a brief explanation of coeliac disease

In case you are using this book to cook for a friend or family member who has coeliac disease, or if you are newly diagnosed, I thought a brief overview of what it means to be coeliac might be helpful.

According to the HSE, coeliac disease is a common digestive condition where a person is intolerant (has an adverse reaction) to the protein gluten. If someone with coeliac disease is exposed to gluten, they may experience a wide range of symptoms and adverse effects, including:

• diarrhoea

• bloating

• abdominal pain

• weight loss

• failure to grow at the expected rate

• malnutrition

Coeliac disease is an auto-immune disease, which means that the body’s immune system attacks itself. When people with this condition eat gluten, this results in damage to the lining of the small intestine, which stops the body properly absorbing nutrients. The symptoms of coeliac disease can range from very mild to severe.

Gluten is a protein that is found in the following cereals:

• wheat

• barley

• rye

• oats (only gluten-free pure oats are suitable for coeliacs and then only after the first year and with monitoring by health professionals, as up to 5% of coeliacs may not be able to tolerate even pure oats)

During the 1980s, before advances in testing for coeliac disease were made, the condition was mistakenly thought to be rare.

However, coeliac disease is now known to be a common condition that affects approximately 1 in every 100 people. Women are two to three times more likely to develop coeliac disease than men. Cases of coeliac disease have been diagnosed in people of all ages.

In some cases, coeliac disease does not cause any noticeable symptoms, or it causes very mild symptoms. As a result, it is thought that at least 50% or possibly as many as 90% of cases are either undiagnosed or misdiagnosed as other digestive conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

The cause or causes of coeliac disease are unknown, but it is thought to be associated with a combination of genetic and environmental factors. (www.hse.ie/eng/health/az/C/Coeliac-disease)