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

In response to my mother in law's friend who had the following
situation:

>>.............suffering with ulcerated colitis for
>>years now and after a colon biopsy(sp?) all the doctors tell her is
>>she has ulcerated colitis but nothing they give her seems to help.
>>She gets diarherra at the drop of a hat and sometimes cannot leave
>>her house for days because of it.  I suggested she ask the gastro
>>guy about celiac and he could not give her a straight answer.

Thank you for all your input.........
Aside from many of the people who reminded me that celiac can be
diagnosed at any age and not just in children, here are the remaining
responses:

****************************************************
I had ulcerative colitis at age 12.  It did calm down and was
diagnosed with IBS for 20 yrs.  At age 32 I had a biopsy for celiac.
First doctor said the test was a low positive, second doc said neg,
third doc yelled at me for not staying on the diet.  Told me I had
celiac and must follow the diet for life. It took awhile but after
being on the diet all my IBS symptoms were gone.

I can't cite anything medical, but I can tell you from my own personal
experience that I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in 1992. The
biopsies weren't extremely conclusive, but it was the best thing they
could come up with. They treated me with UC meds, and I ultimately
ended up on steroids, which put whatever I had into remission for a
while. I am a self-diagnosed celiac, but I can tell you that my
symptoms disappeared miraculously as soon as I went gluten-free, and
I am now able to tolerate dairy, which I hadn't been able to do for
years.

I have been a diagnossed Celiac for 12 years. The Doctors finally came
to the conclusion that the diet didn't calm down the ulcerations in my
small intestine. In July he gave me a large dose of prednisone and
tapered it down till now I am on 10 mg a day. It took care of the
ulcerations, increased my appetite, and allowed me to drink juice that
I was not able to drink before. I am considering eating some fruit,
but don't have the nerve yet.

The best way to screen for celiac is with a blood test.  Not all labs
are reliable with the test, but I suggest your friend call IMMCO Lab
at 800-537-8378 in Buffalo, NY for a specimen kit.  She will need to
have her

Two sites with vast information:
www.niddk.nih.gov/health/digest/pubs/celiac/index.htm
www.celiac.org/happen.htm
www.aafp.org/afp/980301ap/pruessn.html

 It does sound as though the problem could be something besides celiac
though.  If it is her lower bowels giving her trouble, since celiac
affects the upper intestine.  Have you ever heard of Crohn's Disease?
It causes an inflammation of the lower intestines.  My mom has it and
it is a lifelong condition, much like celiac disease.  It is also an
auto immune disorder.


Jenny Cronin
Shorewood,Il