Pharmacy Daily | Are you coeliac aware?

WITH up to 80% of Australians living with undiagnosed coeliac disease, Coeliac Awareness Week, which starts today, shines a light on this critical health condition to drive better awareness - and pharmacists are well-placed to spot early signs of it.

"Unfortunately, there is a high level of misunderstanding about coeliac disease in Australia," said dietitian Dr Kim Faulkner-Hogg, Senior Health Advocacy Officer at peak body Coeliac Australia.

Dr Faulkner-Hogg explained that underdiagnosis is an unintended consequence of this misunderstanding, and means that those living with milder symptoms and are unaware they have the condition continue to eat gluten.

"This persistent damage to the gut lining results in nutrient malabsorption, which increases the chance of those with mild symptoms developing other medical conditions and chronic health problems," she said.

Coeliac Australia is coordinating a national education campaign as part of Coeliac Awareness Week from 13 to 20 Mar.

A key goal will be to address the fact that coeliac disease is a bit of a 'chameleon', said Dr Faulkner-Hogg, and its signs and symptoms are shared with numerous other conditions, making it challenging to unmask at times.

She explained that coeliac disease is a serious auto-immune condition, not simply a gluten-free dietary preference, as many people mistakenly think - and "autoimmune conditions love company".

"A recent study listed autoimmune thyroid disease, type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis as the five top autoimmune diseases found in 31% people with coeliac disease.

"As a result, we are encouraging more people to get tested, even if they only suffer from some of the more common symptoms."

To help increase the diagnosis rate, Coeliac Australia encourages people to use a simple online test available on its website.

This tool can help assess whether they may need to visit their GP for further screening tests.

"This test is beneficial whether someone is experiencing specific symptoms like discomfort, fatigue, headaches, or trouble focusing after eating gluten-containing foods, or even if they have no symptoms at all but have other autoimmune conditions, a recently broken bone, are struggling to conceive or have a family member who has been diagnosed with the condition," she said.

Pharmacists may encounter customers with gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhoea, steatorrhoea (fatty stools) and bloating, or fatigue, which are common manifestations of coeliac disease.

When patients seek medications or supplements for these symptoms, pharmacists can ask further questions to assess for potential coeliac disease and, if appropriate, refer patients to their doctor or a specialist for proper diagnosis and management.

They can also assist patients in identifying gluten-containing medications and supplements, and recommend alternatives.

For more info and to do the test, see Coeliac Australia's website HERE.