Gluten Free Diet

Article by eme michael

Celiac Disease is a genetic intolerance for gluten- the elastic protein in wheat, rye, barley, triticale, kamut and spelt and it can damage the small intestine for years, silently or at least in a language that most of us do not know how to recognize. People who suffer from headaches may dismiss it as stress, those with achy joints wonder if they have arthritis and those with abdominal pain are told for years they have IBS. Each of these symptoms can be symptoms of celiac disease.

Treatment of Celiac disease:

Only treatment is going for gluten free diet and for this you may ask for diet from doctor or dietician. Following the diet will stop the symptoms and also heal existing intestinal damage and prevent further damage. Healing will take time, some three to six months in children and much more in adult but healing means that now individual has villi that can now absorb nutrients from food and into bloodstream.

Symptoms vary from person to person. Symptoms may occur in the digestive system or in other parts of the body. Digestive complaints are not as common in adults as they are in children. In adults you are more likely to see some of the following:

* an itchy skin rash

* canker sores inside the mouth

* tingling numbness in the hands and feet

* fatigue

* bone or joint pain

* bone loss or osteoporosis

* iron-deficiency anemia

This reaction damages the villi, which are tiny protrusions lining the small intestine. As a result the capacity of the small intestine to absorb nutrients is severely hampered. It has been found that CD and type 1 diabetes have certain genetic traits in common and there are more chances of type 1 diabetics having celiac disease and vice versa. It would be better if we are aware of vital signs of celiac disease with Type 1 diabetes and its effects. Celiac disease is caused by the small intestine in which the inner cells of the small intestine reacts immunologically with a type of protein. As a result inflammation is caused to the inner cells and they are destroyed. Due to the destruction of inner cells the absorption of vital nutrients is affected which in turn causes deficiency of nutrients in the body.

Digestive symptoms of celiac disease candida are: vomiting, abdominal pain and bloating, weight loss, chronic diarrhea, constipation and pale, foul-smelling, or fatty stool.

Celiac Sprue, as CD is also commonly known, is definitively diagnosed by the combination positive results for specific blood antibodies for CD, either endomysial (EMA) or tissue transglutaminase (tTG); a characteristic small intestine biopsy; and response to a gluten-free diet (GFD).

Types of Celiac Disease:

Celiac disease has now been categorized into 4 main classes according to the NIH consensus conference.

* Classical celiac disease includes those symptoms commonly associated with the disease in the past, diarrhea, bloating, abdominal pain, and weight loss.

* Celiac disease with atypical symptoms includes those extra intestinal symptoms of osteoporosis, neurological involvement, and little or no abdominal symptoms.

* Silent celiac disease includes those individuals who are asymptomatic yet have both positive serology and biopsy.

* Latent celiac disease includes positive serology and negative biopsy, but may later present with positive symptoms or intestinal changes.

Before I give you a list of foods that must be avoided on a celiac disease diet, it is important that you understand that gluten is “hidden” in many processed foods. Processed foods like pre-prepared meals, cereal, frozen french fried potatoes, snacks, and sauces such as mayonnaise, mustard,and soy sauce often contain gluten. These are just to name a few to give you an idea. The celiac suffer needs to learn how to carefully read the labels on processed foods because glutenous traces are often found in them.

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