When my wife was diagnosed with celiac disease 20 years ago it was after two weeks of significant diarrhea to the point of hospitlization for dehydration. Fort

When my wife was diagnosed with celiac disease 20 years ago it was after two weeks of significant diarrhea to the point of hospitlization for dehydration. Fortunately the doctor who diagnosed her after a couple of days was young and up to speed, realizing even the hospital food was exacerbating her condition. Simply changing her diet while in hospital and she felt remarkably better after just a couple of days. One physician she saw later in life even dismissed the idea that such a condition existed, even with the GI evidence presented. There's a growing recognition of the condition, and as stated elsewhere it's not actually that hard to eat gluten free if you prepare your own food, and today there are more restaurants that will cater to it, though one always runs the risk of contamination when eating out (about 1 out of 10 I'd say based on experience, but we eat out infrequently anyway). Like anything that becomes a fad though there are people who will dismiss the idea of an intolerance - I once watched a waitress bring back a salad she'd obviously simply removed the croutons from after being asked, again, for a crouton-free salad (a particularly ugly piece of radicchio gave it away). After I pitched a fit, we left, being unable to trust the attention of the staff. Many celiacs develop other food sensitivities - once the cilia is damaged, the body seems more susceptible to future problems. As for those who think their symptoms being mild means it's not gluten intolerance, the gold standard remains an upper GI examination - it's not that bad (I've had several, for other reasons), and then you know and can react with knowledge vice guessing (there's a blood test not yet approved as I recall). While feeling good again was quick for my wife, it took several weeks to actually consider her healthy again - she had been malnourished for some time prior to the diagnosis, and any such stressful event will take time to recover from.