I have Celiac Desease

Presumed celiac, due to multiple-fracture osteoporosis (despite doing EVERYTHING recommended to strengthen bones all my life), and Hashimotos thyroiditis. I have never had an intestinal villus biopsy, mainly because I had the wrong gastroenterologist for my needs. She was very much by the book (Unwilling to think outside the statistics of disease she learned in med school) and stuck 20+ years in the past, IMO. Going to a new GI doc, soon.

I've had celiac disease for 40 years, and I am a severe celiac. But the disease is a VERY easy illness to live with if you stick to the gluten-free diet. Wishing you all the best...

Most of my immediate family members have celiac disease, including myself. My son was diagnosed after seeing many drs. He was in danger of having major health issues. He was dying of malnutrition by the time he finally found a good dr. who took one look at him and said "you have celiac disease" without even testing. Its been a challenge for all of us most of our lives. We have health issues that go along with this disease. We do our best to try and stay positive.

@janiewhitemoon
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/celiac-and-malabsorption/

Janie -
I have had Celiac Disease for 40+ years. First 10 years struggling and not understanding what was happening. About 30 yrs ago I started to become gluten-free with the more careful I was the better I felt. But about 20 yrs ago a cascade of ramifications from the damage that had happened on those first 10 yrs began to develop.

Anemia was the first symptom. Next was Asthma and then Histamine Intolerance, Adrenal Fatigue, Arthritis, Heptiformus dermatitis, and a few additional small problems.

Not trying to scare you, rather give you a frame of reference at the potential problems that gluten caused damage can do to your body’s proper functioning.
Chris47 -

Yes!

How do you get your protein? Where can I find certified Gluten-free food, name brands? Thank you

I was diagnosed 17 years ago. I could only shop the outside aisles of the grocery store and health food stores. It has gotten much easier but spending time with a dietitian that understands Celiac and all the things you need to be careful with is really helpful since it is more than just food.

There are online apps such as FindMeGlutenFree that help with finding safe places/foods to eat (you still have to quiz the server/chef on if the food is safe). the National Celiac Assoc. has info (link below) and there are local chapters in many cities; here is the one for Denver https://denverceliacs.org/ . Bob's Red Mill has a lot of GF flours, including GF oats (high protein); make sure oats that you buy are certified GF because of crop rotation and processed in a plant with (nasty) wheat. Other safe high-protein flour are legumes (beans, pea), quinoa, amaranth, teff, timtana (timothy grass), nuts, and more. My gluten intolerance likely started 50 years ago. It morphed into celiac 14 years ago after catching H1N1 followed by an attempt on my life (high stress can be a trigger as well). Consider keeping a food log because once you have one autoimmune disease, others can follow. I was diagnosed with collagenous colitis 8 years ago and that is controlled by avoiding NSAIDs and legumes. Good to get enough exercise and avoid stress and the usual stuff doctors tell us. Nice thing about celiac is that it can be corralled by not eating gluten; tough parts are finding safe foods and the social isolation (especially for kids). https://nationalceliac.org/resources/what-is-celiac-disease-2/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwhtWvBhD9ARIsAOP0Goj3ArbOBgXtZZKcfoYYpgG4GFLJzPn4jr7RRoNNzRWWwc7SIofRitEaAuuOEALw_wcB

If you don't cook, think about taking a GF cooking class. Almost everything can be cooked GF (even sourdough bread that is close to real bread). A lot of GF packaged food is high sugar/salt, and mostly rice and tapioca flours. So, no healthier than gluten-full processed food. There are a number of GF flours that are similar to wheat flour, such as Bob Red Mill's 1 to 1 Baking Flour, Pamela's, King Arthur, and others. High protein flours can be added to the mix Psyllium husk is a good additive to increase soluble and insoluble fiber (also for GI bacteria). There are also a lot of GF cookbooks and online recipes.