Hidden Infections and Gluten Intolerance
I’ve been a bad blogger! No post in ages.
I just returned from a little family vacation in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was nice to go home again but the problem is that whenever I go back I am at a loss to see why I ever moved in the first place.
I moved from Los Gatos in the San Francisco Bay Area of California to Dunedin in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. Hmmm . . . what was I thinking?
In Los Gatos there is great coffee, great shopping, restaurants to die for. Not to mention that the weather is perfect, you’re 45 minutes from the city, 30 minutes from the beach, 4 hours from Lake Tahoe and all the people are young, beautiful and healthy.
In Dunedin we finally got a Starbucks (well the next town over did, but close enough), there are lots of thrift stores, the restaurants are pretty much chains (Bob Evans is BIG here!) and the most popular thing around here is the Early Bird Special (great if you like to eat dinner at 4 p.m.). The weather is HOT, MUGGY, HUMID, and the average age of my neighbors is somewhere around 103. The good news is by comparison here, I am a real BABE! And there are beaches EVERYWHERE.
Anyway, I had a great time and while I was there I saw my old doctor (I should say previous doctor, as she is not old) and that was really interesting. Turns out that if you are gluten intolerant and have been really good about eliminating gluten from your diet yet still suffer some symptoms it is very possible that there are hidden infections in the body.
I took a test – let me just say I am now intimately acquainted with my poop (yuck) – and am awaiting the results. I am really good about staying away from gluten, yet my adrenal and thyroid function is still not the greatest, and I get exhausted pretty easily. So I am very curious to find out what creatures may be lurking deep within. I’ll keep you posted.
To get more info on the hidden infection factor, check out this blog – The Gluten Doctors. They have some very interesting information.
Well now that I am back, I will be cooking up a storm so look for new recipe posts soon!
BTW – I must confess: I did not take the picture above of the bugs (as if I would ever get that close to those little suckers).
Hidden Infections and Gluten Intolerance – Gluten Free & More
Oh wow, eeeebeee geeebeees!! At first, we thought this was a picture of bed mites. Thanks for the info about being gluten intolerant….we never knew. Keep us updated!
Hi, Carol
Thanks for checking out my blogspot! This is a new adventure for me and so far it’s been alot of fun! I love your blog, the photos are gorgeous! I can’t wait to try your recipes! I will keep in touch!
Lisa :)
http://www.glutenfreelicious.blogspot.com
I miss Los Gatos too, esp the farmer’s market there! Damn. I what were we thinking????
Interesting stuff – I know that I am more prone to infection than I was before I suffered celiac symptoms.
I guess it wouldn’t hurt to do the odd cleanse and course of Astragalus and probiotics for us delicate flowers?
Can’t wait to hear all about your poop….
x x x
Hello,
As a doctor writing a book on the subject of gluten I am very glad that you are writing about this very important, though often overlooked consequence of celiac and gluten intolerance – hidden infections.
The mechanism, for those who are interested, revolves around the inflammation that is created in the small intestine with the ingestion of gluten for so many years. This inflammatory response weakens the immune system of the intestine thereby allowing pathogenic (disease causing) organisms to gain a foothold. Every 10 minutes our small intestines are exposed to pathogenic organisms. A healthy immune system destroys them but a compromised immune system can’t defend itself adequately.
These organism can cause a myriad of health problems including gastrointestinal symptoms, arthritis and joint inflammation, obesity and hormone imbalance, to name a few.
Anyone with celiac or gluten intolerance is at risk for these infections which can be bacterial, parasitic, amoeba or yeast. I find a stool test to be the most accurate way to detect them but there are some labs I prefer over others due to their sensitivity and accuracy.
Hope that helps for anyone curious.
Best,
Dr Vikki Petersen
http://www.healthnowmedical.com
http://www.glutendoctors.blogspot.com
P.S. Can’t wait to try some of your recipes and share them with my patients.
Also, if an infection is found it is critical to retest to ensure that it’s been eradicated. And lastly, since the immune system of a celiac or gluten intolerant individual can take a few years to reestablish once gluten and any offending organisms have been removed, annual testing is probably a good idea for a couple of years.
That is really interesting. I am going to have to do some investigating into this. Also, I just found out my cortisol levels are low. I know that has something to do with the adreanals. I have had thyroid problems most of my adult life. I had thryoid cancer at age 23. It is amazing how all of this goes hand in hand.
This is interesting. Thanks for sharing. My sister has celiac disease and I’ve had the blood test that came back negative. But my chiropractor wants me to do the stool test like you did, to see if I have a gluten intolerance that is causing me some joint issues, etc. I’ll share your site with my sister as she is always looking for new recipes! Thank you!
Wow, why Dunedin? I grew up in S. Fla and my only memory of Dunedin is that my parents' car broke down there once and it took two days to get it fixed since they had to order a simple part that most mechanics have on hand.
Oh well, you can still make it to the beach for the day! could be worse – when my dad first got a transfer, they put us in ARCADIA, which, by any standards is a very nasty place to live.
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