Dr. Clark's Brain Based Blog

Celiac Disease Is NOT the Same Thing as Gluten Sensitivity

Dr. David Clark, DC -Dallas, TX- helps you avoid the terrible mistake of thinking that Celiac disease is the same thing as gluten sensitivity.

I going to explain the difference between Celiac Disease and Gluten Sensitivity.  Celiac Disease is one kind of gluten sensitivity.  It is not the only kind of gluten sensitivity. 

The reason I'm bringing this point up is, I see 30 to 50 people a month that tell me,

"Oh, I've been tested for gluten, my doctor said I don't have Celiac, so I’m fine." 

And what that tells me is the doctor does not understand Celiac disease.  So let me give you an explanation.

Gluten is a protein that's found in wheat and barley and rye---but that's just the beginning.

Gluten is not the only part of wheat that can cause an immune system reaction. G

There's wheat germ agglutinin...it's associated with severe joint pains. 

There's glutenin.

You could have a reaction to gliadin.  You could even have a reaction to the different isomers of gliadin (Alpha, Gamma, Omega--something we can get into another time.)

Gluten sensitivity is when you have an immune system reaction to ANY part of wheat:

• Wheat germ agglutinin
• gliadin and it's subunites
• Glutenin

When this sensitivity leads to an autoimmune attack on your small intestine, now we're getting into this thing called Celiac Disease.

The supposed "Gold Standard" for diagnosis of Celiac Disease is small intestine biopsy---but even this has major flaws. Basically you must have villous atrophy and lymphoycte infiltration. 

But--just so you know, there's research to show, very convincingly, that a lot of people with  positive "celiac" antibody tests (anti-endomysial antibodies, anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies) DO NOT have a positive small intestine biopsy.

So the biopsy is not useful in my opinion.  However, when you go to see your medical doctor or the gastroenterologist  they'll order an anti-endomysial antibodies or tissue transglutaminase antibodies.

You could have a variety of symptoms, maybe even some GI symptoms like:

• constipation
• diarrhea
• weight loss
• blood in the stool

Or, you could be seeing a doctor because you have infertility problems or you've got joint pain, seizures, migraines....or any other symtpoms that could be related to gluten sensitivity, and the doctor will typically order anti-endomysial antibodies or tissue transglutaminase antibodies to determine if you have Celiac disease.

And if these two tests are negative, the doctor tells you don't have Celiac disease and so you don't have a gluten problem. 

WRONG!

That's one test; it's not the only test.  The results of that anti-endomysial antibody test,  if it's negative, DOES NOT mean that you don't have a problem with gluten.

Because --remember the glutenin, the gliadin isomers, the wheat germ agglutinnin-- you could have a problem with any of those things--be GLUTEN SENSITIVE and not have Celiac Disease.

I hope that's making sense. I see a lot of people that were tested for Celiac disease five years ago, two years ago...and been told they don't have a problem with gluten and so they keep on eating it.  And it destroys their health.

These are people with a variety of autoimmune conditions that have led to infertility, Hashimoto's, Multiple Sclerosis....and they've been tested in the past and told that they don't have a problem, and that is just absolutely not accurate. 

Now, the best way to get tested for gluten sensitivity is from a lab called Cyrex Labs, it's currently the best way to find out. 

However, I'm  goint to save you some time and money....

Go 100% gluten-free. And not just for a couple weeks and see if you feel better. Do it forever and ever, amen.

Many people have an opiate peptide problem with gluten...which means when they eat gluten it turns into an opiate like heroin (gluteomorphin, to be exact) and so they become addicted to it...they crave it...it makes them feel "good."

These people tend to have a little harder time of getting off of gluten. They go through literal withdrawals like a junkie....maybe 5 to 10 days of headaches, irritability, constipation, diarrhea. 

Save your money on testing, just go gluten-free.  There's no biological reason for you to eat gluten anyway. 

Please don't think, that if you've been tested and your doctor has told you, "Well, you don't have Celiac Disease" that you don't have a gluten problem.  That could be a terrible mistake. 

As far as testin, the best thing to do is to get comprehensive testing for all the different components of wheat (wheat germ agglutinnin, glutenin, gliadin isomers).  Of course, you've got to find a doctor who understands that, someone who'll be able to do it for you, or you could just go gluten-free forever anyway. I would be surprised if you didn't feel somewhat better.

Going gluten-free may not be the thing that totally turns your life around but you'd be surprised.  I get emails every month with people saying, "I went gluten-free and my life has totally changed.  I feel so much better." That's greal.

The takeaway is: 

Celiac is one type of gluten sensitivity, not the only type. 

So you've got to make sure you get correctly tested and find a doctor who understands that.

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© 2012 David Clark. All Rights Reserved.

THE PLACE FOR ANSWERS™
Dr. David Clark, DC
Functional Neurologist
Diplomate College of Clinical Nutrition
Functional Endocrinology
Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist
Vestibular Rehab Specialist
214-341-3737

URL: http://www.doctordavidclark.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DrDavidClark
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dallas-TX/Dr-David-Clark-Functional-Neurologist/92451382182

Low Thyroid Brain Fog, Short Term Memory Problems and Hair Loss Eliminated

http://DallasThyroidDoctor.com

Corey, - a patient of Dr. David Clark, DC- shares her success with these Low Thyroid Symptoms:

• Brain Fog
• Short Term Memory Problems
• Hair Loss

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© 2012 David Clark. All Rights Reserved.

