One of the more painful problems you can experience is that of mouth ulcerations, commonly referred to as canker sores. These aren’t necessarily the same as “cold sores” related to the herpes virus, which generally occur on the outside of the mouth.
There doesn’t seem to be any one trigger for these recurrent mouth ulcers. For some women, they develop when certain hormones fluctuate during the menstrual cycle; for other individuals excess exposure to the sun may be the trigger; and for others they seem to crop up in times of stress or from actual physical injury to the mouth.
They can be very painful and interfere with swallowing and eating, and oftentimes take a week or longer to resolve.
One very interesting study screened patients suffering from these recurrent ulcerations, looking for
gluten intolerance (an allergy to wheat and wheat products, as well as to other grains that contain the protein gluten). This condition is also called gluten sensitive enteropathy or celiac disease. It’s considered an immune disease where products that contain gluten trigger an immune reaction in the small intestine that can cause permanent damage. Common symptoms also include unwanted weight loss, chronic diarrhea or constipation, and bloating and gas.
When individuals with gluten intolerance were placed on a gluten-free diet, there was a very significant improvement in their prior problem with mouth ulcerations. (
BMC Gastroenterol 09;9:44)
A gluten-free diet may not be the answer for everyone with this problem, but for some it will be a godsend in more ways than one. Mouth ulcerations may be just the one noticeable symptom of an allergy to gluten that could be destroying areas of the small intestine. A gluten-free diet is not the easiest thing to follow, but it would be well worth trying if nothing else has helped with your recurrent mouth ulcerations.
For more information on gluten intolerance, or for a list of gluten free foods, visit
Dr. Williams’ Web site.
One of the more painful problems you can experience is that of mouth ulcerations, commonly referred to as canker sores. These aren’t necessarily the same as “cold sores” related to the herpes virus, which generally occur on the outside of the mouth.
There doesn’t seem to be any one trigger for these recurrent mouth ulcers. For some women, they develop when certain hormones fluctuate during the menstrual cycle; for other individuals, excess exposure to the sun may be the trigger; and for others yet, they seem to crop up in times of stress or from actual physical injury to the mouth.
They can be very painful and interfere with swallowing and eating, and oftentimes take a week or longer to resolve.
One very interesting study screened patients suffering from these recurrent ulcerations, looking for gluten intolerance (an allergy to wheat and wheat products, as well as to other grains that contain the protein gluten). Common symptoms include unwanted weight loss, chronic constipation and diarrhea, and bloating and gas.
When individuals with gluten intolerance or celiac disease were placed on a gluten-free diet, there was a very significant improvement in their prior problem with mouth ulcerations. (BMC Gastroenterol 09;9:44)
A gluten-free diet may not be the answer for everyone with this problem, but for some it will be a godsend in more ways than one. Mouth ulcerations may be just the one noticeable symptom of gluten intolerance that could be destroying areas of the small intestine. A gluten-free diet is not the easiest thing to follow, but it would be well worth trying if nothing else has helped one’s recurrent mouth ulcerations.
It’s no secret that gluten intolerance and allergic reactions to gluten can be directly linked to problems like osteoporosis, bowel problems, anemia, and psoriasis. But what is lesser known is that eliminating wheat (the primary source of gluten) from the diet is probably one of the most powerful techniques you can use to lower harmful forms of cholesterol.
There’s no downside to eliminating wheat from your diet, with the possible exception of the withdrawal symptoms. Stick with the program and I think you’ll be very pleasantly surprised in the long run. Let me know how it works. If you don’t see a very significant improvement in your cholesterol levels and overall health in a month or sooner, I’ll be shocked.
The treatment for gluten intolerance and celiac disease is quite simple and can be followed even if there’s just a strong suspicion of the disease. Generally, it involves the elimination of the offending glutens, found in wheat, rye, barley, and any products made from these grains. (Oats are often eliminated because they can be contaminated with wheat residue during processing.)
I’ll be the first to admit that eliminating all wheat products, much less trying to determine which products contain wheat, can be a staggering task. Aside from the obvious wheat-containing foods such as bread, pasta, cookies, and crackers, wheat flour is often a hidden ingredient in many processed foods, including frozen French fries, soy sauce, and rice cereal, just to name a few. However, there are dozens of books, charts, and resources to facilitate the elimination process. A good starting place for lists of gluten-free foods and other information is the
Celiac Sprue Association.
There’s no downside to going on a gluten-free diet. If possible, find a doctor who is familiar with gluten intolerance and celiac disease and can help monitor your particular situation.
Gluten intolerance is a tricky condition. Not only is it often misdiagnosed, it is also associated with a myriad of other conditions, including:
- thyroid disease,
- type 1 diabetes,
- lactose intolerance,
- arthritis,
- bowel and stomach cancer,
- eczema, and
- allergies.
Though no two people seem to have the exact same symptom profile, you can expect to see one or more of the more common symptoms:
- abdominal pain,
- diarrhea symptoms,
- no appetite,
- skin rashes (often itchy and blistery),
- anemia, and/or
- stunted growth.
