Symptoms such as severe fatigue or irritable bowel syndrome are sometimes diagnosed as psychosomatic disorders. But intolerance to gluten, called celiac disease, can cause malabsorption that could trigger these symptoms along with others, such as anemia, migraines, osteoporosis, dermatitis, infertility or peripheral neuropathy.
Although celiac disease was once considered rare, studies now show it occurs in 1 of 100 Americans. People with certain other conditions such as type 1 diabetes have an even higher risk. The treatment is simple but far from easy: avoid gluten in the diet.
Guest: Peter H. R. Green, MD, is Professor of Clinical Medicine at the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Columbia University Medical Center. He is Director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University. His Web site is www.celiacdiseasecenter.org
