FAQ - celiac disease
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What are some effective methods to combat depression in a person who suffers from celiac disease?

My byf (49) suffers from celiac disease (guten intolerance) - I have researched websites that reccomend vitamin B-26? But that's about it?

He's on a strict gluten free diet, but that doesn't seem to be enough.

Any & all helpful information is greatly appreciated.
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Hi. Depression and mental issues are VERY common for Celiacs. It has A LOT to do with WHEN he ws diagnosed with Celiac. If it is int he last few years, you have to give it time. The body has been malnourished and in vitamin deficiency for a long time. By age 49, he has probably had years of damage done by gluten to his body and mind. (Yes gluten affects the mind by robbing it of valuable vitamins and nutrients such as the b vitamins--for those with Celiac.)

He really needs to see his doc again and discuss other options, perhaps the B shots (Ive never heard of B 26 but I would not take any B vitamins without docs help.)
He could also see a nutritionsit bc the GF diet is restrictive and he may be getting hidden forms of gluten and not know it, or his body is still adjusting.
It can take months, even years for hte body to heal from Celiac (and every time gluten in eaten again, more damage is done) so the GF diet is for LIFE. The whole change to the GF life is very difficult and it is not uncommon for ppl to literally mourn the lost food. (Seriously!) Bc food is so often intertwined with life activities (beer and pizza with friends, wedding cake, superbowl parties, etc).
But there are yummy GF versions of virtually everything.
Feel free to email me if u need any furthe rhelp!  (+ info)

Has anyone heard of or experienced elevated Vitamin A levels along with celiac disease?

Friend has had string of higher and higher "A" levels along with other symptoms of celiac (Gluten sensitive) disease. Has anyone ever heard of these symptoms occurring simultaneously?
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Your question raises more questions.
The first question your question raises: is her diagnosis correct?
The second question is: did she have a basline?
The most important question is: high compared to what?
And that question does have to go back to the person who gave her the test results. What was the first level? How does it relate to the last? Could it signify a recovery? Something else? What are the other levels in comparison - Vitamin D for example?

The answer to your question is No, I haven't heard or read about the symptoms occuring simultaneously. It is unusual for someone with Celiac disease to have higher and higher Vitamin A counts because of the difficulty in digesting, absorbing or metabolizing vitamins with this disease. Vitamin A deficiency is not unusual.

http://www.glutenfreeworks.com/article_display.php?article_id=213&id=83

In this article you will see that your friend should talk to her doctor about adding more Vitamin D - especially D3 to her diet to allow her to process calcium. (Although actually a hormone, Vitamin D functions as a vitamin.) She is actually more at risk for bone density loss and osteoporosis as it is. Whether or not she has gluten sensitivity, Celiac disease or not.

Elevated levels of A can cause liver problems as well as osteoporosis. Except in the cases of retinitis pigmentosa, it is possible to develop Vitamin a toxicity. Has your friend's doctor discussed this with her?

Or are her levels higher than they were because she is treating the gluten sensitivity successfully and the higher levels are simply a return to normalcy? If she has been on a gluten free diet, she may be getting better.

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamina.asp

"Vitamin A toxicity can occur with long-term consumption of 20 mg of retinol or more per day. The symptoms of vitamin A overdosing include accumulation of water in the brain (hydrocephalus), vomiting, tiredness, constipation, bone pain, and severe headaches. The skin may acquire a rough and dry appearance, with hair loss and brittle nails. Vitamin A toxicity is a special issue during pregnancy. Expectant mothers who take 10 mg vitamin A or more on a daily basis may have an infant with birth defects. These birth defects include abnormalities of the face, nervous system, heart, and thymus gland. It is possible to take in toxic levels of vitamin A by eating large quantities of certain foods. For example, about 30 grams of beef liver, 500 grams of eggs, or 2,500 grams of mackerel would supply 10 mg of retinol. The livers of polar bears and other arctic animals may contain especially high levels of vitamin A."
http://www.answers.com/topic/vitamin-toxicity-causes-and-symptoms
note: apparently only one person has been known to die of this toxicity and that person lived (and died) on a diet of polar bear liver.

