Renew You Challenge

Let’s start this week off right!

Weekly challenge (I mean opportunity!) to help set you off on the right foot and in the right direction for bringing health to your week. You could even add it to your calendar. Join us!

The risk of celiac disease might be lessened in infants who are breast fed, according to a recent study published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Researchers investigated the Bacteroides gut bacteria and genetic predisposition for celiac in breast-fed versus formula-fed infants with at least one celiac parent. Previous studies found breastfeeding to be protective against the development of celiac disease, so researchers wanted to take the studies further.

They found that breastfeeding increased amounts of the bacteria Bacteroides uniformis, a species found to be higher in those infants at a lower genetic risk for celiac. The study involved 75 full term infants, and if confirmed in further studies, lead researcher Yolanda Sanz stated, “We will be able to recommend breastfeeding, and propose dietary intervention trials to modulate the intestinal microbiota in subjects at risk of developing celiac disease, in order to try to prevent its development.”

This week, if you know anyone with celiac or gluten sensitivity who is pregnant or trying to be, pass this info on. If they aren’t sure about breastfeeding, this study might change their mind.

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The far-reaching effects of gluten sensitivity and celiac disease never cease to amaze me. So many conditions outside the gut are triggered by a reaction against gluten inside the gut. A recent study has brought to light one lesser-known effect of celiac disease—infertility.

It has been known for some time now that infertility and recurrent spontaneous abortion is more common among women with celiac disease. And about 4 percent of infertile women have celiac disease!  I wonder how many more of these women may have silent celiac disease or even gluten sensitivity? A large proportion of people with celiac disease are undiagnosed.

A recent study has looked a little closer at infertility and early pregnancy loss, and determined just how this may happen. It turns out that anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies (which are antibodies that the immune system makes against gliadin, the gluten protein) bind to the developing placental lining. This can interfere with proper development of the placenta and fetus.

It is already known that these anti-tTG antibodies can attack other tissues in the body, like the thyroid, pancreatic beta cells or even brain cells. This phenomenon is known as autoimmunity. This study highlights yet one more way in which anti-gliadin antibodies can harm areas of the body that are not in the gut. And it strengthens the evidence that following a gluten free diet can benefit the entire body.

If you suspect you are gluten sensitive, you may want to be tested or try an elimination diet for a few months to see if it helps you.

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I know it seems that I am obsessed with poop—but trust me, all the answers to life’s problems lie in the poop. Well, OK, not all of them, but certainly all digestive ones. A stool test can be the single most important test you can take, for instance when determining celiac disease.

If you are sensitive to gluten this may in fact be the beginning stages of celiac, as they really are one and the same—just different degrees of reaction within the body. Gluten sensitivity implies that a person’s immune system is intolerant of gluten in the diet and as a result forms antibodies or displays some other evidence of an inflammatory reaction. When these reactions cause small intestinal damage (visible on a biopsy), the syndrome is then called celiac sprue, celiac disease, or gluten sensitive enteropathy. Research shows that as many as 30% of Americans are gluten sensitive, and 1 in 225 of those has progressed to the stage of celiac disease. A simple stool test will determine if you are truly gluten sensitive or if you have celiac. You can get the scoop by visiting enterolab.com.

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