Top 10 'yuppie' Health Conditions

[MaryJones2]

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[Lisa]

Janet thanks for posting this.

I'm always glad to see articles about Celiac Disease in main stream publications, but I honestly don't know what to think about this one.

Listing the symptoms as bloating and canker sores is offensive to the people who suffer for countless years with debilitating symptoms.

Why should Celiac be considered a "yuppie disease", solely because it's generating a billion dollar specialty food business. Could it be that US research is attempting to catch up with their European counterparts. Diagnostic abilities have become more refined. And, advocacy has reached new levels.

My concern is when the "yuppy" trend subsides, will there still be a billion dollar specialty food business? When the attention shifts to something else, will people still be diagnosed? Will public awareness fall off?

Don't know. I've seen great inroads in the past three and a half years. I do hope the trend continues, whatever they call it.

[MaryJones2]

I know what you mean. I wasn't sure I wanted to comment on the article because I didn't particularly care for being lumped into the fad disease category. There has been so much advancement in the food department in the last few months and I am hopeful that the trend will continue. I just finished my first box of Rice Chex and it was wonderful but I have to force myself to believe this is more than a trend.

[ang1e0251]

You know, they say there is no such thing as bad publicity so I say go! Even if their calling it a "Yuppie" disease is offensive, it will start people thinking and talking about it. ABC will get a ton of comments from celiacs and others who find the article innacurate. Then they will do a follow-up from the other point of view....it will all lead to more exposure. I think that will be a good thing in the long-run.

So, let's all start writing!!

[sbj]

I thought it was a pretty good article fighting for our side. I rather thought the whole purpose of it was to point out that these are real conditions that are not taken seriously. "the most besmirched conditions patients wish would be taken more seriously."

I think perhaps they use 'yuppy' here to describe the sort of person who actually gets diagnosed with these conditions. That is, although these conditions exist amongst persons of all classes, they are primarily only diagnosed among the upper class of the Western world, in other words, those who can afford or have access to the doctor visits, blood panels, endoscopy, and genetic test. That's what makes it a yuppy disease. Not that it strikes only yuppies but that only yuppies can afford to get the necessary tests for a diagnosis. I think we see a bit of that on this forum - persons who by all signs have celiac but who can't get a diagnosis and one reason they can't get a diagnosis is because they lack the health insurance required to afford the testing. Yuppies, OTOH, always have fabulous health insurance benefits and plenty of free time to get mucho tests.

[ang1e0251]

Good point, SBJ. I never considered myself a Yuppie but compared to others I guess I live a very rich person's life.

[Gemini]

Yuppies, OTOH, always have fabulous health insurance benefits and plenty of free time to get mucho tests.

I'm a yuppie, by definition, and paid for all my screening tests because my insurance would not cover them. I did not go through my PCP

so they refused to cover any testing. And free time? I work 50 hours per week so this yuppie has little free time.

Blood screening is not that expensive and I have found that many people will spend money on crap but then refuse to pay for health care costs and then complain they don't have good insurance. I think people better get used to the fact they will have to pay some out of pocket expenses and I have no problem with that.

That's why insurance companies are always raising their premiums.....too many tests and everyone wants them for free. It's just not possible anymore. At least with celiac disease, you can always do a dietary trial if you cannot get a doctor to listen.

The article was strange. Some of these yuppie diseases are questionable and you wonder if doctors don't make some of them up to make money treating them.

Maybe if they dropped the IBS thing and realized most of these people have food issues which are causing their discomfort, more Celiacs would be diagnosed.

They call it everything but what it is!

[radgirl]

Forgive me, but I'm really upset by the title of this article. A "yuppie" disease? Give me a break. celiac disease and all the others that were posted are real problems for everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic background.

[happygirl]

In the same week that the above article came out:

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New IBS Guidelines Offer Treatment Ideas

American College of Gastroenterology Updates Recommendations for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

....."Tests and Treatments for IBS

According to the new guidelines:

IBS patients with diarrhea, or a combination of constipation and diarrhea, should be screened with blood tests for celiac disease, a disorder in which patients can't tolerate the gluten protein found in wheat or other grains".....

[Lisa]

Now that's exciting news. If all IBS patients are screened for Celiac, the rate of diagnosed could sky rocket.

It could be a new day for research, pharmaceutical and product development.

[ang1e0251]

Hurray! Testing IBS patients for celiac disease is the most sensible thing I've heard in the past year!

[Guhlia]

I too saw this article as a very positive thing. I think they were pleading for people to take these diseases seriously rather than minimize them, as they have been in the past. Great article! Thanks for posting.