| Discoveries made in researching celiac disease | | | | gluten, we don't yet understand what triggers this |
| have created new possibilities of understanding for | | | | attack. Over time, these attacks on the nervous |
| other autoimmune diseases. These include some | | | | system wear down the fatty myelin sheaths |
| common, frustrating diseases and you have | | | | surrounding axons for the spinal cord and brain. |
| probably known someone suffering from one of | | | | MS usually manifests itself in young adulthood and |
| them. Celiac disease sufferers share some innate | | | | afflicts women more often than men. |
| traits with sufferers of type 1 diabetes, multiple | | | | Rheumatoid Arthritis |
| sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. | | | | Rheumatoid arthritis appears to be like CD in that |
| Researchers currently believe people with these | | | | people with specific genes seem to have an |
| diseases have three things in common that may | | | | immune response that causes inflammation of |
| lead to their respective conditions: a genetic | | | | various tissues, especially synovial joints. |
| predisposition for a heightened immune reactivity, | | | | While we still don't know the exact trigger for |
| a leaky gut, and probably some external trigger | | | | rheumatoid arthritis, we have more ideas than we |
| that passes through their leaky gut into their | | | | do for type 1 diabetes or multiple sclerosis. For |
| highly reactive immune system. | | | | example, cigarette smoking and hormonal changes |
| One key difference, however, is that in celiac | | | | appears to have a statistically significant effect on |
| disease we know with some certainty what that | | | | the occurrence of rheumatoid arthritis. Currently, |
| external trigger is: gluten and its close cousins. | | | | some improvement of RA seems to occur with |
| Researchers aren't yet confident they understand | | | | hormonal therapies, particularly in women near |
| the trigger for these other conditions. | | | | menopause. |
| Type 1 Diabetes | | | | Where Do We Go From Here? |
| Type 1 diabetes, more clinically called Diabetes | | | | Since scientists and researchers have only |
| mellitus type 1 or colloquially referred to as | | | | recently developed their hypothesis of the |
| juvenile diabetes, occurs when an individual's | | | | permeable intestine (leaky gut) being related to |
| immune system attacks beta cells responsible for | | | | each of these autoimmune diseases, we don't yet |
| creating insulin in the pancreas. This increases | | | | know what will come of this understanding. But |
| insulin in their urine and blood. | | | | the hope is that by eliminating one of the three |
| So when in celiac disease antibodies attack the villi | | | | factors associating these diseases and leading to |
| along the intestinal wall, in type 1 diabetes | | | | autoimmunity (the body essentially attacking |
| antibodies attack a key functionality of the | | | | itself), namely the heightened immune reactivity, |
| pancreas. | | | | the leaky gut or the external trigger, they might |
| Diabetes mellitus type 1 can be fatal if left | | | | be able to curb and even eliminate the symptoms |
| untreated. | | | | of the fundamental disease. |
| Multiple Sclerosis | | | | Celiac disease provides some hope in this regard |
| In multiple sclerosis (MS), clinically known as | | | | because when we eliminate the external trigger - |
| disseminated sclerosis, the immune system | | | | gluten - we mostly eliminate the symptoms and |
| attacks the nervous system. Unlike with CD and | | | | effects of the disease. |