Hello,

My eldest daughter, Victoria May, was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease in September 2008 following heavy bouts of night time sickness and malaise in the preceeding 4 months.  Following her diagnosis and changes to her diet she is now once again a thriving little girl who will have to live her life watching everything she eats to ensure that no gluten is consumed by her digestive system. 

As a thank you for all the support we have received over the past year i have decided to enter (and hopefully complete!!) the Great North Run to raise money for the charity Coeliac UK and also awareness of the condition and the lifestyle changes it dictates. 

Coeliac disease (pronounced see-liac) is not an allergy or simple food intolerance, it's an autoimmune disease where the body's immune system attacks its own tissues. In people with coeliac disease this immune reaction is triggered by gluten, a collective name for a type of protein found in the cereals wheat, rye and barley. In coeliac disease, eating gluten causes the lining of the gut (small bowel) to become damaged and may affect other parts of the body.  When the gut lining is damaged in this way, it means the body can't absorb all the nutrients from food properly. This process is called malabsorption.  The flattening of the gut villi and the malabsorption of nutrients causes many of the symptoms of coeliac disease and contributes to the health risks associated with coeliac disease such as anaemia and osteoporosis.  In untreated cases cancer (lymphoma) of the small intestine is a high risk complication that can develop.

Thank you for taking the time to read this page and for making any contribution big or small during these tough economic times 

 

Regards

Andrew McQueen

 

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