Celiac Disease or Irritable Bowel Syndrome?

Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS is a very common medical condition, but unfortunately many doctors will misdiagnose patients that actually have celiac disease with IBS. Because IBS is so very common and because many of the symptoms are similar to those of celiac disease, then IBS is often the diagnosis given. The problem is that being treated for the symptoms of IBS will not help you at all with your celiac disease as your digestive system is still being damaged every day.

Although there is more information becoming available about celiac disease, it is still a condition that is difficult to diagnose. Some people live with the disease for years before they finally receive a diagnosis and all the time their body is being damaged.

A person with celiac disease cannot absorb gluten and as a result, every time that they eat food that contains gluten their intestines are being damaged. Over time this damage becomes worse and worse and a person can become very, very sick.

The villi that line the wall of the intestines becomes damaged and flattened and this prevents the body from absorbing nutrients from food. This is why many celiac sufferers become anaemic, are lacking in other nutrients, and struggle to put on weight.

The symptoms of celiac disease are diarrhea, bloating, abdominal pain and weight loss. So as you can see these symptoms can be symptoms of many conditions, with the most common being Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

The only treatment for celiac disease is a gluten free diet and it is very important that one does get a diagnosis as soon as possible. The longer a person continues to eat gluten, the more damage is being done to their intestines, which can cause many problems later in life.

The sooner a person eliminates gluten from their diet the better so that their body can begin to heal and they can start feeling healthy again. Once a person becomes completely gluten free their intestines will begin to heal and their symptoms should begin to disappear.

If you have been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and are being treated for it but are still suffering from intestinal problems, then ask your doctor to look into whether you might have celiac disease. Find out as much information that you can about the disease and talk to your doctor about it.

The disease can be diagnosed with a blood test and there is also now a blood test that can test to see if you carry the celiac gene. There is a lot of information available for you to learn about celiac disease and gluten free living and relief from your symptoms may just be a matter of changing your diet. 

Tags: celiac disease, irritable bowel syndrome