From what I've read, being gluten free is an all or nothing thing. If you try it, and get pain relief - then gluten is probably a trigger food for your body and should therefore be avoided.

I'm not a diagnosed Celiac, but the GI I saw after I went gluten free said she was pretty sure I have it. My doctor refused to test me because I wasn't underweight. At any rate, I had a long line of symptoms that have been (mostly) relieved by maintaing a gluten free lifestyle. I never cheat, and only get gluten accidentally. Usually by not reading labels properly, and in 3 years, that has happened about 2x a year.

Before going GF, I was diagnosed with fibro and arthritis. 90% of my issues have cleared up. In the winter, its harder. My joints ache more, and my muscles tend to tense, etc. But it has diminished exponentially. I also had constant nausea, diarrhea, persistent migraines, mouth sores (like constant canker sores), and I was constantly hungry. I had to eat every 2 hours, without fail or I'd get light headed and even more nauseated. And I was constantly exhausted. Like, falling asleep standing up, exhausted. There was more, but I can't remember now - its been a long time!

I went GF to address the pain, but those other things cleared up too.

You really have to give it a good, solid 6 weeks (at least 2 weeks) of being totally GF to see if it will help or not. Most people will notice a difference in a few days, but not always. Good luck.

I have CFS and Fibro, and do not tolerate gluten. I agree with mooglysmom that you need to try it religiously for quite a while to see if you benefit from it. For me it was only a few weeks and my gut issues evaporated. My Fibro did NOT go away, only the irritable bowel symptoms that often accompany it.

I have been largely gluten free for more than 3 years. I can enjoy a pizza crust or a hamburger bun on occasion, with only minor, short lived issues (once a month or so). But if I eat something with gluten twice in a row? Murder. But again - all gut issues for me. I haven't noticed a relationship with Fibro pain.

Having said that, if you don't have Celiac (I don't), I suspect the sensitivity can manifest itself differently in each of us. There is enough evidence that gluten (and dairy) are sensitive issues with Fibro and CFS that I believe it is absolutely worth it to figure out how to eliminate those foods for an extended trial.

One last thought, since I'm not Celiac, I am not hyper vigilant about eliminating the small incidences of gluten (for instance in worcester sauce - I mean, how often do you really eat the stuff?). A Celiac has to be much more diligent. I think it takes practice to cut out either gluten or dairy so don't beat yourself up if you make mistakes in the beginning. It's a learning process.

I have FM and Hashimoto's (auto-immune hypothyroid something or other) and when I stick to a gluten free/low carb diet, I feel 100 times better. By low carb I mean that the only carbs I eat are fruits, veggies, legumes, and sweet potatoes. No white starches or "gluten free" pastas, flours, etc. I do not have as much pain, I have more energy, I just generally feel better. I also take Magnesium Malate and lots of vitamin D3 and that seems to help as well. As others have said, it's an all or nothing thing. When I have a lapse in judgement the amount of pain and feeling horrible correlates with how much I ate. If I eat a couple cookies... not too bad. If hubby and I order a pizza and cheesy breadsticks and I eat 4 slices with breadsticks on the side, I can barely move for the next week or so.