Myth or Fact: Bloating is normal for someone with celiac disease
Bloating is probably the most common symptom of celiac disease. Many of us think it is a normal state to be bloated. Is it?
Hello friend
Let’s talk about the prevailing idea that “If I have celiac disease, bloating is the normal state of being”. The short answer is it’s false. Truth be told, I didn’t know what bloating felt like until I stopped feeling it. As someone living with celiac disease, I’ll confess that it does feel like a normal state of being. My parents, both medical doctors, used to feel my abdomen and conclude “He seems bloated”. But I hardly understood what it meant. Depending on how you see that little tale, I could be one of the best or worst people to talk about bloating with. However, having lived the first-hand experience of bloating, I can definitely share with you.
While bloating is a common symptom that people with celiac disease experience. It doesn’t have to be present all the time. If it is present, the gluten-free (GF) diet is either not working or not completely gluten free. In other words, no one should feel bloated if all is well. If someone living with celiac disease does feel bloated, it could be for the following reasons:
They got glutened
They started a gluten-free diet recently
The latter is almost the same thing as the former. Both of them mean that there are anti-gluten antibodies in the body. Technically, those antibodies are called “anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies”, but names aren’t as important as their effect. Out goal with a GF diet is to eliminate these antibodies, or practically speaking, keep them as low as possible. The longer a celiac person can avoid gluten, the lesser the antibodies will be. The fewer the antibodies, the more the intestines can heal.
However, if you are in neither of those situations and still feel bloated, chances are that gluten may have sneaked into your diet. I’d recommend re-verifying everything that you consume. Start with toothpaste (it is a common issue) as it is easy to miss when switching to a GF diet. Next, move on to food labels in your kitchen. Start with salad dressings, other condiments, and spices. Then work your way through your snacks.
If nothing pops out immediately, it may be best to avoid eating anything from outside for a couple of weeks. I think we can all manage that for a week, at least (if not two). Once you start feeling better, then re-introduce your normal diet from outside gradually, while still noticing symptoms. Once you find the culprit, it’s easy to eliminate it from your diet. The culprit could be as simple as somwhere you get coffee from or the flavour of your coffee. Run this little experiment as sometimes people can find non-celiac allergies to other foods by following this process.
We underestimate the power of experiments, or assume that we cannot do it at a personal level. However, if we cannot do it for ourselves, who can? We are the only ones who spend the whole time with ourselves. The responsibility of understanding our health is of prime importance. Sure, we can get help from doctors, trainers, and dietitians but the first responsibility of your health is your own. That is true even for people who don’t have celiac disease.
There are other dietary methods to help yourself with bloating. I’d leave that to dietitians more knowledgeable about it than myself.