Gluten Intolerance: Symptoms and Test

Symptoms of gluten intolerance

Gluten intolerance, also known as celiac disease, is an intestinal disease that manifests itself through certain symptoms.

• The main symptoms, which mainly appear immediately after eating foods containing gluten, are abdominal pain, flatulence, and diarrhea (fatty stool).
• In some patients, however, the symptoms only manifest themselves in a weak form, such as severe tiredness or weakness.
• Since the intestinal mucosa becomes inflamed when consuming gluten in people with celiac disease, the intestines are less able to utilize the nutrients. Therefore, in the long term, deficiency symptoms, such as iron deficiency, often occur.
• There are also atypical symptoms that result from gluten intolerance. These manifest themselves, for example, in muscle weakness, skin inflammation, joint pain, very dry skin, or depression.
• Headaches, joint inflammation, migraines, concentration problems, itchy skin, and susceptibility to diseases can also result from a weakened immune system.
• However, these atypical symptoms are mostly the result of a lack of nutrient utilization in the intestine.

Gluten intolerance test

If you suspect that you are gluten intolerant, you should get tested by a gastroenterologist. Only he has the opportunity to examine you for celiac disease. A GP cannot test you but will refer you to gastroenterology.

• As an object of investigation, the blood is first tested for antibodies. For example, those who fight the protein that causes glutamine in the gut.
• A piece of tissue is then removed from the small intestine to diagnose inflammation.
• It is important that you eat a gluten-free diet before the test so as not to falsify the result.
• Additional tests, such as IgA deficiency, may be done if necessary. These are again performed with blood.
• In any case, the responsible gastroenterologist must decide individually which test procedures should be used and what your treatment should look like.