As per the title, this is an opinion piece. Please see the disclaimer at the bottom that has been there since the start.
I’m surprised the Thyroid UK site doesn’t say this already. I’m living proof of the dramatic impact, on anti-thyroid antibodies, that switching to a gluten-free diet can have. It’s no guarantee that you’ll feel 100% better but you may feel some improvement if you experience the same antibody clear-out I have.
So I got my blood tested in mid-April. My anti-thyroid peroxidase, cytotoxic, antibodies were off the scale. These are the ones that destroy your thyroid tissue. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a test for rheumatoid factor at this point. My skin was crawling and my knuckles were extremely painful. The next day I started a gluten-free diet.
Just under two weeks later, I had another blood test. The peroxidase was literally nonexistent. It had gone. Rheumatoid factor was also well below the positive range.
About 4 weeks after going gluten-free I began to feel an improvement in my wellbeing. The threatening arthritic pain has diminished. My skin no longer feels like it’s crawling.
Apparently it’s a case of mistaken identity. Gliadin, the protein component of wheat, is misidentified by the body as tissue transglutaminase - found in high concentration in the thyroid. So a person with autoimmune thyroid disease generates anti-thyroid cytotoxic antibodies (and potentially rheumatoid factor too) in response to its presence.
Given the resultant antibodies accelerate the attack on your thyroid, going gluten-free seems like a really good idea. It may also slow down rheumatoid arthritis.
So don’t just judge a gluten-free diet on how it makes you feel. You should see the clinical impact on your antibody levels.
DISCLAIMER: Although this shouldn’t be necessary if you’ve read the guidelines... As per the guidelines, I’m no doctor and this may NOT apply to all sufferers. Best of luck though. If it doesn’t work for you, I’m really sorry about that.
Yes, I see there’s lots of discussion here on HealthUnlocked but I couldn’t find anything on the actual Thyroid UK website. I didn’t know they had something on HealthUnlocked until I wanted to ask why there was nothing on the main website. Also, nothing as specific as my post. A lot of discussion about gut issues but not so much the link to peroxidase antibodies.
But is there an exact link to thyroid peroxidase antibodies? Or thyroglobulin antibodies? If so, how? Or is it just the inflammatory response to gluten and then the subsequent increase in antibodies?
Thank you for sharing your positives, well done! I don't get antibodies but I have noticed it is often suggested and I suspect it is also recommended on the Thyroid Uk site who run this forum. As to whether it helps everyone, I don't know, but may be a suggestion for a future poll if not been done already!
Sadly my results are still high after being gluten free for 7 months my TPA is >600 (0.00 - 34.00 ) was hoping going gluten free would answer all my problems, sadly not . I have Hashimotos.myTA was 1661.000 (0.00 -115.00 ) .. trying to heal my gut and inflammation with diet and vitamins and minerals .. hope my next test is better
Hi Clare1971. Sadly it's usually not. It can help reduce antibodies a bit for some people. Taking the right type of thyroid meds to match both your FT3 and FT4, and getting up into optimal range can have the biggest impact. Going gluten, dairy, and soy free, taking T3 and T4 and getting into optimal levels helped reduce my TPO/ab by over 5,000, but lowest it's ever gotten after many years was under 1000. Then it went back up for other reasons.
Yes on levothyroxine 125mg my results for my TSH is 1.5 (0.27 -4. 20 ) free thyroxine 15 ( 12.00 -22.00 ) T4 89.4 ( 59.0 154.00) free T3 4.47 ( 3.10-6.80) these are all good really .. unfortunately in the UK can’t get DTH which I would like to switch too ...
Is DTH now banned in the U.K., or are people still buying it elsewhere? Could this be and option for you? Or buying T3? Your TSH is still high (for a Hashi’s medicated person) and not suppressed as it should be for Hashi’s. The lower the TSH, the higher for free’s will be. This usually results in a reduction in antibodies. Adding T3 will help decrease TSH.
In your results above, do you mean your TPO was 1661 at the time of diagnosis, and then 7 months later it’s 600? If so, that’s really great! That’s a fast reduction.
No that’s my results after going gluten free , have today just had my thyroxine put up as still having symptoms , brain fog , hair loss . Blurry eyesight list goes on . Thanks for caring ..
You’re welcome. Oh, sorry, my eyes are getting tired. It’s way past bed time here. TA is TG/ab. I can see it now. Both your frees are still too low. In your lab range FT3 is optimal at around 3/4 range or 5.975. FT4 should be over 1/2, or 17, but if it gets near or over 3/4, or 19.5, you might have more symptoms. Too high and too low in range is where the most symptoms exist. You might not be able get your FT3 to optimal without T3.
