<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> I've just read a posting that asks about how CD affects seratonin in the brain and causes depression, and whether or not the medication for depression, called Paxil, will need to be taken for life. That letter is from Dawn Berinsky, 2/7/98. I can't answer her question, but it made me look back over something I recently read. There is an article in the January 12 1998 issue of the New Yorker entitled Anatomy of Melancholy, by Andrew Solomon. Page 46 ff. In this article, the author is talking about norepinephrine and not seratonin, but perhaps they are related, in that they both are brain chemicals that seem to be necessary to avoid depression. Anyway, I wondered if anyone can shed any light about the following quote and whether or not it in any way relates to CD. It might be helpful to keep in mind that Dr. Fasano has said that there is no such thing as "irritable bowel syndrome." The statement is: "Because the locus coeruleus in the brain, which controls much of norepinephrine production, has a strong influence on lower bowel function, almost half of panic-disorder patients have irritable-bowel symptoms as well [as depression]." In order to understand the above, it is necessary to know that the locus coeruleus is evidently a particular part of the brain, and that norepinephrine production at a certain level is what is necessary to avoid depression...and that panic disorder is a form of depression. I realize that the list owners may think that this question is not directly related to CD, but if you accept what Dr. Fasano has said about irritable bowel syndrome, then it is conceivable that there is a connection between CD and depression. Depression keeps surfacing on the edges of this LIST but is not the stated focus, so it then seems to slide away. Perhaps we are missing an important link between CD and depression, in the same way that the link between diabetes and CD was missed for so long. As symptoms of depression, anger, etc. go along with gluten ingestion in our family, and as I have a sister who says she is not a celiac but who suffers from clinical depression - and believe me, we all suffer with her - I am interested in finding out more about any possible link between the two diseases. I'd like to hear from someone who knows a lot more than I do about this - anybody out there? Help, please. Gayle Kennedy, Ithaca, NY