My partner has coeliac disease, and as a result I'm mostly gluten free. After some dermatitis flare-ups that seem to have followed gluten consumption, I've concluded I need to do a "gluten challenge" to get myself tested.
I generally have absorption issues at the best of times, so the thought has occurred to me: if someone is doing a gluten challenge, which risks affecting their absorption, should they top up their diet with any supplements?
Hi Cooper, I think that getting tested is a great idea. It took years for me to be diagnosed and I took multivitamins with iron and I'm sure they helped me before diagnosis. If you take iron supplements you must stop taking them for at least 2 weeks before any blood tests or they will be invalid.
I think that if you can eat a food like quinoa which is a complete food would help as all the food we eat is broken down into 23 base amino acids and quinoa contains them all, this is important as our body cannot make 8 base amino acids so they have to come from our food (or supplements) And I would eating quinoa regularly before starting your challenge.
The thought of doing a gluten challenge gives me the horrors so good luck with it and do let us know how you get on. 😊
I'm fortunate that I don't really get digestive symptoms (I can't tell if I've been cross-contaminated at all) so I won't suffer like you would. I doubt I'm coeliac really, but I know ruling it out is important 
If my dermatitis clears up during the gluten challenge, I'll go back to normal.
I'm friends with a coeliac who gets minor bloating after eating a full on gluten meal but she still suffers with malabsorption issues so I'm curious how drastic gluten is on your partner, just being curious as sensitivity shouldn't come into it really.
I agree that eliminating coeliac disease is important. 😊
For my partner, the symptoms hit around 5 hours later and it's several trips to the toilet, crippling stomach pain, headaches, a couple of days off work in more serious cases.
If I have gluten, I usually keep the amounts small, i.e. I wouldn't eat a sandwich or pasta because I suspect my digestive system would get a shock. Last week it was a sausage at breakfast, before Christmas it was some apple crumble (light on the crumble). I think before another flare-up, they put soya sauce on what was advertised as a GF meal.
Is Dermatitis connected to Coeliac..? I've had coeliac for years. About 18 months ago I started to get Dermatitis. It's really bad at times. I have tried steroid creams and different pills. Nothing helps very much and it drives me crazy. My scalp is really bad and it keeps me awake at night. I never eat gluten. I think I am intolerant. to Lactose. Occasionally I will have something with Lactose in. I don't know if that makes it worse. Any advice would be very welcome. Its really making me depressed.
Yes, dermatitis herpetiformis specifically is a symptom of coeliac disease, but other types of dermatitis can be linked too.
Dermatitis is a complicated subject - it can be related to a specific food, or it can be related to your gut health in general (there are more causes than these too).
Sorry, I just re-read and saw that you do have coeliac so I've edited my comment! The question I should ask is, are you strictly gluten free? Have you been tested since diagnosis to confirm antibodies are normal again?
I do have Coeliac Cooper. I will try some probiotics and see if that helps. Thank you.
Sorry, I reread your comment after, and realised you'd already said you're coeliac, so I edited it.
Have you been tested since going GF to confirm your antibodies have normalised?
Dermatitis can be related to poor gut health in general, so it's possible your gut is still tying to recover from the coeliac damage. Just giving it a bit of extra special support to heal will probably help you.
Medicine is starting to recognise the links between good gut bacteria and good health, but it's still very early days. Up til now, they've generally been of the opinion the gut will just right itself (which it might, but there's no harm giving it a helping hand).
I use Allergy Research Group Free Aminos and Multi-Vi-Min. I am completely grain free now, my visible gluten reaction was skin/acne. Our testing isn't good enough to rule out Coeliac anyway and I wouldn't have wanted to exacerbate the inflammatory reaction once I was off, so have stayed off. Best wishes
I know many can react with just a rash, unfortunately I know many think a little rash is a price worth paying to enjoy the odd "treat", so you do very well to stick to your diet
I will have a look for the multi-vitamin, thanks, I've used their brand before for other things, and they seem to be pretty good. Do you know if it contains Iron? My levels have typically been very high, sometimes too high, so I need to avoid supplementing any.