Hi mcnaugha. Actually, if you read the posts and replies, you'll see that going gluten free is always recommended if someone truly does have Hashimoto's, as well as hypothyroid. You truly are a miracle Hashimoto's case! You took your TPO/ab from off the scale, to nonexistent in only two weeks! Most people who go gluten free see some reduction in thyroid antibodies, but not a lot, and certainly not down to zero. Someone should do a case study on you! Gluten, soy and dairy are all inflammatory. Since inflammation is the enemy for people with autoimmune disease, this is why it's recommended to avoid gluten. Some people might see clinical impact on their antibodies by going gluten free, but unfortunately not all do. Since it sounds like you might react to gluten, have you done a food sensitivity test, as well as all of the Coeliac Tests or Coeliac biopsy?
How high was your TPO/ab when first tested and then what was it two weeks later? When you say off the scale, can you explain what that means? Do you mean into the hundreds or thousands off the scale as high as the lab can test? Or do you mean off the scale, like above normal range, maybe above 40 or 60, depending on the lab? Hopefully your thyroid levels improved, too. Did you test them before going gluten free, and then again two weeks later?
In the first article, 22 out of 400 people with Hashimoto's tested positive for anti gliadin antibodies (AGA), meaning they are sensitive to gluten and gliadin. AGA is an anti-wheat protein antibody. It is not indicative of an autoimmune reaction, since autoimmune means the body is attacking itself.
The article concludes, "CONCLUSIONS: We claim that polyglandular endocrine syndrome is the commonest cause of positivity of antigliadin antibodies in the patients with autoimmune thyroid disease.", meaning, polyglandular disease is the commonest cause of positive AGA in people with Hashi's or Graves.
All this means is that someone with thyroid disease might be reactive to gluten and have a positive AGA, not that a positive AGA means that eating gluten will increase thyroid antibodies.
In the second article, it concludes, "AGA positivity in early RA may indicate a role of the gut immune system in the initiation of RA.", just as the gut immune system can play a role with any other autoimmune disease, including Hashimoto's. HOWEVER, just testing positive for AGA does not mean one would have a positive anti-tTG or an autoimmune disease.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a completely separate autoimmune disease from Hashimoto's. Once you have one autoimmune disease, the likelihood of having another one or more greatly increases. RF is very difficult to reduce and not as easily as just going gluten free. There is no cure for RA, just as there isn't for Hashimoto's. Antibodies can be reduced or put into remission, but the disease is still there. There are also some unusual cases where people have Hashimoto's but have negative antibodies.
That's great that you never had RA. It sounds like you had a lot of inflammation going on in your body. That can happen with Hashimoto's if antibodies are high or if there is a lot of inflammation (which can occur, but antibodies do not always increase). Did you ever get your ESR tested, ANA, CRP? With RA, the joints are stiff, swollen, red and warm. The joint damage is permanent and disfiguring. You're lucky that you don't have RA.
I'm not following how gliadin is being mistaken for tTG, and it's relationship with the thyroid. Can you explain and your references, so we can read the studies? In a healthy person it's functioning transglutaminase, but the enzyme malfunctions as anti-transglutaminase (tTg) in Coeliac Disease. tTG is an enzyme found in the small intestine, heart, liver and other organs and anti-tTG is associated with Coeliac Disease. It is also used as one of the screenings for this disease. Coeliac Disease is an autoimmune disease where the body produces anti-gliadin and anti-tTG. Some people with Coeliac Disease also have Hashimoto's or other autoimmune diseases. SOME people who have autoimmune thyroid disease Hashimoto's might also have high anti-tTG and anti-gliadin, and or Coeliac Disease. If they did have high anti-tTG and anti-gliadin, then their body would react to gluten. If they don't test positive for anti-tTG and anti-gliadin, then they won't react to gluten.
In a case where a person has positive anti-tTG and anti-gliadin, can you explain how gliadin gets from the small intestine where it is attacked by anti-gliadin, makes contact with enzyme transglutaminase but that enzyme is attacked by anti-tTG, and then how does that molecule of gliadin end up making the body send out an attack on the thyroid with TPO/ab or TG/ab?
I find your post very condescending and basically some sort of attack. Let me guess... you’re not even a Consultant Endocrinologist are you? I’ve got to go to work now and don’t have the time at this moment to respond to your attempt to make a fool out of me. I disagree with a lot of what you have said but can’t explain or defend further just now due to the fact that I’m standing wet in a towel post shower and I need to get to work.
I was referring to the Thyroid UK website not having a page on gluten/gliadin... not HeathUnlocked
It's not. It really great that you had such positive results! This is virtually unheard of and I'm sure someone would love to study your case. People with Hashimoto's who have high or very high antibodies would love to have such a positive response to gluten, me included. We all wish we had such great results, too!
