Hi there. You can have a test for blood test to check for celiac disease, my GP did this for me. Also, some people have an intolerance/allergy rather than celiac, and an allergist can check for this. I was told that prednisone could alter the test results. If you are worried about truly having celiac, you would want to see a gastroenterologist for a consult to find out if you need testing. Tissue can be taken and tested from the upper and the lower GI tract.

My tests were not conclusive, but did show chronic inflammation, so I drastically reduced the amount of gluten in my diet. I have been pretty satisfied with using alternate grains. I still eat wheat on occasion, but whole grain. Several years ago, I followed the South Beach diet plan. I did lose weight and I definitely felt different. The only foods that I reduced/eliminated from my diet at that time were wheat and sugar. I added back fruits and alternative grains eventually. I am not 100% sure that caused the difference in my inflammation and pain levels, but I strongly believe it is a possibility. I am trying to follow an anti-inflammatory diet (lots of veggies, some fruit as well as alternative grains) as much as possible. I hope to see similar results as several years ago, but am not sure yet as cutting out gluten and sugar is fairly recent (this time).

In addition to prednisone effecting the testing, if you cut out gluten on your own prior to testing, that will alter test results too. Wishing you the best of luck finding answers!