Glulten Sensitivity and Celiac Hepatitis

What follows is an excerpt from our book The Gluten Effect:

“A relatively new term, “celiac hepatitis” refers to a number of conditions wherein the liver is affected by gluten sensitivity. Celiac hepatitis does not simply mean that you have celiac disease, as any form of gluten sensitivity places one at risk for liver dysfunction. Liver changes can be mild, with abnormal blood testing and no symptoms, or the changes can be severe, with cirrhosis and liver failure. Predominantly liver dysfunction in gluten sensitivity is felt to be related to auto-immune mechanisms …, intestinal leakage with exposure to foreign proteins and infections, or antibody mimicry attacking the liver.”

“Despite sixteen percent of patients with autoimmune liver disease having gluten sensitivity, routine evaluation for this disorder is not prescribed.”

“Symptoms of celiac hepatitis can be vague at times. Fatigue may be the only symptom. Other symptoms can include lightheadedness, abdominal discomfort, joint pains, skin itchiness, nausea and vomiting. If liver dysfunction is more significant, anemia and a yellowing of the skin, called jaundice, can develop.”

“Several studies have assessed the occurrence of liver dysfunction in gluten sensitivity. Most of the time, symptoms are either mild or absent, and the most common abnormal finding is elevation of liver enzymes during routine blood testing, rather than symptoms.”

“In forty percent of people with gluten sensitivity, elevated liver enzymes are found during routine blood testing. In addition, all of these individuals respond to a gluten-free diet with normalization of liver enzymes within weeks to months. These findings have been repeatedly verified. It is therefore strongly recommended that all individuals with elevated liver enzymes be evaluated for gluten sensitivity.”

“Frustratingly, we usually find that patients who have elevated liver enzymes without severe symptoms are almost always told to just wait and see what happens at their next annual physical. The idea of waiting a year or more while gluten reactions continue to irreversibly damage the body is a practice we hope to change by increasing the medical profession’s awareness of gluten intolerance.”

I hope that this data helps you or someone you know.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Gluten Sensitivity and Thyroid Disorders

Below is an excerpt from our book, The Gluten Effect:

“If it is so well-known that gluten sensitivity is associated with autoimmune thyroid diseases, then why isn’t testing for gluten-related problems part of a thyroid medical workup? Numerous studies link the two disorders together, and, likewise, studies support that family members of individuals with autoimmune thyroid disorders should be tested for gluten sensitivity as well. This lack of awareness was one of the reasons why we chose to write this book”…

“From the data listed in this chapter’s overview, we know that about ten percent of the normal population has thyroid disorders. In a study examining fifty-two patients with gluten sensitivity, 19.2 percent were found to have clinical hypothyroidism, and another 21.2 percent were found to have subclinical hypothyroid disease. “Subclinical” means that their blood tests supported low thyroid function even though they had no complaints. This study, therefore found that forty percent of gluten patients have thyroid dysfunction”…

“In another pediatric study, 573 consecutive children were examined in a hospital setting. The gluten-sensitive children were then evaluated with thyroid antibody testing and thyroid blood testing. Out of the gluten-sensitive children, 26.2 percent had thyroid antibodies, but only two-thirds of this group had blood testing showing hypothyroidism. This means that thyroid antibodies circulate in many gluten-sensitive children long before they develop thyroid symptoms.”

…”two things are clear. First, gluten sensitivity is increased in patients with autoimmune thyroid disease, and thyroid disease is increased in patients with gluten sensitivity. Secondly, once both conditions are present, a gluten-free diet will help gluten symptoms and the risk of developing other serious diseases, but it does not eliminate thyroid dysfunction. It may be that in order to prevent thyroid disease in gluten-sensitive patients, avoiding gluten before the onset of thyroid antibodies may be the key”…

“If gluten exposure in gluten-sensitive patients triggers the development of autoimmune thyroid disease, making a diagnosis of gluten sensitivity early is very important”…

“If you have thyroid disease, or have a family member who does, you should be evaluated not only for your thyroid gland function but also for gluten sensitivity. And the sooner, the better. Delaying the diagnosis of gluten sensitivity only places your health at greater risk.”

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity is in my Family

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My Doctor Told Me Not to Worry About Getting Tested

It continues to be a source of frustration that patients who have celiac or gluten sensitivity in their family are often told by health practitioners to not “worry about” getting tested themselves. Let me be clear by stating that I in no way think such practitioners are purposefully being irresponsible.
They are uninformed and stuck in a model that says that unless the patient they’re meeting with is underweight and complaining of severe digestive complaints, it’s unlikely that they would be gluten sensitive or have celiac disease.

