Question

NATIONAL CENTER FOR CASE STUDY TEACHING IN SCIENCE Part III -Gluten Free "Jane, your test results have come back and it does appear that you have been suffering from Celiac Disease," Dr. Michaels, Jane's new gastroenterologist, explained. Jane pulled out a pad of paper with some notes. “Since Dr. Klein mentioned Celiac Disease, I've been reading about it online. All the websites say I will have to give up gluten. I've looked at samples of gluten free diets and they seem really strict. Dr. Michaels smiled sympathetically. “Unfortunately, Jane, the only treatment for Celiac Disease is to eliminate gluten in your diet completely." Jane frowned. "I really like bread and pasta, so is it okay if I cheat once in a while and have some spaghetti?" Dr. Michaels shook her head. "Jane, the autoantibodies made by your immune system will always be there and respond to very small amounts of gluten. There are more and more gluten-free produces that can be found, so it's not as hard to follow the diet as it used to be. We will put you in contact with a nutritionist who can help you plan some easy meals and give you ideas about substitutions to make in your diet." "Dr. Michaels, if I follow the gluten-free diet, will my fertility problems go away? Dt. Klein said we needed to figure out all of this stuff before thinking about my fertility issues, but I'm not getting any younger, and Brian and I would really like to have children," Jane asked hopefully. Jane, I can't give you any guarantees that your fertility issues will go away. Unfortunately Celiac Disease cannot be cured, it can only be controlled. Infertility can be a severe complication of untreated Celiac Disease. Hopefully Dr. Klein can give you a more definitive answer when you see him again." Question 1. What would be a possible diet for a person with Celiac Disease? Provide a menu for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Ensure that proper amounts of nutrients are obtained. Compare the prices of gluten free foods to normal foods. 2. What problems could a child with undiagnosed Celiac Disease encounter as he/she grows? Why?

Answer 1

1. The patients suffering from Celiac disease can have- fruits and vegetable, beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, eggs, fresh meat and fish, buckwheat, dairy products etc.

Menu-

Breakfast- spinach and oven-roasted tomato omelette, or hard-boiled eggs, or berries and hot cereals

Snacks- peanut butter and banana

Lunch- taco salad or tuna salad or cornbread

Dinner- glazed salmon or glazed chicken with mushrooms

In one of the studies on average, gluten-free products were 242% more expensive than regular products.

2. In kids with celiac disease, gluten damages villi, the finger-like projections in the small intestine responsible for absorbing nutrients from food. When the villi are damaged, the body can't absorb nutrients the body needs to grow. If that happens, a child can become malnourished.