Cold Turkey vs gradual

bearsy0

Hi. Lately, I have been hearing a lot about a link between Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (which I have) and gluten sensitivity. I have thought about trying to go gluten free to see if any of my symptoms can be alleviated (I am also on medication, and tested regularly).

I have been putting it off because it seems very daunting, especially since eating gluten does not automatically give me a day altering side effect (if eating a sandwich made me want to die, it might be easier to say no)! I think it could be easy enough to cut out the obvious sources (bread, baked goods, etc.) but eliminating the hidden sources of gluten seems like an impossible task.

So, I was wondering if you think it would be easier or more effective to wean myself off of gluten, like cutting out the obvious sources and slowly learning and finding alternatives to those hidden sources, or just cut it out full stop.

While I am opting for the latter, because I fear jumping in head first will lead to failure, I have also read that the immune response to gluten can last up to six months after eating it, so I wouldn't be able to see if cutting it out helped me at all.

I don't know if that makes any sense. I am new to all of this and am still trying to learn.
Thanks for reading and any help.

gramanana

My suggestion would be to go cold turkey. Eliminate the foods you think are giving you problems and after a month add them back in one at a time for a week or two and see what happens. If you have a reaction of some sort to that food, then remove it again. I think that's what works best. I know that going gluten free made a HUGE difference in my life for the better.

Good luck.

SwimSoccerTaxi

Thyroid disorders and Gluten Insensitivity are both auto-immune disorders and they tend to appear together. While you might not be having any "symptoms" now it doesn't mean your digestive system isn't struggling to maintain a healthy state. However, you may never have any issues.

My symptoms (digestive in nature) suddenly occurred but the other "symptoms" I never would have equated to gluten, were there for years (restless legs, joint pain, acne, hair breakage, etc.)

As for how to cut it out.....the molecules of gluten remain in your digestive system for 6 weeks so go without ALL gluten for at least that time to determine if you feel better. After that time have a gluten item (I tried 2 saltine crackers) and see what happens (I was ill for 3 days.....it was awful...makes not eating gluten products VERY easy)

Good luck and I hope you have success!

bearsy0

Thank you very much for your replies and help. I think I'll give it a go starting Monday. It sounds like not eliminating it all would be a bit pointless. At least I'm not much of a cook so all my recipes use minimal ingredients so that will hopefully make avoiding the "hidden gluten" easier.

Any symptoms that I ever notice are just the typical thyroid ones (dry hair, nails, eyes, skin, cold), but I think, without knowing I had a thyroid condition, I wouldn't have given those a second thought, so I will be interested to see what things might improve that I hadn't even noticed or thought about.

I shall keep this group bookmarked and keep up on all the helpful tips!

RoseTears143

I have Hashi's and confirmed severe autoimmune gluten intolerance, as well as with casein. I was slack about making changes but decided to go cold turkey back in March and it was the best decision EVER. Since then I've seen dramatic improvements in my condition, energy, and how my NDT is absorbing and working in my body to support my thyroid function. I actually just had to decrease my NDT dose this past week due to weight loss and my numbers are looking good, my BP was actually climbing becuase I was becoming hyper from too much thyroid hormone.

Definitely ditch the gluten and never look back. :flowerforyou:

Edited to add: gluten can actually stay in your body and cause damage for up to 6 months after last eating it. I saw the comment about the 6 weeks and wanted to add this. Gluten is nasty for people that cannot eat it. Now after not having it just since March, if I even get a tiny bit of it (or casein from dairy) I will bloat up and get severe cramps and/or pain in my stomach and intestines. I just wish the medical community would recognize this type of reaction in people even when they don't get the blood diagnosis for Celiac disease. It doesn't mean it's any less severe or painful or threatening to our health!

Sharon5913

I went cold turkey over 10 years ago, and it pretty literally gave me my life back. As I healed I gained nearly 60 # and am still working on getting it off, I have FAR more energy and I no longer look like a walking corpse.

Now if I have a gluten poisoning incident, which is fairly rare now, the aftereffects are pretty strong: Chills, vomiting, sometimes diarrhea, and extreme fatigue. Start to finish, it takes a couple of days to completely recover. It is NASTY, and so not worth it.

scookiemonster

I think that the fact that, as you say, it's not like you get horribly ill every time you eat a sandwich, is what makes it take so long for so many people to recognize a gluten sensitivity, and why so many people go undiagnosed.

