Celiac Disease Symptoms Gluten Sensitivity

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Gluten Free Works Symptom Guide

How can I tell if I have a problem with gluten?

This is a common question people ask in the face of a bewildering array of possible symptoms.

We have developed a Symptom Guide below to help you identify possible symptoms and health problems that you can present to your doctor.

The Symptom Guide as two parts:
1) An extensive drop down list for Members, including description of the problem, its causes, and its responses to the gluten free diet.
2) A static list of common problems associated with celiac disease.

Symptom Guide Drop-Down Menu

This is a unique, thoroughly researched, comprehensive listing of known manifestations of Celiac Disease. This tool allows you to find problems according to the body system affected. Simply select from the drop down menu to find an easy-to-understand description for each manifestation. Coming soon.

Common Health Problems Associated with Celiac Disease

1. DIGESTIVE SYMPTOM LIST

The following symptoms in any combination may be present in about 20% of people with Celiac Disease. They result from inflammation, damage, and interference with normal function caused by gluten exposure in the digestive tract. As you can see, problems can develop not only in the small intestine where inflammation can be intense, but also in other areas such as mucosal tissues of the mouth, esophagus and stomach.

Abdominal distention (bloating)
Abdominal pain
Cheilosis - cracking and oozing at corner of mouth
Constipation
Constipation alternating with diarrhea
Defects in tooth enamel - yellowing, white spots, missing enamel
Diarrhea, acute
Diarrhea, chronic
Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia)
Esophageal motor abnormalities (altered movement of food down the esophagus)
Gas - smelly, lingering
Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD)
Heartburn
Irritable bowel syndrome
Lactose intolerance - gas, bloating, loose stools/ diarrhea
Leaky gut syndrome
Malabsorption of nutrients
Maltose intolerance - gas, bloating, loose stools/ diarrhea
Mouth ulcers
Slow emptying of the stomach
Sore tongue
Steatorrhea - pale, smelly, floating stool that's hard to flush or sticks to toilet
Sucrose intolerance - gas, bloating, mucous in stool
Swollen, bleeding gums
Vomiting

2. BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS

Irritability is an early symptom. It is common in children.

Depression

Apathy

Slow thinking

Scattered thinking

Poor memory

Easy frustration and anger

3. COMMON NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES IN CELIAC DISEASE.

The listing below is provided to help you recognize possible vitamin and mineral deficiencies that result from malabsorption. Any of these deficiencies can be detected by your physician.

MINERALS

Calcium deficiency. Because circulating blood calcium levels are tightly regulated in the bloodstream, hypocalcemia (low blood calcium) does not usually occur due to low calcium intake, but rather results from a medical problem or treatment. Simple dietary calcium deficiency produces no signs at all. Hypocalcemia can cause numbness and tingling in fingers, muscle cramps, convulsions, lethargy, poor appetite, and mental confusion. It can also result in abnormal heart rhythms and even death. Individuals with medical problems that result in hypocalcemia should be under a medical doctor's care and receive specific treatment aimed at normalizing calcium levels in the blood. It is important to consult a health professional if you experience any of these symptoms.

Iron deficiency. Chronic malabsorption can contribute to iron depletion and deficiency by limiting dietary iron absorption or by contributing to intestinal blood loss. Most iron is absorbed in the small intestines. Gastrointestinal disorders that result in inflammation of the small intestine may result in diarrhea, poor absorption of dietary iron, and iron depletion. Vitamin A helps mobilize iron from its storage sites, so a deficiency of vitamin A limits the body's ability to use stored iron. This results in an "apparent" iron deficiency because hemoglobin levels are low even though the body can maintain normal amounts of stored iron.

Signs of iron deficiency anemia include feeling tired and weak, decreased work and school performance, slow cognitive and social development during childhood, difficulty maintaining body temperature, decreased immune function, which increases susceptibility to infection, and sore mouth with swollen, pale tongue.

Magnesium deficiency. Early signs of magnesium deficiency include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. As magnesium deficiency worsens, numbness, tingling, muscle contractions and cramps, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms, and coronary spasms can occur. Severe magnesium deficiency can result in low levels of calcium in the blood (hypocalcemia). Magnesium deficiency is also associated with low levels of potassium in the blood (hypokalemia).