If the condition isn’t addressed, eventually the classic signs of malnutrition will appear, including the large tummy, thin thigh muscles, and flat buttocks.
There are a couple of reasons the symptoms and other diseases caused by celiac disease are so varied; one is the body’s severe allergic reaction to the glutens. Second, the damage to the small intestine impedes the absorption of essential vitamins, minerals, and nutrients:
- Deficiencies in the B vitamins can lead to depression, mental problems, and the expression of neurological diseases, such as the Alzheimer’s.
- Deficiencies of essential fatty acids lead to skin disorders, cancer, etc.
- Inadequate calcium absorption results in osteoporosis, joint deterioration, muscle weakness and wasting, heart disease, etc.
The list related to various deficiencies goes on and on. In addition to deficiency problems, the damaged intestinal wall allows undigested proteins to enter the bloodstream, triggering additional allergic reactions throughout the body.
Based on the variety of related, complex symptoms, it’s easy to see why the diagnosis of celiac disease and gluten intolerance is often overlooked. That’s why a family health tree can be of such great help. Once it is determined that celiac disease could be a factor, there are very specific antibody blood tests your doctor can order. The presence of certain antibodies provides a definitive diagnosis, and the antibodies will rapidly decline once the problem is treated.
For some reason, there’s a misconception in this country that celiac disease is a rare condition. Nothing could be further from the truth. Numerous studies have shown it to be a very common yet under-diagnosed problem. In the general population, celiac disease affects one in every 130 to 300 individuals, and is associated with a 95 percent genetic predisposition.
Celiac disease is actually an allergy to certain storage proteins found in grains, called glutens. If you have celiac disease, the allergies to the glutens in wheat, rye, and barley are so severe that many tissues throughout the body can be destroyed. In addition to celiac, many people cannot properly digest gluten, leading to gluten intolerance.
Although celiac disease and gluten intolerance can result in the destruction of the mucosa of the small intestine, you may not experience outright bowel problems or intestional issues. Instead, you may exhibit symptoms such as:
- general poor health,
- fatigue,
- depression,
- weakness,
- joint pain,
- osteoporosis, and
- nighttime bone pain associated with the loss of calcium.
Since these symptoms can result from other problems, the diagnosis of celiac disease might not be made for years, if ever. And during that time you could needlessly suffer from skin problems, cancer, or dozens of other serious diseases.
I am a big fan of anything that aids common digestive problems, as well as more serious conditions like celiac disease. That’s why I am such an advocate of papain.
Papain is a digestive enzyme derived from papaya. Research has shown that taking papain supplements (500 to 1,000 mg with meals) can help digest wheat gluten. It often works so well that with supplementation many celiac disease patients can once again eat wheat products without problems (
Gut 64;5:295-303)! Papain can be a godsend to those people who have a gluten intolerance or allergy and must meticulously avoid wheat-containing products.
Finding papain in lower dosages combined with other digestive enzymes is easy to do. You will also find a large selection of papaya tablets. Locating papain by itself is more difficult. One source that sells papain by itself is
Nutriteck. It comes as a powder, which can be taken by weighed doses. If you take it in bulk form, make sure you take it with meals. Remember, this is the same stuff used to tenderize meat. It can do a job on your tender lips and mouth if it stays there long enough!
Constipation and diarrhea are significant concerns for anyone who has celiac disease, an intolerance to the protein gluten found in common grains such as wheat and barley. With baseball season approaching, I thought it would be helpful for people to know that at least one major league team is working to address those bowel problems.
The Colorado Rockies have set up a gluten-free concession stand at Coors Field. The stand will offer many of the typical ballpark foods, such as hot dogs and sodas. The difference is that the buns, cookies, chips, etc. will all be gluten-free. They even serve a gluten-free beer. (The gluten in beer comes from the barley that's often a part of the brewing process.)
No word on how prices compare to those for their gluten-laden cousins, but at least someone is paying attention.
Bloating and gas are two of the most common signs of celiac disease, but they aren't always diagnostic. Many other common digestive problems can contribute to the discomfort and embarrassment of bloating and gas.
Celiac disease is an intolerance to the protein gluten, found in grains including wheat and rye. Symptoms include bowel problems such as bloating and gas, constipation and diarrhea, abdominal pain, weight problems, joint pains, and just about anything else you can imagine.
A recent article by
Dr. Robynne Chutkan, MD pointed out that most people who think they have celiac disease don't actually have it, and those who do have the condition often don't suspect it. Even those people who feel better when they're off gluten are actually responding to the removal of junk food from their diet. (Which is a good thing to do regardless of the reason behind it.)
Many cases of bloating and gas are caused by an imbalance in the bacterial flora in the gut. I recommend probiotic digestive health supplements for relief of bloating and gas, along with many other unpleasant bowel changes. "Bad" bacteria cause putrefaction rather than digestion in your gut (not an appealing concept), and create bloating from the gas that's generated. Probiotic benefits include restoring proper bacterial balance and eliminating the bloating and gas.
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