A Beginner's Guide to Celiac Disease

After diagnosis and a switch to a gluten-free diet it may be tempting to think that everything will be fine now. But like every other chronic illness, celiac disease needs to be monitored for a number of reasons. There are some secondary diseases and disorders that can come along with celiac disease, so it’s important that if prolonged periods of the things like gas, bloating and diarrhea, that led to a suspicion of celiac rebound it’s addressed immediately to make sure that management of the disease it going well. Sometimes switching to a gluten-free diet doesn’t afford one the amount of nutrition the body really needs. If things such as fatigue occur often or there is unintended weight loss a physician should be consulted as soon as possible to make sure that sufficient nutrition is being obtained, and if it’s not, to work on a new treatment plan to manage the disease.

Things to Understand

One of the most important things to remember about celiac disease and living gluten-free is that it’s not merely a fad. People with celiac disease can become extremely ill and untreated celiac disease has to potential to be life threatening because patients can’t get the nutrition that their bodies need to survive. Celiac disease is also different than having a gluten sensitivity, people with a gluten sensitivity can have gluten though it will lead to being bloated, and otherwise uncomfortable but they will still get the nutrition that their bodies need. Going forward if a celiac disease is suspected, remember that a full life can be lived if caught in time and dietary changes are made.