<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Hi Listmates Sorry this took awhile -we switched to the AT&T U-verse and it caused some connecting problems. >Forgive my being a bit crude (I know you will understand) but a good friend >has just been hospitalized for rectal bleeding. He has many symptoms of >full >blown Celiac -stomach problems for years, brain fog, overweight and >malnourishied, joint pain. Has anyone had an episode like his and then been >diagnosed? 1 The symptoms you described could be related to CD, gluten intolerance, and/or and IgG-mediated allergic reaction to any food. You might want to check out www.bettercontrolofhealth.com as they can provide you a lot of information in this subject. 2 After reading this, I could only wonder at the fact that I had dealt with those symptoms, and more, for a good part of my life. I wasn't diagnosed until my mid 40's. But since I've gone on the diet (even with just the gluten being gone), those symptoms have started to disapear. I've taken a few more things out of my diet since, and found that my other disfunctions are much more manageable. 3 Brain fog could also be bacterial overgrowth, or it can be in conjunction with celiac disease. I am a celiac with bacterial overgrowth. I've had brain fog, weight gain (even when consuming few calories), constipation, malnourishment, and joint pain just to list a few of the many, many symptoms I've had. So, if he gets checked for celiac disease, and it is found that he doesn't have it, he should get a hydrogen breath test to check for bacterial overgrowth. But the two often go hand-in-hand. 4 Yes, I did/ I was. Ultimately, the rectal bleeding was found to be from taking a steady dose of anti-acids such as Zantac, and Nsaids for pain. However, I was diagnosed with celiac disease shortly after. (Not before I was mis-diagnosed with terminal cancer for 6 months). 5 Only if the patient verbally abuses and threatens the doctor to test for CD. Ten years ago when I was diagnosed I had to threaten a lawsuit. Hopefully times have changed! (Unless your friend is at one of the CD centers?) I had 2 other FYI messages and thanks to all who wrote back. Sometimes this list seems like family. Dennis *Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List* Archives are at: Http://Listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?LIST=CELIAC