Celiac Disease, in the traditional sense, may be thought of as “The End of the Road” of Gluten Sensitivity; minor to major damage to the villi has progressively occurred over a long period of time causing significant symptoms and maladies perhaps on multiple systems in the body or perhaps NO SYMPTOMS at all!
The "gold standard" for diagnosing CD is a positive endoscopic biopsy to see if the villi in the small intestine are damaged (villous atrophy). If there is villous atrophy one is diagnosed with Celiac Disease, even without symptoms. The absence of symptoms speaks to the increasing health risks and damage that is ongoing due to this silent Celiac Disease.
Celiac Disease has a genetic component. If one is diagnosed with CD, doctors in the know will recommend that parents, siblings, and children of that person be screened.
CD is an AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE
CD is caused by an INTOLERANCE to GLUTEN
CD is NOT an ALLERGY
2. NON-CELIAC GLUTEN INTOLERANCE (GI)
There is a large population of ailing folks with Non-Celiac Gluten Intolerance (GI) that are adversely affected by gluten; these people test negative on the tTG and/or the EMA blood tests (often only the tTG is given) and negative on the endoscopy, which is the ‘gold standard’ for diagnosing CD. So, if they do not have intestinal damage (flattened villi) they may be informed that they do not have Celiac Disease. They may then be handed a prescription for the rest of their life or may be told to see a shrink for their “belly aching” complaints. Does this have a familiar ring to it?
The traditional "gold standard" of needing an endoscopic biopsy (checking for villous atrophy-gut damage) to be diagnosed as having CD is becoming outdated as better, more sensitive tests are recognized and as the view of CD is broadened to encompass more than just gut damage.
Those with Non-Celiac Gluten Intolerance are basically not being addressed by traditional medicine. They often are not being offered the antigliadin antibody (AGA) blood tests (see: Traditional Testing and Progressive Testing). Huge numbers of ailing people are being missed because of inadequate testing protocols.
|