Imagine brain fog so severe that patients report forgetting the day of the week.<\/p>\n
Stomach pain so unrelenting that even the strongest medication fails to relieve.<\/p>\n
Or fatigue so intense that no amount of sleep can make up for.<\/p>\n
Then another 300 known symptoms, all of which have been reported in coeliac disease patients.<\/p>\n
The cause?\u00a0<\/p>\n
If a person with this condition consumes even a crumb of gluten-containing food, their body produces an autoimmune response, attacking its own cells, and causing any one of these 300 symptoms to occur.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy sister was diagnosed after being asked at primary school what her favourite activity was,\u201d recalled Olivia, who also lives with coeliac disease.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe answered \u2018sleeping\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
And after repeated attacks, the patient is not just put at higher risk for other autoimmune conditions, but also for certain types of cancer.<\/p>\n
I was diagnosed with coeliac disease in December 2024 via endoscopy \u2013 a procedure that involves sticking a large tube down the patient\u2019s throat and swabbing the inside of their intestine.<\/p>\n
Upon receiving my results, I began the sole course of treatment for coeliac disease \u2013 a lifelong gluten-free diet.<\/p>\n
A month in, I noticed the contents of my wallet being depleted at an alarming rate after each weekly shop.<\/p>\n
I began patrolling free-from sections across all major retailers, stunned by the significant rise in pricing for almost every gluten-free alternative.<\/p>\n
In July 2024, Coeliac UK found that those on a gluten-free diet pay up to 35% more for their weekly shop than those that are able to eat gluten-containing foods.<\/p>\n
Meaning that if a person not on the gluten-free diet pays \u00a3150 for food each week, a coeliac disease patient will spend \u00a3202.50 on the same basket.<\/p>\n