Gluten Intolerance vs. Celiac Disease: What’s The Difference?

Gluten Intolerance vs Celiac: What’s the Difference?

When comparing side by side, gluten intolerance vs celiac have clinical similarities. The biggest offender bringing them together is gluten – the protein found in wheat, rye or barley.

However, this overlap can make it extremely challenging for experts to diagnose. In fact, clinicians cannot distinguish between the two through symptoms alone. ¹

Therefore it raises the million dollar question:

“Gluten intolerance vs. Celiac: What’s the difference?”

Let’s face it, if the experts have trouble identifying between the two, it’s understandable anyone could get confused. So let’s take a closer look at both to help you get a clearer picture.

#1 Prevalence and Awareness

The overall prevalence of gluten intolerance within the general population still remains unclear. This mainly comes down to the fact many people choose to self-diagnose and start a gluten free diet without the assistance of expert medical advice. ²

Despite limited research, a number of clinical studies appear to indicate gluten intolerance is more common than celiac disease. In fact, experts have estimated gluten intolerance could occur at a frequency rate of six times more than celiac. ^{3 4 5}

What’s the difference?

On the other hand, celiac disease is an illness which is well documented and understood in medical fields.

Celiac disease affects approximately one percent of the US population which equates to 1 in 133 people. However, from a worldwide perspective, statistics indicate the highest prevalence is almost six percent in western Africa. ^{6 7 8}

#2 Response to Gluten

Gluten intolerance is known by many terms and often referred to as gluten sensitivity or non celiac gluten sensitivity. It’s a condition that triggers a reaction in the body after consuming foods containing gluten.

Basically if you have gluten intolerance, your body thinks that gluten is a foreign invader which shouldn’t be there. The body then uses inflammation responses to fight it off both inside the digestive system and elsewhere.

 What’s the difference?

Celiac disease is more severe and damaging to the body.

It’s an autoimmune disease that sparks off the wrong signals in the immune system when gluten is consumed. This massive misunderstanding causes the body to go to war with itself in the digestive tract.

The small intestine is lined with tiny fingerlike components called “villi” and their job is to absorb all the nutrients as the food passes through. The immune system attacks these guys, causing what’s known as “villous atrophy” which causes them to erode. ⁹

When “villi” are in this damaged state, they can no longer function properly which leads to serious complications for anyone with celiac disease.

#3 Symptoms

The key symptoms for gluten intolerance vs celiac are very similar.

Both conditions display signs of discomfort within the digestive system. Patients are likely to experience bloating, gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. ¹⁰

What’s the Difference?

For those that suffer with celiac disease it goes further.

They can also experience symptoms relating to malabsorption – the lack of nutrients in the body. It’s not uncommon for celiac patients to display symptoms of iron deficiency anemia or other nutrient deficiencies. ¹¹

#4 Diagnosis

With gluten intolerance, there isn’t a set procedure for diagnosis; therefore it’s a process of elimination. ¹²

Doctors will initially test for celiac disease and any other dietary triggers such as a wheat allergy. If results from both tests return negative, the next step is to exclude gluten from your diet for a trial period. ¹³

Whilst on the gluten free diet if symptoms start to show signs of improvement, it’s at this point it’s concluded you are gluten intolerant. 

What’s the difference?

When testing for celiac disease, gluten must not be excluded throughout the entire process until told otherwise. The process is also generally more structured.

The diagnosis starts off with a blood test to check for the antibodies indicating probabilities of the disease. If this comes back suggesting celiac disease is likely, then a biopsy of the small intestine is taken to confirm an accurate diagnosis. ¹⁴

#5 Treatment & Cure

The treatment for gluten intolerance is with a gluten free diet. This alleviates symptoms and allows the body time to re-adjust.

Research suggests gluten intolerance may be temporary, and should be reassessed at certain intervals. In some cases gluten can be gradually reintroduced, albeit at lower levels until the natural tolerance level is found. ¹⁵

What’s the Difference?

If you have celiac disease it’s with you for the rest of your life. There is currently no known cure and the only effective treatment is permanently eliminating gluten from your diet forever.

#6 Complications

Due to the lack of clinical data, complications as a direct result of gluten intolerance are yet to be established. Although initial findings suggest it’s unlikely that it will lead to development of autoimmune diseases. ¹⁶

 What’s the Difference?

With celiac disease, there is more to it and malabsorption plays a big factor in complications. Many people with celiac disease have a low bone density due to the lack of calcium and this can lead to osteoporosis. ¹⁷

Celiac disease also belongs to a group of autoimmune diseases therefore it increases your chances of developing further conditions. Many people with celiac disease also suffer with illnesses such as rheumatoid arthritis or type 1 diabetes. ^{18 19}

#7 Risk of Gluten Intolerance vs Celiac

There is very little research on who is more at risk of developing gluten intolerance, although one survey suggest it’s more commonly found in women and of adult age. ²⁰ 

What’s the difference?

With celiac disease experts have established more than ninety five percent of patients carry a specific gene type known as, “HLA-DQ2” or “HLA-DQ8”. ²¹

As this is strongly related to genetics, this basically means if someone in your direct family has celiac disease you too could have an increased risk of development. Also anyone with a pre-existing autoimmune disease could also have an increased chance. ²²

#8 Summary

And now you can see the differences between gluten intolerance vs celiac. Although there are many similarities, when you read between the lines it’s clear to see there are many characteristics which separate them.

Sources

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28810029
2. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0261561414002180
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