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

Hi Everyone,
Thank you for all the great reponses that I received.
Here they are:

**********
I shudder when I hear about diagnosis being made by a single clinical sign
that can be the result of any number of causes. And then adding nutrient
supplements. Zinc deficiencies can occur from low levels of zinc in the
diet or because they are not absorbed due to diet ingredients - some fibers
and minerals can bind zinc, making it unavailable for absorption. Or, it
can be an intestinal thing - they aren't absorbing. So, simply adding it to
your diet may just be making the cause - if that is what it is. There is
such a thing as zinc toxicity - so caution, as always with vitamin and
mineral supplements (herbals too).

Itching - well, my itching is from foods. Corn is great to cause total body
itching. Just recently I have begun to suspect foods that are heated in
plastic containers - or stored hot in plastic 'Servin' Savers' and the
like. I met a woman over the weekend that must eat organic meats - it is
the growth hormones and/or antibiotics that the animals receive - not the
diet of the animals. And organic cow eats the same as a conventionally
raised cow. I also have problems with all kinds of seeds - from sesame,
flax, fennel to mustard seed.

I have been at this for a year now - and it seems there is always something
new causing some type of problem.
**********
The gluten can not come thru the cow in the form of grain, or any other
animal for the matter.

I had the spots on my fingers and my doctor gave me a multi vitamin to take.
It took a while to get rid of the spots but I have continued the vitamins and
they have never come back.
**********
Your "itchiness" is more than likely caused from a "leakt gut" in which
you have become allergic to other foods. When I was diagnosed with
gluten enteropathy, I was also found to have "leaky gut syndrome",
anemia, etc., and I itched all over. Then an ELISA test for allergies
revealed many food allergies. Then I eliminated these from my diet (yes
it was difficult), and also increased to maximum dose the acididophilus,
started taking L'Glutamine and my itchiness stopped. Now I have beeen
able to add some of these foods back with no problem.
Too much zinc is not good and can be harmful. You are safe at keeping
the zinc at 50 mg, and if you were ill you could for a week only take
100 mgs, but you wouldn't want to do that for longer than a week. Too
much zinc can depress your immune system. I am not a member of the
medical profession, but I have "been there and done that". I just do
not want my suggestions to be contrued as medical advice. Good luck.
**********
It may be that you just damaged that fingernail quite sometime ago. White
spots (or flecks) on the fingernail could be indicative of a vitamin/mineral
deficiency, but are more likely due to damage to the base of the fingernail.
It takes quite a while for this damage to show up because nail growth is
slow.

White spots/flecks could be from an injury weeks or months prior. But, your
fingernails are good indicators of your all-over general health so keep an eye
on them. (I am a part-time Cosmetologist and we learned all this in school).
I may be wrong, but it seems if there were some sort of deficiency it would be
present in all your fingernails and not just one or two..

And, a good source of zinc (that I've discovered) is by supplement in the
form of Zinc Lozenges with Echinacea (great during cold/flu season).
**********
I don't know the answer to your questions, but the Ann Gittleman books
address alot of these points. I am presently reading her book, Your Body
Knows Best. It is so very interesting and I think you should look into it. I
believe she says something like zinc deficiency correlates to copper
toxicity---but again, I am not clear on that. I have alot of faith in Ann
Gittleman. You know, the secret is in treating the WHOLE body and not just
one thing. If you treat one deficiency often another one develops. This book
adequately designs food selections based on gluten sensitivity, metabolism,
family origin, and blood type. She stresses the fact that no one diet is
right for everyone and therefore no one vitamin-mineral program is correct
for everyone. Her suggestions in this book make a great deal of sense to me.
After I finish reading her book I am going to read it again and make notes
on implementing her diet ideas for myself.
**********
Have you thought to have your thyroid checked. My Mom (who is not celiac)
had the same symptoms and since taking thyroid medication the itchiness has
gone away.
**********
Your question makes me ask if you have any allergies. I have several
food allergies, in addition to CD and just recently discovered some
foods that were the cause of my itching (probably peanuts in my case).
I also have the white flecks. My non-educated guess would be that if
you have mineral deficiencies, it takes awhile to get them back to
normal. I was vegetarian before I found out about CD, and in my case,
this probably worsened by deficiencies.

I would suggest that you get help before supplementing with just zinc.
The minerals work together and I really messed up my balance trying
to correct what I saw a flagrant deficiencies on my own. I didn't
know about CD yet, but I still think I probably made things worse by
taking individual supplements.

Now that I look closely, though, the white flecks are gone. I've been
gf and lactose free for 4 months. I've also been working with a
nutritionist to help get the other nutrients back to normal.
**********
Susan -You may be reacting to the grains that animals are feed -
particularly poultry and pork - which is often corn and wheat.
The offending proteins can get into the blood stream and linger for as
long as three months.

Its has been reported that traces of what an animal eats can be seen as
much as 3 months later.

Suggest that you try locally grown beef (since beef are not feed that
much grain because it is expensive and they eat a lot) and seafood,
caught not farmed, as your protein source.

Also look for hidden sources of gluten - like the drip used on store
bought "fresh fruits and vegetables" to increase shelf life - or grain
byproducts like Dextrose, corn starch, Dryer softening sheets, etc.
Keep eliminating possible sources and eventually the itching (called
subcutaneous hives) will diminish.

My sister and I have had the same sorts of problems you are having. once
we eliminated the sources the problem stopped.
**********
Get yourself tested for the amount of zinc in your blood to confirm or
disprove the deficiency.  Zinc is an essential trace nutrient.  You get a zinc
deficiency by not eating enough of it, gf or not.  Other things also cause
flecks on fingernails; like poisoning.  I suggest you go to the library and
look up nutrition books for good guidance on food sources and deficiency
symptoms (I think the itchiness is a symptom of it but am not sure.).
**********
You don't mention how long you have been GF--if you are in the early
months, you probably have more healing to do. You may not be absorbing
zinc well, even if your diet seems adequate. In my experience,
absorbtion in general improves over time. For me, the itch backed off
within a few days of starting the diet, though I still have one patch on
my back that does not go away completely. I have been GF 3 years. This
spot itched years before diagnosis, and so I suspect it will take years
to go away. It is more intense with mistakes and is a good indicater
when I am getting traces of gluten my stomach does not react to. I did
not take Dapsone because of the potential side effects, but some people
find it calms the itch and is worth taking.
**********

Thank you all for the response. I have learned alot and appreciate it very
much!

All the best,
Susan