Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I was wondering if any celiacs, or anyone who had severe gluten sensitivity such as cross contamination after X number of months on Paleo, GAPS, etc. was able to reintroduce cross-contaminated or even a bite of gluten (such as fermented sourdough) without any issues. Please specify your degree of sensitivity and how much it improved after gut healing and your version of Paleo.

My husband who had celiac like symptoms (autoimmune TTG response) with gluten even cross-contamination for most of his life now after 1 year of Paleo (with raw pastured dairy) is able to tolerate cross-contamination and even accidentally has eaten bites of gluten and been fine. We now follow a low carbish (50-150 g/day of carbs - higher end on gym days)and incorporate good amounts of dairy and fermented foods in probiotics. He used to have nightshade issues but is now fine eating potato peels, marinara sauce, and even most chilies.

I was curious who else has had this response and to what degree?

Neither he or I are encouraging eating gluten - just makes it easier to travel and eat at other's houses. We both still think gluten is the most problematic of cereal grains. I think everything has a threshold to gluten, and once you go past that it could cause problems so I'm not advocating regular eating of gluten.

edited Jul 21 at 19:50

asked Dec 19 2011 at 0:14

Lady_Arwen
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	Thanks for asking this question and for posting some anecdotes. This gives me some hope. Five months in, I'm now at the stage of reacting to cross-contamination unless it's certified under 5ppm, and it's driving me crazy. I would love to be able to tolerate small amounts of gluten: to not have to worry about dried herbs, wine vinegar, or eating at other people's houses. – Sara S. Dec 19 2011 at 0:51
	Just to follow up on my comment: It has now been, what, 14 months since being diagnosed with celiac disease and going gluten free. And I'm still just as sensitive. I sometimes react to foods under 10 ppm, and feel ok with foods tested to under 5ppm. – Sara S. Sep 13 at 14:50

wjones3044 · Answer 1 · 2011-12-19 04:09:04Z UTC

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Worse, actually. More sensitive than ever.

For what it's worth I consider this a good thing.

I have no willpower and am a slave to my pleasure center. If I could get away with eating gluten I probably would and I'd be back to being a fat fuck with rage issues.

answered Dec 19 2011 at 4:09

wjones3044
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+1 longer/more strict you avoid gluten, more sensitive you become to gluten. – Hanne Dec 19 2011 at 14:32

AMEN TO THAT. I totally consider it a gift that refined grains fuck me up. Otherwise I'd live on them, like I did for that 20 years of being an unhealthy, unhappy vegetarian... – Cody Mar 27 2012 at 20:32

Nance · Answer 2 · 2011-12-19 00:24:34Z UTC

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I'm 8 months in and my intolerance of wheat hasn't gotten any better. I don't even challenge that restriction any more, but I know right away if I've accidentally gotten some at a restaurant.

I am now tolerating full-fat yogurt, which I couldn't tolerate before. I don't know if that's from the time on ancestral eating or because I started brewing and drinking water kefir.

answered Dec 19 2011 at 0:24

Nance
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Nance, did you get your kefir microbes from a friend, or did you mail order them? I'm thinking of switching over from milk to water kefir, and wondering if mail order microbes are good enough. (My milk ones came to me from a neighbor.) – January Dec 19 2011 at 0:43

I've been using mail order water kefir and I enjoy them. I've been having a lot of gut activity since starting drinking them, but I don't know if that means anything, and it's just a correlation. – Sara S. Dec 19 2011 at 0:49

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@TeaElf, I bought mine but I have to throw surplus away almost every day now. If anyone in southern NV needs any, I can be a resource. @Sara S, I had some gut activity at first but now I drink a ton and the only side-effect is that it kills any carb cravings--which is great! – Nance Dec 19 2011 at 0:57

Thanks for the info, Nance and Sara. :) – January Dec 19 2011 at 2:43

Dragonfly · Answer 3 · 2011-12-19 00:53:53Z UTC

Nope. (I am gluten-intolerant, not celiac. I had major IBS symptoms.)

13 months primal and after a year I "tested" with a pasta meal & a piece of bread at a friend's house. Horrible digestive distress--gas, bloating, etc. Won't be doing that again!

I can eat a "bite" of something with wheat in it, but am not really tempted anymore.

syrahna · Answer 4 · 2011-12-19 05:51:46Z UTC

Three years. I think I got more sensitive, but this past year seem to be much less reactive following restaurant eating - so I think my gut has healed a bit. I'm sure the same careless cooks are working the same jobs, you know? But now I can eat lactose with abandon, which is new.

