Is a gluten-free diet enough to control the complications of celiac disease?

A lifelong gluten-free diet (GFD) is the conventional approach to managing celiac disease, a chronic inflammatory disorder affecting the small intestine that can result in malnutrition. However, recent evidence shows that a GFD may not be sufficient to prevent serious complications related to celiac disease. A detailed discussion of the metabolic disorders and functional abnormalities that can develop, and nutritional treatments for these is presented in a Review article published in Journal of Medicinal Food.

Sara Farnetti and coauthors, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Rome, Italy), cover a broad scope of digestive and nutrient absorptive processes in individuals with celiac disease that may be compromised due to increased inflammation. In the article "Functional and Metabolic Disorders in Celiac Disease: New Implications for Nutritional Treatment", the authors discuss how diminished gallbladder and pancreatic function, and increased gut permeability may contribute to the development of overweight and obesity, and impaired glucose and lipid metabolism and insulin secretion in these patients.

"This article reviews the extensive literature on lifelong gluten-free diet supplementation to celiac disease patients and makes outstanding recommendations," says Journal of Medicinal Food Editor-in-Chief Sampath Parthasarathy, MBA, PhD, Florida Hospital Chair in Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Central Florida, Orlando. "The authors conclude that plant oils and products are able to stimulate the gall bladder to promote the absorption process and provide better nutrition to these patients. The conclusion that a lifelong gluten-free diet provision must be accompanied by proper nutrient supplementation is a sound one; however, caution must be exercised in using fried oil as a gall bladder stimulant."