It seems that at least one person in ten may suffer from some type of gluten sensitivity. The symptoms may range from trivial to life threatening.
You may be gluten sensitive if gluten provokes your symptoms and if your symptoms diminish or disappear when gluten is withdrawn from your diet only to flare again upon re-exposure to gluten. The likelihood of suffering from some form of gluten sensitivity also increases greatly, if one or both parents have had asthma, some form of gluten sensitivity or other chronic conditions.
Gluten Sensitivity is an under recognized, major and chronic health problem.
Gluten sensitivity is not a black and white situation.
It is not a matter of having full blown Coeliac Disease or nothing. Gluten Sensitivity manifests itself in a host of different ways; the majority of which are listed below. Some people are born Coeliac while in others the condition may develop over decades. Coeliac Disease is a specific manifestation of gluten sensitivity primarily associated with gut damage, diarrhoea and malnutrition. It can affect a small area of the gut or the entire gut.
As with all forms of gluten sensitivity the degree and severity of sensitivity may vary enormously between different individuals. A single biopsy may not always be sufficient to determine or confirm Coeliac Disease; sometimes multiple biopsies may be required, especially if only small, discreet areas of the bowel or gut are affected.
There is also an argument that the definition of Coeliac Disease should extend to include inflammation of the entire digestive tract from the mouth, tongue and throat to the anus.
The concept of gluten sensitivity shifts the focus from the gut to consideration of the widespread and harmful implications of gluten consumption throughout the entire body: the brain, nervous system, skin and digestive system can all be adversely affected either singly or in various combinations. There are consequent deficiency and fermentation rather than digestion problems which may need to be considered. It is also possible to be gluten sensitive without any gut symptoms or damage. The diagnoses and treatment of gluten sensitivity is not straightforward due to the variety of and often overlapping symptoms and the huge variations in sensitivity between individuals.
All forms of gluten sensitivity can be extremely insidious and debilitating with many people tolerating unnecessary ill health for decades. Very often the coeliac and gluten sensitive person exhibits multiple and overlapping symptoms. For example, it’s not unusual for a coeliac to also present with varying combinations of anaemia, dermatitis, poor teeth or osteoporosis, lactose intolerance and/or fructose malabsorption and quite possibly diabetes with the gut damage compounding the deficiency and mal-absorption/fermentation problems.
Other people may experience headaches/migraines, depression, moodiness, crankiness, lack of concentration, psychotic episodes, hyperactivity, aggravated autism, aggravated epilepsy, aggravated Down’s Syndrome, a fuzzy head, ataxia (poor coordination), difficulty in sleeping, lack of energy, tiredness, chronic fatigue, irritable bowel, stomach cramps, bloating, heartburn, reflux, diarrhoea, constipation, mouth ulcers, sore tongue, inflammation of the throat and oesophagus, arthritis, infertility, muscular aches and pains, joint and skeletal aches and pains, poor growth, eczema, dermatitis and psoriasis, conjunctivitis, sinus, poor appetite and eating problems. Sometimes individually, but often in multiple, unpredictable, overlapping combinations. The list of examples provided is by no means exhaustive.
If you experience any of these symptoms continuously you should seek appropriate medical, dietary and nutrition advice. It may well be desirable to trial a gluten free diet for two or three months, under supervision, to see if your symptoms ease but flare again when challenged by a re-exposure to gluten.
In some instances, a gluten free diet may produce an immediate improvement in symptoms and feeling of wellbeing. However, many symptoms may take from 12 – 24 months to fully heal and return to normal and with dermatitis herpetiformis, it may take a decade for the ongoing symptoms to fully clear as the gluten deposits under the skin, which cause the dermatitis, slowly work their way out.
A fair degree of patience and commitment may be required on the road to improved health.
There are no instant solutions and the solution usually involves a lifetime commitment to a gluten free diet.
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