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

I have been diagnosed as a celiac for about 7 years now.  About a year
before that diagnosis I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism.  Since these
diagnosis I have been on a strict gluten-free diet and likewise taking
.175mg Synthroid daily.  Your question in regards to Synthroid being
gluten-free is going to boil down to where you buy the drug.  Stokes
Pharmacy has told me in the past that Synthroid that is made by Knoll Labs
is gluten-free.  Kmart pharmacy in Chicago regularly stocks that brand.
If you cannot get that brand then you need to go to a compounding pharmacy
(Stokes) and they will make it for you.

And as for any vitamins that you get from GNC, I wouldn't trust any store
that comes on with marketing and presentation that is directed towards
bodybuilders.  Those people (bodybuilders) do that by choice, you need to
be gluten-free by necessity or by doctor's orders.  I had been taking
Nature Valley "Essential Balance" up until they changed the formula(no
longer gf).  I am now using Theragran-M and I verified that they are
gluten-free with the manufacturer(Bristol-Myers) as of 2 or 3 weeks ago.
Don't always rely on a label.  Many ingredients are gluten-free but that
depends on the source itself(i.e. corn, soy, wheat or whatever).  You
always should contact the manufacturer with questions like that.

And now for  "celiac and thyroid disease".

1. Is it typical to test, wait three months, and then test again?  That
decision should be left up to your doctor.  When my  doctor discovered the
problem by a regular physical checkup, he began thyroid (Synthroid)
treatments immediately.  He worked until celiac disease started to take
its hold on me.  When celiac set in and he couldn't find out what was
wrong with me, he put me in a holding pattern at .2mg synthroid daily,
sent me to the gastroenterologist and then continued with the Synthroid
treatments after the celiac diagnosis was made.  Synthroid testing
continued monthly until he was satisfied with the level that he had me at
and then it continues at intervals of every 6 months for a checkup.

2. In regards to your question of retesting?  I never had to experience it
the way you question it.  My doctor went right to it and stuck with it
even when ceilac disease set in.

3. When did my thyroid problem show up?  Hypothyroidism showed up about a
year before the celiac disease diagnosis was made.

4. What symptoms of thyroid dysfunction did I have?  Very low thyroid or
hypothyroid as is the case that I describe.  My thyroid hormone was low
enough that I couldn't ride a stationary bicycle any more thatn 10
minutes.  Now I could do it for 30 minutes or more.

5. What sort of effect do thyroid problems have on my everyday life?  Its
like night and day.  Before I would feel ridiculously tired at the end of
the day.  Now I can ride that stationary bicycle for 30 minutes or more.

Now did I help both of you in some way or another?

Regards,

Joe from Chicago, Il.