Abdominal Pain, Bloating, Cramping, Diarrhea, Loss of Appetite are a few of the symptoms of Celiac Disease.
Celiac disease is a long-term immune disorder that affects the small intestine. There are a wide range of symptoms but stomach pain, bloating, cramping and diarrhea are the most common. The disease is caused by an adverse reaction between your intestinal lining and GLUTEN. Gluten is a group of proteins that can found primarily in wheat, but also in barley and rye. Oat is usually tolerated, but there can be cross-contamination with gluten products. When gluten interacts with the small intestine, there is an inflammatory reaction that leads to atrophy of the intestinal lining. The atrophy, or wasting away, of the lining of your intestines affects the absorption of nutrients, and can lead to the symptoms we have described, and more problems.
There are several tests for diagnosing Celiac Disease. For the tests to be positive though, a person needs to still be consuming gluten products. The most reliable test is a biopsy of the small intestine. There are also blood tests for specific antibodies and auto-antibodies. The genetic markers, HLA-DQ2 and HLA-DQ8, are positive in most people with Celiac Disease; however, many people can have these markers and not have celiac disease.
If you have an interest in understanding your Celiac and gluten sensitivity a little better, then contact our office! Call 719-634-1741, and if you reach our voicemail, please leave your name and contact information so we can get in touch soon.
Other resources: www.beyondceliac.org and www.celiac.org