Coeliac Disease and Gluten Allergy Symptoms

If you're concerned that you may have developed gluten allergy symptoms, I encourage you to address the matter with responsible action. It may simply be irritable bowel syndrome or some other digestive disorder, but Coeliac disease can have profound and disturbing long-term effects if left untreated.

It is also important that you understand the difference between experiencing Coeliac disease or experiencing wheat allergies.

So what Exactly is Coeliac Sprue Disease?

From a clinical perspective, if you have Coeliac disease (also commonly spelled Celiac disease or known as Coeliac Sprue Disease), your body produces strong antibodies when it attempts to digest the proteins in gluten (gliadin and glutenin). Unfortunately, these antibodies kind of over-react and attack the lining of your intestines.

Over time, these antibodies wear down the lining of your intestines and kill off the villi on your intestinal wall which help you digest and absorb nutrition from your food. Villi are very small hairs which grab nutrition from your food as it passes them.

Essentially, a domino effect begins from increasing malnutrition. It can be frustrating because if you're unaware of gluten intolerance or gluten allergy symptoms you may not realize what's happening. A person with Coeliac disease can eat an incredibly healthy, well-balanced diet yet still manifest the symptoms of someone who is severely malnourished.

How does Coeliac Disease Differ from Wheat Allergies?

Whereas Coeliac disease is a systemic response whose symptoms arise over time, a wheat allergy is an excessive histamine response not unlike hay fever. Mast cells and basophils react to Immunoglobulin E to stir a severe and usually immediate histamine response. If you eat something with a lot of gluten in it and you get hives or your stomach hurts right away, it is likely you have a wheat allergy but it doesn't necessarily mean you have Coeliac disease.

Unfortunately, you will often see the terms wheat allergy and gluten intolerance used interchangeably. This is inaccurate and can be dangerous. You can't just take an antihistamine to treat Coeliac disease. It will do nothing whatsoever and if you try to treat Coeliac disease in this manner you subject yourself to terrible long-term risk.

How Do I Know if I Have Coeliac Disease or Gluten Intolerance?

The only way to know for certain if you have a Celiac disease is with a blood test that can be administered by your doctor. The only way to know for certain whether you are gluten intolerant or not is with a gluten-elimination diet. You have to live completely gluten-free for at least 3 to 4 weeks to see if your conditions improve.

Even if your Coeliac disease blood test returns as negative, you still might suffer from gluten intolerance. This phenomenon is not quite fully understood yet but it is called having a Non-Coeliac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS) and extensive research is currently being conducted on the matter.

I hope this helps clarify this difficult matter for you. Again, if you feel you might have Coeliac disease, I urge you to see a physician and take all necessary precautions.

Gluten Allergy Symptoms
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