Celiac Disease

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Latest News
• Symptoms
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Living With
• Related Issues
• Specifics
• Genetics

See, Play and Learn

• Videos and Tutorials

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Women
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Celiac disease is an immune disease in which people can't eat gluten because it will damage their small intestine. If you have celiac disease and eat foods with gluten, your immune system responds by damaging the small intestine. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. It may also be in other products like vitamins and supplements, hair and skin products, toothpastes, and lip balm.

Celiac disease affects each person differently. Symptoms may occur in the digestive system, or in other parts of the body. One person might have diarrhea and abdominal pain, while another person may be irritable or depressed. Irritability is one of the most common symptoms in children. Some people have no symptoms.

Celiac disease is genetic. Blood tests can help your doctor diagnose the disease. Your doctor may also need to examine a small piece of tissue from your small intestine. Treatment is a diet free of gluten.

NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Start Here

• Celiac Disease (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) - PDF
• Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Going Gluten Free? Necessary for Some, Optional for Others (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Latest News

• Where There's Type 1 Diabetes, Celiac Disease May Follow (10/10/2017, HealthDay)

Symptoms

• Symptoms and Causes of Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
• Symptoms of Celiac Disease (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center) - PDF

Diagnosis and Tests

• Antibody Blood Tests (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center) - PDF
• Celiac Disease Diagnosis: Endoscopic Biopsy (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center)
• Celiac Disease Testing (for Health Care Professionals) (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Celiac Disease Tests (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)

Treatments and Therapies

• Treatment and Follow Up (Celiac Disease Foundation)
• Treatment for Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish

Living With

• Celiac Disease Diet: How Do I Get Enough Grains? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• Eating, Diet, and Nutrition for Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
• Follow-Up Testing (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center) - PDF
• Gluten-Free Diet Guide for Families (North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Gluten-Free Labeling of Foods (Food and Drug Administration)
• Gluten-Free Recipes (Celiac Support Association)
• Quick Start Gluten Free Diet Guide for Celiac Disease and Non Celiac Sensitivity (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF
• Restaurant Dining: Seven Tips for Staying Gluten Free (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF
• Sources of Gluten (Celiac Disease Foundation)
• What Can I Eat? (Celiac Disease Foundation)

Related Issues

• Associated Autoimmune Diseases (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF
• Celiac Disease and Thyroid Conditions (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF
• Dental Enamel Defects and Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Dermatitis Herpetiformis: Skin Manifestation of Celiac Disease (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Diabetes and Celiac Disease (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF
• Gluten Sensitivity (Gluten Intolerance Group)
• What People with Celiac Disease Need to Know about Osteoporosis (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Specifics

• Dermatitis Herpetiformis (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Poorly Responsive Celiac Disease (Celiac Disease Foundation)

Genetics

• Genetic Testing (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center) - PDF
• Genetics Home Reference: celiac disease (National Library of Medicine)

Videos and Tutorials

• Celiac Family Health Education Video Series (Children's Hospital Boston)

Statistics and Research

• Celiac Disease Facts and Figures (University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center) - PDF
• Quinoa Well Tolerated in Patients with Celiac Disease (American College of Gastroenterology)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Celiac Disease (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: The DMT1 IVS4+44C>A polymorphism and the risk of iron deficiency...
• Article: Celiac Disease and Autoimmunity - The Missing Ingredient.
• Article: Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac Disease: Causal Association or True,...
• Celiac Disease -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Find a Healthcare Practitioner (Celiac Disease Foundation)
• Find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
• Gluten Intolerance Group
• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Children

• Celiac Disease (Nemours Foundation)
• Pediatric Celiac Disease (North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition)

Teenagers

• Celiac Disease (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Women

• Especially for Women: Could Gluten be Causing Your Symptoms? (Gluten Intolerance Group) - PDF

Patient Handouts

• Celiac disease - nutritional considerations (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Celiac disease - sprue (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Learn about gluten-free diets (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish