Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSimilarity to CeliacWhat It IsDigestive SymptomsNeurological ProblemsOther SymptomsNew Area of Research
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Similarity to Celiac
What It Is
Digestive Symptoms
Neurological Problems
Other Symptoms
New Area of Research
Non-celiacgluten sensitivitycan affect nearly every system in your body. According to researchers, symptoms can include:
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If you think those symptoms sound a lot likesymptoms of celiac disease, you’re absolutely right. It’s impossible to distinguish between gluten sensitivity andceliac diseasewith symptoms alone—thetwo conditionspresent with near-identical symptoms.
Even more confusing, celiac disease andnon-celiac gluten sensitivityare not the only types of “gluten allergies” it’s possible to have. There are, in fact,five different types of “gluten allergy"and a wide variety ofsigns indicating you may have a gluten problem.
In fact, it’s quite possible that the culprit in “gluten sensitivity” isn’t even gluten at all. Some scientists speculate that people with non-celiac gluten sensitivity actually are reacting to another compound in wheat, such as:
Research into all of this is ongoing, and doctors should have a much better idea of what’s going on within the next few years.
What Is Gluten Sensitivity?
Back to non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Since research into this condition is relatively new, not all physicians have accepted it as a “real” condition. Consequently, not all will give you adiagnosis of gluten sensitivity.
Those practitioners who will diagnose the condition will conduct testing to rule out celiac disease and a wheat allergy.
It’s less clear what exactly causes gluten sensitivity. Because it may be a non-gluten component of wheat and the other gluten grains, “non-celiac wheat sensitivity” may be a better name for it. For now, though, most medical researchers refer to the condition as “non-celiac gluten sensitivity.”
To get a better picture of the most common symptoms found in gluten sensitivity, Verywell Health spoke with three physician researchers who have spent a great deal of time studying the condition:
Digestive gluten sensitivity symptoms are very common, according to doctors who have researched it and treat patients with the condition.
Dr. Fasano heads the Massachusetts General Center for Celiac Research and published the first paper describing the molecular basis for gluten sensitivity.
He says gluten-sensitive people frequently have “IBS-like” symptoms, including diarrhea and “stomach ache."(Of course, there’s considerable overlap betweenirritable bowel syndrome and celiac diseasesymptoms, too.)
Dr. Fine, who foundedEnterolab and its gluten sensitivity testing program, says most people he’s diagnosed with gluten sensitivity have “some GI symptoms—anything from heartburn to constipation. Diarrhea is classic, also bloating is classic, [and] passing gas is pretty common.”
One 2019 review article of 66 studies noted that abdominal discomfort and pain, bloating, diarrhea, and flatulence are among the most commonly reported digestive symptoms of NCGS.
Just like celiac disease, gluten sensitivity can cause fatigue,brain fog, and other cognitive problems, including gluten-related attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Dr. Fasano and Dr. Fine claim.
Dr. Fasano says he sees headaches (includinggluten-induced migraines) and brain fog in about one-third of the people he has diagnosed with non-celiac gluten sensitivity—far more than in celiac disease.
People diagnosed with gluten sensitivity also report feelings ofgluten-induced depressionand anxiety (which also are linked to celiac). One study has noted that the most common nondigestive symptoms of NCGS are tiredness, headache, and anxiety.
Dr. Rodney Ford, a Christchurch, New Zealand-based pediatrician and author ofThe Gluten Syndrome, was the first to hypothesize that gluten sensitivity is primarily aneurological condition.
“It’s very clear that with gluten, one of its main target organs is neural tissue,” Dr. Ford told me.
Other symptoms of gluten sensitivity impact the skin, endocrine system, and joints.
Skin Symptoms
Dermatitis herpetiformis(DH) is the skin condition most commonly associated with celiac disease.
However, people with gluten sensitivity frequently exhibit various rashes and other skin conditions that clear up when they go gluten-free, according to the researchers' experience.Dr. Fasano says he’s seen many skin rashes in people with non-celiac gluten sensitivity.
“It’s not DH—it’s more eczema-like,” he explains. In fact, there is some evidence thateating gluten-free may help with eczema, even in people who don’t necessarily have celiac disease.
Dr. Ford and Dr. Fine agree that your skin can suffer if you’re gluten-sensitive, with rashes and other skin symptoms. The symptoms disappear when the person follows agluten-free dietand reappear in the case of aglutening.
Endocrine Symptoms
Like celiac disease, gluten sensitivity may cause symptoms that involve your endocrine (hormone) system, such asinfertilityandthyroid disease, Dr. Fine says. He also sees gluten-caused asthma in some people with gluten sensitivity.
