Key facts of Celiac disease and COVID-19

• Due to the autoimmune condition known as celiac disease, certain gastrointestinal tissues are attacked by the immune system.
• Although those with celiac disease are not more likely to experience severe COVID-19 symptoms, it is nevertheless crucial to managing the problem to keep your body healthy throughout the pandemic.
• For those with celiac disease, the COVID-19 immunization is safe.

Celiac disease frequency and clinical presentation were examined in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic by a research group in Turkey.

Patients with celiac disease since January 2008 were included in the study. In total, 148 individuals were diagnosed in the pre-pandemic phase [January 2008-February 2020] [n = 148] and 47 in the post-pandemic phase [March 2020-June 2021]. There was a substantial increase in celiac diseases diagnosed and total endoscopies performed during the pandemic period. In the pandemic period, celiac disease was significantly associated with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

What called my attention was that the number of moderate-severe mucosal lesions was low during the pandemic!

Participating in Facebook groups made me aware of this. People reported feeling much better during the COVID-19 lockdown, with more energy and less pain. There is a clear correlation between eating out frequently and this. The more you expose yourself to restaurants and coffee shops, higher is the risk of getting contaminated. People still don’t realize that small, but constant gluten contamination is a killer for celiacs.

Read the full paper here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/apa.16173