About
Celiac Disease
- is an auto-immune disease
- is common - Experts in the study of celiac disease
judge the prevalency rate to be from 1 in every 133 persons to
1 in every 250 persons in the United States. That means 2.2 million
people in the U.S. could be living with celiac disease.
- is a genetic, inheritable disease - 1 in 22 first-degree
relatives could develop CD in their lifetime.
- is underdiagnosed - Approximately 97% of persons who
have celiac disease in the U.S. are undiagnosed.
- is not age dependent - A person may be born with it,
or develop it at any age. Suspected triggers include stress,
trauma (surgeries, pregnancy, etc.) and viral infections.
- may be asymptomatic - 60% of children and 41% of adults
with celiac disease have no symtoms.
- has no cure - A life-long strict adherence to the gluten-free
diet must be followed.
The University of Chicago Celiac Disease Program further states:
- The average delay in diagnosis for a person with symptoms
is 11 years.
- On average, a child will visit 8 pediatricians before being
diagnosed with celiac disease.
Risk factors for celiac disease (besides family members) are listed on the Mayo Clinic website.
Diseases linked to celiac disease are discussed on an NIH website.
Associated Autoimmune Diseases are discussed on the GIG web site.
The ingestion of gluten (a protein in wheat, barley, and rye) causes
an autoimmune response that damages the small intestine. This, in
turn, causes the malabsorption of nutrients which can lead to many
different health problems and/or symptoms including:
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Infertility and Miscarriages: Article on the celiac NIH site on
reproductive problems. Article on
jccglutenfree. Article on
CeliacDisease.net newsletter (click on "Winter 2008").
Osteoporosis: Article on WebMD aboout
osteoporosis and celiac disease. Article in US News about
men with celiac disease and the implications for osteoporosis
There are many more symptoms/problems that may be the result of
celiac disease. Furthermore, the symptoms of celiac disease vary
widely from person to person both in severity and which, if any,
symptoms. A person may have just one of the symptoms, many of
the symptoms, or have no overt symptoms. Often these symptoms
come and go, making it even more perplexing.
Treatment for celiac disease is simple: a strict gluten-free diet
for life. There are no medications to take, and there is no cure
at this time. Vitamin and mineral supplements are often recommended
because of malabsorption issues.
Doctors in the United States are just beginning to recognize the
prevalence of celiac disease, thanks to many hard working groups
and individuals dedicated to this cause. A meeting of the National
Institute of Health in June, 2004 focused for the first time on
celiac disease. The results of the meeting have helped raise awareness
within the medical community on the issues of diagnosis and management
of celiac disease.
The following are just a few of the websites that give accurate,
up-to-date information about celiac disease. Many more informational
websites are listed in the Resource section. There are also many
books written in recent years that give accurate information on
celiac disease and it's treatment.
An article on the history of celiac disease can be found at http://www.celiacdisease.net/newsletter. It is in one of the newsletters put out by the Universtiy of Chicago Celiac Disease Program. Click on "Summer 2007"
Complications from celiac disease are listed on the Mayo Clinic website and an NIH website.
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Organizations/Universities/Hospital celiac websites:
Two YouTube videos done by the Warren Celiac Center in San Diego offer excellent information:
2007 lecture,
2008 lecture. Other websites that also give excellent information:
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The following articles have information about these combined conditions:
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Gluten Intolerance Group, www.gluten.net/publicationsGluten Intolerance Group, www.gluten.net/publications
The celiac.com site has two sections: Celiac
Disease and Gluten Intolerance and Research
on Diseases and Disorders Associated with Celiac Disease
The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (www.celiacawareness.org )
has a section on recent research.
The University of Maryland site,
celiaccenter.org:
http://www.celiaccenter.org/publications.asp. Also see
Prevalency
Study.
The University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center website:
http://www.celiacdisease.net/studies
As of May 2006, there are six Celiac Disease research centers in
the United States. Note the last one is located in San Diego.
The six centers are (in alphabetical order):
Celiac Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, www.bidmc.harvard.edu/YourHealth/ConditionsAZ/CeliacdiseaseCeliacsprue,
617-667-1272
Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University, www.celiacdiseasecenter.columbia.edu,
212-305-5590
Celiac Disease Clinic at Mayo Clinic, www.mayoclinic.org/celiac-disease,
507-284-5255
Center for Celiac Research, University of Maryland, www.celiaccenter.org,
410-706-5516
University of Chicago Celiac Disease Program, www.celiacdisease.net,
773-702-7593
William K. Warren Medical Research Center for Celiac Research, http://celiaccenter.ucsd.edu/,
858-534-1022
Gluten Intolerance Group, www.gluten.net/publications
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