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Celiac Disease
Coeliac disease (pronounced /?si?li??æk/), also spelled celiac disease, is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine that occurs in genetically predisposed people of all ages from middle infancy. Symptoms include chronic diarrhoea, failure to thrive (in children), and fatigue, but these may be absent and symptoms in all other organ systems have been described. It is estimated to affect about 1% of all Indo-European populations, but is thought to be significantly underdiagnosed. A growing portion of diagnoses are being made in asymptomatic persons as a result of increased screening.Celiac disease affects each person differently. Symptoms may occur in the digestive system, or in other parts of the body. One person might have diarrhea and abdominal pain, while another person may be irritable or depressed. Irritability is one of the most common symptoms in children. Some people have no symptoms.
The digestive system is the set of organs that digest food and absorb the important nutrients the body needs to stay healthy and grow. One important part of the digestive system is the small intestine, which is lined with millions of microscopic, finger-like projections called villi (pronounced: vih-lye). Nutrients are absorbed into the body through the villi.One out of 133 people in the United States is affected with celiac disease. Celiac Disease occurs in 5-15% of the offspring and siblings of a person with celiac disease. In 70% of identical twin pairs, both twins have the disease. It is strongly suggested that family members be tested, even if asymptomatic. Family members who have an autoimmune disease are at a 25% increased risk of having celiac disease.
The only treatment for celiac disease is to follow a gluten-free diet. When a person is first diagnosed with celiac disease, the doctor usually will ask the person to work with a dietitian on a gluten-free diet plan. A dietitian is a health care professional who specializes in food and nutrition. Someone with celiac disease can learn from a dietitian how to read ingredient lists and identify foods that contain gluten in order to make informed decisions at the grocery store and when eating out.Avoid oats. Some patients with celiac disease can tolerate oats in the diet. But long-term safety of oats in celiac disease patients is unknown. Also some oat preparations can be contaminated with wheat. Thus, it is probably best to avoid oats at least during the initial treatment with a gluten free diet. Once disease remission is achieved with a strict gluten free diet, small quantities of oats can be reintroduced into the diet under medical supervision.
