Living without gluten

Staff Writer Marta Garcia describes her personal experiences, and those of others, of dealing with Celiac Disease.

 

The day I was diagnosed with celiac disease, about five months ago, I felt sad but relieved. Sad because it meant a lot changes in my life, but relieved because I knew the pain, the nausea and the bloating would eventually go away with the right diet.

Gluten intolerance, diagnosed as celiac disease, is a genetic disorder resulting in intestinal damage from eating gluten, the general name for the proteins found in wheat, rye, oats, barley and triticale, and it can be found in almost all processed foods.

“So, that means I won’t be able to eat Honey Nut Cheerios anymore?” was my first question to the doctor, because I love eating that cereal with my children.

And the answer was “yes.” If you are celiac or have gluten intolerance you won’t be able to eat things like crackers, pasta, cereal and a long list of everyday foods unless you find the gluten-free option.

According to the Celiac Disease Foundation, it affects at least one in 100 Americans.

“I was having stomach aches, vomiting, diarrhea and feeling just sick and tired all the time. For years, I visited an incredible number of doctors, 22 to be exact. No one knew what was wrong with me,” Mary Rowland, a Decatur resident, said. “I was diagnosed 10 years ago with celiac disease and back then it wasn’t that popular and, of course, there were not as many gluten free options as now.”

In the last few years gluten has become a celebrity. “Gluten-free” appears on food labels, diet plans and restaurant menus, and the amount of media coverage of the benefits of avoiding gluten in your diet is extensive.

For Jenny Askew, nutritionist and dietitian, the answer to whether gluten-free diets are a fad or a necessity is simple.

“For some people, a gluten-free diet is a necessity but if it is not medically necessary, it is simply a personal decision,” she said. “The only treatment for celiac disease is to avoid gluten. This means learning about which foods contain gluten and learning how to check for gluten in everything consumed, including medications and supplements. Gluten is present in so many foods, sticking to this diet can be an uphill battle,” she added.

Those with celiac disease and gluten-related disorders, Askew said, must read the ingredients list for everything they consume to make sure the gluten grains and their derivatives are not present.

“My doctor told me that if I can’t verify ingredients for a food item or if the ingredient list is unavailable, I cannot eat it,” Rowland said. “So I usually eat at home before I go to a party or a social event. It’s kind of sad, but what else can I do? Get sick?”

The nutritionist explained that the consumption of gluten sets off an autoimmune response in the body. This response results in damage to the small intestine.

“The damage to the small intestine can create digestive problems, nutrient deficiencies and a host of other symptoms that accompany celiac disease.”  According to Askew, more than 2.5 million Americans have celiac disease and have not been diagnosed. Getting a proper diagnosis is critical due to the complications of the disease and associated conditions that people with celiac disease should be screened for.

“The day I was diagnosed I got my life back,” Rowland said. “There’s no cure for celiac, but I was told that by adopting a gluten-free diet and ridding myself of anything derived from wheat, barley, or rye, my health would return and I could live a normal life. And it did.”