gluten sensitivity - beers - wheat belly

I remember one of the first changes that I noticed when my quality of life suddenly went off of a cliff (due to UC) was that I couldn't drink beer anymore without feeling absolutely LOUSY. I drank plenty in college, any beer I might want to try, and although I did have some gnarly hangovers, it took a very LARGE quantity of beer to induce them.

When I first started feeling sick, I was experiencing severe anxiety, muscle twitches, unrelenting insomnia (felt like I had no parasympathetic nervous system to calm me down or lower my heartrate) and started having some really disturbing skin issues like folliculitis and skin peeling, and my spinal column from mid-back to neck was constantly (still is) getting extremely "out" from activities as simple as sleeping. [edit] I forgot I also started having severe morning nausea and dry heaving every morning during or after my morning shower where I would vomit up foam or bile colored liquid.

Somehow a family member picked up on the fact that I was going to sleep for hour long naps every night after getting home from work, and had been mentioning diarrhea, and suggested I go to a GI doctor. I went to him thinking that I might have celiac disease. (At the time I thought it was just stress as I didn't know what a colon was). I told the nurse that there had been many strange changes with me, including anxiety and a sudden inability to drink beer without feeling TERRIBLE. Sometimes I could feel my nose swelling up, slightly feverish, almost even mildly delusional after drinking beer when this had never been the case before. The nurse blew it off and after the GI couldn't find any blood where it shouldn't be he said I had a functional problem. I did get some blood drawn for some celiac test which evidently came back negative.

Afterwards I went through another year of hell without sleep, making primary doctor appointments several times a month, until I finally started getting severe ulcerative urgency in the morning on my drive into work, which progressed until one day I couldn't get off the toilet and went to the ER. I had a scope both ways and the GI said it appeared to be ulcerative pancolitis, or "active" colitis (vs pseudo or infective I suppose). I also had some gastritis.

From trial and error, and thanks to some posts on this board, I ended up trying to drink Heineken beers, believing that they were low in gluten. There was a MAJOR improvement in my ability to tolerate beer. I then found that I could also handle Guinness. From looking on the internet, these beers are probably low gluten, and I don't think they use wheat in these but barley.

I recently started reading a book called "Wheat Belly," and although I am only about 40 pages in, I am starting to think that I have some degree of wheat/gluten allergy/intolerance and I can't help but wonder what role this plays in my UC illness.

I have learned from the book how hybridized and then genetically modified the wheat plant has become over time and this even causes the gluten in the wheat to change, and there have been no human or animal safety studies done prior, it was just assumed to be safe.

Has anyone else noticed a sensitivity to wheat and eliminated it from their diet? And if so, what improvements did you notice? Any improvements with your UC or achieving remission?


Thank You

Post Edited (doors12) : 12/10/2011 7:58:05 PM (GMT-7)

How would I start a gluten free diet? I assume I would go to a health food store like Whole Foods and stock up on stuff? The good news is, I love potatoes and oats (thought wikpedia says sometimes they may be contaminated with wheat) Because I don't cook much it may be a major change, I am thinking it would be necessary for me to bring my lunch to work rather than having to try to actually find gluten free food choices at restaurants (particularly in the area I work, there are somewhat few food options that aren't fast food-ish)

I commend you for giving the gluten free diet a chance. I tried it for a few weeks but was unable to maintain it due to inconvenience and not feeling much better. I have had multiple lab tests done to test for the allergy and all were neg. However, I have noticed that I no longer can tolerate beer! :( This had been my drink of choice! Wine on the other hand is much more tolerable by my colon. Currently, I am not drinking at all bc I am taking 6MP and my doctor is very much against it. Not sure if there is real truth behind drinking in moderation while on this drug.

Good luck to you Doors! I hope it works for you! Are you considering surgery yet?

You can go to an allergist and get a simple blood test to see if you are allergic to wheat.

