Women With Celiac Disease

Celiac Symptoms Specific To Women

Women with Celiac Disease have their own set of symptoms. These symptoms may be experienced alongside the symptoms outlined previously, or they may arrive without any other symptoms. So, if you experience these symptoms, don't dismiss it as something gynecological. Consider Celiac Disease.

Menstrual difficulties: If you're a celiac, you may experience a variety of menstrual problems, including: irregular menstruation, dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation), and amenorrhea (absent menstruation).

Fertility problems: A celiac woman may be diagnosed with unexplained infertility (that is to say, infertility not caused by endometriosis, polycystic ovarian syndrome, fibroids, or anything else gynecological). You may find it difficult or impossible to become pregnant, with many women trying to conceive for years. Celiac Disease is the cause in as many as four to eight percent of cases of undiagnosed infertility in women.

Pregnancy and Childbirth problems: Sadly, the difficulties celiac women face don't end when they conceive. An undiagnosed, or untreated celiac woman is more likely to experience miscarriage or stillbirth than her non-celiac counterpart. She is also more likely to require a cesarean delivery should she be able to carry the pregnancy to term.

Early menopause: An undiagnosed, untreated celiac woman is more likely to have an early menopause than her non-celiac counterpart.

Why do untreated celiac women experience fertility pronlems?

No-one's quite sure. Some think the malabsorption of folate, and other nutrients that are essential in pregnancy, is to blame. However, it has been noted that not every infertile woman with newly-diagnosed Celiac Disease is currently experiencing malnutrition. Some people think the nature of the autoimmune disorder itself (where the body attacks healthy tissue) may be at fault.

I don't really have any symptoms and I really love pasta. Do I have to give up gluten?

You can experience malnutrition and malabsorption, which (rather than making you pale, interesting and slender) will actually cause devastating osteoporosis (bone density loss leading to brittle bones), vitamin D deficiency (which could cause Osteomalacia, or painful bones), vitamin B12 and folate anemia (which causes extreme fatigue, muscle weakness, depression and mental confusion), and iron deficiency anemia (which can cause shortness or breath and heart palpitations).

Even more serious is the uncommon risk that you may develop cancer of the digestive tract. One in two-hundred people with Celiac Disease will develop bowel cancer within ten years of diagnosis.

Can I get pregnant if I'm a celiac?

The bad news if that, if you have untreated Celiac Disease, you have a higher risk of infertility and miscarriage. The good news is that diagnosis and treatment with a strict gluten-free diet can restore your health and, with it, your fertility.

Warren and Greenblatt (2010) tell the story of a thirty-five year old woman who was diagnosed with Celiac Disease after trying for a baby for sixteen months. She later became pregnant after only ten months on a gluten-free diet, giving birth to a health baby after having a perfectly normal pregnancy.

What do I do if I think I have Celiac Disease?

Do you think you might have Celiac Disease? If you do, see your primary care physician. It may be necessary to refer you to a gastroenterologist. Celiac Disease is usually diagnosed though a colonoscopy (an examination where your intestine is pumped full of air, and a small flexible camera is inserted into your rectum).

READ What Is Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity?