<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Because Denial is not a river in Egypt? :) most people are sadly enough in denial. My mother is one of them :( Another issue is (my mother says this) is it is to much work or they just can live without a certain food.. It is very sad -once you remove the offending foods -you do start to feel better.. **You can bring a horse to water -but you can make them drink* I don't know. Good question. Please let me know when you find out. My son will hardly speak to me because I "accused him" of having this illness, he said I was tiresome and I told him he was immature and adolescent. I have even wondered if the gluten has already started to destroy his brain. He has a Phd. and teaches at a major university. It is of course out of my hands right now and I refuse to get near the issue any more but I am still curious. Do you suppose it is arrogance that closes the ears (and the mind)? They live for McDonalds, Pizza Hut and Twinkles and can't imagine life without them because the diet stinks and they know it There is a simple answer for your question. It is impossible to believe, that is anything wrong with bread. We worship it, we pray for it, we working to put bread on our table. Sorry Susan, this must be only in our head. Would be so dangerous, why would most medical doctors ignoring it. It is all mentally. Please just take care of your health and live me alone! That kind of answers I getting from my immediate family and from my adults kids. Hope that would be good enough explanation. Was good enough for me, so I just taking care of my health and live them alone. Even some restaurants share opinion, that it is all in our head. Yes Susan, it is cruel world up there. Have a nice evening and live those people alone. You will become an annoying woman and nobody will like you. I'm going to forward this on to my husband, maybe..... Susan- Hello! I have got to tell you in my family my mother finally was tested (blood) . My Brother simply refuses to get tested and my dad passed away so we will never know about him. I know before my mom was tested she was saying I know I don't have it and even if I do I will eat some gf thing but never give up my bread. I think that most people think that being celiac is the end of the world! Most people hear the word "disease " and think GOD knows what! Ingnornce plays a big factor. Hope this helps My Dad is like this, even though my son and I both have this sensitivity. They don't want to know they have a disease and they don't want to change their diet. You gotta admit wheat is a biggie. Sticking ones head in the sand never got one well though. It's probably like trying to get an alcoholic to face their problem. They have to decide to do it on their own. Very frustrating though! based on my experiences with diagnosis and with change (life change, career change, growth-change, limitations, etc.), i would say that the idea of CHANGE is terribly, profoundly, awfully, painfully scary for most folks. when i was diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome, i actually spent two years mourning the inevitable change that this would mean for my life. i had been suffering, yes, but i didn't want to learn that my suffering was REAL. that it had a NAME. that i was SICK. Same with Celiac. even moreso, I didn't want to have to CHANGE my life. I didn't want to take medication. I didn't want to give up my favourite foods, or take better care of myself. I wanted to feel better without making any effort. Sure, it sounds ridiculous, but it is every inch true. Once you learn that you are sick, your entire life changes. Most people aren't ready for that. Most people don't want to accept the responsibility that it entails. It takes time to want to heal, in my experience. I totally agree with you - my sister (who never could conceive and is on prozac - or a like anti-depressant - but no diarrhea) and my brother (who has so much wrong with him - but no diarrhea) and my father - who got so sick and ended up dying from lymphoma - won't get tested. It's called denial - nothing wrong with me. I had diarrhea for over 5 years and I was tested for everything but cd - and I told my family doctor what happened to my father - no one really wants to "go" there. All I can say is that I am glad I pushed my family doctor to "go" there. It's made so much difference in my life - I think the thought of NOT eating bread and a special diet seems like so much trouble (and initially it is hard) - so people don't want to think about it. Good luck with everything - and thanks for posing the question. Most people would rather have something to complain about, and if they know what is the problem, then they can work with it and rectify it themselves. My brother, and sister and their children all have the same hereditary syndrome that myself and my 3 sons have, but they refuse to be tested for it. The only thing is that they should have their heart tested every year, to watch for an aortic valve enlargement. No sir, they do not care! So I cannot help them, if they decide not to be helped. My own son has Celiac, but refuses (at age 26) to go on the diet, would rather suffer a few days every few weeks with the bathroom runs than change his life pattern. So be it, he is an adult, and I can only suggest. THEY DON'T WANT TO BELIEVE THEY COULD HAVE IT(DENIAL) AND FEAR I think celiac is still viewed as a "Disease" and the diet looks like "I have to give up all the foods I like". It's as much a denial reaction as anything. Diabetics go through this in a different way , but still go through denial phase. I don't want to Know. =Denial. Anyway, my theory is that they do not want to mess with the diet. I am certain that my sister would have rushed out and gotten tested (she lives from appointment to appointment, test to test, prescription to prescription) IF IT WOULD RESULT IN A PRESCRIPTION. People want a quick answer and an easy cure, they do not want to stop eating bread and donuts...(and knowing that there are gf alternatives has no appeal whatsoever - people are basically lazy and do not want to mess with their regular routine beyond swallowing an extra pill or possibly having a one-time surgery cure. on to part 4.... *Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*