COELIAC SYMPTOMS

Gluten intolerance can manifest in many different ways, and at many levels of seriousness. And whether you’ve been diagnosed officially, or you occasionally or regularly experience any of the following, the consumption of gluten and your intolerance to it could definitely be a contributing factor:

• Gastrointestinal problems are often the first to surface, so to speak, after you’ve eaten food containing gluten. Things like nausea, abdominal pain or vomiting, cramping, constipation, or show-stopping diaorrhea, are a part of life for most Coeliacs who inadvertently consume gluten.
• A family history of Coeliacs disease (on either side, for your children).
• Flatulence (tricky to diagnose this one!).
• Inexplicable lethargy, fatigue or a general feeling of weakness.
• If a blood test describes low iron levels (anaemia can be a consequence of the damage to the linings of your intestines caused by undiagnosed Coeliacs disease, and the subsequent failure of your intestines to absorb minerals into your blood normally) or other mineral deficiencies.
• Inexplicable weight loss.
• Bone and joint pain.
• Irritation and/or swelling of the mouth and tongue, or the development and/or recurrence of mouth ulcers.
• A general feeling of distraction, irritability, or a change in your normal sense of mental alertness.
• Skin rashes or unusually easy bruising of the skin (Dermatitis herpetiformis can indicate Coeliac’s disease).
• If your child seems slow in their development, or if puberty seems delayed.
• Inexplicable infertility.
• Liver disease.
• Other auto-immune diseases (Coeliac disease is an auto-immune disease) like auto-immune thyroid condition, or type 1 diabetes.
• Early onset osteoporosis.

These symptoms can be mild or severe, some Coeliac’s don’t display symptoms at all. Which does not mean the damage to the small intestine isn’t continuing to happen. If you are Coeliac you can only reduce and reverse the symptoms by removing gluten from your diet. By removing the cause of the immune reaction (the gluten), your small intestine lining begins to heal, and can repair itself within a couple of weeks.

DIAGNOSIS

You may have noticed that some of the symptoms can quite easily be confused for those related to other conditions like irritable bowel syndrome and other food intolerances. Which makes it difficult for doctors to diagnose it from symptoms alone.

Correct diagnosis occurs in two steps. It begins with blood tests looking for elevated levels of antibodies. The second step involves a biopsy of the small intestine called a gastroscopy.

A gastroscopy involves a tube with a camera going down your throat to have a look at your stomach and small intestine. It takes about 30 minutes and is usually done under light anaesthetic. So it won’t hurt, and you’ll get the information you need about whether and how to change your dietary habits so you never feel sick again.

A slight trade off, but a good deal.  Don’t you think?