What Do You Know About Coeliac Disease

Coeliac disease, also known as celiac disease, is a genetic disease. The small intestine is not able to absorb nutrients from food due to damage caused from gluten-laden products that destroy the lining of the small intestine. The gluten that is present in flour, barley, wheat and oats causes the mal-absorption of required nutrients. Gluten is also found in some medicines, lip balms and vitamins. Eating a gluten-free diet will cause symptoms to disappear.

Ingested food does not normally cause an immune response from persons in good health. For the celiac patient, foods containing gluten activates an intestinal immune response. It destroys the mucosal villi in the small intestine, which absorb nutrients for the entire body. The villi, a tiny fingerlike protrusion which lines the small intestine normally allows the nutrients from food to be absorbed through the lining of the small intestine and then into the bloodstream. The loss of functioning mucosal villi lead to malnutrition no matter how much they eat, atopic dermatitis, stunted growth, mouth sores, stomach pain, swollen stomach, intermittent vomiting, diarrhea, or pale foul-smelling fatty stools, weight loss and many other manifestations in the body.

In an infant, at first it may not be noticeable, until the introduction of gluten-laden foods, when you start giving them regular food. Then indications such as vomiting, diarrhea, and failure to thrive or growth delay should lead you to have the infant tested for celiac disease. In early childhood, indications such as epilepsy, anemia, hepatitis and stunted growth can be caused by celiac disease. While having the child tested, changing to a gluten-free diet is advisable. If the child's symptoms go away, a gluten-free diet will improve their quality of life.

Dental enamel defects of the permanent teeth, irritability and delayed puberty are signs to look for in older children. In adults look for unexplained iron-deficiency anemia, seizures, tingling numbness in the hands and feet, bone or joint pain, itchy skin rash, missed menstrual periods, and infertility or recurrent miscarriages.

People have many different symptoms and at different ages. It is a genetic disease but the amount of time a baby is breast-fed can change the age that it appears. The disease is not always diagnosed at its onset. It can take up to ten years for the proper diagnosis. Many people with celiac disease also have thyroid disease, type I diabetes, and liver disease. It is common amongst girls that also suffer from Down's syndrome and Turner syndrome.

If any of these symptoms are present in someone you know, have them tested right away and have them change their diet while testing is going on.

Source:
Celiac Disease: A Hidden Epidemic by Peter H.r. Green and Rory Jones