Celiac disease can occur at any time in a person’s life and often the onset is triggered after surgery, viral infection, emotional stress, pregnancy or child birth. The impact of celiac disease can affect several areas and systems of the body often making the diagnosis challenging. In fact the symptoms associated with the digestive tract can mimic other digestive disorders. Symptoms often include:
- Abdominal cramping, bloating, gas
- Diarrhea and constipation
- Vomiting
- Fatty (pale) stools
- Anemia
- Weight loss
- Failure to grow properly (infants and children)
- Behavioral changes (infants and children)
- Dental enamel defects
- Osteopenia or osteoporosis
- Fatigue, weakness
For some people, gluten sensitivity can led to very frustrating skin condition called dermatitis herpetiformis or DH. This condition, typically involving blistering and itching is more common on the hands, face, buttocks and knees and involves. Small packets of immune factors (IgA) and an enzyme called transglutaminase can be in the skin layers and used to make the diagnosis. Additionally, people experiencing DH might have damage to the lining of the small intestine, but without symptoms, making diagnosis of gluten sensitivity more difficult.
Gluten is the dominant protein class in cereal grains and most of it is gliadin and glutenin. Gluten is responsible for the elastic and structural properties of flours used to bake flour based products that rise. As gases are produced by yeast in dough, it gets trapped in the gluten-based network and the dough rises. People diagnosed with celiac disease need to avoid all foods containing gluten and thus must be recipe/ingredient readers.
Gluten is most notably found in wheat, rye, barley and grains grown in regions with more extreme weather conditions (e.g. Canada and northern parts of the United States) tend to have more gluten. Guten is not found in oats, rice, millets, buckwheat, sorghum, quinoa and amaranth. However it should be mentioned that many of the gluten-free grains can acquire some gluten if they are milled in the same facility as wheat, barley and rye or even grown next to these crops. It should also be mentioned that some people who are gluten sensitive will also react with a protein in oats called avenin. Lastly, soy is not a grain and does not contain gluten and it is tolerated well by most gluten sensitive people.
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