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- What is coeliac disease?
- Symptoms of coeliac disease
- Causes of coeliac disease
- Prevention of coeliac disease
- Risk factors for coeliac disease
- Complications of coeliac disease
- When to see a doctor about coeliac disease
- Diagnosis of coeliac disease
- Conventional treatment of coeliac disease
- Alternative/complementary treatment of coeliac disease
- Living with coeliac disease
- Caring for someone with coeliac disease
Caring for someone with coeliac disease
The best way to help a partner with coeliac disease is to be supportive and sympathetic, but also the following can be helpful too:
- Avoiding smoking inside - people with coeliac disease need to be away from any cigarette smoke, as it can exacerbate their symptoms
- Eating smaller meals - help your partner to eat smaller meals by joining them in eating smaller meals, as this helps support your partner a great deal. Cooking and eating smaller meals is one way to help reduce the load on the digestive system by reducing the amount of food that needs to be digested and absorbed
- Encourage a healthy diet - a healthy diet is one which has adequate amounts of fresh fruit and vegetables, wholegrains, legumes, protein and healthy fats and has little or no processed foods
- Encourage exercise - going for walks (or joining a gym together) with your partner is a great way to bond. Exercise helps to improve circulation, reduces stress and encourages better health overall
- Gluten free diet - to help your partner feel less isolated in their often restrictive diet, it may be useful to ensure that all meals prepared in the home are gluten free. This serves two purposes - it gives your partner your support and it also saves time in cooking two different types of meal by just cooking the one
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Friends
People who have a friend who has coeliac disease can support their friend by the following:
- Dinner parties - if you invite your friend to a dinner party, try to ensure there is gluten-free food that they can eat. The best way to do this is to ask what foods are off limits for them and ensure to let them know beforehand which foods they should avoid. Gluten is added to many processed foods so always ask
- Discourage alcohol - if your friend has coeliac disease, they should be limiting alcohol intake as it can cause a worsening of symptoms, so try to make your social meetings ones that are alcohol free
Parents
Parents of a child who has coeliac disease can support their child by:
- Avoid smoking inside - people with coeliac disease need to be away from any cigarette smoke, as it can exacerbate their symptoms
- Cooking smaller meals - this is one way to help reduce the load on the child's digestive system by reducing the amount of food that needs to be digested and absorbed
- Gluten free - ensure all meals cooked for the whole family are gluten free, as this can help your child feel less isolated in their restrictive diet. Always read nutrition labels on foods purchased as there can be gluten hidden in many processed foods
- Probiotics - introduce some probiotics to the child's diet, preferably in powder form as it can be more easily assimilated into other foods, but the tablets can also be taken if this is not successful
- Psyllium - this soluble fibre is excellent for the whole digestive system as it helps to ensure the correct motion in the intestines, it helps to create proper stools in the colon and it also prevents constipation. Add a little psyllium to smoothies, breakfast cereal, muesli, but ensure it is eaten quickly as it can become gel-like and thick very quickly. Always ensure your child drinks enough water when adding psyllium fibre to their diet
- Slippery elm - find creative ways to add slippery elm to foods (smoothies, breakfast cereal, muesli) in the child's diet. Slippery elm is one of the herbs most beneficial for any type of digestive disorder, but especially one in which there is irritation and damage to the intestinal wall and the intestinal mucosa
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< living with coeliac disease Last reviewed: 15 August 2008 || Last updated: 26 February 2009
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NOTE: Mega doses of any type of vitamin, mineral, amino acid or herbal supplement cannot cure illnesses and in fact can be very dangerous and produce toxic side effects and interfere with medicine you are taking. Always ensure you consult your doctor before taking any type of complementary supplements.
Disclaimer: This guide is not intended to be used for diagnostic or prescriptive purposes. For any treatment or diagnosis of illness, please see your doctor.
