My cousin in her early 20s was just diagnosed with it (well she tested high for it via blood test)....my aunt said they wanted to do some kind of surgury (have yet to get more specifics on that) but that my cousin was just going to try the gluten free diet. Eek. I just know she's been extremely sick...still kind of worried about her.
Anyone have any experience with Celiacs Disease? Thank you.

[thunderbear]

No experience with Celiacs but I do know a lot about Crohns Disease which also causes malabsorbtion of the small intestine. Gluten free is really the only way to go with Celiacs. Gluten is a certian type of protein that will cause worsening symptoms of Celiac. If your cousin stays gluten free her symptoms will improve, but if the surgery is because of damaged lining, she needs to do it to get it out of her. Then the diet. But she has to be on the diet for life and be very very careful about not eating gluten in anything. Here is a website that is a lot like psychcentral but its for people with digestive disorders and they have a whole section on Celiacs and Gluten free recipies and foods its crohnsforum.com

Good luck and prayers to your cousin & you!!

[yellowted]

I have been celiac for a number of years, it sounds frightening, but the surgery could be to remove damaged intestine or bowel, it is pretty routine these days. gluten free diet is not that difficult to follow either once you learn about alternative flours. rice flour is great for swapping gram for gram in things like fatless sponge cake and dumplings. For batter e.g. pancakes, battering fish etc. replace gram for gram wheat flour with rice flour and add a little baking powder and xanthan gum powder to make it lighter. mix rice flour, xanthan gum powder, baking powder and enough water to make a dough, this can be rolled out or flattened into a little oil in a hot frying pan/skillet and cooked till golden on both sides to form a kind of very quick easy bread, great with soup, to make breadcrumbs or croutons, and if made thickish it can be sliced in half to make sandwiches.
the difficulty will come with hidden glutens, gluten is often used to stop things sticking together in processing and packaging stages e.g. some dried fruit, some baking powders etc. it is also used as a thickener, soups, gravies etc and as a crisper on oven chips to name a few. best way it to prepare everything from scratch(raw ingredients) that way she will know exactly what she puts in them.
good luck to her x