What Are The Effects Of Coeliac Disease?

It is important to understand coeliac disease effects when you are first diagnosed, as it will help you to come to terms with what has been happening with your body up to this point, and help you learn how to make changes to your diet and lifestyle that will have a significant, and positive impact on your body and health moving forward. Once you learn what impact gluten is having on your body, and the long-term effects of it, you can begin to adapt to a gluten-free diet, with access to gluten-free products on prescription a fantastic way to transition into this new way of life.

What is coeliac disease?

Coeliac disease is a condition where your immune system attacks its own tissue when you have eaten gluten. Gluten damages your small intestine, preventing your body from taking in nutrients in the proper way. Gluten is found in wheat, barley, and rye, and therefore is present in any food that contains these, such as:

• Breakfast cereals
• Cakes
• Pasta
• Bread
• Biscuits
• Some types of sauces
• Ready meals
• Most beers are made with barley

The effects of coeliac disease

There are a range of coeliac symptoms that can be present in the gut should you eat food that contains gluten. This includes the following:

• Diarrhoea
• Bloating
• Excessive flatulence
• Stomach aches
• Constipation
• Indigestion

Alongside the gut symptoms linked to coeliac disease, there are also other more general symptoms and effects to be aware of, such as:

• Unintentional weight loss
• Fatigue
• Nerve damage
• Infertility problems
• Dermatitis herpetiformis (an itchy rash)
• Ataxia (problems that affect co-ordination, speech, and balance

Are there complications for those suffering with coeliac disease effects?

If you continue to eat gluten when suffering with the above symptoms, either through non-diagnosis or ignoring a diagnosis and refusing to change your lifestyle, there could be further complications that are experienced. For those with mild symptoms who do not know they have coeliac disease, this might make it more likely that the following long-term complications are experienced, purely because they do not yet know there is a problem they need to rectify with their health. Long-term complications from coeliac disease include:

• Osteoporosis (the weakening of the bones)
• Anaemia (deficiency of iron)
• Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia

There are also some less common but serious complications such as certain types of cancers, like bowel cancer, or problems that affect pregnancy such as a low birth weight.

Once you have received your coeliac disease diagnosis and understand the symptoms that you have been suffering from, you can begin to move forward with your life in a positive fashion. Finding gluten-free products on prescription is one of the ways in which you can make this transition a smoother one, especially to begin with. It opens up the options to you for quality gluten-free food and products, at a time when you might not know anything about this area. It shows you that you do not have to worry, that you will find delicious food and alternatives to your staple ingredients, but without gluten, helping you to maintain good health.