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Celiac.com 06/07/2021 - Numerous adults with celiac disease experience social anxiety, which detracts from their quality of life, eating patterns and ability to socialize and date. In a recent survey, most people with celiac disease said that it had a major or moderate negative impact on their dating life. The survey included questions on celiac disease-specific dating attitudes, behaviors and preferences, a social anxiety questionnaire, a celiac disease-specific quality of life instrument and a celiac disease food attitudes and behaviors scale. Anne R. Lee, EdD, RDN, LD, Jessica Lebovitz, RD, CDN, CNSC, both from the celiac Disease Center at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, led a team that send an email survey to nearly 14,000 affiliates of the institution. They received 538 fully completed the surveys from people who met the inclusion criteria, which was inclusion criteria was: 18 years of age or older, self-reported biopsy-proven celiac disease and following a gluten-free diet. They found that the negative effects of celiac disease were in people 23 to 35 years of age group, who reported substantially lower quality of life scores and higher social anxiety scores than those over 65 years of age. Nearly half of respondents reported that their celiac disease made them anxious about dating, while nearly 40% were hesitant to kiss due to their celiac disease. Overall, nearly 70% of respondents said celiac disease had a major/moderate impact on their dating life. The effects were more pronounced on those with less income. Those who reported a major/moderate impact, compared with those with no major impact, were more likely to have an annual household income under $50,000, were nearly five times more hesitant to go on dates because of celiac disease, and had lower celiac disease quality of life scores. Nearly 40% reported being uncomfortable explaining their dietary precaution to waiters, while on dates. Nearly on in three engaged in riskier eating behaviors, and one in twelve purposely consumed gluten. According to researchers, nearly 50% of women, and 15% of men were hesitant to kiss their dates, because of celiac disease. Those who were hesitant to kiss their dates had higher social anxiety questionnaire scores, and higher celiac disease-food attitudes and behavior scale scores than non-hesitant participants. Overall, about one out of five respondents said that celiac disease made the dating experience unenjoyable, overall. What's your experience with dating and celiac disease? Do you take special precautions? Do you get anxious? Share your story below. Read more in Healio.com

Celiac.com 07/19/2022 - The challenges of having celiac disease are numerous. A number of studies and articles have documented the many challenges faced by people with celiac disease in eating out, going to college, and more. Many people with celiac disease complain about difficulties in dating, or in finding suitable long term partners. Now, a new study is helping to shed some light on the nature of those challenges. To better understand the difficulties of navigating the social and dating landscape for people with celiac disease, a team of researchers recently set out to investigate dating-related behaviors in adults with celiac disease. The research team included Jessica Lebovits; Anne R. Lee; Edward J. Ciaccio; Randi L. Wolf; Rebecca H. Davies; Chloe Cerino; Benjamin Lebwohl; and Peter H. R. Green. They are variously affiliated with the The Celiac Disease Center, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; and the Program in Nutrition, Department of Health and Behavior Studies, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA. The team invited nearly 12,000 biopsy-diagnosed affiliates of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University to participate in an online survey. More than 5,000 opened the email, while 538 fully completed the survey, which included celiac-specific dating attitudes/behaviors questionnaire, a Social Anxiety Questionnaire (SAQ), a celiac-specific quality of life instrument (celiac disease-QOL), and a celiac disease Food Attitudes and Behaviors scale (celiac disease-FAB). Nearly nine in ten respondents of the questionnaire were female. Nearly half had dated with celiac disease, the vast majority, nearly seventy percent said that celiac disease had a moderate to major impact on their dating life. A major to moderate impact was more commonly reported among females, 23–35-year-olds, those with a household income under fifty thousand dollars per year, and those with a lower overall celiac disease QOL scores. Nearly forty percent reported being uncomfortable explaining their gluten-free dietary precautions to waiters, nearly thirty percent engaged in riskier eating behaviors, and more than two in five women and one in five men hesitant to kiss their partner because of celiac disease. The majority of celiacs who responded to the questionnaire felt that celiac disease had a major to moderate impact on their dating life. The affects can include hesitation toward dating and kissing, decreased QOL scores, greater social anxiety, and maladaptive eating attitudes and behaviors. Overall, the pressures of following a gluten-free diet have a major impact on dating and intimacy for people with celiac disease. The results of this study will likely not be news to people with celiac disease, especially those who have tried to date tor to maintain social relationships. Stay tuned for more on this and related stories. Read more in Digestive Diseases and Sciences

