You may not know that you have a gluten intolerance, but you should be very suspicious if you have elevated liver enzymes.

Gluten intolerance, largely a genetic disorder, can cause many health problems. People suffering from bloating, constipation and / or diarrhea, fatigue, weight gain, bone or joint pain, tooth enamel defects, depression, infertility, anemia, alopecia areata (hair loss), migraines, multiple sclerosis (MS) , psoriasis, rheumatoid. arthritis, or any of the dozens of other symptoms you should suspect that your illness is related to gluten intolerance.

Elevated liver enzymes can indicate inflammation or damage to liver cells. Inflamed or injured liver cells leak higher than normal amounts of certain chemicals, including enzymes made in the liver, into the bloodstream, which can lead to an increase in liver enzymes in blood tests. Two common liver enzymes that are regularly tested on most blood chemistries include AST (aspartate transaminase) and ALT (alanine transaminase).

AST (aspartate aminotransferase), formerly called SGOT, can also be elevated in heart and muscle disease and is not liver specific. The normal range of AST is 0 to 45 U / L

ALT (alanine aminotransferase), which was previously called SGPT, is more specific for liver damage. The normal range of ALT is 0 to 45 U / L

In addition to these two enzymes, the liver produces other enzymes, which are special protein-based molecules that help necessary chemical reactions occur. Liver enzymes activate activity in the cells of the body, speeding up and facilitating naturally occurring biochemical reactions and maintaining various metabolic processes within the liver.

I regularly see patients who have high liver enzymes of “unknown etiology”, which simply means that the cause has not been discovered. A common sign of gluten intolerance is elevated liver enzymes. Elevated liver-related enzymes can cause additional damage to parts of the body outside of the liver if the cause of the elevated enzymes is not discovered.

I challenged a patient of mine who has had elevated liver enzymes as long as she remembers to get the proper gluten intolerance test. You probably guessed right: she was gluten intolerant. This patient agreed that she should eat gluten-free for the rest of her life. In one month with a proprietary specialized dietary cure plan, her liver enzymes dropped to the normal range, the first time since her liver enzymes were tested many, many years ago!

Unfortunately, most doctors still use outdated and inaccurate tests for gluten sensitivity testing. At Johnson Chiropractic Neurology and Nutrition we use the most advanced and state-of-the-art gluten intolerance tests. The tests we use include tests for genes that predispose one to celiac disease and gluten intolerance (I found out I have one of each), as well as a special test that measures sensitivity to various components (epitopes) of wheat. Until very recently (January 2011), gluten sensitivity tests had only been performed against one component of wheat; alpha gliadin. Through extensive research, Cyrex Labs identified the twelve components in wheat that most often elicit an immune response. You’ll want to learn more about this specialized test, especially if you have unexplained elevated liver enzyme levels.