How can celiac disease be contagious? It is an autoimmune disease.
You can’t “catch” celiac disease, but the number of people with celiac disease is rising. Why?
Is Celiac Disease Contagious?
When I moved to California, neither celiac disease nor the word gluten was common. Other than my family members, I was the only person with celiac disease that I knew. That has drastically changed.
Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition and is not infectious. It can’t spread from person to person. So why are more people being diagnosed with celiac disease? Let’s explore the reasons celiac disease is on the rise.
5 Reasons Celiac Disease Is On The Rise
1. New Data Proves It Is Common
A study was published in 2003 that dramatically changed how we view celiac disease. Prior to this study, doctors were taught that celiac disease was rare, occurring in 1/10,000 people. The 2003 study proved celiac disease was common, showing up in 1/133 people. Today we know that number is closer to 1/100. That means 3.2 million people in the United States alone, have celiac disease. Unfortunately, only 17 percent of them are diagnosed. That leaves 2.6 million people in the US with celiac disease, who don’t know they have it. It is either misdiagnosed as something else, or the symptoms are normalized by the person with it.
When symptoms go on for prolonged periods, people accept them as normal. If they aren’t on a gluten-free diet because they don’t know they have celiac disease, they are at risk for dangerous consequences. This news is even more distressing because it is a disease that is treatable by diet alone.
2. Testing Is Easier
In 1997 one of the tests used today to screen for celiac disease was developed. It was faster, cheaper, and more accurate than prior tests. This made testing easier and more readily available.
3. More Doctors Are Aware Of It
There is still a long way to go regarding educating physicians about celiac disease. But, after the study mentioned earlier, doctors realized that celiac disease was not rare, doctors started considering celiac more frequently in their patients. The research was also showing that celiac disease doesn’t only cause stomach problems. It can present as headaches, nerve problems, joint pain, anxiety, depression, and more. Celiac disease can show up as any of these symptoms with no GI problems at all! Only 30 percent of people with celiac disease actually have GI symptoms at diagnosis.
Education is still lacking in medical schools. Health care providers still do not know the wide variety of celiac symptoms. Doctors rarely consider it without the presence of GI symptoms. This needs to change. Please feel free to send your health care provider the following article if you would like them to learn more.
4. More People Have Celiac Disease
The incidence of celiac disease is increasing, in line with other autoimmune conditions. The number of cases is rising even when factors such as increased testing and awareness are taken into account.
5. Increased Awareness
More people have heard of celiac disease. I have to attribute my “contagiousness” to awareness. Talking to schools, my friends, and their friends is a form of awareness. I also started working with the Celiac Community Foundation of Northern California on an awareness campaign in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2007. We were educating the public and healthcare providers on the topic of celiac disease and gluten/wheat-related disorders. I have to hope that my conversations with people and our awareness campaigns made a difference.
Researchers,non-profit groups, support groups, bloggers, influencers, and the general public, all play a role in increased awareness. If you or a loved one have celiac disease, every time you teach someone how to cook for you, talk to a chef or manager about your needs, you are educating someone. Your child may be their teacher’s first “celiac kid” but they won’t be the last. If we all speak up, speak kindly and advocate, the numbers of undiagnosed will decrease. Be vocal, be kind and teach the world about celiac disease.
Still Work To Do
There is still much work to be done. Remember, estimates predict 2.6 million people in the U.S.have celiac disease and don’t know it. Share your knowledge about celiac disease. Let’s increase the rate of diagnosis. You might be contagious too.
