Nutritional Management of Celiac Disease

Abstract

Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by an immune response to gluten peptides in wheat, barley, and rye. The diagnosis of celiac disease is confirmed by three important characteristics: consistent symptoms, positive celiac-specific serology, and small intestinal biopsy findings of inflammation, crypt hyperplasia, and villous atrophy. CD may present with overt gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhea (or constipation), weight loss, and abdominal bloating and discomfort, or covertly with micronutrient deficiencies such as iron deficiency with anemia. A gluten-free diet (GFD) remains the mainstay of treatment. The aim of this review is to highlight the pathogenesis of CD, concepts and challenges associated with a GFD, and nutritional management of CD applicable in clinical practice to internists, gastroenterologists, and dietitians. Patients should be referred to an expert celiac dietitian for education on adherence to a GFD to address gluten contamination in the diet, the psychosocial implications of following a GFD, and macro- and micronutrient disequilibria arising from celiac disease and the GFD. Several novel therapeutics are on the horizon in various stages of development, including glutenases, antigliadin antibodies, tight junction regulators, modulation of the immune response to gliadin, and efforts to engineer less toxic gluten-containing foodstuffs. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables, and 61 references. Key words: celiac disease, genetic engineering, food engineering, gluten, glutenases, gluten-free diet, oats, IgY, nutrition, tight junction regulators, wheat