Joint Pain
In addition, Dr. Fine, Dr. Fasano, and Dr. Ford all note that many people experience anemia, joint pain, and tingling/numbness in their extremities from gluten ingestion. These are also common celiac disease symptoms.
Of course, recognition of gluten sensitivity as a possible separate condition from celiac disease and irritable bowel syndrome is quite new, and there’s no major research to link any of the above-mentioned symptoms conclusively to gluten sensitivity.
Many physicians discount reports of non-celiac gluten sensitivity and will tell their patients that they don’t have a problem with gluten if they test negative for celiac disease.
There’s also no explanation of why the symptoms of gluten sensitivity and celiac disease mirror each other so precisely.
However, Dr. Ford has a theory: He believes the symptoms are identical because gluten causes themdirectlyin both groups of people, and that intestinal damage doesn’t play a significant role in causing symptoms.
In other words, even though celiacs getvillous atrophyand the gluten-sensitive do not, he believes both groups get direct symptoms from gluten that are unrelated to intestinal damage.
Dr. Ford said even though villous atrophy is a diagnostic test for celiac, it has little to do with symptoms.
Dr. Rodney Ford
A Word From Verywell
None of this information about non-celiac gluten sensitivity symptoms has been proven in clinical studies as of yet; at the moment, it just represents the opinions of physicians who are researching the topic.
However, as research continues, we will hopefully learn more about these symptoms and who might be most susceptible to them.
11 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sapone A, Bai JC, Ciacci C, et al.Spectrum of gluten-related disorders: consensus on new nomenclature and classification.BMC Med. 2012;10:13Fasano A et al.Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.BMC Medicine2011, 9:23. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-9-23Ludvigsson JF, Leffler DA, Bai JC, et al.The Oslo definitions for coeliac disease and related terms.Gut. 2013;62(1):43-52. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2011-301346Skodje GI, Sarna VK, Minelle IH, et al.Fructan, rather than gluten, induces symptoms in patients with self-reported non-celiac gluten sensitivity.Gastroenterology. 2018;154(3):529-539.e2. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2017.10.040.Roszkowska A, Pawlicka M, Mroczek A, Bałabuszek K, Nieradko-Iwanicka B.Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: A Review.Medicina(Kaunas). 2019 May 28;55(6):222. doi:10.3390/medicina55060222Elli L, Tomba C, Branchi F, et al.Evidence for the presence of non-celiac gluten sensitivity in patients with functional gastrointestinal symptoms: Results from a multicenter randomized double-blind placebo-controlled gluten challenge.Nutrients. 2016;8(2):84. doi:10.3390/nu8020084Catassi C, Alaedini A, Bojarski C, et al.The overlapping area of non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and wheat-sensitive irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): An update.Nutrients. 2017;9(11). doi:10.3390/nu9111268NIDDK.Dermatitis herpetiformis (for health care professionals).Nosrati A, Afifi L, Danesh MJ, et al.Dietary modifications in atopic dermatitis: patient-reported outcomes.J Dermatolog Treat. 2017;28(6):523–538. doi:10.1080/09546634.2016.1278071NIDDK.Symptoms & causes of celiac disease.Biesiekierski JR, Newnham ED, Irving PM, et al.Gluten causes gastrointestinal symptoms in subjects without celiac disease: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(3):508-14Additional ReadingUhde M et al.Intestinal cell damage and systemic immune activation in individuals reporting sensitivity to wheat in the absence of coeliac disease.Gut. 2016. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2016-311964
11 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sapone A, Bai JC, Ciacci C, et al.Spectrum of gluten-related disorders: consensus on new nomenclature and classification.BMC Med. 2012;10:13Fasano A et al.Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.BMC Medicine2011, 9:23. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-9-23Ludvigsson JF, Leffler DA, Bai JC, et al.The Oslo definitions for coeliac disease and related terms.Gut. 2013;62(1):43-52. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2011-301346Skodje GI, Sarna VK, Minelle IH, et al.Fructan, rather than gluten, induces symptoms in patients with self-reported non-celiac gluten sensitivity.Gastroenterology. 2018;154(3):529-539.e2. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2017.10.040.Roszkowska A, Pawlicka M, Mroczek A, Bałabuszek K, Nieradko-Iwanicka B.Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: A Review.Medicina(Kaunas). 2019 May 28;55(6):222. doi:10.3390/medicina55060222Elli L, Tomba C, Branchi F, et al.Evidence for the presence of non-celiac gluten sensitivity in patients with functional gastrointestinal symptoms: Results from a multicenter randomized double-blind placebo-controlled gluten challenge.Nutrients. 