DAVID POHLE <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>My "smart" gastroenterologist told me that I could not
>have gluten intolerance because I was gaining weight

Not all people with gluten intolerance lose weight. One gastroenterologist
in Iowa has now diagnosed three that weighed more that 400 pounds at
diagnosis. They were greatly overeating to compensate for the nutrient
malnutrition.

>and tests showed that my nutrient intake was fine.

What tests?

> He
>said that gluten intolerance causes the microvilli of the
>small intestine to flatten out and decrease in surface
>area, thus reducing absorptive capacity of nutrients
>(i.e., makes you lose weight).

See above.

>Questions:  What is celiac?  What is celiac sprue?

They are synonyms for gluten intolerance.

>What is gluten?  As far as I know it is a protein found in
>wheat.  But is it found in other grains?

Yes. It is found in: wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, faro, triticale,
kamut and bulgur. Plus it is pervasive in processed foods, frequently just
called natural flavors or flavorings on the label.

> What do you
>have to avoid to avoid gluten?  All grains?  Certain
>types of grains?

Just the ones listed above. All others are okay.

> How do you know if gluten is a
>problem?

There are serum screening tests with less than 100% accuracy. A biopsy of
the villi can be undertaken, but that may not pick up damage that only
presents with something like increased epithelial lymphocyte count. And
then there is a trial diet. But a trial diet must be strict. And if it
works, you can't be formally tested without going back to eating gluten. I
don't have a formal test and I don't care.

> Maybe gluten consumption has, in fact,
>slowly caused my brush border to lose
>lactase-producing sites to the extent that a threshold
>was reached where my body could no longer handle
>bombardment with milk products.

It is possible.

>Regarding Asian food:
>
>One of the reasons that I had trouble figuring out the
>cause of my problem was that I would get diarrhea
>after eating Chinese food

Beside the MSG, almost all soy sauce has wheat in it.

Don.