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My GE called me yesterday, swearing up and down that he did all the tests for gluten sensitivity and they were all negative.
He also denied I have any food allergies.
Everything I have read here tells me that this illness is definitely food allergen based.
What tests does enterolab do differently from regular labs? How do I get it to them? Is it expensive?
I'm sorry I am bombarding with questions. I SO want to start to heal. I really want to know my sensitivities so I can cut them out of my diet.
TIA
Lesley
Enterolab
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Gabes-Apg
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Lesley
I have been tested for wheat intolerance via the commonly used 'blood test'.
I had this test 3 times in the 2 years preceeding my diagnosis, the last testing occurance I ate wheat for a fortnight before having the test
each time i was negative for wheat intolerance.
I have been avoiding gluten for over 10 years, and i have been 100% Gluten Free for the past 20 months.
I dont need a blood test or a doctor to confirm that i react to gluten, if i eat gluten i have MC symptoms.
I have been tested for wheat intolerance via the commonly used 'blood test'.
I had this test 3 times in the 2 years preceeding my diagnosis, the last testing occurance I ate wheat for a fortnight before having the test
each time i was negative for wheat intolerance.
I have been avoiding gluten for over 10 years, and i have been 100% Gluten Free for the past 20 months.
I dont need a blood test or a doctor to confirm that i react to gluten, if i eat gluten i have MC symptoms.
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Hi Lesley,
The difference is that Enterolab does stool tests, and doctors do blood tests. The antibodies are produced in the intestines, not in the blood, so the stool tests are several orders of magnitude more sensitive and reliable than the blood tests for detecting food-sensitivities. With celiac disease, for example, the anti-giadin antibodies can often be detected in the stool several years before enough of them begin to show up in the blood so that the blood tests will detect them and show a positive result. The blood tests will only detect fully-developed celiac disease. Most people with celiac disease suffer for years, before the blood tests will show a positive result.
The kind of gluten-sensitivity that we have with MC, (unless we also have celiac disease), will never produce enough antibodies in the blood for the blood tests to show a positive result. That's why we all use the Enterolab tests - the blood tests are worthless to us.
Here's a link to the Enterolab tests. IMO, the "best" options are either Panel A, or panel B, depending on whether or not you are interested in knowing which genes you have, that either predispose to celiac disease or the kind of gluten-sensitivity that we have with MC. Of course, you can order individual tests if you prefer, but with the panels, you get a much lower price per test.
http://www.enterolab.com/StaticPages/TestInfo.aspx
Please never hesitate to ask questions - it's much better to ask than to suffer in silence, and we certainly understand how you feel, so we want to help in any way we can.
Tex
The difference is that Enterolab does stool tests, and doctors do blood tests. The antibodies are produced in the intestines, not in the blood, so the stool tests are several orders of magnitude more sensitive and reliable than the blood tests for detecting food-sensitivities. With celiac disease, for example, the anti-giadin antibodies can often be detected in the stool several years before enough of them begin to show up in the blood so that the blood tests will detect them and show a positive result. The blood tests will only detect fully-developed celiac disease. Most people with celiac disease suffer for years, before the blood tests will show a positive result.
The kind of gluten-sensitivity that we have with MC, (unless we also have celiac disease), will never produce enough antibodies in the blood for the blood tests to show a positive result. That's why we all use the Enterolab tests - the blood tests are worthless to us.
Here's a link to the Enterolab tests. IMO, the "best" options are either Panel A, or panel B, depending on whether or not you are interested in knowing which genes you have, that either predispose to celiac disease or the kind of gluten-sensitivity that we have with MC. Of course, you can order individual tests if you prefer, but with the panels, you get a much lower price per test.
http://www.enterolab.com/StaticPages/TestInfo.aspx
Please never hesitate to ask questions - it's much better to ask than to suffer in silence, and we certainly understand how you feel, so we want to help in any way we can.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Enterolab
I think, on 2nd thought, I am going to spend the money to get tested. I need to find out what I can eat, and what to avoid. I have been feeling so rotten, and now also have a UTI AGAIN, and have to take antibiotics.
I HAVE to get this under control. You guys provide the inspiration because I know it can be done.
I HAVE to get this under control. You guys provide the inspiration because I know it can be done.
Lesley,
I congratulate you, and hope you'll find the tests as helpful as I did.
Your GE may not applaud your choice... A friend of mine recently tested 2 of her children (off the charts for gluten, soy, dairy, eggs... plus four different gluten-sensitive genes, including one for celiac - she got lucky and hit all FOUR genes, between her and husband). She spoke to her own endocrinologist (she has Type 1 diabetes), and to an allergist who had tested the kids for food issues - all negative of course. The response was "you know these tests aren't universally accepted.... but I would be very concerned about these levels of antibodies."
So hold that thought, should your doctor not be supportive. Once you feel better, you'll be sooo glad. Hope the UTI is cleared up in a jiffy,
Sara
I congratulate you, and hope you'll find the tests as helpful as I did.
Your GE may not applaud your choice... A friend of mine recently tested 2 of her children (off the charts for gluten, soy, dairy, eggs... plus four different gluten-sensitive genes, including one for celiac - she got lucky and hit all FOUR genes, between her and husband). She spoke to her own endocrinologist (she has Type 1 diabetes), and to an allergist who had tested the kids for food issues - all negative of course. The response was "you know these tests aren't universally accepted.... but I would be very concerned about these levels of antibodies."
So hold that thought, should your doctor not be supportive. Once you feel better, you'll be sooo glad. Hope the UTI is cleared up in a jiffy,
Sara
I used to have UTIs several times a year, but since I've stopped eating high-histamine foods, I haven't had any for a year and a half. It's still pretty early for you to be suspicious of having a mast cell problem, but you may want to tuck that into a corner of your brain for future reference.Lesley wrote:also have a UTI AGAIN, and have to take antibiotics.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.