Celiac disease is an inherited autoimmune disorder that usually affects several organs in the body before diagnosis and treatment. When a person with celiac disease consumes any food, beverage, or medication containing wheat, barley, rye, and sometimes oats, their immune system is "triggered" and responds by damaging the lining of the intestinal tract. As a result, the absorption of nutrients is altered, and the risk of developing other autoimmune disorders, infertility, miscarriage, neurological conditions, osteoporosis, and certain types of cancer is increased. The symptoms of untreated celiac disease may involve the intestines (such as constipation, recurrent abdominal pain, bloating, diarrhea, weight loss, lactose intolerance, malnutrition) or seem to not involve the intestines (anemia, fatigue, muscle cramps, bone and joint pain, mouth ulcers, irritability, seizures, depression). Some people have no symptoms whatsoever. Lactose intolerance is often discovered when a diagnosis is made, and typically gets better after treatment. Blood screening is usually the first step in making a diagnosis. The diagnosis can be confirmed by conducting an upper endoscopy (esophagogastroduodenoscopy, EGD) to look at the stomach and first part of the small intestine, with biopsy samples. The disease can develop at any point in life from infancy to late adulthood. The cause is unknown. There is no known cure at this time but there is an effective treatment -- the gluten-free diet. This diet, when followed stringently, is effective because it eliminates the "triggers," thereby preventing symptoms of the disease.
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