<h3>What is celiac disease?</h3> <p>Celiac disease is a chronic (long-term) <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/digestivediseases.html">digestive</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/immunesystemanddisorders.html">immune</a> disorder that damages your small intestine. The damage may prevent your body from absorbing <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/vitamins.html">vitamins</a>, <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/minerals.html">minerals</a>, and other nutrients from the food you eat. This can lead to <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/malnutrition.html">malnutrition</a> and other serious health problems</p> <p>Celiac disease is triggered by eating foods that contain gluten. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and other grains. It may also be in other products like vitamins and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/dietarysupplements.html">supplements</a>, hair and skin products, toothpastes, and lip balm.</p> <p>Celiac disease is different from <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/glutensensitivity.html">gluten sensitivity</a>. Both involve problems with gluten and can cause some of the same symptoms, such as <a href="abdominalpain.html" tid="3061">abdominal (belly) pain</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/fatigue.html">fatigue</a>. But gluten sensitivity does not damage the small intestine like celiac disease does.</p> <p> Wheat allergy, a type of <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/foodallergy.html">food allergy</a>, is also different. With both celiac disease and wheat allergy, your immune system is reacting to wheat. But with wheat allergy, you can have some different symptoms, such as itchy eyes or <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/breathingproblems.html">trouble breathing</a>. And a wheat allergy will not cause long-term damage to the small intestine.</p> <h3>What causes celiac disease?</h3> <p>The exact cause of celiac disease is not known. Research suggests that celiac disease only happens in people who have certain genes and eat food that contains gluten. Researchers are studying other factors that may play a role in causing the disease.</p> <h3>Who is more likely to develop celiac disease?</h3> <p>Celiac disease is more common if you:</p> <ul> <li>Have a family member who has the disease</li> <li>Have <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/downsyndrome.html">Down syndrome</a>, <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/turnersyndrome.html">Turner syndrome</a>, or Williams syndrome</li> <li>Are White</li> <li>Are female</li> </ul> <h3>What are the symptoms of celiac disease?</h3> <p>The symptoms of celiac disease can be different from person to person. Sometimes the symptoms may come and go. Some people may not notice any symptoms.</p> <p>Some of the possible symptoms affect your digestive system. Digestive symptoms are more common in children than in adults. The digestive symptoms include:</p> <ul> <li>Bloating (feeling fullness or swelling in your belly)</li> <li>Chronic (long-term) <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/diarrhea.html">diarrhea</a> or greasy, bulky, unusually bad-smelling stool (poop)</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/constipation.html">Constipation</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/gas.html">Gas</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/lactoseintolerance.html">Lactose intolerance</a> because of damage to the small intestine</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/nauseaandvomiting.html">Nausea and vomiting</a></li> <li>Pain in the abdomen (belly)</li> <li>Weight loss in adults, or not enough weight gain in children</li> </ul> <p>Some people with celiac disease have symptoms that affect other parts of the body, such as:</p> <ul> <li>Fatigue</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/depression.html">Depression</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/anxiety.html">anxiety</a></li> <li>Irritability (in children)</li> <li>Dermatitis herpetiformis, an itchy <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/rashes.html">rash</a> with blisters (mainly in adults)</li> <li>Bone or joint pain</li> <li>Symptoms involving the mouth, such as <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/cankersores.html">canker sores</a> or <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/drymouth.html">dry mouth</a></li> </ul> <h3>What other problems can celiac disease cause?</h3> <p>Over time, celiac disease can cause other health problems, especially if it is not treated. These problems can include:</p> <ul> <li>Malnutrition</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/anemia.html">Anemia</a>, especially iron-deficiency anemia</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/bonedensity.html">Bone loss</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/neurologicdiseases.html">Nervous system problems</a> such as <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/headache.html">headaches</a>, <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/balanceproblems.html">balance problems</a>, or <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/peripheralnervedisorders.html">peripheral neuropathy</a></li> <li>Reproductive problems, such as missed <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/menstruation.html">menstrual periods</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/miscarriage.html">miscarriages</a> in women and infertility in <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/maleinfertility.html">men</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/femaleinfertility.html">women</a></li> </ul> <h3>How is celiac disease diagnosed?