How AI Health Diagnosis Helped Me Ask Better Questions

Are you struggling with unexplained symptoms even though you are strictly gluten free?  Have you spent countless hours on the internet trying to figure out what the problem might be only to find yourself frustrated and still without answers? Have you considered consulting AI to help you with research and to organize your thinking?

I feel your frustration. If you're like me, it probably took years to get a formal celiac diagnosis, but the symptoms didn't entirely go away.

This is common.  People with celiac disease often have related conditions, food intolerances or autoimmune diseases.  A celiac diagnosis is not the end of the road. For many of us it is the beginning.

In this article, I'll share my experience using artificial intelligence to help me organize scattered symptoms, identify reasonable possibilities, ask better questions, and become a more effective partner in my own care.

Then I'll give you a step-by-step guide so you can try it yourself.

Want simple guidance, trusted resources, and doable recipes delivered to your inbox once a week?

Yes! Sign Me Up

What Is Chat GPT?

Chat GPT is an AI chatbot developed by a company called OpenAI.  When it was first released in November 2022 it took the tech world by storm.  We had chatbots from banks and telecoms that gave generic, unhelpful answers and sent us scrambling for the phone hoping to speak to a human.  But Chat GPT was game changing.  You could actually have a conversation with it!

Is AI Reliable for Medial Diagnosis?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been transforming various fields, including healthcare. AI health diagnosis uses machine learning and natural language processing to analyze symptoms and medical data. It can then provide possible diagnoses, and suggest appropriate treatments. The accuracy and rapid evolution of AI have made it a valuable player in modern medicine.

If you are considering personal use of Chat GPT in healthcare, it's important to understand three things.

1. The quality of ChatGPT's answers depends on how you ask your questions. Be detailed and specific.
2. Iteration may be necessary. Fine-tune your questions and dig into responses for the most accurate and useful information.
3. AI chatbots can make mistakes. They gather information from the internet, which isn't always reliable. This is why it’s important to continue to work with your doctor.

AI's real value lies in its ability to organize and present information coherently. Compared to random Google searches, Chat GPT offers a more structured analysis of symptoms. Think of it as a research assistant, saving you hours of searching and sifting through websites. While it cannot replace your doctor, it can certainly complement professional medical advice.

The other key advantage is that you can take all the time you need and ask as many follow up questions as you like. Have you ever felt exasperated by hasty conclusions from overburdened doctors? AI health diagnosis tools like ChatGPT allow you to set the pace.

This Doesn’t Mean You Can Fire Your Doctor

ChatGPT can still give incorrect answers, though it's continually improving. Consider its advice as directional, not final. It can offer valuable insights into your symptoms and suggest relevant medical tests. It may confirm your suspicions or present new angles for you and your doctor to explore.

Making informed health decisions is crucial. AI tools like ChatGPT can help by providing information before your doctor's visit. This way, you'll arrive with well-researched questions and potential directions to explore.

How to Use Chat GPT for AI Health Diagnosis Support

Step 1: Sign On and Set Up an Account

Getting started is easy.  Enter “Chat GPT” into your web browser, go to the site and set up an account.  You can also download the mobile app and go from there. 

There is a free version, or you can upgrade to have access to the latest updates.  The free version works very well.

Step 2: Begin With a Detailed Prompt

Before you start firing your health questions at Chat GPT, it’s helpful to give it some context.  It works well with background information and a role to play.  Be detailed and precise in describing your symptoms.

Here’s how I started my healthcare conversation with Chat GPT.

Chat GPT provided 10 possible conditions, related symptoms and recommended next steps.  Here is a sample of one of the responses.

It gave me similar outlines for:

• continued gluten exposure
• lactose intolerance and other food intolerances
• dermatitis herpetiformis
• nutritional deficiencies
• SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth)
• other autoimmune diseases including thyroid disease (Hashimoto's).

At the time, I didn’t give the thyroid suggestion much weight because my TSH had only been mildly elevated for years, and I’d previously been told it wasn’t significant enough to treat. Looking back, that was an important clue.

Pin for Later

Step 3: Iterate For More Detailed and Personalized Analysis

Your first response may be generic.  It will reference your symptoms but will look much like what you’d find on a medical website.  But this is the beginning of the conversation.

Review the response.  Provide more details and explain what to rule out and why. For example, I ruled out lactose intolerance, dermatitis herpetiformis, and continued gluten exposure based on my experience.

I remembered additional symptoms and asked Chat GPT to consider these as well:

• Esophageal spasms when I eat that started after I’d had my gallbladder removed
• Very high serum B12.  Doctors have said there is no concern, but I’m not convinced.

