Celiac Disease Poses Greater Mortality Risk Than Previously Thought

Can you imagine not ever tasting the cheesy, saucy flavoring of the greatest American meal, pizza? What if you were never able to eat grandma’s delicious homemade chocolate chip cookies? This is the life of a person who has Celiac Disease. They have to be aware of the nutritional ingredients of everything they eat.

Celiac Disease is a lifelong, digestive disorder that affects both children and adults. When people with Celiac Disease eat foods that contain a type protein called gluten it causes their immune system to respond by attacking the small intestine. It creates an immune-mediated toxic reaction that eats away the intestinal villi, which in turn inhibits the absorption of important nutrients and denying the body of nourishment. Celiac Disease, if left undiagnosed or untreated, can lead to weight loss, anemia, osteoporosis, infertility, neurological issues and an increased risk of cancer.

To determine the risk of death of people with Celiac Disease(CD), data has been analyzed from biopsies collected from 46,121 Swedish patients collected from July 1969 to February 2008. In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association 29,096 of those patients had been diagnosed with CD, while 13,306 had inflamed small intestines. Also 3,719 had latent CD, which for blood antibodies but had no signs of damage to the body.

These patients were followed for about seven to nine years. During that time 3,049 patients with CD died, 2,967 with inflammation died, and 183 among the latent group died. According to records of the Swedish Total Population Register, all three groups had a higher risk of death compared to a matched control group. There was a 35% increased risk for the latent CD group, a 39% increased risk for those with CD, and a 72% increased risk for the patients with inflammation.

The authors wrote, “In conclusion, we found increased (risks) of deaths in individuals with biopsy-verified celiac disease, inflammation, and latent celiac disease, although absolute risks were small. Individuals undergoing small-intestinal biopsy in childhood had increased (risks) for death. Cardiovascular disease and malignancy were the main cause of death in celiac disease.”

One of the explanations proposed for the increased mortality rate for those with inflammation may be because they weren’t told to follow a gluten-free diet, which leads to normalization of the disease. This raises the importance of doctors diagnosing the disease. It also suggests that more attention should be focused on the lesser degrees of CD, including inflammation and gluten sensitivity.

According to the Celiac Sprue Association, about 1 out of every 133 people have CD, but less than 3% have been diagnosed. A strict gluten-free diet is the only treatment for the disease, and when undiagnosed this cannot be enforced. Ingestion of gluten in any form can trigger CD to become active.

link to article: http://www.healthnews.com/disease-illness/celiac-disease-poses-greater-mortality-risk-than-previously-thought-3687.html

Kelli Martinez
VTPP 434-502