Coeliac - can you stop being Coeliac?

[bernie40]

I was diagnosed Coeliac (gluten intolerant) when I was 9 months old with a biopsy.  I was kept on a strict diet up to the age of 16 when being a typical teenager I decided I wanted to eat all the things I wasn't supposed to.  I am now 39 and have not stuck rigidly to my diet, I get upset tummies, bloatedness, severe tiredness, irritability etc etc.  

I have been told that there is no "cure", that if you have it then you have it for life, if this is the case am I doing long term damage by not sticking to my gf diet?

[Rowena Santos, MD]

How are you? It is true, there are no  drugs or therapies  needed to treat Gluten sensitivity. The best treatment is to exclude Gluten for life.
For gluten intolerants, the protein actually attacks the lining of the small intestine causing damage that flattens out the tiny villi  which provide most of the surface area for nutrient absorption. When damaged and inflamed, the villi are unable to absorb water and nutrients such as vitamins, folic acid, iron and calcium. Some people are more severely affected than others and a strict gluten-free diet will relieve the symptoms
By not sticking to the prescribed diet, other illnesses related to Celiac Disease such as chronic active hepatitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and food intolerance have increased possibility of occurring.

I hope this helps. Take care and keep us posted.

[bernie40]

I am trying very hard to stick to my diet now, not easy after eating what I liked for so long but I have done some meal planners and made sure that I have the right stuff in the cupboards.

I was interested to see the link to chronic fatigue syndrome, it is a standing joke in my family that I will fall asleep anywhere and at any time (excet when I am in a manic phase, I have bipolar II).  I would sleep all day given the chance and on occassion I do!

It is time I became more responsible for my own health, so I am determined not to stray, GF food has come such a long way since I was diagnosed 38 years ago - back then it was tinned bread which fell apart if it wasn't toasted and now there are so many options it is unbelievable, so no excuse really.

Helen

[Rowena Santos, MD]

Hi Helen,
That's great! I agree with you that there are a lot of food options now that are gluten-free. It would also be beneficial if you have a support group in your locality or even in the web that would help a lot on your cause such as: http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/8672/#who-we
http://celiac.com/index.html#toc

Take care and Good luck

[PlateletGal]

I don't have Celiac disease, but I did have an intolerance to gluten. I know many physcians believe that an intolerance to gluten is Celiac disease, but my Immunologist who has a son with Celiac disease, told me that they weren't. Anyhow, I am on a research protocol for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and about 6 months after I started the protocol, I was able to tolerate gluten again !

I recently posted about other new research for Celiacs in the Celiac disease forum... I hope you will consider checking it out.

Good luck !