Step 4: Narrow it Down and Get Specific

After more back and forth my AI health diagnosis assistant narrowed the list down to three conditions: histamine intolerance, MCAS (mast cell activation syndrome) and SIBO.

It was nice to have a smaller list of conditions to research, but I needed more. I wanted to know which was more likely in my case, given my symptoms and history.  So I asked:

With this prompt, I received a detailed breakdown of both conditions including diagnostic tests, treatment options and how each connects to celiac disease.  Then Chat GPT answered my direct question.

DAO is the enzyme that helps the body process histamine.  It is produced in the small intestine, and since celiac disease damages the small intestine, DAO may be lacking. 

At the time, this explanation seemed to fit many of my symptoms, so it became one of the leading possibilities to investigate with my doctor.

Step 5: A Complete Plan for Diagnosis and Treatment

This wasn’t enough.  I asked for a clear, concise plan for next steps, and ChatGPT provided a detailed strategy:

1. Visit your healthcare provider to discuss symptoms and request lab tests. I was given a list of lab tests.

2. Complete a histamine elimination diet, consult a dietician, and consider DAO supplementation.

3. Work with a GI specialist to investigate SIBO and request a breath test.

4. Address skin sensitivity by identifying irritants and using hypoallergenic products.

I took that plan to my physician. Some avenues turned out not to be the answer. Others led to referrals, additional testing, and eventually a diagnosis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.

Be Prepared for a Ton of Information

At the end of it all, ChatGPT had generated pages and pages of information—far more than I could absorb in one sitting, and certainly more than any doctor could reasonably cover in a fifteen-minute appointment.

It helped me explore topics including:

• histamine intolerance and DAO deficiency
• MCAS, SIBO, and other possible digestive conditions
• autoimmune diseases, including thyroid disease
• food intolerances and elimination diets
• nutritional deficiencies and supplements
• possible explanations for alcohol intolerance, skin sensitivity, and high B12
• connections between these conditions and celiac disease

I’ll probably be sorting through that information for months.

But something important happened that had nothing to do with arriving at a diagnosis.

For the first time, all of my seemingly unrelated symptoms were on the same page. Instead of a dozen disconnected problems, I had a framework for understanding how they might fit together. Some of those possibilities turned out to be dead ends. Others eventually led to a diagnosis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. The value wasn’t that ChatGPT gave me the answer—it helped me organize the questions.

Most of all, it gave me confidence that I wasn’t imagining things. My symptoms were real. They deserved to be investigated.

’m reminded of a spy movie where the main character is insisting there are patterns that no one else sees.  She has photos and clippings pinned up all over her wall with a web of threads connecting them.  Everyone thinks she’s crazy and she starts to wonder if they might be right.  You know how the story goes.  When one person finally takes her seriously, they catch the bad guy."

That’s what this felt like. Not an instant diagnosis, but finally having enough pieces on the board to start seeing the whole picture.

Summary

The perpetual frustration of unresolved symptoms can make anyone feel helpless, but ChatGPT’s iterative approach can break down the overwhelming experience into manageable steps. Here’s a summary:

• Trust yourself.  Your symptoms are real and you’re not crazy
• Don’t be intimidated at the thought of using AI for medical diagnosis.  You don’t need to understand technology to use it.
• Set the context.  It needs to understand your goals.
• Iteration is key.  The first response will be generic but as you dig you’ll make connections and uncover gems that you never expected.
• Question the output.  If something doesn’t make sense or seems contradictory, ask for clarification.
• Ask for a summary and a plan for next steps.
• Involve your healthcare professionals. AI isn’t a substitute for professional medical advice, but it can be an excellent tool for generating informed questions to discuss with your doctor.

If you’re wondering whether AI tools like ChatGPT are worth trying, my answer is yes—but use them wisely. Don’t expect AI to diagnose you or replace your doctor. Use it as a research assistant. Ask questions. Challenge the answers. Keep digging. Then take what you’ve learned back to your healthcare team. In my case, the first answer wasn’t the final answer. But each step helped me ask better questions, and those questions eventually led to the diagnosis I needed.

Now That’s Empowering!

Want simple guidance, trusted resources, and doable recipes delivered to your inbox once a week?

Yes! Sign Me Up

Patty Maguire is a George Brown College culinary graduate whose training focused on nutrition and cooking for special diets.

Since her celiac diagnosis in 2012, she has shared a practical, whole-food approach to naturally gluten-free living that helps readers cook with confidence, eat out safely, travel well, and live fully.

Rooted in farm-family values and simple home cooking, her work has been recognised by Feedspot’s top 10 Canadian gluten-free blogs list.