Gluten-Free Diet Improves Quality of Life in Celiac Disease

A gluten-free diet appears to benefit quality of life in patients with a classical presentation of celiac disease, as well as patients with a nonclassical presentation, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology.

“Despite quality of life at diagnosis being higher in those with nonclassical celiac disease versus lower in those with classical celiac disease, both groups had improved quality of life and achieved a similar quality of life after following a gluten-free diet,” the researchers wrote.

Classical celiac disease typically presents with symptoms of diarrhea and malabsorption, while nonclassical celiac disease is usually associated with nongastrointestinal symptoms that may be less severe. In their study, the researchers looked at psychological measures among 122 patients with biopsy-proven celiac disease who followed a gluten-free diet for at least one year. Among participants, 62 had classical celiac disease and 60 had nonclassical celiac disease.
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Health-related quality of life was lower in the classical celiac disease group compared with the nonclassical celiac disease group at diagnosis, according to the study.

After a year or more on a gluten-free diet, both groups showed improved quality of life and significant increases in body mass index. While most quality of life subscales, Somatization Symptom Checklist scores, and adherence to the gluten-free diet were similar between the classical celiac disease group and the nonclassical celiac disease group, Short Form-36 Mental Component summary scores remained lower in the classical celiac disease group.

—Jolynn Tumolo

Reference

Choung RS, Lamba A, Marietta EV, et al. Effect of a gluten-free diet on quality of life in patients with nonclassical versus classical presentations of celiac disease J Clin Gastroenterol. 2020;54(7):620-625. doi:10.1097/MCG.0000000000001277