Gluten Sensitivity and RA?

Hi there,  this has been posted in the Celiac forum as well.

I've been diagnosed and treated for RA for a little over 10 years.  I also seem to have some gluten sensitivity--gluten causes IBS-type symptoms that are eliminated when I eliminate gluten from my diet.  A gluten-free diet does not seem to help the RA, but I've now seen several articles discussing a possible link between gluten sensitivy and RA.  Does anyone know if this is a valid claim?  Can gluten be the root cause of many of our autoimmune diseases?

Thanks!

El

I have not tried the no gluten route, but do know someone who must refrain from all gluten products, it is endless (Celiac disease) and I'm just not sure if I buy into the gluten interolerance/sensitivity. I think very few actually benefit from a gluten free diet, unless they have a health issue like celiac where it is necessary, that and the diet is extremely difficult and limiting to follow for those who must adhere for health reasons. To answer your question, I have not actually seen the study regarding gluten and RA, but no I don't believe that gluten is going to be found to be the root cause of our autoimmune's and then if we all refrain from gluten, we will be on the mend.  If it were only this simple!