INCREASED PREVALENCE OF CELIAC DISEASE

Murray J A et al (2009). Increased prevalence and mortality in undiagnosed celiac disease. Gastroenterology 137:373-374

The study by Joseph A. Murray, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, comes to the conclusion that over the past 50 years the incidence of coeliac condition has drastically increased, not only due to improved diagnostic methods.
The researchers tested blood samples taken from the employees of a military base in 1950 for tTG antibodies. To compare, they analysed recently taken samples from people of a similar age to the previous group. With the modern participants, the disease was much more frequent (0.9 %) than for those from 1950 (0.2 %) Murray assumes that something has changed in our environment which has resulted in an increase in the disease.
In addition, it was found that those suffering from the coeliac condition who were unaware of it, and had therefore continued with a diet containing gluten, showed a much higher mortality rate in the following 45 years.
Find out more: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19362553