Celiac disease, also referred to as sprue or celiac sprue, is an inherited intestinal disorder in which the body cannot tolerate gluten. Gluten is a naturally occurring protein which is found in wheat, rye, barley, farina and bulgur.
When people with this condition eat foods that have gluten, their immune systems respond by attacking and damaging the lining of the small intestine. The damage to the lining interferes with the body’s ability to absorb nutrients.
How Celiac Disease affects Bone Health?
Celiac disease affects people differently. The symptoms vary and may/may not occur in the digestive system. Some of the common complications that are associated with celiac disease are diarrhoea, abdominal pain, weight loss and irritability.
Osteoporosis is another common complication of untreated celiac disease. The small intestine is responsible for absorbing important nutrients, such as calcium. When body is not able to absorb calcium which is essential for building and maintaining healthy bones, bone health suffers. There are chances of the deficiency of the nutrient even when you consume enough calcium.
To sum up, because calcium is needed to keep bones healthy, low bone density is common in those with celiac disease.
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How to Take Care of your Bones?
Some of the lifestyle strategies can help people take care of their bone health. Those who have adopted a gluten-free diet also need to practice certain practices for keeping bones healthy. These strategies include getting adequate calcium and vitamin D, performing weight-bearing exercise, not smoking, and avoiding excessive use of alcohol.
An osteoporosis treatment medication may be recommended in some cases. Sometimes the damage to the intestines is significant so that one needs intravenous nutrition supplements.
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Read more articles on Osteoporosis and Celiac Disease.