Celiac.com 07/09/2021 - In this age of "Sex & the City," more and more women are taking a headstrong, Samantha Jonesian approach to dating. I used to be one of them. I remember once shoving a guy I barely knew into a bedroom at a house party and slamming the door shut behind us. But all that changed a year and a half ago when I was diagnosed with celiac disease. What's a Samantha Jones to do? Whisper into someone's ear, "uh, listen, I'd love to shove you into that bedroom and kiss you but the list of things to which I'm severely allergic is so extensive that in order not to risk damaging my health I'll need you to first proceed to the bathroom and brush your teeth." As well as the toothbrush obstacle, other dating dilemmas plague us celiacs. Most restaurants offer few dishes which we can feel confident are gluten-free. Even at home, we have to be wary of slip-ups by our friends and family. Constant vigilance is necessary, and this unfortunately takes the form of nagging. I spent several months mourning the sudden loss of my spontaneous and care-free self. With a faint and awkward hope I kept what I referred to as "the emergency make-out tooth brush" in my bag, but it remained entombed with my confidence beneath my wallet and ipod. My dating dry-spell had more to do with my sunken confidence than my strict diet. I felt apprehensive about approaching people. Whereas before I would guide the evening through my conversation and body language, now I feared to tread into overtly flirtatious territory because the dreaded tooth-brushing conversation loomed ominously over the beer bottle in the hand of every prospect. I dreamed that a handsome, confident individual would lift this downtrodden rag doll off the floor. I imagined him taking me in his self-assured arms and reminding me how special and desirable I still was. One weekend, at long last, I met someone. We connected instantly. I braved the tooth-brushing talk and he responded with a warm chuckle. Finally, I thought, I am saved. Yet when it came to discussing the severity of my lifestyle restrictions, I held back. My health necessitated a forthright and extensive conversation. Instead, I euphemized, tip-toed, and scurried ineffectually through the matter, hoping that he would put together the pieces. There was a constant procession of things I needed to bring up with him: What kind of toothpaste was he using? I can't drink that kind of instant coffee; Was the buckwheat flour in those cookies ground on the same mill as wheat? …and so on. Embarrassing gastro-intestinal reactions occurred because I was sometimes too ashamed to assert my needs. After a few weeks, my mind was so confused by the onslaught of insecurity and annoyance that our relationship soured. In the early stage of most relationships, it is probably better to touch upon our quirks rather than delve into the awkward details. I do not think, however, that this is the case for celiacs. We are a breed who must lead by example: If others see us taking a laid-back attitude toward our diet, they will think it's acceptable for them to do so, too. I have been asking myself the same question ever since I was diagnosed: "Why should I feel ashamed? I am meticulous for medical reasons. I am not just ‘fussy' or ‘picky.'" I've come to realize that my new insecurity is the result of two things: first, I sadly admit that my pre-diagnosed self would probably not be very empathetic towards a celiac. The second reason for this hang-up is that I wasn't that secure and confident to begin with. In retrospect, I see that I was simply enacting roles I'd seen successfully executed by others. Clever remarks, flirtatious gestures, bold actions—these were facades which hid self-doubt. Had I truly been confident, I would have accepted my disease as a unique quirk. Instead I felt flawed, undesirable, even freakish. I am slowly coming to terms with my new life. Things are going to be different, but that doesn't mean they will be worse. I can no longer be the same carefree person I once was. Maybe that's okay. Personal growth has come from no longer relying on spontaneous kisses to fulfill me. I've also come to better empathize with the disabled and seriously ill. Finally, I've accepted the fact this Raggedy-Ann must build her own muscle. I am now developing the strength to stand tall from within, not searching for it from without.

Celiac.com 10/23/2018 - As if being on a gluten-free diet for medical reasons weren’t hard enough already, with it’s numerous logistical and social challenges, now comes a new study that spells out the thoughts of the general public about gluten-free dieters, and the picture it paints isn’t pretty. Nearly half of people who responded to a recent survey said that they would judge someone on a gluten-free diet as "selfish, demanding and difficult to please." Another 44 percent say that people who eat a gluten-free diet are "high maintenance," while more than 30 percent call gluten-free eaters "selfish" and 14 percent presume they must be "arrogant." When it comes to questions of dating, More than 40 percent of those surveyed would be reluctant to date someone who was gluten-free, while 10 percent of respondents feared that they would be judged poorly by their gluten-free date. The study by researchers from Western Connecticut State University is the first study of its kind. In it, researchers asked 161 adults if they would date somebody who is gluten-free. Most participants expressed reservations bout dating people on a gluten-free diet. Researchers had another group of 132 people participate in an online dating scenario in which they were told to "imagine going on a first date with an individual who discloses adhering to a gluten-free diet." Participants then rated their prospective date on factors such as perceived kindness, mood, pickiness, and femininity or masculinity. Interestingly, women on a gluten-free diet were perceived to be more feminine. Some participants claimed they would be more understanding if a person cut out gluten due to an allergy rather than just as part of a fad diet. The good news is that six percent of those surveyed view gluten-free eaters as "understanding," while three percent see them as "happy," "energetic," and "self-disciplined." Its unclear how closely the results of this particular survey reflect the sentiments of the general public, but you can read more results in the DailyMail.com.