Can't say it is always fun and I really miss some things (now grain, dairy, nightshade and caffeine free) but in spite of still getting more unwell (several auto-immune conditions) I am certain that I am getting worse far slower than I was and would have done...if that makes any sense! I still can't believe that 40 years of persistent, intractable, depressing acne just vanished when I ditched the gluten, which I only did because I got reflux. All those years of antibiotics, lotions, creams, wipes and no-one ever suggested it, yet it seems to be quite a common reaction especially for NCGS.
ARG do a with copper and iron (which I am on as it is grain free) and a without which also has Vit C but derived from corn so I can't take it (reacting especially to corn, which makes life rather problematic...it is in everything!). Haven't looked to see if there are other differences, but if you Google ARG Multi Vi Min you can find ingredients for both. Cheers
It sounds like you have some gut issues you still need to work on. When you struggle to reintroduce that many foods, it's usually not the food itself that's the problem. I had issues reintroducing a lot of things after doing AIP, and it turned out I had a slight candida infection in my gut.
I'd suggest you get some sort of test to check for parasites/candida/infection.
I know what you mean about the skin issues - I tried so many moisturisers (from prescription to ridiculously expensive, all natural), steroid creams, non-steroidal creams, everything. I never quite realised the issue was inside and not outside, until it went away.
Thanks for the info on the supplements I'm OK with corn and rice as far as grains go, so I think the iron-free ones will be OK for me.
Hi, yes lots of gut (and other) issues. The grain and dairy intolerances have been from childhood, just no-one realised, so lots of damage. Haven't tried to reintroduce the others since testing/eliminating, just trying to stay on an even keel whilst trying to get some useful medical assistance. I did GI Map some time ago. Recently started Kirkman's Detox Aid, so optimistic. Trying to digest anything is a battle! I hope you get on well with the iron-free. Best wishes
Hey i been totally gluten free for 2 1/2 years now and it was best thing i did for me.. i had ibs problems and i got quite ill to point they knew i was intolerant or allergic to something so it was case of the elimination diet.. diary, gluten, yeast.
Diary im fine with but i dont eat much anyway.. dont like milk or cheese.
I noticed as soon as i stopped gluten my pssoarsis went... i used to get hives... they went.
My bloating and my ibs pain just all disappeared.
I take supplements ie calcium( lack of dairy) , digestive enzymes, probiotics and a good female wellness vitamin...
i eat lots of fruit and veg so im prob actually healthier then ever been.
Ur prob find same.. that what u lack in wheat ur get in fruit and veg as if u dont eat alot of that ur really starve lol
I'm mostly gluten free anyway, thanks to my partner being coeliac. To be honest, it didn't make much difference to me when I cut it out. I just very occasionally have some if there isn't a suitable option for me. It's just that I keep getting dermatitis flare-ups, and one possible common theme is that I've eaten gluten (amongst other things) in the days before 
I will definitely look into the vitamins, thanks
Yeh i know what u mean, the skin flare ups and hives id had years and years and i just thought it was something i just suffered with..
it wasn’t till i gave up the gluten for ibs reasons and within 2 weeks my skin was clear ?
So it was obv my body telling me i was allergic ..
