Vitamin D and Gluten Intolerance

Dr. Vikki Petersen is one of my favorite authorities on Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Disease.  Her book, The Gluten Effect, was one of the first books I read after being diagnosed with Gluten Intolerance.  The book was very eye opening for me at the time and I still refer to it from time to time when I have questions.

Today, I would like to share some special information from her article on  Vitamin D and Gluten Intolerance.

Gluten Intolerance & Vitamin D Deficiency

Why Does Deficiency Continue on a Gluten Free Diet?

Removal of gluten should, ideally, result in the healing of the villi and normalization of absorption. When that doesn’t occur then we know that something else is compromising healing. I wish I could say that this was an unusual scenario, but it isn’t.  In fact it is more the norm. Eliminating gluten, while a critical first step, is typically insufficient to restore normal function to the small intestine and thereby the total health of the body.

Why? Frequently an individual has an intestinal infection, poor balance of good bacteria, or some other inflammatory factor that is preventing healing. That cause must be identified and treated quickly.

If you are like me, you probably assumed that eliminating gluten from your diet would heal the absorption problems in your body.  According to Dr. Petersen, this is not the case.  Eliminating gluten is just the start — much more needs to be done to restore optimum  health.

Dr. Petersen goes on to recommend taking Vitamin D3 in liquid form:

Another possibility is that the vitamin D being taken is not the best quality. I recommend vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) for my patients in a liquid form. The base is olive oil so that’s what it tastes like.

Since I live in the north part of the county (Idaho), I do best with 10,000 IUs of Vitamin D2 in the winter time.  Once I am able to go outside in the sun for at least 20 minutes per day, I will reduce that to 5,000 IUs.  I find that I feel better and am better able to cope with the short days, snow and ‘cabin fever’ that many of us northerners deal with!

For more info, check out Dr. Petersen’s Video on Gluten Intolerance and Vitamin D3

Personally, dealing with the damage in my body from gluten has become a lifelong quest for answers and research.  Thankfully, eliminating gluten from my diet, helped me considerably, but I find that it did not completely restore my health.  I continue to deal with mild Ataxia and it’s many side effects.  On the other hand, if I were still eating gluten, I would probably be in a nursing home — not knowing my name or those of my loved ones!

How about you?  What special issues are you dealing with due to ‘gluten poisoning’?