The test results were in. “Alex, can you come here?” my mother called. She had already begun to cry. Alex came into the room and sat on the couch. He already knew what was going to happen. He has been mentally preparing himself for this moment for weeks now. I was sitting at the computer in the corner while Alex, my other brother and parents sat down. My father had already told me Alex’s results were positive earlier in the day, so it wasn’t going to be as big of a surprise to me. But I was still nervous for how everyone was going to react.
My father sighed a heavy sigh. “You’re positive,” my father told Alex. “You have celiac.” He tried to hold back the tears but he could not. Alex instantly started to cry, and when he did, my mother cried with him. It was strange though. Usually when Alex cries, he whines and is loud. But this time he was silent. He didn’t make any noises but tears still slowly crawled down his eleven year old face. I didn’t know what to do. Nothing I could have said would have made the situation better, so I just sat there in silence. But the reality was, Alex’s life was going to change forever.
Alex was diagnosed with celiac disease. Celiac is a digestive disease that damages the small intestine and interferes with the body’s absorption of nutrients from food, more specifically, gluten products (Celiac Disease). Some common symptoms are diarrhea, abdominal pain, and bloating after eating gluten (mayoclinc.com). However, in Alex’s case, he was asymptomatic, meaning he had no symptoms. The only reason we found out he had celiac was because a simple blood test came back with suspicious levels of gluten. After that he was tested with a biopsy. When the biopsy came back positive, Alex’s diagnosis was confirmed.
For the rest of his life, Alex cannot eat anything containing gluten. After we broke the news to Alex, my family and I talked for a few hours about how life was going to change. My mother was particularly upset. How was a parent supposed to deny a child food that kids love, like pizza or cookies? Because Alex’s body can no longer tolerate gluten products, we would now have to buy gluten free breads and other products as well as regular bread for the rest of us.
A few weeks after the diagnosis, we scheduled a meeting with a nutritionist to talk about the changes Alex would have to make in his eating habits. She was very helpful, informative, and tried to make the situation as best as it could be. As my family squeezed into her tiny office, the nutritionist explained the reason why Alex could no longer eat gluten. She talked about how the villi in his small intestine are flattened when they should be standing strait up. In a healthy human, nutrition from food is absorbed into the bloodstream through these villi. When the villi are not erect they cannot absorb the nutrients found in gluten that the body needs. In fact, when someone with celiac consumes gluten it actually damages the small intestine (Celiac Disease 101).
The nutritionist went on to talk about everything Alex could and could not eat. To lighten the situation, she joked about how there is such thing as gluten free beer. But she really did this to show how his life will be different, yet he could still live and socialize like other people. One thing that she emphasized was how my family had to now be cautions of cross contamination. We had to make sure Alex did not eat any gluten products accidently. For example, if I butter a piece of toast, Alex cannot use the same butter on his piece of gluten free toast. Not only could he not eat anything containing gluten, but also he could not eat anything made in a factory where gluten products were also processed. We now have to read each food label very carefully to make sure there is no cross contamination. She later talked about how celiac is hereditary. Because Alex was asymptomatic, if anyone else in my family has it, we would also be asymptomatic. 5% to 22% of celiac patients have an immediate family member who also has celiac (Celiac Disease Facts & Figures). So naturally, I had to get tested myself.
About two weeks after I got my blood tested, my results came back negative. I was relieved but even though I don’t have celiac now, it is possible I could develop the disease later in life. Every five years I have to get my blood drawn and tested for celiac disease. I encourage everybody to get tested for celiac disease. Because the symptoms of celiac are common in other sicknesses, 95% of celiacs are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed with other conditions (Celiac Disease Facts & Figures). It can potentially be a life saving discovery if your test comes back positive. The number of people that are diagnosed with the disease is growing. I cannot figure out why doctors do not test patients’ blood for celiac during their regular checkups. The disease seems common enough that doctors should be worried about their patents having celiac. If your doctor does not do a blood test for celiac on their own, you as the patient should request it.
After living with somebody with celiac, I realized the disease is not as bad as it sounds. Living with celiac is very manageable. Calling it a “disease” is a bit harsh; it is more of an inconvenience than anything. The key thing that a celiac patient needs to do in order to remain healthy is to maintain a gluten free diet. What many people do not realize is that there are many products that are gluten free without being specially made. For example, anything with rice, nuts, or corn is safe to eat (Celiac Disease 101).
As the nutritionist said to Alex, “If it grows in the ground or on a tree, you can eat it. Except grain.” As of January 1, 2006, the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) require all food labels to clearly identify wheat and other common food allergens in the list of ingredients. The FALCPA also required the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to develop rules for the use of the term “gluten free” on product labels (Celiac Disease). There are plenty of products out there that are specially made to be gluten free. For example, Betty Crocker makes gluten free cookie and cake mix. A large majority of restaurants have gluten free menus that are available on request as well. Living with a gluten free diet is not hard, just different.
For most people, following a gluten free diet will stop symptoms, heal existing intestinal damage, and prevent further damage. Within weeks of starting a gluten free diet these improvements will start. The small intestine is usually healed between six and eighteen months (Celiac Disease 101). If your not diagnosed, Celiac disease can lead to a number of other disorders including infertility, reduced bone density, type 1 diabetes, neurological disorders, some cancers, and other autoimmune diseases (Celiac Disease Facts & Figures).
More and more people in the United States are diagnosed with celiac disease every day. More than 2 million people in the US alone have the disease. That is about 1 in 133 people (Celiac Disease). Getting your blood tested is the smart and easy thing to do. Just like Alex, anybody could be asymptomatic. I encourage everybody to get his or her blood tested for the disease. If doctors refuse to test people during regular check ups, than the public should know enough about celiac and worry about the consequences of it going undiagnosed. As stated earlier, as simple blood test is all that is needed. Being diagnosed can potentially save your life.
Works Cited
"Celiac Disease 101." Celiacdisease.net. The University of Chicago. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
"Celiac Disease." Mayoclinic.com. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 11 Dec. 2010. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
"Celiac Disease." National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. Sept. 2008. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
"Celiac Disease Facts & Figures." Celiaccentral.org. Celiac Disease Symptoms and Gluten-Free Diet Information. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
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