Celiac Disease (Non-Tropical Sprue) What Is It? Celiac disease
(also called non-tropical sprue, celiac sprue, gluten
intolerance and gluten-sensitive enteropathy) is an intestinal
disorder in which the body cannot tolerate gluten. Gluten is a
natural protein in many grains, including wheat, barley, rye and
oats. People with celiac disease have an immune reaction that is
triggered by gluten. The immune reaction causes inflammation at
the surface of the small intestine where it damages small
structures - villi - on the surface of the intestine. It also
damages smaller, hair-sized protrusions called microvilli.
Healthy villi and microvilli are needed for normal digestion.
When they are damaged, the intestine cannot absorb nutrients
properly and you can become malnourished. A tendency to develop
celiac disease is genetic (inherited). Celiac disease is most
common among people of northern European descent. Celiac disease
is not always recognized because the symptoms can be mild and
can be wrongly blamed upon other