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

Greetings to All!

There was a great deal of reponse to this topic, and, as usual, a lot of good information was passed along.  Out of the 28 responses I received, 18 stated that they had been diagnosed with both CD and FMS.  Others stated that they were Celiac and had symptoms of FMS, but no official diagnosis.

There is no way to determine how common it is to have both CD and FMS from this short survey.  But the two do exist together, and, in my opinion, if you were diagnosed with FMS it would be wise to be screened for CD also.  From your responses, the gluten-free diet can be beneficial in relieving the pain associated with FMS.

Sixteen people responded to how a gluten-free diet affected their FMS symptoms:
        8 - almost all of the symptoms were gone
        3 - some of the symptoms were gone
        4 - none of the symptoms were improved
        1 - unsure

Several people stated that they would have FMS flare-ups with the ingestion of gluten.

The following are excerpts from some of your responses that I thought you might find helpful.

"I spent a good deal of time on one FMS group telling people to get tested for celiac, and a good many have turned up with it.  Also, for further proof, let me point out that the Endomysial
antibodies test is merely to find out if you are attacking your own muscles.  90%
of celiacs turn up positive on this test.  I think if you are attacking our own muscles, you are going to be achy."

"As for if fibromyalgia and CD tend to go together, I personally believe that it is more of a coincidence--CD is an autoimmune disease, as you pointed out, and going untreated can leave the body open to more problems."

 "I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 12 years ago. And diagnosed with Celiac Disease just 31/2 years ago. I can say that for me, going GF has dramatically diminished my FM symptoms and I can maintain a high quality of life by strictly staying on the GF diet. My FM is still with me, but the three big symptoms (fatigue, pain and cognitive dysfunctions) are under greater control then without the diet. I still can flare up and have FM problems, but the flares are much more manageable."


"I do have FM and CD and it is common to have both.  Most people have pain with CD, but not always FM.  Cleaning up the diet and lifestyle, not only the gluten, but also sugars, processed foods, lots of water and fiber, and getting stress under control helps with both pain and FM.  The pain of CD usually goes away when on a GF diet and can return if accidental ingestion occurs.  The pain of FM can be triggered by cold, damp weather, stress (both physical and emotional), food allergies, etc."

Here are some links people sent in that address CD and FMS:

http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/showthread.php?p=36238#post36238
http://www.celiac.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=120&p_catid=7
http://www.celiac.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_main.html?p_catid=29

One listserver member is compiling a summary of her findings on this topic and will share it with all later on.  Hope this summary is helpful, and thanks again for your responses.

Susan

*Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*