<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

A newsletter was in my inbox yesterday: The Newport Natural Health Letter.
It was nothing I recall signing up for but I was pleased to see that the
headline referred to celiac disease.  I’ve cut and pasted the text below
along with just one of the sidebars.  In the past I’ve had trouble
forwarding things like this because of the html format so I eliminated most
of the formatted copy.  It was also too big so I split into 2 parts.  I hope
it will come through to you.  In a couple of places there’s a link to a 21
page report that is excellent and would be a very nice guide for a newbie in
particular.
Mary in upstate NY (where there’s 3 inches of snow on the ground this
morning!)
Dear Reader, 

Like so many people, you might be wondering why there are so many
"gluten-free" products in supermarkets these days. The reason is simple: an
explosion in the number of people who have been diagnosed with Celiac
Disease, an autoimmune disorder that is characterized by an intolerance to
gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. 

Now, you might be thinking something like, "Intolerance to wheat? That's
crazy. Wheat's a whole grain, and those are healthy -- everyone says so.
This must be a mistake."

Believe me, I was skeptical myself at first. But I've dealt with hundreds of
people who discovered that gluten was making them sick. Kara and her
daughter, Isabelle, are perfect examples.

Kara brought little Isabelle to my office when she was only three years old.
Isabelle was a sweetheart, but small for her age and a very restless girl,
unable to pay attention to anything for more than a few minutes. When Kara
and I discussed her daughter's medical history, I was surprised to hear such
a long list of health issues for someone so young. Obviously, Attention
Deficit Disorder (ADD) was disrupting Isabelle's life, but it seemed that
digestive disorders also were causing problems, including stomachaches,
vomiting and diarrhea -- alternating with constipation. I also was concerned
about her being on the low end of the growth charts, more in keeping with a
two-year-old than a child about to turn four.

Following recommendations from the pediatrician, psychiatrist and
gastroenterologist, Isabelle was taking several medications, none of which
seemed to be helping. "I'm at my wit's end," Kara announced. "We are so
careful about our diet -- very little sugar or processed foods, no fast
foods, only whole grains, lean meats and organic fruits and vegetables. But
no matter what we do, Izzy just keeps getting worse. Her Sunday school
teacher recommended you, but I can't imagine what you're going to do. The
poor child has had every test known to man and nothing helps." 

I asked Kara if she herself had any health problems and she shrugged. "Not
really. I worry about Izzy too much, that's all." And then she confided that
she did experience uncomfortable bloating and flatulence after most meals --
"But that's just embarrassing, not a health issue." 

Really? To me, seeing a mother and daughter with gastrointestinal problems
definitely was a health issue. Izzy's blood test for Celiac Disease came
back positive, as did a biopsy of her small intestine. I also suggested Kara
be tested as well as Celiac Disease is a genetic condition. Again, both came
back positive. 

"I've never even heard of Celiac Disease," Kara told me later. "And I don't
think any of the doctors we saw had either. It's such a relief to know
what's wrong. Now we can do something about it." 

Celiac Disease: A Silent Epidemic

One of the most startling pieces of medical news I've seen lately came in
the form of a large study, showing that earlier estimates of the number of
Celiac patients were far too low. Instead of the original 1 in every 10,000
Americans, the actual number of people with Celiac Disease is closer to 1 in
every 133! 

For Celiac Disease sufferers, even a tiny amount of gluten triggers a
reaction that tramples the tiny, hair-like villi lining the small intestine,
making it difficult for them to absorb nutrients. So, an individual with
Celiac Disease could eat the healthiest diet in the world, but end up with
malnutrition. No wonder there are between 250 and 300 different symptoms of
Celiac Disease, ranging from digestive woes, like bloating, heartburn,
diarrhea, constipation and gas to skin disorders, cancer, diabetes,
neurological difficulties, early osteoporosis, fatigue and bone or joint
pain. Not surprisingly, in children, Celiac Disease usually is marked by
developmental problems, such as failure to grow and/or digestive issues --
again due to malabsorption. Oddly, many people with Celiac Disease have no
symptoms ... yet. Or they may be misdiagnosed with something like irritable
bowel syndrome or indigestion, without realizing that there's a much more
serious condition lurking in the background. 

More Reasons to Get Rid of Gluten 

In addition to Celiac Disease, there's gluten sensitivity and/or
intolerance, usually indicated by an undesirable reaction to gluten. Instead
of Celiac symptoms, a sensitive individual may experience mood swings,
depression, difficulty concentrating or changes in behavior. Experts
estimate that as many as 20 million Americans who do not have Celiac Disease
are sensitive to gluten. 

In addition, a separate disorder -- wheat allergy -- can cause everything
from skin rashes to asthma. Wheat allergy is thought to be far less common
than Celiac Disease or gluten sensitivity, but it can lead to
life-threatening consequences, including anaphylactic shock. 

Although there's no cure for Celiac Disease, it's possible to avoid symptoms
by eliminating all gluten from the diet. Like any major dietary shift, this
may seem overwhelming at first. But it can be done -- trust me. After some
experimentation, people do learn how to avoid gluten. And the best part is
that once they discover how much better they feel living gluten-free, they
wish they'd done it long ago. 

"New and Improved" Wheat Really Isn't

How did a staple food like wheat turn out to be the enemy? After all, wheat
is a complex carbohydrate. It is exactly the type of food we've been told
for years was a healthful alternative to simple carbs. In the case of wheat,
part of the problem has to do with factory agriculture -- or Big Farm, as I
often call it. In the rush for more, more, more -- whether it's heftier
heifers, chunkier chickens or whopping wheat harvests -- scientists have
manipulated diets and genetic codes, creating "food" that is a distant
relative of the original. 

Our bodies might be able to digest the gluten in wheat that was grown 100
years ago, but not the super-duper, genetically modified (GM) gluten
available today. So, although Celiac Disease has been around for centuries,
the fact that it suddenly has become so common could be due to the genetic
"improvements" in wheat. Just one of those alterations, for example, has
made wheat more potent than pure table sugar when it comes to raising blood
sugar levels!



*Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*
*******
To unsubscribe, email: mailto:[log in to unmask]
*******