reprint of Giardia: Gluten Allergy: Hypothyroidism

Since this happened to me starting in 1985 and 1986 when I spent 4 months in India and Nepal and a few weeks in Thailand, since many people travel around the world you might want to know more about this. I didn't get diagnosed with hypothyroid until 2006 but I almost died from constantly getting Bronchitis in the winters for about 10 years before I was diagnosed. Also, my heart virus might have happened because of having had giardia also in 1986.  I mostly survived these bouts with sudafed or coricidan to reduce congestion.

When my family and I (the 5 of us) (3 kids 10 to 14) returned to the U.S.  the foreign disease specialist (an M.D.) told us because of the children that there was no medicine to cure 4 of us with this that wouldn't seriously harm our livers. So, she said it might be better since we were in the U.S. to just let it slough off within 6 months which it did. However, I don't think many people in the U.S. knew about potential long term affects of having giardia. Because in the last decade I found out it doesn't necessarily ever entirely leave your intestines once you have it. And it's preferred food is gluten so it makes your intestines intolerant of gluten so the protazoa can eat more of it. This also can lead to hypothyroidism (10 to 20 years? maybe) which causes all sorts of problems but isn't as bad as diabetes. (You won't have feet cut off). But, it makes you depressed and not able to feel warm and susceptible to things like bronchitis. (I haven't had bronchitis since 2006 when I started taking Armour Thyroid (no side affects).

You can get giardia the following ways I know of (there may be more ways than I know about): Water not filtered through reverse osmosis in the countries you visit. feces in the dust in the air you breathe as you travel through these countries. Often food grown has been fertilized by human waste in 3rd world countries too. Here are some of the things we were told not to eat in India and that whole region: Salads, tomatoes, so don't eat any salads or things like this while traveling in 3rd world nations. Things usually okay: Oranges, potatoes that are baked. Water that is boiled at least 5 minutes or more to kill whatever was in it like Protozoa etc. eggs that are only boiled and nothing else done to them. So, you have to be careful and we were for 4 months but couldn't protect from feces in the dust at that time in Kathmandu, Nepal where many roads were not paved much in 1985 and 1986.

So, most of my health issues now I can trace in some way shape, or form to getting giardia in 1985 and 1986.

So, if you get hypothyroidism from giardia eventually you know it's time to give up all Gluten because if you don't the next step is an autoimmune disease for many people.

So, if you are a world traveler when you are young and have ever had giardia (with or without symptoms) you may be heading for hypothyroidism at some point in your life. And if and when you are diagnosed it might be time to give up gluten so you don't get an auto-immune disease too.

Monday, May 20, 2013

Giardia: Gluten Allergy: Hypothyroidism

This appears to be a dynamic that many people get into who have had giardia all over the world because 50% of the time there are no symptoms at all with Giardia including people who get it but don't know it here in the U.S. from Bad water sources like wells that aren't regularly tested for this. I got Giardia in India and Nepal and knew it at the time because I had serious symptoms then in 1986. Some of the symptoms when you have them are: diarrhea, severe stomach cramps that will double you over and the inability to control your bowels. In other words you cannot choose when you let loose it is too powerful for that.

However, if you have symptoms over time you will have extreme weight loss as the Giardia protozoa eat more and more of your food before your body can process it in your intestines. People don't usually die from Giardia but I suppose it might be possible for children or adults who were so poor they couldn't afford food. In my case after a couple of months of this in India and Nepal I looked incredibly thin as did 4 of the 5 members of my family at that time. But when I got back to the U.S. with my family in April 1986 after being there since December my family and I went to see a foreign disease specialist who told us (likely because there were 2 children 10 and 12 with these symptoms too) to just let it slough off on it's own because medicines for it would ruin our livers to take them regularly.

However, for people in the U.S. often there are no symptoms when you get giardia from a bad water source that has been contaminated in some way by giardia protozoa. Then likely most of the time you will have no symptoms at all.

Then the Giardia protozoa since they like Gluten sugars the best to eat harm the sides of your intestines so you cannot process Gluten sugar as well. This creates (likely even if you were not allergic to gluten before) a gluten allergy caused directly by the giardia protozoa. The next step once you have a gluten allergy is that your immune system might attack your thyroid glands which will make you hypothyroid which means your thyroid glands don't produce enough thyroid to keep your hormones in balance. Though being hypothyroid is not as bad as being diabetic it is still pretty bad. Some of the symptoms in my 40s and early 50s until I was diagnosed as hypothyroid in 2006 were getting bronchitis about 5 times a year and worrying about dying from complications like pneumonia as a result each time. Also, I always felt cold and had trouble getting warm. Also, it results in confusion a lot of the time because your hormones are out of balance and sometimes this combines with low blood sugar (in my case) and feeling faint or confused from this as well. However, all these problems went away in 2006 for me. However, when I came back from Hawaii last October I began to have heart problems and had to begin taking lisinopril for that. But when I had blood tests I found I was allergic to Gluten just like my 24 year old daughter. It was kind of helpful to be around her recently to learn more about where to go to get stuff to eat like Whole Foods markets and health food stores and I noticed that Subways in the Portland area carry Gluten Free Buns for sandwiches too. Also, you can get a salad there with Chicken or Turkey or whatever you want in it along with whatever else you want as a salad only without the bread.

Another thing I'm suspecting is that some people who get Giardia and never entirely get rid of it like likely happened to both my daughter and I (Me from India and Nepal in 1985-6) and her since she wasn't born yet then in Belize and Guatemala when she visited there when she was around 20 or so.

Some people also might be susceptible because of all this of also getting Diabetes in the process of Giardia, Gluten allergy and hypothyroidism as well. However, diabetes does not genetically run in my family at all. But low Blood sugar (Hypoglycemia) does which is the opposite of diabetes. However, since I started taking Armour thyroid for my hypothyroidism I no longer have low blood sugar episodes as long as I eat regularly. One way to avoid low blood sugar problems is to eat some protein like eggs or a protein drink of some sort when you first start in the morning. This keeps you from starting down a low blood sugar cascade which can in some people cause fainting, not being safe driving a car, being sort of confused or light headed or other symptoms like that. So, a good source of protein in the morning can make the difference between having a good day and a bad one.

So, even if you never knew you had been exposed to Giardia there is a 50% chance of having no symptoms at all and if so you might already be going down the road I am mentioning above. So, get enough tests if you suspect potential problems so you don't have to suffer for years undiagnosed and get a heart virus at age 50 and almost die and have to retire in order to stay alive like I did.

Also, most people who got heart viruses the year I got it died. I was the only one I knew of  that survived a heart virus that year in California in 1999 .

So, like with any health problem at any age and especially above age 40, unless you are vigilant about it (don't expect doctors to do everything for you) you could die if you don't get your problems diagnosed properly and treated in time to keep you alive and healthy. I sort of see my still being alive at 65 as a complete miracle every day. So I can be here to help my wife and children and friends stay alive and have good lives too. The more of us that share our experience and knowledge the more of us will live and able to be helpful to people to 100 and beyond with all our faculties intact.