Gluten free

I have never been tested so I don't know if I would have tested positive or not. But I did go gluten free just to see if it would help with symptoms. My experience is that it does help a little bit. Especially with the gas, bloating and nausea. In answer to your questions:
Can eating gluten cause constant pain if you should not have it? My advice would be to buy a book called Wheat Belly, it explains what is going on with gluten, and gives some really good advice for going gluten free

If I was gluten intolerant wouldn't I be having more BMs ? Yes

Is eating Gluten free expensive? No, I eat mostly meat and fruits and veggies. I do buy some pricey gluten free cookies, but I don't eat them often. Once I went gluten free, I stopped having and cravings for sweets.

If you cannot eat a lot of fruits and veggies what do you eat? I eat meat, pirates booty, rice, nut-thins. I eat potato chips and corn (tortilla) chips. I go to Chipotle a lot and have rice and chicken.

I am lactose intolerant and I take supplements to be able to consume lactose, can you do that with gluten? I take gluten-free fiber supplements, so I am sure that is totally possible.

Good luck, I hope it gives you some relief. I do get left-sided pain when I am flaring too. Mine is right by my hip bone, and the only thing that helps me is a heating pad. The mesalamine enemas hit the spot, but they don't get rid of the pain. Hope that helps

If it were me I'd get another (better) doctor. There is no reason you should not be using mesalamine enemas with a left-sided diagnosis. Your doctor is wrong-wrong-wrong to deny this to you and I cannot think of any reason he has for this. Mesalamine enemas are one of the least harmful meds there is for UC. Grrr.

you asked:
If I was gluten intolerant wouldn't I be having more BMs ?
No, I didn't. My reaction to gluten was not BM's, in fact my colon just stopped, probably because it could not process the gluten well. That is why it took me so long to figure out gluten was a problem for me. I never had pain either. Everyone is different however and your gut is saying something, you just have to figure out what it is saying.

Is eating Gluten free expensive?
This is where I think many people go wrong with "gluten-free". They try and replace gluten with "gluten-free" products that are more expensive and that have other ingredients that could be just as difficult to digest. Why not just eliminate gluten? Eat other things, not "gluten-free" substitutes. In the beginning you have to think and plan what to eat but it gets easier. There are lots of books and websites dedicated to this. Paleo diet would be a good way to go.

Teddtlove,

Check out this thread topic I wrote a few weeks ago, www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=38&m=2668043

There is a video attached where a doctor explains how gluten can mask other diseases and symptoms.

Dr. talks about eliminating gluten for 2-3 weeks, no exceptions, and then see how you feel.

Gluten is in soy sauce, oats, deli meats, cheeses, etc. It's a pain to check on these things, but anyone can get the hang of it after a while.

I wouldn't necessarily look to gluten free specialty products right away.
1) even those with celiac need to let their gut heal, and all grains can be irritable to the digestive system in an inflammatory state.
2) many with gluten sensitivity or intolerances may be intolerant to whole grains and dairy, and yet some GF products contain this... so if you really want a GF snack, experiment with what ones feel best.

Good luck to you if you try it and let us know what goes on...

I used to experience the same symptoms as Kazbern when i ate gluten. Even before being diagnosed with UC. Then after the diagnosis i noticed that whenever i ate gluten the next day i would see blood in my BMs, even if i had no other symptoms at the time. So i've been strictly gluten free for the last 4 months. It's not that much more expensive, it depends if you will be buying lots of packaged gf sweets and breads etc. But you shouldn't be eating that anyway.

Btw, also please get a new doctor. Or firmly command from your GI that he gives you enemas. I think even your GP should be able to prescribe those to you. It just doesn't make sense that he won't prescribe them, because you are already using a mesalamine supp and tolerating it well so why not take an enema and help the 'middle' part heal.

I too came back negative for Celiac, that's all my MD tested me for. When I went to an ND we tested my inflammation markers for Wheat igG - it was high. That was all I needed to stay away from Gluten. Other results showed my Gamma Gliadin 15-mer igG, Glutenin 21-mer igG, Gliadin-Transglutaminase Complex igA and Transglutaminase-6 igA all also came back on the high end of normal. In black and white the paper tells me to stay away from Gluten. Some would describe me as Gluten intolerant or gluten insensitive.

I'd recommend going to an ND or maybe you can go to the labs directly. Cyrex Labs @ https://www.cyrexlabs.com/

most auto-immune disease patients would benefit from eliminating gluten from their diet. Though my MD GI recommended this it wasn't until I had the test in front of me, in black and white, did I make this decision. And to be honest, there's a huge community out there for GF folk, and restaurants are getting better daily with this allergy.

This may or may not be Relevent but I thought I'd mention it. I suffer from anxiety and panic disorder. Long before my proctitis (10 years before) I used to get pain under my left rib. I learnt it was swollowing
Air, there is actually a name for it. Recently I have been anxious about being sick, even though I'm not. I've the same pain only worse. It's like a twisting knife. I've had scope in both ends and showed nothing. I can absolutely attribute the pain to swollowing air. Trapped wind can be extremely painful. Sometimes I notice passing
It but other times I don't. Usually when I wake it's gone but soon comes back with negative thoughts.