<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Thank you, each and every one, who have responded about help for my
friend.  She has a very serious case of ulcerative colitis and I asked if
you thought a gluten-free diet may help.  I have given her all the posts
you sent and she has thanked me for them; however, she is totaly relying on
getting all "fixed" at the Cleveland Digestive Disease Center.  Her
appointment is next week. She thinks that they will test her for celiac
disease there.  Does anyone have any experience with this center?  Does
this center in Cleveland, Ohio, routinely test for celiac disease?  If she
asks them to do this, will they?  She is in horrible shape now.  She was
put on a huge dose of prednisone and has swelled up like a balloon.  She is
now having excrutiating pains in her joints.  She can
 hardly walk.  I
visited her yesterday and she was eating a sandwich with the WHEAT bread,
of course.  Her siser-in-law who is a doctor is advising her.  One of you
sent information on what blood tests to ask for and I am arming her with
that before she leaves.  It's breaking my heart to see her regress like
this.  She is only 45.  Many of you said that you had her same symptoms and
eventually learned that you have celiac disease.  She has a copy of your
posts, too.

I will summarize the last posts AND the ones you send for this query.

Ginger

* Please remember some posters may be WHEAT-FREE, but not GLUTEN-FREE *