If i eat gluten now by accident i get flu like symptoms.. pain in stomach and upset stomach and my skin will flare up
Have you been tested for Dermatitis Herpetiformis? This is linked to Coeliac disease and often mistaken for psoriasis. I'm Coeliac and for years suffered with 'tummy' problems just thinking it was 'nerves' as my previous doctors diagnosed this. As itw as my last doctor went off to be a vicar and my health care was taken over by another doctor in the practice and she doubted that my 'psoriasis' was indeed that as I did in the end after much research. She sent me to the dermatology clinic in Canterbury and a doctor took one look and said that I had Dermatitis Herpetiformis which is linked to Coeliac disease. He was proved right after biopsies and tests. My Gastroenterology said that I'd probably had Coeliac all my life which made sense with all my 'tummy' problems from a child. My parents thought I was trying to skip school with my 'tummy aches' but they were very real with constipation and then diarrhea and nausea. It took until I was in my late 40's for this to be diagnosed and now of course I have bone and bowel damage. Severe osteoporosis and vertebra in my spine collapse and infusions of Zelodronic acid once a year to try to stop further bone damage but still have to watch for fractures even doing simple things. Can't walk far now due to a lot of pain but I manage. Also Fibromyalgia and arthritis but I am now 71 going on 72 in April. So make sure you get properly diagnosed and not just guess it could be this or that or irritable bowel disease etc. I suffered for years over this and was not believed and put down as 'neurotic' despite my outgoing personality and even trained as a mental health counselor (now retired). It was apologies all around from health professionals and I was not 'neurotic' but genuinely unwell with a physical disease. Even the best of doctors miss things to keep insisting and make notes of your symptoms and keep a food diary as that can help. Don't be palmed off as I was years ago and ask for tests to be done. We all seem to be suffering from various ailments in our modern world so best to check things out as it could just be things in our food that is causing problems. Coeliac disease is very real and very unpleasant and can be life threatening. My brother died of it at 37 years of age and left a wife and 5 children. He developed cancer of the bowel put down to undiagnosed Coeliac. Not to frighten anyone but it's worth getting all checked out by a qualified medical practitioner.
I'm familiar with dermatitis herpetiformis, although I don't think my dermatitis looks all that similar. The gluten challenge is a precursor to getting tested for coeliac disease, as you have to reintroduce gluten for at least 6 weeks before being tested.
Interestingly after eating Rye all last week, my dermatitis started to heal, but I ate wheat on Saturday and I'm having another flare today. I might find I have non-coeliac wheat sensitivity.
Still worth getting it checked as us coeliacs can be sensitive to a lot of foods. I can't eat gluten free Corn flakes as it can upset me. Sometimes the so called Gluten free food is not low enough in gluten as it's about 200 parts per million and for some that can still be too high. I've found some nice gluten free bread (promise label) and that is only 5 parts per million and I'm better off with that. I think mine went so long with not being diagnosed that my immune system is a bit too sensitive to quite a lot of things. As it my bones are shot and I became really seriously ill and it was only by good luck my last doctor went off to be a vicar and another took over. My pain levels were so bad that I'd spend days in bed with no water and sips of water as I just couldn't eat with terrible migraines as well. I went very thin even though after the 'attacks' I'd eat 'normally' of course not knowing I had coeliac. The rash that was thought to be psoriasis would flare and the previous doctor would just dole out coal tar cream to put on it and he didn't send me for any tests. Thank goodness he changed his career and I came into the hands of the female doctor in the practice and she didn't like the look of the 'rash' and then of course sent me for tests and the rest is history. But unfortunately the damage was done and still ongoing. Fortunately the migraine attacks can be controlled with sumatriptan and pain killers and can last some days but not so bad as before as I can usually just relax and let the attack drift away after about an hour taking the sumatriptan. Damage has been done to my joints and spine over all this though. I'm a determined person and don't let this get me down, also my past counselling training helps along with my dear husband who himself has arthritis and fibromyalgia who helps me as necessary. I think being positive and a sense of humour plus I play piano (only for myself) helps me cope with all this. Still do my housework but not so fussy as before but like to hoover up. Bought a robovac and that is a boon and also Gtech hoovers for both floors of our house. OT have just had wet room put in for me. Great and well pleased. Hope all goes well and you get the answers you need.
Good luck with what you’re doing Cooper27.
I happened to speak to a dietician today and posed the question of multivitamins to them. The answer was: if you have absorption issues, you will also struggle to absorb from a multi-vitamin, but it may still give you some benefits to help top up/maintain your levels. Essentially, there is no harm in taking a multivitamin during a gluten challenge, but it may not be providing you with the benefits you think either.
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