I've been gluten free since last May and I've noticed many differences. I have UC and a few other really difficult issues.
The first six weeks are the hardest as you are trying to remember to read labels and get to know which foods you can eat.
You have to give your body at least 6 weeks of REALLY being totally gluten free to see if its going to make a difference!!
Some research says it may take up to a year before you will see significant changes as our bodies can be so affected and sick
that it may take that long to heal.
In any case, I was accidentally getting glutened here and there so I think I've finally been truly GF (gluten free) for 3-4 months.
My daily headaches are gone, the ache in my joints is 90% better, my anxiety is much better, my daily tummy aches are less intense. when I get glutened now, boy do I hurt all over and feel brain fog and very crabby. I'm eating better/cleaner than I have in years.
I focus on what I can eat instead of what I can't. I have to think about food much more than I did before as eating out is very limiting, unless you find a place that is GF (more and more places have options). And I always have to carry food with me.
But, I figure what the heck, if I feel better and I look like a dork because I carry my own little lunch bag, who cares.
Its my body and I'm tired of acting like I'm not sick and eating food that makes me sick so I don't stand out??? Now that's just nuts in my book.
I suggest all folks with IBD give it a real try and really do your best to completely eliminate gluten before you put your final judgement on it.
I test negative for Celiac's but I know I have gluten intolerance just like I know I have lactose (milk) intolerance from the way MY BODY reacts when I ingest these things.
There are MANY books and websites that can give you a lot of help, especially in the beginning.

Well, I went to Whole Foods looking for gluten free stuff, and I had to really search even in there, for pete's sake, even the popcorn said it could contain wheat! Perhaps because it is made on the same machinery as other stuff, I get it, but still!

I bought some "bard's" beer and am currently enjoying it. The flavor is what I would consider less than ideal, as a lifelong beer drinker, but it isn't bad, just like what beer would taste like in a dream, kind of vague, but not offensive.

I noticed that I am not wheezing like I would get even from having a few Heineken (asthma). My heart rate feels a bit elevated, but perhaps this is just the alcohol or something. Otherwise, I definitely have been seeing a difference with this trial run of gluten free. I will see how I feel tomorrow after having drank this gluten free beer and compare that with my experience with Heineken and Guiness.

My plan is to do this trial run (call it a feasibility study) then I will revert to my old habits of eating/drinking anything, get the blood tests I want done and allergy tests, then I will begin wheat elimination in earnest regardless of what any test results are, because I've already noticed a major improvement.

I'll keep you posted and I hope this is useful information for some. If I continue seeing results, I will write up my entire story if it could be instructive.

doors12,

Testing is not always accurate. You can get false positives and false negatives, and it won't tell you if you have an intolerance to the food items.

IMO, the best measure and most accurate one is: food journal, where you note all you eat, drink, and its resultant effects. You'll find some interesting connections soon enough.

Mary, I just want to see if I can also obtain scientific results on paper for instructive purposes, I assure you that there is no turning back anymore, regardless of the results of any tests. I am a thinking person and would like to find out why this was missed on the celiac test I had precisely at the official beginning of 5 years of suffering, also perhaps it will help someone else. I would also hate to have to go back to consuming wheat at some future time should some sort of testing be required...I really don't see any reason to not get tested and continue consuming wheat for 1 more month for this purpose, as it will not weaken my resolve, my reasons to change are written in 5 years of blood!

Its not the wheat anyone needs to be concerned about with going "gluten free". It's strictly the gluten that has changed over time since our soils have been depleted of rich nutrients, our bodies simply are finding it harder to digest gluten. You can find breads and all your favorite foods without Gluten. I dont know why its added in every food, i think its just used as a binder... But i'm definitely going to start trying to go gluten free because alot of food allergy tests aren't able to detect if its specifically gluten your allergic too.

In my blood cell study I did a few months ago, the doctor pulled up my cells on a screen and had me see how clustered they were. She said it shows that I've had trouble "breaking down proteins" over time, but her along with other doctors all assume that I am not gluten intollerant because of my symptoms. Yet my GI doctor couldnt even confirm to me if I had chrons or colitis. Saying I had symptoms that were a perfect example of one, but my colonoscopy shows the definitive example of another...

When I visit with my naturopath this week I'm going to ask to get a proper food allergy test.