This article appeared in the Summer 2008 edition of Celiac.com's Scott-Free Newsletter.
Celiac.com 06/16/2008 - Do vitamin D deficiency, gut bacteria, and timing of gluten introduction during infancy all combine to initiate the onset of celiac disease? Two recent papers raise the potential that this indeed may be the case. One paper finds that when transgenic mice expressing the human DQ8 heterodimer (a mouse model of celiac disease) are mucosally immunized with gluten co-administered with Lactobacillus casei bacteria, the mice exhibit an enhanced and increased immune response to gluten compared to the administration of gluten alone.[1] A second paper finds that vitamin D receptors expressed by intestinal epithelial cells are involved in the suppression of bacteria-induced intestinal...

Celiac.com 05/04/2018 - It has been recognized for several decades that both children and adults with celiac disease have a significantly increased frequency of osteoporosis and increased risk of fractures as compared to the age-matched non-celiac healthy individuals. Based on published data the prevalence of osteoporosis among celiac patients varies from as low as 4% to as high as 70%. The data from our clinic indicate that prevalence of osteoporosis among adults with gluten intolerance and celiac disease is in the vicinity of 30-40%.
Characteristics and causes of osteoporosis 
Osteoporosis is a bone disease characterized by the reduced bone mineral density and impaired bone architecture that leads to an increased risk of fracture. The three main mechanisms by which osteoporosis ...

Celiac.com 08/16/2018 - What is the significance of vitamin D serum levels in adult celiac patients? A pair of researchers recently set out to assess the value and significance of 25(OH) and 1,25(OH) vitamin D serum levels in adult celiac patients through a comprehensive review of medical literature.
Researchers included F Zingone and C Ciacci are affiliated with the Gastroenterology Unit, Department of Surgery, Oncology and Gastroenterology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy; and the Celiac Center, AOU San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi di Aragona, University of Salerno, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Salerno, Italy. 
Within the wide spectrum of symptoms and alteration of systems that characterizes celiac disease, several studies indicate a low-level of vitamin D, therefore r...

Celiac.com 08/28/2018 - There have been a number of studies that tried to estimate risk levels for celiac disease in patients with osteoporosis, but the data has been highly variable and inconclusive. To address this, a team of researchers recently set out to investigate rates of celiac disease among individuals with osteoporosis.
The research team included M. Laszkowska, S. Mahadev, J. Sundström, B. Lebwohl, P. H. R. Green, K. Michaelsson, and J. F. Ludvigsson. They are variously affiliated with the Department of Medicine, Celiac Disease Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA, the Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala Clinical Research Center, Uppsala University in Uppsala, Sweden, the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics,...