</h3> <p>If you have symptoms of celiac disease, your health care provider will look for signs that you might have celiac disease. To do this, your provider will get your medical and family history and do a physical exam.</p> <p>If your provider thinks that you could have celiac disease, you will have some tests. Providers most often use <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/celiac-disease-screening/">blood tests</a> and <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/biopsy.html">biopsies</a> of the small intestine to diagnose celiac disease. The biopsy would be done during an upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy. For this procedure, your provider uses an endoscope (a flexible tube with a camera) to see the lining of your esophagus, stomach, and small intestine. It also allows your provider to take a sample of tissue for a biopsy.</p> <h3>What are the treatments for celiac disease?</h3> <p>The treatment for celiac disease is following a gluten-free diet for the rest of your life. Sticking with a gluten-free diet will treat or prevent many of the symptoms and other health problems caused by celiac disease. In most cases, it can also heal damage in the small intestine and prevent more damage. </p> <p>Your provider may refer you to a registered dietician (a nutrition expert) who can help you learn how to eat a healthy diet without gluten. You will also need to avoid all hidden sources of gluten, such as certain supplements, cosmetics, toothpaste, etc. Reading product labels can sometimes help you avoid gluten. If a label doesn't tell you what is in a product, check with the company that makes the product for an ingredients list. Don't just assume that a product is gluten-free if it doesn't mention it.</p> <p class="">NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases</p>

Celiac disease is a condition in which the immune system is abnormally sensitive to gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder; autoimmune disorders occur when the immune system malfunctions and attacks the body's own tissues and organs. Without a strict, lifelong gluten-free diet, inflammation resulting from immune system overactivity may cause a wide variety of signs and symptoms involving many parts of the body.~Celiac disease can develop at any age after an individual starts eating foods containing gluten. The classic symptoms of the condition result from inflammation affecting the gastrointestinal tract. This inflammation damages the villi, which are small, finger-like projections that line the small intestine and provide a greatly increased surface area to absorb nutrients. In celiac disease, the villi become shortened and eventually flatten out. Intestinal damage causes diarrhea and poor absorption of nutrients, which may lead to weight loss. Abdominal pain, swelling (distention), and food intolerances are common in celiac disease. Inflammation associated with celiac disease may lead to an increased risk of developing certain gastrointestinal cancers such as cancers of the small intestine or esophagus.~Inflammation and poor nutrient absorption may lead to problems affecting many other organs and systems of the body in affected individuals. These health problems may include iron deficiency that results in a low number of red blood cells (anemia), vitamin deficiencies, low bone mineral density (osteoporosis), itchy skin rashes (dermatitis herpetiformis), defects in the enamel of the teeth, chronic fatigue, joint pain, poor growth, delayed puberty, infertility, or repeated miscarriages. Neurological problems have also been associated with celiac disease; these include migraine headaches, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and recurrent seizures (epilepsy). Many people with celiac disease have one or more of these varied health problems but do not have gastrointestinal symptoms. This form of the condition is called nonclassic celiac disease. Researchers now believe that nonclassic celiac disease is actually more common than the classic form.~Celiac disease often goes undiagnosed because many of its signs and symptoms are nonspecific, which means they may occur in many disorders. Most people who have one or more of these nonspecific health problems do not have celiac disease. On average, a diagnosis of celiac disease is not made until 6 to 10 years after symptoms begin.~Some people have silent celiac disease, in which they have no symptoms of the disorder. However, people with silent celiac disease do have immune proteins in their blood (antibodies) that are common in celiac disease. They also have inflammatory damage to their small intestine that can be detected with a biopsy.~In a small number of cases, celiac disease does not improve with a gluten-free diet and progresses to a condition called refractory sprue. Refractory sprue is characterized by chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, poor absorption of nutrients, and an increased risk of developing a type of cancer of the immune cells called T-cell lymphoma.