysregulation.    - Reference: Vecchi, M., et al. (2003). *High Prevalence of Celiac Disease in Patients with Chronic Liver Disease: A Role for Gluten-Free Diet?* Gastroenterology, 125(5), 1522–1523. [DOI:10.1016/j.gastro.2003.08.031](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gastro.2003.08.031)  4. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)    - Some patients with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis may have elevated tTG-IgA levels due to intestinal inflammation and damage, though this is not common.    - Reference: Walker-Smith, J. A., et al. (1990). *Celiac Disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease*. Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, 10(3), 389–391. [DOI:10.1097/00005176-199004000-00020](https://doi.org/10.1097/00005176-199004000-00020)  5. Infections and Parasites    - While infections (e.g., giardiasis) are more commonly associated with false-positive tTG-IgA results, chronic infections or parasitic infestations can sometimes lead to elevated levels due to mucosal damage.    - Reference: Rostami, K., et al. (1999). *The Role of Infections in Celiac Disease*. European Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 11(11), 1255–1258. [DOI:10.1097/00042737-199911000-00010](https://doi.org/10.1097/00042737-199911000-00010)  6. Cardiac Conditions    - Rarely, heart failure or severe cardiovascular disease has been associated with elevated tTG-IgA levels, possibly due to gut ischemia and increased intestinal permeability.    - Reference: Ludvigsson, J. F., et al. (2007). *Celiac Disease and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: A Population-Based Cohort Study*. American Heart Journal, 153(6), 972–976. [DOI:10.1016/j.ahj.2007.03.019](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ahj.2007.03.019)  Key Points: - Elevated tTG-IgA levels are highly specific for celiac disease, and in most cases, a positive result strongly suggests celiac disease. - Other conditions causing elevated tTG-IgA are rare and often accompanied by additional clinical findings. - If celiac disease is suspected, further testing (e.g., endoscopy with biopsy) is typically required for confirmation. If you’re looking for more specific studies, I recommend searching PubMed or other medical databases using terms like "elevated tTG-IgA non-celiac" or "tTG-IgA in non-celiac conditions." Let me know if you’d like help with that!
    • MaryMJ
      I called zero water and they state their filters do not contain gluten or gluten containing ingredients. 
    • trents
      I agree. Doesn't look like you have celiac disease. Your elevated DGP-IGG must be due to something else. And it was within normal at that after your gluten challenge so it is erratic and doesn't seem to be tied to gluten consumption.
    • Jack Common
      Hello! I want to share my situation. I had symptoms like some food intolerance, diarrhea, bloating, belching one year ago. I thought I could have celiac disease so I did the blood tests. The results were ambiguous for me so I saw the doctor and he said I needed to do tests to check whether I had any parasites as well. It turned out I had giardiasis. After treating it my symptoms didn't disappear immediately. And I decided to start a gluten free diet despite my doctor said I didn't have it. After some time symptoms disappeared but that time it wasn't unclear whether I'd had them because of eliminating gluten or that parasite. The symptoms for both are very similar. Giardiasis also damages the small intestine. The only way to check this was to start eating bread again as I thought. Now about my results.   These are my first test results (almost a year ago) when I had symptoms: The Tissue Transglutaminase IgA antibody - 0.5 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests 0.0 - 3.0 is normal) The Tissue Transglutaminase IgG antibody - 6.6 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests 0.0 - 3.0 is normal) Immunoglobulin A - 1.91 g/l (for the lab I did the tests 0.7 to 4 g/l is normal) IgA Endomysial antibody (EMA) - < 1:10 titer (for the lab I did the tests < 1:10 titer is normal) IgG Endomysial antibody (EMA) - < 1:10 titer (for the lab I did the tests < 1:10 titer is normal) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgA - 0.3 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests 0.0 - 6.0 is normal) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgG - 46.1 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests 0.0 - 6.0 is normal)   Then I didn't eat gluten for six months. Symptoms disappeared. And I started a gluten challenge. Before the challenge I did some tests. My results: The Tissue Transglutaminase IgG antibody - 0.5 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal)) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgG - 28 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal)   During the challenge I ate 6 slices of wheat bread. After the challenge my results are: The Tissue Transglutaminase IgA antibody - 2.0 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal) The Tissue Transglutaminase IgG antibody - 2.0 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal) Immunoglobulin A - 1.31 g/l (for the lab I did the tests 0.7 to 4 g/l is normal) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgA - 2.0 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgG - 2.13 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal)   To be sure I continued consuming gluten. I ate a lot each day. Two months after I did the tests again. My results I got today are: The Tissue Transglutaminase IgA antibody - 0.7 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal) Immunoglobulin A - 1.62 g/l (for the lab I did the tests 0.7 to 4 g/l is normal) Deamidated gliadin peptide IgG - 25.6 U/ml (for the lab I did the tests < 20 U/ml is normal)   Nowadays I didn't have any symptoms except tiredness but I think it's just work. I think it was this parasite because two years ago, for example, and before I didn't have these symptoms and I always ate gluten food. But I'm still not sure especially because the Deamidated gliadin peptide IgG results are sometimes high. What do you think? @Scott Adams
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