What is Celiac Disease?

This Christmas, I discovered that my mother-in-law did not know the extent of my gluten intolerance. And this past week, I discovered that my mom was hoping that I would get used to gluten, like the way I got over my cat allergy when I was younger. I don’t know the difference between cat allergies and gluten allergies, but I know this; I have known about my celiac disease since 2006 and up to now, I have continued to eat gluten. It’s incredibly hard to give up. I love pasta. I love cake. And I couldn’t very well skip the cake at my wedding. Or go to France and not enjoy the Patisseries.
So, perhaps it’s my own fault that my nearest and dearest don’t understand my illness, or the fact that I should be avoiding all gluten. To be honest, I don’t fully understand. No one ever told me that I had to avoid all gluten. No one ever said that I had to be careful about even a particle of flour getting into my food. Being that careful eliminates a lot of eating options.
And, again, in all honesty, it depresses me. How can I possibly avoid gluten to that degree? And, if I can’t avoid those miniscule amounts of gluten, and those miniscule amounts are damaging my intestines, then what is the point of eating gluten-free at all?
Gluten-free is a LARGE hassle. It is expensive. It is time-consuming. And sometimes… it’s lonely. My mom makes wonderful sweet rolls and press cookies at Christmas time—and I can’t eat them. My dad loves food—and though I’ve intrigued him with gluten free cake once or twice, I can’t imagine he will let Thanksgiving pass without my great-grandmother’s dressing. I wouldn’t want him to. That dressing is Thanksgiving for us. When my sister returned from studying abroad in France (she missed Thanksgiving with the family) all she wanted was a traditional turkey dinner with dressing.
And Tom, my husband, comes from an Italian pasta-loving family. His mother works in a bread store. And why should he give it up? Why should he stop eating pastrami on rye?
Now, that should take care of my moping for the day.
Celiac disease is an auto-immune response to wheat gluten, a protein in wheat, rye and barley. Unlike an allergy, in which the body attacks an outside substance (like peanuts or a bee sting) an auto-immune response attacks the body itself. Wheat gluten causes a reaction in the intestine and the person’s body is no longer able to absorb nutrients properly. There aren’t a lot of outward symptoms. A person with celiac disease may be really gassy (because foods aren’t digesting properly), they may have bouts of constipation and/or diarrhea, especially after large amounts of wheat gluten (a big spaghetti dinner, etc).
But if someone with celiac disease eats a stray crouton in a salad, we don’t immediately swell up and stop breathing. We may not even know about the mistake until later. But when it catches up with us, believe me, we know. That may be why it seems like those of us avoiding wheat gluten are just being picky. That’s not it. We’re trying to prevent our own bodies from slowly killing us. We’re trying to ensure our own health and long-life. And some of us (like me) are trying to make sure that when we are ready to get pregnant and have children, our bodies are healthy enough to support two, and, more importantly, bear a healthy baby.
So, even if my own health wasn’t enough to get me to give up cupcakes, pasta, pizza, beer (made from malt, which comes from barley), and all the other gluten-tastic products I love, the hopes I have for healthy children just might be.