Gluten Intolerance- Part 3

In part 1 and 2 of this series, I wanted to convince you of two important ideas.

First, gluten intolerance is very serious even if you don't have symptoms.

Second, a lot of people in the United States are at risk.

So now what? There really are two options.

Option 1: Get tested for gluten intolerance.
There are a few ways to get tested; saliva, blood or stool.

A) Realistically, saliva testing is the least reliable among these. I don't recommend it. Saliva testing is an excellent way to test for certain hormone levels in the body, but when looking for antibodies related to gluten, it's not quite as useful.

B) Blood tests have been the standard for many years. When antibodies are detected, the gold standard has been to follow up with an intestinal biopsy to assess for destruction of the gut. If the intestinal wall shows signs of distress, you officially have "Celiac Disease." If there is no destruction, then you may not be a "true" celiac patient, but after reading part 1 and 2 of this series, I hope you understand that a lack of intestinal distress does not mean you're out of the woods.

C) Stool tests are newer on the laboratory testing scene (for gluten intolerance) but have been around for about 7 years. This is the best way to assess for gluten intolerance. Because gluten is ingested, the initial immune response occurs in the intestines. Anitbodies can be more reliably detected in the stool.

Final word on testing.
If you have a positive blood test, stay away from gluten.
If you have a negative blood tests, then it doesn't guarantee you are safe. Follow up with a stool test.
If the stool test is negative, there is a very good chance you are safe....

... but remember, gluten sensitivity can show up later in life. You may have a gene that predisposes you to this and this gene may be expressed later in your life. You may actually want to follow up with a genetic test to see if you have a gene that can predispose you.

Most labs can routinely assess for antibodies in the blood. If you choose to go with the stool test, I recommend Enterolab.


Option 2: Go on a gluten free diet
If you are having symptoms, you may try a gluten free diet even without having the test. If you feel better, then you should stay away from gluten for the rest of your life. If you are having symptoms, there is no harm in trying this method. The only problem is if you don't see changes in your symptoms. You may come to the false conclusion that you have no reaction to gluten.

Remember that immune responses to gluten can be subtle and slowly degrade different tissues in your body. Much of the current research is showing us that even things like osteoporosis may be related to gluten. You can see that if you remove gluten from your diet for two weeks, in this case, you may not actually feel any different. But you will be calming the inflammatory response that contributes toward the decrease in your bone density.

In my mind, the lab tests are a simple and easy way to remove doubt.