Zinc deficiency most often occurs when zinc intake is inadequate or poorly absorbed, when there are increased losses of zinc from the body, or when the body's requirement for zinc increases. Signs of zinc deficiency include growth retardation in children, hair loss, diarrhea, delayed sexual maturation and impotence, eye and skin lesions, and loss of appetite. There is also evidence that weight loss, delayed healing of wounds, taste abnormalities, and mental lethargy can occur. Since many of these symptoms are general and are associated with other medical conditions, do not assume they are due to a zinc deficiency. It is important to consult with a medical doctor about medical symptoms so that appropriate care can be given.

VITAMINS - FAT SOLUBLE

Vitamin A deficiency results in night blindness as one of the first signs. Vitamin A deficiency contributes to blindness by making the cornea very dry and damaging the retina and cornea. Severe zinc deficiency often accompanies vitamin A deficiency. Zinc is required to synthesize retinol binding protein (RBP) which transports vitamin A. Therefore, a deficiency in zinc limits the body's ability to mobilize vitamin A stores from the liver and transport vitamin A to body tissues.

Vitamin A deficiency diminishes the ability to fight infections. Cells lining the lungs lose their ability to remove disease-causing microorganisms. This may contribute to the pneumonia associated with vitamin A deficiency.

Subclinical forms of vitamin A deficiency is described as low storage levels of vitamin A that do not cause overt deficiency symptoms. This mild degree of vitamin A deficiency may increase children's risk of developing respiratory and diarrheal infections, decrease growth rate, slow bone development, and decrease likelihood of survival from serious illness. Children in the United States who are considered to be at increased risk for subclinical vitamin A deficiency include children with diseases of the pancreas, liver, or intestines, or with inadequate fat digestion or absorption.

A deficiency can occur when vitamin A is lost through chronic diarrhea and through an overall inadequate intake, as is often seen with protein-calorie malnutrition. Low blood retinol concentrations indicate depleted levels of vitamin A. This occurs with vitamin A deficiency but also can result from an inadequate intake of protein, calories, and zinc, since these nutrients are needed to make RBP. Iron deficiency can also affect vitamin A metabolism.

Vitamin E deficiency is usually characterized by neurological problems associated with nerve degeneration in hands and feet. These symptoms are also associated with other medical conditions. A physician can determine if they are the result of a vitamin E deficiency or are from another cause. Blood levels of vitamin E may also be decreased with zinc deficiency.

VITAMINS - WATER SOLUBLE

Folate deficient women who become pregnant are at greater risk of giving birth to low birth weight, premature, and/or infants with neural tube defects.

In infants and children, folate deficiency can slow overall growth rate.

In adults, a particular type of anemia can result from long term folate deficiency.

Other signs of folate deficiency are often subtle. Digestive disorders such as diarrhea, loss of appetite, and weight loss can occur, as can weakness, sore tongue, headaches, heart palpitations, irritability, forgetfulness, and behavioral disorders. An elevated level of homocysteine in the blood, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, also can result from folate deficiency.

Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6) deficiency results in dermatitis (skin inflammation), glossitis (a sore tongue), depression, confusion, and convulsions. Pyridoxine deficiency also can cause anemia. Some of these symptoms can also result from a variety of medical conditions other than pyridoxine deficiency. It is important to have a physician evaluate these symptoms so that appropriate medical care can be given.

Vitamin B12 deficiency occurs as a result of an inability to absorb B12 from food and in strict vegetarians who do not consume any animal foods. As a general rule, most individuals who develop a vitamin B12 deficiency have an underlying stomach or intestinal disorder that limits the absorption of vitamin B12. Sometimes the only symptom of these intestinal disorders is subtly reduced cognitive function resulting from early B12 deficiency. Anemia and dementia follow later.

Characteristic signs, symptoms, and health problems associated with B12deficiency include anemia, fatigue, weakness, constipation, loss of appetite, and weight loss. Deficiency also can lead to neurological changes such as numbness and tingling in the hands and feet. Additional symptoms of B12 deficiency are difficulty in maintaining balance, depression, confusion, dementia, poor memory, and soreness of the mouth or tongue.

Signs of vitamin B12 deficiency in infancy include failure to thrive, movement disorders, delayed development, and megaloblastic anemia.

Source:
Vitamins and Minerals. USDA, Food and Nutrition Information Center. www.nal.usda.gov/fnic.