THE PLACE FOR ANSWERS™
Dr. David Clark, DC
Functional Neurologist
Diplomate College of Clinical Nutrition
Functional Endocrinology
Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist
Vestibular Rehab Specialist
214-341-3737

URL: http://www.doctordavidclark.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DrDavidClark
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dallas-TX/Dr-David-Clark-Functional-Neurologist/92451382182

Are Iodine Supplements Safe for Low Thyroid?

Dr. David Clark, DC - Center for Low Thyroid Solutions Dallas, TX - educates women with low thyroid on the potential dangers of iodine supplements.

Are iodine supplements safe for low thyroid?  Listen very closely to what I'm about to tell you. 

Iodine is important for thyroid hormone metabolism.  You must have iodine to make T4 and T3.  T4 (inactive) is converted into T3, the active form of thyroid hormone.

There is one....ONE kind of hypothyroidism in which iodine works very well...

...and that's called Primary Hypothyroidism. (There are about 24 different ways that thyroid hormone chemistry can go wrong).

In Primary Hypothyroidism, the thyroid gland is not excreting and not manufacturing sufficient T4.  This is the type of hypothyroidism that responds very well to drugs such as Synthroid^®, Levothyroxine^®, and Armour^®.

But---Primary Hypothyroidism not the most common cause of hypothyroid.  The most common cause of hypothyroid in America (and the world),  is called Hashimoto's Autoimmune Thyroiditis.

In Hashimoto's, your immune system is attacking and trying to kill your thyroid gland. Specifically, your immune system targets:

1. Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) -an enzyme used to make T4 and T3.

2. Thyroglobulin (TGB) -a protein used to make T4 and T3. 

Here's where we talk about two issues with Iodine...

Issue #1 with Iodine:

Iodine stimulates the manufacture of TPO inside the thyroid gland.If you are already attacking TPO (have Hashimoto's) then increasing levels of TPO is like throwing wood on the fire.

Issue #2 with Iodine:

If you don't have Hashimoto's, taking Iodine can cause Hashimoto's autoimmune thyroiditis. Iodine triggers Hashimoto's.  This is without a doubt, there's no question.  There's a ton of research studies on this topic that prove that iodine is a trigger for Hashimoto's. 

How do they know?  In many countries around the world they've given people prophylactic iodine, meaning, "Hey, we think our citizens in this area don't have enough iodine in their blood.  Their TSH levels look weird, they have goiters.  Let's give them all iodine and correct that."

In almost 100% of the cases, when they give iodine,  they also give all of those people Hashimoto's.

That is a horrible thing to do to someone because once you have one autoimmune attack, the chances are you're going get another one.  In Hashimoto's, the autoimmune attack  can move very quickly into the parietal cells of the stomach, casing pernicious anemia....into the pancreas causing blood sugar problem...and intp the cerebellum, causing dizziness, vertigo, balance problems. 

So please read this next part very closely...

There's thousands of people on Yahoo! Groups and chat groups saying, "I've treated my hypothyroidism with iodine, therefore iodine is good for low thyroid symptoms." 

No, Iodine is not.  You must to get tested first to make sure you do not have Hashimoto's. A very simple test to do.  You get what's called a TPO antibody test and you get a TGB antibody test.

If either one or both of those antibody tests come back positive, DO NOT TAKE IODINE.  It's very simple. 

When a person has Hashimoto's and they take iodine, their symptoms get worse. I've lost count how many times I've read this in a patient's history.

I get called a murderer and all kinds of whacko things when I talk about iodine, but it's true. 

I'm not telling you that iodine doesn't work on some people because clearly, it does.  It works on those people that have Primary Hypothyroidism, but that's not the most common kind of Hypothyroidism.

Do yourself a favor and be safe.  If you've got classic low thyroid symptoms like

• fatigue
• unexplained weight gain
• constipation
• dry skin, brittle nails
• sluggish mental speed
• brain fog
• infertility. 
  

Don't try to supplement yourself, which is the same as medicating yourself.  Find someone that understands these things I'm talking about.  Find someone who understands a functional perspective, a functional way of looking at hypothyroidism.  Hopefully will be a good detective and will find out what is actually causing those low thyroid symptoms (because maybe they're not even low thyroid symptoms.  They might be adrenal gland symptoms or brain symptoms.)

That person is going to have to do some tests. There's over 24 different ways your thyroid hormones can go wrong and iodine only really helps one of those  Yes, probably 20 of those are fairly rare, but the most common is  Hashimoto's.

In the scientific journals Iodine + Hashimoto's has been called "an explosive mix".

I've seen too many  people get into trouble over the last four years trying to self supplement and using iodine.  Women come in and I find out they've taken iodine and felt awfula and smartly stopped it. Or, worse they've never really recovered from it. 

This is serious business were talking about here.  You can make yourself worse.

Iodine is not safe for low thyroid symptoms until you find out if you've got Hashimoto's or not...and it might not even be safe then because iodine can trigger Hashimoto's.

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© 2012 David Clark. All Rights Reserved.

THE PLACE FOR ANSWERS™
Dr. David Clark, DC
Functional Neurologist
Diplomate College of Clinical Nutrition
Functional Endocrinology
Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist
Vestibular Rehab Specialist
214-341-3737

URL: http://www.doctordavidclark.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DrDavidClark
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dallas-TX/Dr-David-Clark-Functional-Neurologist/92451382182