It's common on this site to post lab work and to have others request it if it's not included. Just FYI. People here (or on any thyroid forum) are numbers and results oriented, since those lab tests and symptoms are how the success of treatment is gauged.
People will also ask for explanation if they don't understand or need clarification, or if they can't find medical studies on a subject. There is bolding or italicizing of text, and other fancy text treatments, too. I didn't follow what you were saying, hence the question. It sounds like an interesting concept. I look forward to hearing more about it.
Oh! Sorry, you said "this site", so it seemed you were talking about this site.
No worries. Check back in later if you have the chance. Have a great day at work!
That looks awfully like a troll’s attempt at a retraction... but I’m sure it’s not. 🙄
The guidelines of this community state that no one should be presenting themselves as though they know facts better than others. You are not a Consultant Endocrinologist and neither are you a GP. You can do your own research into the link I describe. The information is plentiful in peer reviewed papers available online.
You came on and made a claim or two, gave no substantial info, gave no results to substantiate your TPO/ab or other claimed levels, sited two articles, but the articles don't support what you were saying.
ShootingStars is no more a troll than she is a consultant endocrinologist or a GP. There are no consultant endocrinologists or GPs on here. It's a patient to patient forum. But we don't make statements like everybody's got to do this and everybody's got to do that, because we know that everyone is different. If it worked for you, great. But it doesn't work for everyone.
Sorry I said “I think”. Do you not understand that greygoose? I’m entitled to my own opinion. If I can help one person then that’s a good thing. As you say and as I disclaimed in my post, no one is authoritative on here. I already disclaimed that it may not apply to everyone.
Shootingstars dishes out guidance like she is qualified to do so and shoots down others that she doesn’t agree with. It is horrendous behaviour.
Gosh, no, mcnaugha, I'm not a consultant endocrinologist, I'm just a stupid patient. How could I possibly understand something as complicated as that!
'I think' is so often a euphemism for 'I know'. That's what I understand. But I don't 'think' you do. And if it comes to horrendous behaviour, I'm not particularly impressed with yours, either. Definitely not a great start!
Wow hold on thats slander!! Can i just say that there is plenty of posts on here with regards to gluten free, i am celiac so have to follow a gluten free diet and it has not made a slight difference to how i feel with hashis and graves-and what makes you think that gp's and Endos actually know something about the endocrine system? Most people on here know more than bloody jumped up Endos who dismiss and boo who anything to do with immune diseases!! Im glad you feel great and tickety boo and are able to go to work-yes i too was able to do that 8 months ago but you say it in such a patronising way that we sit on our arses all day-as i newcomer you have not made a great start have you?? Pride before a fall eh!!
Wow you all attack newcomers. No one is allowed an opinion. It’s really horrendous and unfair. It creates a dictatorship. Slander? What are we 12 years old? You need to look in the mirror instead of being so nasty to people.
I always look for some published evidence about the relationship of antibodies to thyroidal and nonthyroidal problems. Here is one that might be useful for everyone in this argument (it is open to download:
Front Immunol. 2017; 8: 521.
Published online 2017 May 9. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.00521
PMCID: PMC5422478
PMID: 28536577
Thyroid Autoimmunity: Role of Anti-thyroid Antibodies in Thyroid and Extra-Thyroidal Diseases
You are partially correct, the anecdotal studies available suggest around 75% of Hashimotos sufferers benefit from a GF diet, so it's not a cure for everyone, but certainly worth trying. I've seen members here who have coeliac disease though, so are as gluten free as it gets, and they have developed Hashimotos anyway.
Beyond gluten, around 50% need to avoid dairy, 40% soya, even around 10% should avoid nuts and eggs. Some need to avoid one (which appears to be the case for yourself), others a combination.
Izabella Wentz explains it pretty well, that's where my information came from. Unfortunately it's anecdotal, but seems pretty reliable.
Her book on the Hashimotos protocol is good. At the moment they believe all auto-immune disease (which would include RA) starts from the gut, and you're right that it's to do with the way our bodies confuse thyroid hormones and the proteins in our food (which shouldn't be outside the gut). It's just unfortunate it's not as clear cut as coeliac disease, where cutting out one food group solves the problem...
Sorry to see words like troll used on this site. It has been my only safe place since TT for cancer . Few family members or friends understand the problems faced trying to feel ‘well enough’
I have found all member etc . supportive, kind and knowledgeable.
One reads, learns and takes away what helps them. We are all very different
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Oh, sorry, my eyes are getting tired. It’s way past bed time here. TA is TG/ab. I can see it now. Both your frees are still too low. In your lab range FT3 is optimal at around 3/4 range or 5.975. FT4 should be over 1/2, or 17, but if it gets near or over 3/4, or 19.5, you might have more symptoms. Too high and too low in range is where the most symptoms exist. You might not be able get your FT3 to optimal without T3. 
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