2016;8(2):84. doi:10.3390/nu8020084Catassi C, Alaedini A, Bojarski C, et al.The overlapping area of non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and wheat-sensitive irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): An update.Nutrients. 2017;9(11). doi:10.3390/nu9111268NIDDK.Dermatitis herpetiformis (for health care professionals).Nosrati A, Afifi L, Danesh MJ, et al.Dietary modifications in atopic dermatitis: patient-reported outcomes.J Dermatolog Treat. 2017;28(6):523–538. doi:10.1080/09546634.2016.1278071NIDDK.Symptoms & causes of celiac disease.Biesiekierski JR, Newnham ED, Irving PM, et al.Gluten causes gastrointestinal symptoms in subjects without celiac disease: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(3):508-14Additional ReadingUhde M et al.Intestinal cell damage and systemic immune activation in individuals reporting sensitivity to wheat in the absence of coeliac disease.Gut. 2016. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2016-311964
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Sapone A, Bai JC, Ciacci C, et al.Spectrum of gluten-related disorders: consensus on new nomenclature and classification.BMC Med. 2012;10:13Fasano A et al.Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.BMC Medicine2011, 9:23. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-9-23Ludvigsson JF, Leffler DA, Bai JC, et al.The Oslo definitions for coeliac disease and related terms.Gut. 2013;62(1):43-52. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2011-301346Skodje GI, Sarna VK, Minelle IH, et al.Fructan, rather than gluten, induces symptoms in patients with self-reported non-celiac gluten sensitivity.Gastroenterology. 2018;154(3):529-539.e2. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2017.10.040.Roszkowska A, Pawlicka M, Mroczek A, Bałabuszek K, Nieradko-Iwanicka B.Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: A Review.Medicina(Kaunas). 2019 May 28;55(6):222. doi:10.3390/medicina55060222Elli L, Tomba C, Branchi F, et al.Evidence for the presence of non-celiac gluten sensitivity in patients with functional gastrointestinal symptoms: Results from a multicenter randomized double-blind placebo-controlled gluten challenge.Nutrients. 2016;8(2):84. doi:10.3390/nu8020084Catassi C, Alaedini A, Bojarski C, et al.The overlapping area of non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and wheat-sensitive irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): An update.Nutrients. 2017;9(11). doi:10.3390/nu9111268NIDDK.Dermatitis herpetiformis (for health care professionals).Nosrati A, Afifi L, Danesh MJ, et al.Dietary modifications in atopic dermatitis: patient-reported outcomes.J Dermatolog Treat. 2017;28(6):523–538. doi:10.1080/09546634.2016.1278071NIDDK.Symptoms & causes of celiac disease.Biesiekierski JR, Newnham ED, Irving PM, et al.Gluten causes gastrointestinal symptoms in subjects without celiac disease: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(3):508-14
Sapone A, Bai JC, Ciacci C, et al.Spectrum of gluten-related disorders: consensus on new nomenclature and classification.BMC Med. 2012;10:13
Fasano A et al.Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.BMC Medicine2011, 9:23. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-9-23
Ludvigsson JF, Leffler DA, Bai JC, et al.The Oslo definitions for coeliac disease and related terms.Gut. 2013;62(1):43-52. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2011-301346
Skodje GI, Sarna VK, Minelle IH, et al.Fructan, rather than gluten, induces symptoms in patients with self-reported non-celiac gluten sensitivity.Gastroenterology. 2018;154(3):529-539.e2. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2017.10.040.
Roszkowska A, Pawlicka M, Mroczek A, Bałabuszek K, Nieradko-Iwanicka B.Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: A Review.Medicina(Kaunas). 2019 May 28;55(6):222. doi:10.3390/medicina55060222
Elli L, Tomba C, Branchi F, et al.Evidence for the presence of non-celiac gluten sensitivity in patients with functional gastrointestinal symptoms: Results from a multicenter randomized double-blind placebo-controlled gluten challenge.Nutrients. 2016;8(2):84. doi:10.3390/nu8020084
Catassi C, Alaedini A, Bojarski C, et al.The overlapping area of non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and wheat-sensitive irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): An update.Nutrients. 2017;9(11). doi:10.3390/nu9111268
NIDDK.Dermatitis herpetiformis (for health care professionals).
Nosrati A, Afifi L, Danesh MJ, et al.Dietary modifications in atopic dermatitis: patient-reported outcomes.J Dermatolog Treat. 2017;28(6):523–538. doi:10.1080/09546634.2016.1278071
NIDDK.Symptoms & causes of celiac disease.
Biesiekierski JR, Newnham ED, Irving PM, et al.Gluten causes gastrointestinal symptoms in subjects without celiac disease: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(3):508-14
Uhde M et al.Intestinal cell damage and systemic immune activation in individuals reporting sensitivity to wheat in the absence of coeliac disease.Gut. 2016. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2016-311964
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