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Hello,
So I've been on this gluten free diet for about 3 months or so, with a few slips ups here and there. I forgot and accidently ordered some fries that weren't gluten free and then my stomach hurt a bit the next day or so, but I haven't had any gluten since. The next evening I came down with a rash that has progressively spread. My doctor isn't sure what it is (at least she doesn't guess). I'm a bit worried it's chicken pox because I never had them, but I was kind of thinking it might be dermatitis herpetiformis, but I've never had that before either. Just wondering if anyone has had both of these problems and can tell the difference. The internet seems to show the two as very similar. Thing is I don't have a fever or feel sick and they are only minorly itchy. If it is dermatitis herpetiformis how long until it would go away, is it going to get worse or should it get better as long as I don't eat gluten? Thanks for your help.
Dermatitis herpetiformis or chicken pox?
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MBombardier
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 1523
- Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2010 10:44 am
- Location: Vancouver, WA
Sounds more like DH. Chicken pox is horribly itchy, and the pustules will scab over in a few days. The whole process, from first bumps to scabbing only lasts a week or so.
I don't have DH, but someone who is more familiar with it will be along in a while.
I don't have DH, but someone who is more familiar with it will be along in a while.
Marliss Bombardier
Dum spiro, spero -- While I breathe, I hope
Psoriasis - the dark ages
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis - Dec 2001
Collagenous Colitis - Sept 2010
Granuloma Annulare - June 2011
Dum spiro, spero -- While I breathe, I hope
Psoriasis - the dark ages
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis - Dec 2001
Collagenous Colitis - Sept 2010
Granuloma Annulare - June 2011
Chicken pox for an adult is an awful illness. You would have a fever and feel like hell. Take it from one who knows. It would also itch. You would have pustules EVERYWHERE and I do mean EVERYWHERE. I had them on the inside of my eyelids so closing my eyes was impossible.
It's not like getting it as a child.
My mom nearly died from it, and I was very ill.
I don't know much about DH, but CP I do know.
It's not like getting it as a child.
My mom nearly died from it, and I was very ill.
I don't know much about DH, but CP I do know.
Hi,
I don't have DH either, but as Marliss said, if you have DH, (and the odds are fairly high that's what you have), it should definitely be much more persistent than chicken pox, and as Lesley pointed out, not as severe, early on. For some people, it seems to take a very long time to get rid of a DH rash, while for others, it comes and goes. If it becomes more troublesome, Dapsone can be used to treat it, but it's available by prescription only, and it does have some significant side effect risks.
Rigid adherence to the GF diet should eliminate the problem in the long run, though in some cases it can take a long time for DH to respond to the diet. I could be wrong, but I have a hunch that following a low histamine diet, (in addition to a GF diet), might help to resolve DH faster. There's no research that suggests this, (that I'm aware of) - it's just part of a theory of mine about the causes of autoimmune disease.
The fact that you only reacted to a gluten event with a tummy ache, (rather than a full-blown reaction), also suggests that it might be DH. Why, you ask? Because many celiacs who are prone to DH have minimal or absent GI issues. Instead, the rash is their primary response to gluten. This doesn't apply in all cases, though - some celiacs have strong reactions that involve both types of symptoms.
Tex
I don't have DH either, but as Marliss said, if you have DH, (and the odds are fairly high that's what you have), it should definitely be much more persistent than chicken pox, and as Lesley pointed out, not as severe, early on. For some people, it seems to take a very long time to get rid of a DH rash, while for others, it comes and goes. If it becomes more troublesome, Dapsone can be used to treat it, but it's available by prescription only, and it does have some significant side effect risks.
Rigid adherence to the GF diet should eliminate the problem in the long run, though in some cases it can take a long time for DH to respond to the diet. I could be wrong, but I have a hunch that following a low histamine diet, (in addition to a GF diet), might help to resolve DH faster. There's no research that suggests this, (that I'm aware of) - it's just part of a theory of mine about the causes of autoimmune disease.
The fact that you only reacted to a gluten event with a tummy ache, (rather than a full-blown reaction), also suggests that it might be DH. Why, you ask? Because many celiacs who are prone to DH have minimal or absent GI issues. Instead, the rash is their primary response to gluten. This doesn't apply in all cases, though - some celiacs have strong reactions that involve both types of symptoms.
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.
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Tumbleweed
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2011 6:58 pm
Thanks for all the replys. My doctor mentioned a steriod but we were both reluctant to try that just in case it is chicken pox. Stomach aches are my main symptom, the bathroom issues are more just not right (fat, weird colors). They've evened out since gluten free but still not normal so it's kind of hard to tell for sure if the gluten free diet is even working. I do have more energy overall (except for last couple of nights) which is the best thing. I'll definately google the low histimine diet. I have severe seasonal allergies and oral allergy syndrome so maybe there is a connection there (I got hives to my allergy shot on Monday). I hope whatever this is gets better soon! Thanks.
Whoa! That's pretty strong evidence that you may have mast cell activation syndrome, (MCAS). You're not the first member here to have such a reaction to a vaccine, though in your case, that may have been a normal response to the jab, for all I know, (since it was an allergy jab). Here are a couple of sites with diet information:Tumbleweed wrote:(I got hives to my allergy shot on Monday).
http://www.michiganallergy.com/food_and_histamine.shtml
http://www.urticaria.thunderworksinc.co ... tamine.htm
And some background information:
http://alford.grimtrojan.com/Mast_Cells ... isease.htm
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.