The Prevalence of Celiac Disease in At-Risk Groups of Children in the United States

[Guest guest]

> SSRI-Research

> Sun, 5 Sep 2004 19:02:48 -0400

> [sSRI-Research] The Prevalence of Celiac

> Disease in At-Risk Groups of Children in the United

> States

>

> [-- another cause of " ADD/ADHD " ]

>

> The Prevalence of Celiac Disease in At-Risk Groups

> of Children in the United States

>

>

http://www.mercola.com/fcgi/pf/2000/mar/5/wheat_intolerance.htm

>

> Celiac disease is a genetic disease that is a severe

> form of gluten intolerance that results in

> intestinal complications. Gluten is the major

> allergy protein in wheat, spelt, barley, rye and

> oats. A study has suggested that celiac disease is

> far more prevalent in the United States than

> previously believed.

>

> Previous studies have shown that about 1 in 250

> people in Europe had the condition, but it was

> thought to affect fewer individuals, about 1 in

> 5,000 in the United States. This study screened 1200

> children aged 6 months to 20 years with blood tests

> and, in some cases, small intestinal biopsy. The

> researchers reported that the prevalence of celiac

> disease in these patients ranged from 1 in 57 to 1

> in 33.

>

> Journal of Pediatrics January 2000 136:86-90

>

>

>

--

>

> Dr. Mercola's Comment:

>

> This study is VERY IMPORTANT! Most all physicians

> are clueless as to how common a problem wheat

> intolerance is. This study shows that by current

> traditional diagnostic methods as many as 1 in 33

> people who exhibit symptoms could have this disease.

> This is a far cry from 1 in 5000, which is why most

> doctors don't consider this.

>

> Because celiac disease has been considered rare in

> this country, it often goes undiagnosed or is

> misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome or lactose

> intolerance. My experience is that the true

> incidence is probably much higher still, perhaps on

> the order of 1 in 10 people. The bulk of us however,

> do NOT benefit from having wheat.

>

> It is one of the primary reasons why people get sick

> in this country. It is amazing how many people's

> chronic health complaints clear up once they stop

> the wheat. Some clinicians believe that no one can

> digest a protein in wheat called gliaden.

>

> Our body attempts to break this protein down by

> attaching an enzyme to it. This gliaden enzyme

> complex in a high percentage of people actually

> stimulates an autoimmune reaction that can cause the

> full blown syndrome of celiac disease, or more

> commonly sub clinical celiac disease which is

> generally characterized by a variety of chronic

> health complaints, most of which are intestinal.

>

> However, I have seen many rashes disappear within

> days, once gluten was stopped.

>

> So, the moral of the story, is that if you have a

> chronic health complaint try avoiding gluten for two

> weeks and see if you improve. That approach is

> certainly far less expensive and more accurate than

> any diagnostic technique currently available.

>

>

>

> [Non-text portions of this message have been

> removed]