Is it worth doing antibody tests if you've been supplementing?

I've Hashi's, which has an up to 35 per cent overlap with Autoimmune Gastritis, the precursor to PA. Plenty of symptoms, I'd like to know if I have antibodies to intrinsic factor/parietal cells, not least to see if my children are at higher risk.

I will pay for private tests - no point in prolonged arguments with GP, my B12 will be high in range because of supplementation with methylcobalamin. But will that supplementation have affected the antibody levels?

I don't understand why it should. But I see the odd sentence which suggests it might.

[Galixie]

In theory supplementing doesn't affect antibody levels.

There has been some research (although I don't remember the source at the moment) that found the longer a person had PA, the less likely they were to test positive for intrinsic factor antibodies. I don't believe there is any research to explain why that might be.

Anecdotally, I tested positive for parietal cell antibodies before I started receiving B12 injections. A year later I tested negative for them. I don't know whether getting injections had any affect on those results.

This answer clears it all up for you, right? lol

[Secondchance in reply to Galixie]

I wonder if you are less likely to have positive antibodies with longer term PA because all the intrinsic factor has already been destroyed therefore no antigen to cause antibody release?

[Galixie in reply to Secondchance]

I think that sounds like a good theory.

[Secondchance in reply to Galixie]

😊 wish I could research it

[Hidden in reply to Secondchance]

And so possibly at the end stage, no antibody to parietal cells, because there are none left. And if a person was by that stage desperatley supplementing with sublingual B12 and iron, as would be likely, because they would be feeling so tired, there might be almost no clues in blood work as to what had gone wrong. ????? Does that seem possible?

(That's assuming that iron can be absorbed somewhat elsewhere in the gut. I'm going to have to check that.

[Hidden in reply to Galixie]

Thanks for the dispassionate response - I think it adds up to - give it a go.