And THAT is the problem that prevents literally millions of Americans from regaining their health. The idea on the part of the doctor that he or she “knows” what a patient looks like who is gluten sensitive, literally keeps millions suffering and undiagnosed.

So let’s look at the various symptoms associated with gluten sensitivity:

Underweight

Overweight

Fatigue

Constipation

Diarrhea

Gas

Bloating

IBS

Crohn’s disease

Colitis

PMS

Infertility

Depression

Anxiety

Pain

Fibromyalgia

Migraines

Arthritis

Diabetes

Thyroid disease

Osteoporosis

Autism

ADD

Memory loss

Eczema

Psoriasis

Dermatitis Herpetiformis

MS

Lupus

Liver disease

Lactose intolerance

Short stature

If clinicians knew the above list to be accurate, do you think more people would be getting diagnosed? Absolutely!

So join me in increasing awareness. Our book The Gluten Effect was designed to be read by the layperson and brought to their clinician to increase that person’s awareness. That is why we included over 400 endnotes of scientific references at the back of the book.

It was written for you, your friends and family. Let’s share the truth and stop the suffering.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Draeger’s Gluten-free Extravaganza

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Drs Vikki and Rick Petersen were invited to the Draeger’s store in Danville, CA for their Gluten-free Extravaganza. There were many gluten-free food vendors enticing participants with their delicious treats and Drs Petersen were answering questions from an eager crowd regarding treatment and diagnosis of gluten sensitivity and celiac disease.

The Gluten Effect by Drs Vikki and Rick was prominently displayed and a book signing occurred as part of the event. Draeger’s is now carrying The Gluten Effect in their stores as they are very committed to educating the community about the dangers associated with undiagnosed gluten sensitivity and celiac disease.

Draeger’s is a family-owned store and truly a delight to visit. Drs Petersen had the opportunity to meet several members of the family and were very impressed with their commitment to the gluten-free needs of the community. They have a large array of gluten-free offerings.

Support this local family-owned store and encourage them to keep thinking “gluten-free”!

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Diagnosing Gluten Sensitivity: Are You or Aren’t You?

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Gluten Sensitivity: How to Diagnose

Excerpt from The Gluten Effect, Chapter 21.

As science has learned how gluten affects the body and the immune system, diagnostic testing has also rapidly evolved. Today, there are several blood tests that were not available two decades ago. Advances have mostly occurred in being able to detect specific antibodies. While these antibody tests are very important, they also have limitations of which you will need to be aware. In this chapter, we will discuss all the available tests as they pertain to gluten sensitivity and what information you are likely to receive from other clinicians. Additionally, we will demonstrate the shortcomings of these tests and some fallacies in common practice among clinicians when assessing the presence of gluten sensitivity.

Before we start, there is an important concept that must be stressed. For many decades, Celiac disease was felt to be the only health disorder related to gluten sensitivity. It was not until recently that an abundance of information revealed multiple health disorders related to gluten sensitivity that are distinct from Celiac disease. Celiac disease is defined as a type of gluten intolerance that damages the small intestine and causes villous atrophy. If you recall, small intestine villi are the small finger-like projections that help us absorb nutrients from our diet. In Celiac disease, these villi are severely damaged and shrink. This is labeled villous atrophy.

Because Celiac disease was thought to be the only gluten disorder, the definitive diagnosis of Celiac disease has been an intestinal biopsy to show villous atrophy. What we now realize is that Celiac disease represents a fraction of all gluten related disorders. Despite this, many clinicians believe a biopsy must be performed to diagnose gluten sensitivity, and if negative, they believe this effectively rules out a gluten disorder. This is absolutely not true!....

To find out more read The Gluten Effect: How “Innocent” Wheat is Ruining Your Health.

The recent good news is that Elisabeth Hasselbeck wrote a book called the G Free Diet. It should definitely increase awareness of celiac disease, an illness that she personally suffers from.

The bad news is, I’m afraid, that more people will follow down her personal trail of diagnosis and be told, incorrectly, that they’re fine because they don’t have celiac disease.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that awareness of the disease will increase. Considering 1 in 133 people suffer from celiac and only 3 to 5% of that group of millions have been diagnosed, there’s obviously a lot of work to do. But I’m an advocate not only for that group but the millions upon millions more that fall into the little known gluten sensitive group. Those that won’t have a positive intestinal biopsy but will still be suffering from a sensitivity to gluten – those at risk for not only digestive disturbances, but autoimmune disease, obesity, fatigue, skin problems and cancer.

So thank you Elisabeth, for shining a spotlight on celiac disease – many will benefit. But for the rest of you (40% of the population by estimate!) get the data on how best YOU can get diagnosed.

Let me know if I can be of any help.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”