| Hi Beth and Heather,
It is really really common that people with type 1 diabetes who also have celiac disease have NO symtoms of the CD. About 10% of people with type 1 have CD as well, but most have no symptoms and a large majority have no idea that they have it. I think that antibody screening (at a minimum) should be done every few years for anyone with type 1. Undiagnosed CD (whether symptomatic or not) puts you at a huge risk for anemia, osteoperosis and other autoimmune diseases, not to mention some cancers and intestinal lymphomas.
Heather, since the antibody test came back positive, are you going to have a biopsy to confirm the CD?
Starting a completely gluten free diet is a huge undertaking at first because there is so much to learn. There is gluten hidden in a lot of places that you just wouldn't expect! However, combining a gf diet with diabetes management shouldn't be that difficult, especially if you count your carbs and are on some kind of basal/bolus regime (via shots or a pump).
When i was first diagnosed with CD, i found that the CD dictated WHAT i ate (no gluten), where as the diabetes dictated more HOW MUCH and WHEN i ate. Then i went on a pump a couple of years later and the 'how much' and 'when' are no longer an issue. As long as i count my carbs right (knowing that some gluten free foods are denser in carbs than their gluten filled counterparts), and calculate my basal insulin doses accordingly, i don't find that the two diseases influence each other that much. You have to make sure that you have gluten free food around in case of hypoglycemia, but most of the food we use the most for this purpose is gluten free anyway: juice, regular soda, glucose tablets, life savers....
Beth for the weight issue, just make sure Ed is eating lots and that it is gluten free. Don't be afraid to increase insulin doses to make up for extra carbs. Make sure you stay in touch with the endocrinologist or the diabetes education centre with regards to his glucose readings and insulin doses. Don't worry if his control isn't perfect for a little while. It will get better after his absorption stabilizes. As his gut heals, he will absorb much more in the way of nutrients and he will gain a lot more easily. I gained 30 lbs in the 8 months after i was diagnosed with CD just because i started to absorb the food i was eating. (I also more than doubled my insulin intake in that period because of the food i was absorbing).
Andrea  | 