For me, I didn't really recognize a lot of things that I was experiencing as symptoms until I wasn't experiencing them anymore. I certainly didn't realize they were all connected to each other. I thought I was tired all the time because I just didn't get good enough sleep, that I couldn't concentrate in the afternoons because I'd just worked too hard, that my stomach upset easily because it was just sensitive, that my migraines were from stress, that the constant feeling of bloat after eating was from eating too much sodium, that the dry, patchy, acne prone skin was just... I don't know... genetic or something.

Yet within a week or so of cutting gluten cold-turkey, symptoms I hadn't even recognized as symptoms started to disappear. It was only after the first time that I sat for an hour and got a ton of work done at 3 in the afternoon that I realized that there had been something wrong in the first place. It wasn't until my skin cleared up that I realized that my skin COULD clear up. It wasn't until I stopped having to fight nodding off driving home from work that I realized that maybe it wasn't just the amount of sleep I was getting that was the problem.

I'd say definitely go cold turkey, and if you feel that much better, you'll likely find that it's really not as hard to go without gluten as you think. It takes a little while to get used to, but now I look at something glutenous and all I see are headaches and nausea and acne and fatigue, and it just doesn't seem particularly appetizing to me. Also, as I've had to get creative with my food, I think the food I'm eating now is often better and tastier than ever before, and it almost makes me a little sad for people who are still eating the same old boring wheat crap without knowing how much awesome stuff they could be eating instead.

SophieMiriam

I think that the fact that, as you say, it's not like you get horribly ill every time you eat a sandwich, is what makes it take so long for so many people to recognize a gluten sensitivity, and why so many people go undiagnosed.

For me, I didn't really recognize a lot of things that I was experiencing as symptoms until I wasn't experiencing them anymore. I certainly didn't realize they were all connected to each other. I thought I was tired all the time because I just didn't get good enough sleep, that I couldn't concentrate in the afternoons because I'd just worked too hard, that my stomach upset easily because it was just sensitive, that my migraines were from stress, that the constant feeling of bloat after eating was from eating too much sodium, that the dry, patchy, acne prone skin was just... I don't know... genetic or something.

Yet within a week or so of cutting gluten cold-turkey, symptoms I hadn't even recognized as symptoms started to disappear. It was only after the first time that I sat for an hour and got a ton of work done at 3 in the afternoon that I realized that there had been something wrong in the first place. It wasn't until my skin cleared up that I realized that my skin COULD clear up. It wasn't until I stopped having to fight nodding off driving home from work that I realized that maybe it wasn't just the amount of sleep I was getting that was the problem.

I'd say definitely go cold turkey, and if you feel that much better, you'll likely find that it's really not as hard to go without gluten as you think. It takes a little while to get used to, but now I look at something glutenous and all I see are headaches and nausea and acne and fatigue, and it just doesn't seem particularly appetizing to me. Also, as I've had to get creative with my food, I think the food I'm eating now is often better and tastier than ever before, and it almost makes me a little sad for people who are still eating the same old boring wheat crap without knowing how much awesome stuff they could be eating instead.

This is exactly what happened to me, too. My mysterious joint pain which three doctors could find no explanation for went away! My skin is better, my energy levels are higher, and I am overall a much happier person. I did not get any withdrawal symptoms at all, which surprised me.

KindredSpirit89

I went cold turkey the other day and I think it was the best way for me personally. I guess like ripping a plaster off quickly!

However, almost immediately I have felt a lot better. I wouldn't say I'm 100% there because that will obviously take a lot of time but I do have a bit more energy and I don't feel so unwell after eating. It was like a lightbulb moment on the day I did it where I suddenly thought after my GF dinner, "Wow, I don't feel sick". Now all I see the none GF food as is poison.

Good luck x

Garlicmash

some people take some time to feel well after giving up gluten and others feel well instantly. I think some people get confussed by that as they expect it to be instant but the body has got to get rid of the toxins still in the body so no one should give up other wise they may hinder finding what is wrong with them.

I did read some where that gluten may be the cause for some peoples thyroid problems .so there is a chance there are many people that just need to cut out gluten and it may clear up,wonderful thought that something like this and no meds is a cure