I still wouldn't touch gluten with a 30 foot pole, no matter how fermented. Anyhow, gluten free sourdough exists, if I want to have some naughty grains...

Josh M · Answer 5 · 2011-12-19 14:17:25Z UTC

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5 years plus and am still sensitive, I don't eat it at all but I will do an n=1 and eat some once in a while just to see what happens, lets just say it aint pretty lol.

answered Dec 19 2011 at 14:17

Josh M
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Jeff · Answer 6 · 2011-12-19 04:58:26Z UTC

I think the reason that sourdough was okay is because the fermentation process breaks down the peptide chains that we (as celiacs) are unable to breakdown. That's great to be able to tolerate cross-contamination, my guess is that's probably due to a healthier gut lining. But I would guess that your friend who was able to tolerate the sourdough would not fair as well with piece of wheat bread.

I like to think I have gotten better with the sensitivity, however I ate some steak at a party that I knew had touched bread, and while it was darn tasty I woke up feeling a little puffy.

Bread-Eating Beelzebub · Answer 7 · 2011-12-19 19:29:05Z UTC

I would be careful if you actually test positive for any allergy or sensitivity. For me, it's the fiber in wheat that seems to be the issue. I've never tested positive for anysort of blood test and I lack the celiac-related genes. So my issues with wheat probably are less about gluten and more about FODMAPS. To illustrate this, my friend gave me some rye bread that was fermented so long that it probably had no gluten and my stomach was NOT happy. But if I eat some kind of white bread like a hot dog bun, it doesn't cause acute issues at least. I guess a concern with wheat is that even if you aren't sensitive to the actual gluten, perhaps it can contribute to leaky gut and might cause allergies to other things.

Travis Culp · Answer 8 · 2011-12-19 19:44:33Z UTC

By totally avoiding gluten, the average person can repair their gut over time and "reset the clock" to a state before villous atrophy, crypt elongation, permeability, malabsorption etc. I don't know how long it takes to return to that compromised state, but if you were occasionally eating gluten it probably wouldn't happen unless you had an autoimmune condition. If you were full-blown celiac it'd probably take 5-10 years, but most of us can get there in 1-2. Doesn't mean we should eat gluten when we get there, just that we don't need to wring our hands about it if we're stuck eating that rare sandwich.

BaleoNub · Answer 9 · 2011-12-20 04:25:47Z UTC

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10 months for me and I still have my same mild reaction to gluten if I even eat a crumb. It's a tolerable reaction, but it hasn't subsided. If anything, I'm more acutely aware because before Paleo, I barely noticed I was reacting at all.

answered Dec 20 2011 at 4:25

BaleoNub
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	what's your mild reaction? – Lady_Arwen Dec 21 2011 at 2:18
	Mild diarrhea. Not bad, given that I lived with it for years without thinking much about it. – BaleoNub Dec 22 2011 at 16:59

Maria · Answer 10 · 2012-07-21 20:08:52Z UTC

About 8 months since I stopped eating wheat/gluten products, and I am much less sensitive now. I used to get terrible bloating and then I'd get constipated for days followed by a few hours of diarrhea (yeah, charming). Now I don't make a habit of it, but I can eat some soy sauce without any problems. Last time I had a cheat day I even had pizza and noticed no ill effects.

Lisa · Answer 11 · 2012-09-13 14:45:09Z UTC

I'm 4 years gluten-free after being diagnosed with CD, 1 year dairy-free, and 4 months on the paleo diet which I'm trying now in desperation because I'm so sensitive to trace amounts of gluten. No difference yet. It seems to take about one molecule of gluten to cause me a week of serious bloating, constipation and nausea. I seem to be constantly glutened despite paranoid vigilance. It's depressing. I'm always looking for answers, which is why I'm here now.

Amy · Answer 12 · 2013-02-21 03:33:21Z UTC

Have you heard of Dr. Wise's Gluten Formula? It's supposed to take care of it all and I know people who were severe celiacs who can now eat whatever they want.

More about it here: http://glutenfreesoyfree.wordpress.com/2011/09/13/possible-solution-gluten-intolerance/

Anyone “cured” of gluten intolerance or improved tolerance to gluten after how long on Paleo?

12 Answers