Is it possible to become tolerant to gluten after abstaining from it for a year? Equivocal result on test Anti Gliadin IgA date 18.7.13 but

[Soldieress]

I had already given up wheat gluten 6 weeks before the test (although I was eating gluten free oats and gluten free rice thins). So with seeing the equivocal result I continued being gluten free (although 1 week over Christmas I did have regular bread and beer). Then I went gluten free again including not eating any oats. Then on the 13.8.14 I did the YorkTest food and drink IgG test after eating gluten for 4 weeks which showed that I had a reaction to: cows milk; yeast, brazil nuts, egg white and some wine but no reaction to gluten or wheat. Now I've given up dairy and yeast which means that I will still be avoiding breads and cakes but I'm eating Ryvita now. Last week a Gastroenterologist tested me for gluten allergy/intolerance (by now I had been eating gluten for 7 weeks although it was only Ryvita and some nice organic, yeast and dairy free biscuits. The results were all negative (apart from a positive ASO (Anti Streptolysin O)). So maybe my body is ok with gluten now after being mostly off it for a year. Then the gastroenterologist wanted me to do a serum test- HLA DQ2 DQ8 (genes that predispose you to celiac disease) but my health insurance didn't cover this and it would have cost about 300 GBP. So I declined and have just looked it up on the internet: celiacdisease.com article: "Do you need specific genes to have gluten sensitivity? by Jane Anderson". This is an interesting read. Pleased that I didn't bother doing the test but if it had been cheaper I would have done it out of interest. I've been booked in for an endoscopy and a colonoscopy next Saturday.

I gave up gluten because I was trying to reduce my Hashimoto's antibodies and my antibodies stayed the same. The only symptoms I had were very loose mushy cow pat stools while I was eating gluten and when off gluten my stools were like pebbles.

As I continue to eat Ryvita it will be interesting to see if my stools get mushy again. THEN it might be wise to do the gluten intolerance test again.

Would love to know if you've had a similar experience of if you've heard of people being able to re-introduce foods in their diet.

Thanks and best wishes

[BeansMummy]

I have no idea about gluten, but I did an exclusion diet many years ago (under a dietician's supervision). I reacted really badly to several foods, including yeast, oats and strawberries amongst others. "Badly" is an understatement - I practically had to move into the bathroom.

Once I had finished testing everything, which took many many months, I found that I could tolerate small quantities of the "dodgy" foods. If I ate bread one day, I wouldn't eat any the next as it usually caused a problem. Years on, I rarely thought about what I was eating (have to say that I went gluten-free a month ago though!)

[Soldieress in reply to BeansMummy]

Thanks BeansMummy for your reply. I think I'll try the autoimmune 'Reset Diet' and slowly introduce foods. But just trying to find enough of the foods that I can eat and make meals out of and when I'm free of any holidays booked or social functions which include food. I'm finding it difficult to eat protein at each meal. Did you keep a food diary?

[BeansMummy in reply to Soldieress]

When I was given my exclusion diet, it was unbelievably strict, but I felt so dreadful that I would have done anything. I am a strict vegetarian, so the lean chicken (and fish, I think) I could have had was not on my list. All I was allowed to have was rice, tomatoes (although many people have told me that tomatoes can be a problem), apple juice, water, soya milk, and carrots - nothing else, no herbs, oil, anything. Crikey, that sounds bad just seeing it written down.

I had rice krispies and soya milk for breakfast, rice cakes with tomatoes for lunch, and boiled rice with dry-roasted tomatoes and carrots for dinner. I probably didn't have enough calories whatsoever, but I had been hospitalised twice with severe abdominal pain, and basically left to get on with things by the NHS as they couldn't identify any problems. One very nice consultant did say that IBS (my end diagnosis after barium x-rays etc) was something they said when they didn't know what it was.

Within only 3 or 4 days, I realised just how bad I had been feeling because I suddenly didn't have those problems. I had a list of foods to introduce after 2 weeks and, if I reacted, it was sudden, violent and not pleasant, and I obviously didn't continue testing that food. If the new food was fine, then that was added to my list to continue eating.

Yes, I kept a food diary, but there wasn't much written in it!

I haven't seen the autoimmune reset diet, I shall have to check it out and see how it compares.