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Celiac And Eye Problems?

LAceliac

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LAceliac Newbie
LAceliac
Posted

I am new to this board and am wondering if anyone has ever experienced or heard about celiac and eye-related issues? I have heard about blurred vision that celiac can cause, but anything more like problems with retina, light sensitivity, etc?

Very curious to hear if anyone knows more on this topic. Thanks!

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Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted
I am new to this board and am wondering if anyone has ever experienced or heard about celiac and eye-related issues? I have heard about blurred vision that celiac can cause, but anything more like problems with retina, light sensitivity, etc?

Very curious to hear if anyone knows more on this topic. Thanks!

I have never heard of blurred vision being caused directly by Celiac but you will find that eye problems can be caused by other autoimmune problems that develop along with Celiac. One of the main ones is Sjogren's Syndrome, which I suffer from. Your eyes become extremely dry and light sensitivity is common with dry eye and Sjogren's. My vision will sometimes become blurred but it most often occurs when I am tired. It is also very common for people with Celiac to have additional allergies, which can affect the eyes and cause similar symptoms.

HollyH Apprentice
HollyH
Posted

I was told a few years ago that my vision is 20/30. I don't believe that to be true anymore, and it seems to be decreasing since I was diagnosed with Celiac in June of 2007. I can't see at a distance very well, or up close either. My eyes are also very sensitive to light.

I too would be interested to know more info about this. It is so easy to blame Celiac for everything!

LAceliac Newbie
LAceliac
Posted
  • Author

That's so interesting about allergies - I have developed them in the past few years and I feel like they get worse each season. The more I learn about celiac there more I think there might be celiac in my family ... nothing diagnosed, but my mom has history of iritis (inflamation of the eye), arthritis, IBS and miscarriage. My sister is lactose intolerant, and I have always thought I suffered from chronic IBS. I have also had dry eyes and light sensitivity and recently I had a retina detachment and I'm in my early 30s (which is pretty uncommon), so it might be a stretch but I want to investigate to see if somehow these might be connected. If I can prevent another eye injury (and, of course, to not to have to live with IBS symptoms) it's worth giving up gluten!

This is a really informative board - I had no idea how prevalent celiac really is and have learned so much already! I truly appreciate the responses - thank you!

gfb1 Rookie
gfb1
Posted
I was told a few years ago that my vision is 20/30. I don't believe that to be true anymore, and it seems to be decreasing since I was diagnosed with Celiac in June of 2007. I can't see at a distance very well, or up close either. My eyes are also very sensitive to light.

I too would be interested to know more info about this. It is so easy to blame Celiac for everything!

it IS easy to blame celiac for everything...

however, this is the way things go with diseases of the immune system (which, depending on your perspective, can be the primary cause or secondary symptomology of celiac disease). as another individual mentioned, as well as numerous threads in the forum, Open Original Shared Link can be associated with celiac, derm. herpetiformis and other autoimmune diseases (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis).

otoh... a few years ago my eyes were better than 20/20... now, i'm into reading glasses, prescription lenses & bifocals ... and i'm not even celiac...

:)

Mother of Jibril Enthusiast
Mother of Jibril
Posted

I was just reading this morning about vitamin A deficiency... which can cause dry eyes, dry skin, poor night vision, sensitivity to bright lights, and inflammation in your eyes. Interesting! Celiac disease is associated with all kinds of vitamin and mineral deficiencies due to malabsorption.

Some foods that can increase your intake of vitamin A: cod liver oil, organ meats, and orange/red vegetables (for the beta carotene).

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    • knitty kitty
      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      By knitty kitty · Posted

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    • Jane02
      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      By Jane02 · Posted

      Thank you so much @knitty kitty for this insightful information! I would have never considered fractionated coconut oil to be a potential source of GI upset. I will consider all the info you shared. Very interesting about the Thiamine deficiency.  I've tracked daily averages of my intake in a nutrition software. The only nutrient I can't consistently meet from my diet is vitamin D. Calcium is a hit and miss as I rely on vegetables, dark leafy greens as a major source, for my calcium intake. I'm able to meet it when I either eat or juice a bundle of kale or collard greens daily haha. My thiamine intake is roughly 120% of my needs, although I do recognize that I may not be absorbing all of these nutrients consistently with intermittent unintentional exposures to gluten.  My vitamin A intake is roughly 900% (~6400 mcg/d) of my needs as I eat a lot of sweet potato, although since it's plant-derived vitamin A (beta-carotene) apparently it's not likely to cause toxicity.  Thanks again! 
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    • Scott Adams
      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      I do not know this, but since they are labelled gluten-free, and are not really a product that could easily be contaminated when making them (there would be not flour in the air of such a facility, for example), I don't really see contamination as something to be concerned about for this type of product. 
    • trents
      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      By trents · Posted

      Contact them.
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