Celiac Disease

March 16, 2021

Celiac disease (CD) is a chronic (long-term) digestive disease during which patients have irritation (inflammation) of the small intestine, which causes difficulty with absorbing nutrients from food. Patients with CD often have other family members with the condition and are therefore susceptible to this disease. Inflammation in the intestine occurs when a patient with CD begins to eat food that contains gluten. Gluten is the name given to certain types of proteins found in wheat, barley, rye and related grains. Oats are currently considered not to be dangerous to persons with CD. However, due to the high possibility of contamination with other gluten containing grains, oats are typically not recommended for people with celiac disease.