Here is a link to a Celiac disease check list which you can send to your friend.
http://www.celiaccentral.org/About-Celiac-Disease/Diagnosis-Treatment/Celiac-Symptoms-Checklist/138/

"Gluten intolerance can decrease if gluten is eliminated for long periods of time. The damaged intestine can heal and it may not be necessary to eliminate all gluten forever"
http://www.easy-immune-health.com/Gluten-Intolerance-Diet.html  (+ info)

Does celiac disease cause mental disorders or problems?

I have celiac disease. My mom tells me that whenever I eat gluten I become irrational, OCD, panicked, and insane. I know I do too. My dad acts the same way as well when he is on gluten. Is there clinical evidence that celiac disease causes psychological symptoms?
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Yes. There is a substantial body of scientific research that documents significant neurological effects of gluten in many celiac patients.

Below are links to a couple of scientific papers on this subject. Best wishes and good luck.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19018335?ordinalpos=9&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18386731?ordinalpos=3&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum  (+ info)

What Valentines treats can I give my class if one child has Celiac disease?

I would like to give my two-three year old preschool class a yummy treat, but one child has Celiac disease. What candy treat can I pass out on Valentines Day?
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Check out the ingredients in these, but I think you can give out jelly beans, gum drops, gummy worms, etc.

You CANNOT give out malt balls. A person with celiac disease cannot eat anything that contains wheat, barley, or rye (or any of their derivatives).

You might want to contact the parents and check with them. They'll know what is appropriate. They might not want to take the risk of anyone else giving their child food and will offer to make up an appropriate treat bag for you so your student won't feel left out.  (+ info)

Why is the prevalence of celiac disease underestimated?

is it because most people are asymptomatic or that the disease occurs later in life? Or maybe because not many report cases of celiac disease...?

Your help will be much appreciated!
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I think several:
1. in the US the doctors were educated to believe that it was a rare disease. This was erroneous, of course.
2. The symptoms can be subtle and mimic other diseases. Most people are not diagnosed until the develop gastric issues, and even then, most doctors don't automatically think "celiac", they dump it into the lactose intolerance and IBS bucket and move on while the patient suffers and gets more damaged.
3. even the celiac specific dermatitis can be misdiagnosed as eczema, etc. (but most dermatologists do not miss it, but it happens).
4. getting a official diagnosis can be hard IF you are not lucky enough to have your biopsies come in positive. For many docs, that is the deciding factor, no matter what your blood work is saying, is the "gold standard" biopsy. Damage can be patchy, and blood work can be false negative if the person has been on a gf diet for some time.
5.Some people just go gf, refuse a gluten challenge, and live their life gf. That certainly can account for some under reporting. as well as people who simply die of other things and it never gets diagnosed!
Celiac can occur at any time of life.There are baby celiacs, child celiacs, and adult celiacs. It is genetic and hard wired into our systems, when and why it gets triggered, no one really knows, but there are plenty of theories.
Anway, right now "they" think 1 out of every 300 people are celiacs. I bet the number is really much higher!  (+ info)

Do celiac disease people have trouble eating at Chipotle?

I ate at Chipotle last night and got the burrito bol (a burrito without a tortilla) and I got very sick from it the next day (bloating, terrible diahhrea, headaches, irritability). I have celiac disease and I suspect that cross-contamination is rampant there. Do any other celiac disease-sufferers have trouble eating there?
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I have never eaten at a chipotle restaurant but typed in gluten free at chipotle into google search and came up with several articles. The first thing is that they had some memos from chipotle that says you can have everything except burritos on a gluten free diet which by not getting the tortilla i think you get around. You are right about the cross contamination from what I read and they address that by changing gloves if you ask them to.

So you might try again but ask for gloves to be changed and care about contamination of your food with other dinners.  (+ info)

How can I diet when I have Celiac Disease?

