Gluten-Free Tidbets

Celiac disease and Type 1 Diabetes

Source: CDF newsletter

The question has been raised - is there a relationship between celiac disease and type 1 diabetes?

The answer is yes. This association specifically involves type 1 diabetes which is insulin-dependent diabetes. This type of diabetes is the result of an autoimmune process. In diabetes, the body identifies the pancreas as foreign and attacks by producing antibodies directed against it. The antibodies travel through the bloodstream and damage the pancreas so that it cannot make insulin and the patient develops type 1 diabetes. This results in the patient needing to administer insulin to themselves on a daily basis and testing their blood sugar.

In celiac disease the lining of the small intestine reacts to the gluten that comes through the digestive tract and attacks the villi and damages it. That leads to an inability to absorb nutrients (malabsorption) and the patient develops malnutrition. This condition can cause a wide variety of symptoms where body systems malfunction and in some extreme cases - develop debilitating results such as miscarriages, osteoporosis or cancer. Celiac disease is also an autoimmune disease. Antibodies to the gluten will develop in the blood, but the damage is done to the small intestine. The only treatment for celiac disease is the gluten-free diet. When the patient adheres to a strict gluten-free diet, that gives the villi an opportunity to heal and begin absorbing again.

In general autoimmune diseases tend to occur in clusters and approximately 6% of all patients with type 1 diabetes have celiac disease. It is important to keep this association between the two diseases in mind when being diagnosed with one or the other.

-Beth Hillson Weekly Newsletter, August 15, 2012