I have recently been in for a colonoscopy - all was well, and my doc diagnosed me with Ibs, which is really irritating, because I have no idea what to do next. Then, I had my stool tested for parasites, that came back negative. Now, i am suffering daily with severe foul-smelling gas that comes so fast that I do not have time to run to the bathroom. I actually went out today and bought about 50 dollars worth of non-gluten food, but that was crazy being that I don't even know if I have Celiac yet - I wish I knew what it was, because the worst of this started when I quit smoking, and quit taking a lot of sugar through coke a cola. It does not seem to matter what I do - drink milk, not drink milk, eat carbs, not eat carbs, eat sugar, not eat sugar. I have trouble at work because I always have to be in the bathroom - either with gas, or the fear of having gas in front of people, which also has happened. I have IBS pills, charcoal tablets, beano, lactaid, or whatever it is. I take a lot of supplements but feel like my body is malnourished. I had some blood tests taken previous to the latest one, and my doc said they were fairly normal except I have high cholesterol. Almost 273 something like that. Anyway, I am awaitng the results of the blood test, and if it is not Celiac, then what on earth could be causing this? It seems to be getting worse, not better. Today, after eating no gluten, I still had severe gas problems at my part-time job (in a cubicle). How long does it take to begin recovery - If I stick with no-gluten? Thank you!

Sawdust

hello sawdust,
I am sorry for your discomfort...its no fun I know. Anyways, one day with gluten free is not a good determination of whether its celiac or not...it takes many many days to feel a difference. I have been gluten free for about a month and just started to notice a difference, but other people it can take months...depends on how much healing needs to be done. Anyways, I was diagnosed with IBS for 9 years before I finally was diagnosed with celiac. I think its fairly common to be misdiagnosed as IBS. I also think that sometime blood test come back as negative for celiac for some people but they follow gluten free diet anyways and feel better. If you want to determine if a gluten free diet is going to work I would suggest giving it a good solid 2-3 months ( I know big commitment) before giving up on it. I hope you get the answers you need and start feeling better soon. Take care...oh yes, gluten free foods like the gluten free bread and specifically gluten free things are things to stay away from at first...they are hard on the system..stick with natural gluten free foods such as veggies, fruits, plain meats ect...and introduce gluten free foods gradually...your digestive system will thank you!!
Julie

One thing to mention, if you plan to get tested for celiac you need to be eating gluten otherwise you will get a negative test. (Just kidding I reread you thread and saw you are waiting for your results.)

As to the gas. I can put a college frat boy to shame with mine. I think my husband is shocked that his wife you produce such a loud, foul smelling sound. I have given up running to the bathroom unless I am at work. Ifyou are in a store just start walking away. Pretty much everyone at work knows I have severe stomach issues so we all just laugh. I am a bank teller right now because my stomach couldn't handle the stress of being a loan officer/personal banker. On saturday I almost puked on a customer. I had to excuse my self and throw my keys at my manager so she could finish was I was doing. There was only one other teller at that time and there I going running to the bathroom.

I have had some luck with Beano when I take it before I eat a meal. I have never has much luck with gasex.

I was dx with IBS when I was 14 and have suffered the symptoms for 19 years. The only thing that helped me was a gluten free diet. It's only been one month on the diet but I can already tell a huge difference. Good luck!

Gutbomb--

Beano is not safe for Celiacs. It does contain a small amount of wheat which could be why you are still reacting. I know I would, even at such a low concentration--

I wanted to post a link to their FAQ, but the board wouldn't allow it. You can go to Beano's home page, click on FAQ and then "medical considerations".

I use Phazyme softgels (the chewable contain gluten). These were recommended to me by my GI--they help, but I got the most relief when I cut legumes. As it turns out, I'm sensitive to those.

Perhaps you are reacting to something in addition to gluten? Dairy, soy and legumes come to mind as possibilities.