Is There A Chance

[Gemme]

I am celiac and it is very difficult for me to be 100% Gluten free. If we have a scale from 1—100 , and I am consuming 1—3% hidden gluten, you think I am still recovering or I will have to be 100% Gluten free.

Wishing you all a healthy life and speedy recovery.

[tom]

A celiac has to be 100% gluten-free.

Before I knew better I tried 98-99% gluten-free & an easy argument can be made that it led directly to wasted years of spiraling ill health - some aspects creeping in so slowly it's easy to blame aging or get into the mindset "this is just how it is, deal w/ it, everyone has problems" w/out realizing it's something else beyond that & WILL get worse.

Now .. ..where you say 1-3% hidden gluten, is that cross contamination or just not checking labels or asking restaurants questions?

[kareng]

Here is info from 2 "experts" The Celiac Center in Chicago & the Celiac Center at Columbia. we can bombard you with more info from reputable sources, but they all say the same thing.

Open Original Shared Link

[Gemme]

  On 8/30/2012 at 10:10 PM, tom said:

A celiac has to be 100% gluten-free.

Before I knew better I tried 98-99% gluten-free & an easy argument can be made that it led directly to wasted years of spiraling ill health - some aspects creeping in so slowly it's easy to blame aging or get into the mindset "this is just how it is, deal w/ it, everyone has problems" w/out realizing it's something else beyond that & WILL get worse.

Now .. ..where you say 1-3% hidden gluten, is that cross contamination or just not checking labels or asking restaurants questions?

Yes it is hidden gluten, cross contamination, i do all i can, but every few days i find a new source of hidden or cc.

Thank you for time n reply

[Gemme]

  On 8/30/2012 at 10:11 PM, kareng said:

Here is info from 2 "experts" The Celiac Center in Chicago & the Celiac Center at Columbia. we can bombard you with more info from reputable sources, but they all say the same thing.

Open Original Shared Link

"The gluten-free diet is a lifetime requirement. Eating any gluten, no matter how small an amount, can damage your intestine. This is true for anyone with the disease, including people who do not have noticeable symptoms."

Open Original Shared Link

"Q: Is it ok if I ingest some gluten if I do not experience any symptoms?

No. The majority of patients with celiac disease experience no symptoms when they ingest gluten, either intentionally or unintentionally. This led to the concept that patients, especially children may grow out of the disease. In addition, patients also consider that it is doing no harm to them. However the ingestion of even small amounts of gluten results in damage to the small intestine--regardless of the presence or absence of symptoms--and puts the patient at risk for resulting complications including malignancies and osteoporosis. "

Thank you.

[GFinDC]

Hi Gemme,

The immune system reactions can last for weeks. The immune cells get spun up for an attack and don't disappear and go back to the bunker for card playing and drinking in just a day. They stay vigilant for new invaders and ready to fight. So if you are constantly feeding them little bits of gluten they are always going to be active.

[Chad Sines]

Is anyone ever truly 100% gluten-free with all the concerns of cross contamination? Even the lower ppm limits have limitations in what can be tested for. I am not advocating for adding gluten to the diet of course, but the fact that some go medical freakout on CC and others do not, seems to shows a discussable area as to how much is okay. 1 ppm, 0.5.... Even the terms like super sensitive seem to reinforce this a bit. It all could be that each just has a different GI with varying degrees of damage, but it appears that some long-term gluten-free are still super sensitive.

Does anyone ever get to that 6-mo, 1 year, 2-year purely gluten-free with no exposure? Is that even possible?

[Gemini]

  On 8/31/2012 at 8:12 PM, Chad Sines said:

Is anyone ever truly 100% gluten-free with all the concerns of cross contamination? Even the lower ppm limits have limitations in what can be tested for. I am not advocating for adding gluten to the diet of course, but the fact that some go medical freakout on CC and others do not, seems to shows a discussable area as to how much is okay. 1 ppm, 0.5.... Even the terms like super sensitive seem to reinforce this a bit. It all could be that each just has a different GI with varying degrees of damage, but it appears that some long-term gluten-free are still super sensitive.

Does anyone ever get to that 6-mo, 1 year, 2-year purely gluten-free with no exposure? Is that even possible?

I think if a person bases their diet on whole foods, with some goodies and bread thrown in (preferably from dedicated, certified facilities) without overdoing it, then they should feel confident that they are as gluten free as it gets. You can never say with absolute absurdness that you are 100% gluten free....no one can prove that. Just like no one can prove that any given gluten-free mix is contaminated with minute amounts of gluten just because they think so.

I am extremely sensitive and get sick from very small amounts but I manage to be healthy, with no symptoms anymore from eating a careful gluten-free diet. I do eat cookies and brownies occasionally but most always choose dedicated facilities and I have never gotten sick from them. I have had problems with shared facilities, though. The only time I seem to sustain a hit is when I travel but that is usually just one time and then I seem to do fine. Travel is hard but it can be done. I go very long periods of time with no glutening episodes but do not eat out all that much and I am careful where I go. That can be hard for people to do but I think it essential to keep yourself from taking a hit. If you eat at home most of the time, once you learn the ropes, it should not be too hard to keep yourself well. It's still a crap shoot but it is possible....I feel I live a very normal life. It's the rest of the people that eat weird, not me!

[Persei V.]

Not likely. I know I am not in a 100% gluten free diet, as I am still trying to figure out what I can eat, and what I can't. Recently I made a corn cake I was sure it was completely gluten-free because it was made at home and I cleaned the utensils thorougly before using.

Guess again.

Glutenated. And I'm feeling really bad right now, even though I had it 2 days ago and have been eating only safe foods since then. Even had a headache, something I've never had before from ingesting gluten.

Processed foods always come with a bit, at least in my area, because there are no gluten free facilities (I kind of have to trust on their words it's gluten free, then see it for myself ). So... If one has a completely gluten-free kitchen and eats only home made foods, I think one has a 100% gluten-free diet.

If not...

[NGG]

I've only been gluten-free for a few months, and I really try, but I sometimes get hit without knowing where it came from. The first thing I feel is a huge wave of fatigue and like a mental fogginess. I was worried at one point I could be narcoleptic or something. It's horrible and difficult to concentrate even to drive, so I just don't go to restaurants anymore if I have to drive. There's too great a chance I'll get like that. I don't always get sick to my stomach, but if I do, again, sometimes it hits while I'm in the car and it's difficult to concentrate if I'm driving. (Road safety is a big deal for me.) So basically I'll occasonally go out to eat with my family or just my husband if my husband drives but I don't get food out otherwise.

So the answer for me is that I haven't yet managed, and eating out (not as much if there is an actual gluten-free menu) is the trickiest. I haven't gone to a place that doesn't have some kind of policy or statement about gluten in a while. Those that either have a gluten-free menu or publish their allergen menu seem less problematic to me, at least in my limited experience so far.

[1974girl]

I don't believe it is possible to be 100% gluten free unless you live in a bubble. Just the sheer number of cc threads on here show that! (and your body doesn't know if you did it on purpose or not!). My dd accidentally popped a butterfinger mini ( the unwrapped kind) from her sister because she thought butterfingers were gluten-free. Sister immediately told her they had wheat in them and she spit it out. But I know it went in. I also have no idea if the restaurants are doing a good job even with a gluten-free menu. My dd lives a normal life, goes to grandparents house and eats, we eat out once a week. She has normal antibodies within 6 months. We are doing the very best we can and the doctor said she would live to make a video of us to show it can be done with kids. But she lives normal and I am sure something sneaks in but without symptoms, we'd never know without a scope every year.