Outgrowing Celiacs?

[jams]

I was just at a festival booth doing some volunteer time when I discovered another who had celiacs. She was diagnosed when she was 2 and now is 30ish. She said she was in the hospital from 2 until 4 many times. They didn't know much about Celiacs then or where gluten was found. It was pretty much trial and error. She said she has outgrown it! They have done and redone biopsy after biopsy and blood work and it is gone! Has anyone else heard of that? I didn't think it was something you could outgrow. Just checking to see what opinions are out there. I tried to search the archives but am not so good at that.

[nikki-uk]

My personal opinion is that you can't outgrow it.

Although your lady has had repeat biopsies that are ok,I would think it'll be a case of 'when', not 'if'.

I have come across a man that was dx with coeliac as a child-he was told he'd 'outgrew' it in his teens.Fast forward to his mid thirties and he was seriously ill-and yes bloods and biopsy positive!

[ianm]

You can't outgrow it. I had periods of time where it would go into remission. In my 30's it stopped going into remission and the symptoms became very bad. This disease is genetic in origin and once you've got you will always have it.

[KaitiUSA]

No, you can't outgrow it. There may be times when you have symptoms and then they go away but that does not mean you do not have it. Even though it may seem to go in remission it really is not.

Remember biopsies are tricky because even if there is damage they can miss it if it is sporadic. And also, if she was gluten free before the biopsy then it would also come back negative.

This person is in for a shocker if they think they have outgrown it.

[AnnieMarie]

Hi All !

To me that sounds the same as your going to outgrow blue eyes or red hair.

Yes you can cover them up to look different but underneath your still a blue eyed redhead!!!!

I don;t think you can outgrow it. That is just wishfull thinking, but thanks for sharing.......

Annie

[tarnalberry]

Nope. There is no evidence to suggest that it can go into remission (which is all it could ever do, you can't "outgrow" your genes). If the biopsy was taken to determine if she no longer had damage once having gone on a gluten-free diet (a standard followup biopsy), then of course it would show "negative", but once she started consuming gluten again, the damage would resume.

[frenchiemama]

My doctor told me that sometimes when people get it as very young children they can go through a period of remission in their teens and twenties, but it always comes back.

[LKelly8]

Autoimmune disorders often go into remission during times of hormonal upheaval like puberty or pregnancy.

With celiac, even during one of these "silent" phases, damage to the small intestine (or to the immune system itself) could be continuing.