Celiac disease

        Celiac disease (also called celiac sprue, gluten intolerance or glutamate enteropathy) is a chronic digestive disease caused by ingestion of gluten, which prevents absorption of nutrients, vitamins and minerals by the intestine.

Celiac sprue

       In celiac persons, ingestion of gluten trains an abnormal immune reaction in the small intestine. This reaction not only destroys gluten as if it would be dangerous for the body, but attacks and small intestine mucosa. Inflammatory substances end up destroying the intestinal villous, which allows absorption of nutrients. Thus, despite a healthy diet, celiac people suffer from malnutrition.

       Gluten is an elastic and viscous mass of protein present in most cereals. Responsible for leavening bread and other bakery products, gluten is found in food. Gluten is found in many cereal grains, including wheat, barley, oats and rye.

Celiac disease symptoms

        Celiac disease symptoms occurs secondary to the lesions caused by ingestion of gluten gut. Gluten is a protein found in cereals: wheat, rye and barley. Due to the mucosal destruction, water and nutrient absorption is disturbed. This can lead to malnutrition, which can be severe, especially for teenagers. Celiac disease is different from an allergy. Some people have allergies to wheat and don't have gluten intolerance so that they can eat rye, barley or oats. Celiac disease symptoms vary from case to case, from mild symptoms that often go unnoticed, to symptoms and severe complications that have a negative impact on our daily life. Celiac disease symptoms, of an intermittent nature (symptoms that come and go at a certain time) are:

• Abdominal bloating, flatulence, abdominal discomfort - are caused by the poor digestion of food in the small intestine and colon (large intestine). Sometimes are reported epigastric pain (stomach pains), but often they are not intense.
• Abnormal stool, usually diarrhea, watery, pale, creamy and smelly. The stool contains a large amount of lipids (fats) and has a glossy, shiny aspect, and is also very sticky. Although celiac disease symptoms are the same regardless of age, they are more frequent and intense in children (early onset of disease).
• Weight loss despite a normal appetite, important especially among children, which, due to disorders of digestion and absorption, are no longer developing normally (malnourished).
• Fatigue and weakness are the result of poor absorption of nutrients in the gut, and absorption of iron deficiency which causes anemia (especially among adults).
• Vomiting, occurring in a certain period of gluten ingestion is most common among children with celiac disease.

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Celiac disease diagnosis

       Celiac disease is often confused with other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis, intestinal infections due to similar symptoms. Often, the celiac disease diagnosis is one of exclusion of other diseases with similar celiac disease symptoms but which do not respond to treatment.

       In terms of adopting a gluten-free regime, the celiac disease symptoms disappear in a few days. Intestinal mucosal examination showed a villous recovery, requiring several months to complete. Disease surveillance is done through periodic biopsies of the intestinal mucosa. In adolescents, celiac disease symptoms gradually attenuate, being the possibility of complete remission. The child begins to gain weight in a few weeks. Approximately 10% of patients with celiac disease occur in a type of cancer: the esophagus, pharynx, or intestine.

       Other cancerous diseases present in many patients with celiac disease are lymphomas. Lymphoma is the tumor that develops in lymphoid tissue and especially in lymph nodes.

Celiac disease treatment

       Persons suspected of celiac disease must consult a doctor before taking a gluten-free diet. Several diseases have symptoms similar to those of celiac disease symptoms. In addition, the adoption of a gluten-free can lead to falsification of celiac disease test. There is no celiac disease treatment. Instead, adopting the life of a gluten-free regime allows complete disappearance of celiac disease symptoms, treatmenting the gaps and prevents potential celiac complications. In most cases, intestinal mucosal tissues recover. This healing occurs in a few months in a young, while the recovery period of a young adult may last 2-3 years. In exceptional cases, symptoms may persist even a few months after adopting a gluten-free celiac disease diet.

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Celiac disease diet

       Celiac disease diet, a gluten free diet, would effectively prohibit many commonly consumed foods: wheat bread and pasta. But gluten is found not only in grain but is hiding in many foods of commerce that use gluten as an ingredient. As an infinitesimal amount of gluten can damage the intestine, causing recurrence of celiac disease symptoms, greater vigilance is needed in choosing products.

       The most common cause of recurrence of celiac disease symptoms is gluten consumption: oats, wheat, barley, rye bread or bakery products, couscous, most types of biscuits, wafers, muffins, pancakes, pasta, macaroni, noodles, spaghetti, instant milk, canned fruit in syrup, instant soups, cookies, cake, donuts, pies, and sauces thickened with flour and many others. Although celiac sprue can not be prevented, a gluten-free diet can curb both the emergence and evolution of intestinal lesions. For starters, is also recommended to avoid consumption of dairy products which can trigger celiac disease symptoms (especially milk), then, after starting gluten-free food, they can be gradually reintroduced (after the intestinal lesions heal).

       For wheat, the allergic reaction is directed against gliadin (a fraction of protein present in wheat gluten). In the case of barley, hordeina is toxic, and for the rye is the secalina. There is no celiac disease treatment. However, the disease can be kept under control through celiac disease diet - permanently eliminating gluten from your diet.

       In most cases, celiac disease occurs in children between 6 months and 2 years after the introduction of cereals in the diet. The mothers have to be very carefull when they gave their babies certeals or other aliments that contains gluten, because celiac disease in children may occur immediately. Celiac disease can also manifest in adulthood, usually at 30-40 years. Women are 2 to 3 times more affected than men.

Celiac disease pictures

Products that contain gluten:

       Cereal products: wheat, semolina, couscous, barley, oats, rye and hybrid varieties. It looks like pure rye is tolerated but the risk of contamination with other grains is increased. Buckwheat sometimes needs to be avoided. These grains are found in many forms (flour, meal, flakes) in bakery products, confectionery, on pasta, cereal bars, biscuits, dough, etc. Commercial products: gluten is found in yoghurt with fruit, ice cream, hot chocolate, soup cubes, some types of cheese, canned meat, sausages, tomato sauce, peanut butter, etc.

        ...read more about Gluten allergy symptoms: Gluten allergy symptoms

       Gluten is found in food and hides under several names in the lists of product ingredients: malt, starches (wheat, barley, rye, etc.), hydrolysed vegetable protein and textured vegetable protein. Gluten is found in some drinks: beer, gin, whiskey. Even some cosmetics (lipstick) may contain traces of gluten.

       In the kitchen, should be given a special attention not to contaminate the food without gluten. Contamination can occur when gluten-free products are prepared in an unwashed container in which were foods containing gluten. It happens that gluten-free products to be contaminated during production, processing or packing. In this respect, products labeled "gluten-free" are safer.