WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CELIAC DISEASE AND THE GLUTEN-FREE DIET

Have you ever been to a medical panel discussion about celiac disease? Now, free on YouTube, you can see a comprehensive seminar on the basics of celiac disease and the gluten-free diet offered by the William K. Warren Medical Research Center for Celiac Disease at the University of California, San Diego.

Originally aired on November 29, 2007 by University of California Television (UCTV), the panel features director Martin Kagnoff ("What is Celiac Disease?"), gastroenterologist Gregory S. Harmon ("Do You Have Celiac Disease? Understanding Testing in Celiac Disease"), and nutritionist Susan J. Algert ("Mastering the 8 Principles of the Gluten-Free Diet"), plus a Q&A session.

One point that comes up in the program: Of the estimated 3-4 million people with celiac disease in the United States, only 40,000 have been diagnosed so far! Elsewhere, it's interesting to see how much faith Dr. Harmon has in the tTG for diagnostic testing, but I suspect the full panel of blood tests might still be worth giving just to get a good baseline and overview, especially in light of persistent questions regarding non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Dr. Harmon also mentions chronic borderline anemia as a red flag that can be investigated via tests for ferritin. Regarding the hot subject of whether one would take a pill (or just adhere to the diet), Dr. Kagnoff says that many gluten-free Netherlanders say they're very happy with the diet and wouldn't want to switch to a pill, though younger people and those new to the diet seem more enthusiastic about such medication.

Anyway, this is a very good and clear presentation. Instead of being broken up into several portions, it's offered in one big serving that's about as long as a feature film, so get out the popcorn and M&Ms and make yourself nice and cozy to watch it if you want to know what you need to know. After all, seeing the presentation via YouTube is a helluva lot cheaper than going back in time to see it live in San Diego! Plus, in this format, you have the power to pause the lectures to make sure you don't miss anything for whatever reasons.



Source (1:26:48)