<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
 
[log in to unmask] wrote, in response to someone that had started a
gluten-free diet before having a biopsy:
 
>Just my advice....Stay on the Gluten Free Diet! If your are a serious
>Celiac victim, the damage from Gluten will definitely not be healed
>in the time for the biopsy.
 
I don't agree.  If the damage is only slight, then going on a GF diet
even for just a few weeks may be enough to heal the damage.  In this
case, a biopsy will not prove anything; worse still, it might give the
false impression that the patient doesn't have celiac disease when
they really do.
 
>The Biopsy will certainly prove if the celia in the bowel area are
>flattened and affecting your absorption of nutrients. I would say
>that this would not be noticable unless you were Gluten Free for
>several months.
 
Again, it depends on how severe the damage is.  If the disease is
caught early enough, there may not be much damage; hence the time
required to heal might be fairly short.
 
I think it is best to continue eating gluten until the biopsy has
been done.  In fact, it might even be best to eat more gluten than
usual, to ensure that the biopsy is conclusive.  Otherwise, you may
never really know if celiac disease is the actual cause of whatever
symptoms led you to suspect it.
 
One caveat:  This is the opinion of a layperson, not a medical
professional.
 
Jim Lyles ........ <[log in to unmask]> ........ Holly, Michigan, USA