<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Hi, Most who have written back about altitude and celiac had never thought about the connection before, but found it interesting that I brought it up since they were folks who started out living at sea level and then moved higher and developed worse symptoms. One person wrote that her mom ends up in the hospital when at high altitudes, and one thought that it was just stress that made things worse when moving higher, another blamed it on relatives trying to cook food their best, but not knowing how. Only one person wrote back suggesting that there was something about the diet or bacteria that would make the difference. After searching these archives and finding a person who posted a similar question back in 1995, and doing reaserch on high altitude and digestion, I am pretty convinced that altitude makes a difference - at least for me. Digestion is definitely impeded at high altitude. People without digestive disorders many times develop gas to foods that they never had problems with before such as garlic. This is partially because of the pressure difference - the gas we normally produce expands at altitude. I starting thinking back on my life - as an athelete, I always competed well when in low altitudes and had a much harder time at higher altitudes. I was OK when going to college in Boston, Seattle, and Anchorage, but had to leave school because I couldnt eat anything when I was in school in the mountains. I attributed it to stress. I lived in Colombia (6,000 ft.) for 2 years during which I got sicker and sicker, but had the hardest time when I was here, on vacation in Quito (almost 10,000 ft.). After moving to Quito, we quickly changed houses, moving into the valley below the city, where I just "felt" better and now I live at almost 8,000 ft. and work at almost 10,000 ft. The last two Christmases I have visited San Antonio, Texas, and been able to eat much more, with many less symptoms. As soon as I return home to Quito, I am again plagued with a big belly, burping for hours on end, the runs, and general difficulties related to digestion. Last year I thought it was a fluke - this year I can't dismiss it. We have made the desicion to move back to sea level, and my husband likens it to a person with asthma living in a smogy city - it just makes sense to leave. I am very excited that maybe I will be able to control my disease instead of my disease controlling me, and I wonder how many other "sensitive" celiacs also live at high altitudes. I hope that someone researchs this in the future, so that we can know if it is an individual thing like altitude sickness, or a more universal difficulty. Thanks for all of your help. Emily Low * Visit the Celiac Web Page at www.enabling.org/ia/celiac/index.html *