WIth Celiac Disease, I'm not allowed to eat gluten and I want to go on a diet to loose weight. Is there a diet for me?
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Hi, the best way to lose weight as a celiac is to simply take out any processed foods and then the usual well balanced meals, counting calories, adding a good exercise routine into your day if your doctor approves it. As we all know, some of our gf options are sometimes loaded with calories, so cutting out processed foods alone usually really helps a lot. Good luck and health to you!  (+ info)

Can a woman who has Celiac Disease have a healthy baby?

Will the baby be healthy? Or does Celiac Disease cause problems?
Should the pregnant mother take any specific medication/suppliment to make sure her baby stays healthy?
Is there anything a mother should or shouldnt do if she has Celiac Disease and is pregnant?
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There are definitely modifications that need to be made. I don't know if you watch House on Fox or not, but that episode with the mom and baby was not very factual. So don't worry about something like that happening.

Sometimes the added stress on the body will make some of the symptoms a bit worse. As far as effects on the baby, the mother should take prenatal vitamins-the prescription kind. When the mother gets them filled, she should ask the pharmacist if they are Gluten free. Sometimes some additives in medications are from wheat, barley, etc.. the bad stuff for people with Celiac Disease. This would be the biggest thing I would tell the mother. But this being said, she should definitely consult with her OB/GYN and/or Gastroenterologist to make sure there are no other reasons why she should not get pregnant.

There is no reason why the baby would not be healthy. Celiac Disease is thought to have a genetic component to it meaning the baby may also have Celiac disease. The good thing, however, is being that the baby will be growing up with a Celiac Disease mom, he or she will probably be used to the Gluten-free diet.

My advise, as I said, would be to talk with the medical team to be sure there are no problems for the mother in having a baby, but Celiac Disease itself does not present specific hazards for the fetus or mother.

Hope this helps, and if this person you are asking about has a minute, I would actually like to talk to them about Celiac and their symptoms and what she did to get diagnosed! Yahoo e-mail [email protected]! Good luck!  (+ info)

Can a person with celiac disease be overweight?

My daughter was just diagnosed. She is 10 years old and is overweight. There are numerous issues that has led me down this path to a holistic doctor seeking reasons for certain behaviors she has. A blood test revealed she was positive for celiac disease but all that I'm reading online tells me celiac people appear almost anorexic at times and that's not in my case.

I'm also questioning a possiblity of yeast overgrowth. Could this have something to do with being overweight?
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Sailor is correct. Nutrient deficiencies can trigger overeating in some celiacs. There are NO "normal" symptoms when it comes to celiac, just general tendencies. If you go to the forum at Celiac.com and read that, you will find that many celiacs can be overweight and have problems with constipation instead of weight loss and the big "D".
I had no GI symptoms, but I had hair loss, restless leg like symptoms, poor night vision,migraines, and osteopenia that was not discovered until after diagnosis.
Take your daughter down to a whole food, as raw as possible, limited diet adding one thing back in at a time, NO SUGAR, low glycemic with all carbs diet. Restrict lactose containing products if she was recently diagnosed (d/t villi damage...lactase is produced in the tips of the villi which she may not have just yet).
Also importantly, there is a teen section on the celiac.com forum to help teens with diet and everything else. She may benefit from talking to other kids in her situation to help her through this!
Tell her I said, "Welcome to the club! and that she is not alone!"
Also, has your entire family been checked for celiac, that means all first degree relatives at the least since this is a genetic based autoimmune disease? If not, get tested asap! Celiac.com also has a lot of good advice on setting up a gluten free house!
Good luck! Hope Sailor and I helped. If you need good meal ideas go to gluten freida, gluten free girl, and gluten free goddess sites.
Happy Healing to your daughter!  (+ info)

What are some solutions for people with Celiac Disease?

What are some solutions for people with Celiac Disease, like how to control cravings of wheat and information on sensible foods for people who have it?
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the cramps in your stomach after eating it control it. Just make sure you eat before you go out. Its a very good diet actually, it made me feel heaps better  (+ info)

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