Celiac Disease Information - What is Celiac Disease?

Celiac disease, also known as gluten intolerance, is a genetic disorder that affects 1 in 1331 Americans. Symptoms of celiac disease can range from the classic features, such as diarrhea, weight loss, and malnutrition, to latent symptoms such as isolated nutrient deficiencies but no gastrointestinal symptoms. The disease mostly affects people of European (especially Northern European) descent, but recent studies show that it also affects Hispanic, Black and Asian populations as well (1). Those affected suffer damage to the villi (shortening and villous flattening) in the lamina propria and crypt regions of their intestines when they eat specific food-grain antigens (toxic amino acid sequences) that are found in wheat, rye, and barley(3). Oats have traditionally been considered to be toxic to celiacs, but recent scientific studies have shown otherwise. This research is ongoing, however, and it may be too early to draw solid conclusions.

Because of the broad range of symptoms celiac disease presents, it can be difficult to diagnose. The symptoms can range from "mild weakness, bone pain, and aphthous stomatitis to chronic diarrhea, abdominal bloating, and progressive weight loss.(3) If a person with the disorder continues to eat gluten, studies have shown that he or she will increase their chances of gastrointestinal cancer by a factor of 40 to 100 times that of the normal population (4). Further, "gastrointestinal carcinoma or lymphoma develops in up to 15 percent of patients with untreated or refractory celiac disease."(3) It is therefore imperative that the disease is quickly and properly diagnosed so it can be treated as soon as possible.

Based on the figure mentioned above we can extrapolate the total number of people in the United States with celiac disease: 2.18 million (based on the total population: 290,356,0285). It is very important that doctors understand just how many people have this disease so that routine testing for it is done to bring the diagnosis rate in line with the disease's epidemiology. Testing is fairly simple and involves screening the patient's blood for antigliadin (AGA) and endomysium antibodies (EmA), and/or doing a biopsy on the areas of the intestines mentioned above, which is still the standard for a formal diagnosis.

The only acceptable treatment for celiac disease is strict adherence to a 100% gluten-free diet for life. An adherence to a gluten-free diet can prevent almost all complications caused by the disease. A gluten-free diet means avoiding all products that contain wheat, rye and barley, or any of their derivatives. This is a difficult task as there are many hidden sources of gluten found in the ingredients of many processed foods. This site is designed to help people with celiac disease get diagnosed, and make life easier after their diagnosis.

Pharmacy Innovations now offers many gluten free products. Please click HERE to see the gluten- free products we currently are carrying in our online store. You may also click This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it   to contact us for information on custom compounded gluten-free medication.

Alessio Fasano, MD, et. al., Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:286-292.
Gastroenterology, April, 1996 "First Epidemiological Study of Gluten Intolerance in the United States." By Karoly Horvath, MD, Ph.D., et. al..
New England Journal of Medicine, May 2, 1996 -- Volume 334, Number 18, "The Many Faces of Celiac Disease" by Charles H. Halsted, MD
Goggins, et. al. "Celiac Disease and Other Nutrient Related Injuries to the Gastrointestinal Tract" The American Journal of Gastroenterology. Vol. 89, No. 8, pages S2 - S13, 1994.
United States Census Bureau, February 27, 2003.

Source: http://www.celiac.com/celiacdisease.html