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  • Jefferson Adams
    Jefferson Adams

    Does a Gluten-free Diet Increase Cardiovascular Risk in Celiac Disease Patients?

    Reviewed and edited by a celiac disease expert.
    Does a Gluten-free Diet Increase Cardiovascular Risk in Celiac Disease Patients? - Photo: CC--geishaboy500
    Caption: Photo: CC--geishaboy500

    Celiac.com 07/10/2013 - Some doctors and nutritionists have expressed concern that a gluten-free diet might increase the risk of cardiovascular problems in patients with celiac disease.

    To get closer to an answer for this question, a team of researchers set out to assess changes of multiple cardiovascular risk factors in celiac patients evaluated before and during a gluten-free diet.

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    The research team included B. Zanini, E. Mazzoncini, F. Lanzarotto, C. Ricci, B.M. Cesana, V. Villanacci, and A. Lanzini of the Gastroenterology Unit at the University and Spedali Civili in Brescia, Italy.

    For their study, the researchers undertook a retrospective analysis of the effects of 1-5 years of gluten-free diet on indicators of cardiovascular risk and on distribution in cardiovascular risk categories in 715 celiac patients.

    Compared to baseline, those following a gluten-free diet showed significantly higher body mass index (21.4±3.4 vs. 22.5±3.5; p

    While on the gluten-free diet, they also showed significantly lower levels in serum triglycerides (87.9±49.5 vs. 80.2±42.8mg/dL; p

    Interestingly, the gluten-free diet patients that the team categorized as falling into "lowest cardiovascular risk profile" fell from 58% at baseline to 47% during gluten-free diet, which may indicate some adverse effect of a gluten-free diet.

    However, their final takeaway was that a gluten-free diet causes substantial changes to cardiovascular risk factors in celiac patients, but does not consistently point to worse or better risk profiles overall, which suggests that the diet is unlikely to contribute to the development of atheromatous plaques, or "hardening" in the walls of the arteries.

    So, the short of it is that eating a gluten-free diet doesn't appear to create any added heart disease risk for people with celiac disease.

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    Guest Christine

    Posted

    Talking to several celiacs who adhere strictly to a gluten-free diet, it would appear that they/we have lower risk of heart disease than people on a normal (whatever is normal!) Western diet. Like mine, their cholesterol is also apparently lower than average. I'm no expert, but fat absorption rather than fat itself is possibly the key to clogged arteries. Further studies are obviously needed, but I would tentatively suggest the gluten-free diet could be helpful for future research into preventative heart disease.

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    Guest Carol

    Posted

    My 16-year-old son has celiac disease (2 years gluten-free) and had his first visit to a cardiologist this week. His gastro indicated that there might be a connection between the celiac and autonomic neurological dysfunction. This article makes me wonder even more that the celiac might be at the root of the heart/blood pressure issue.

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  • About Me

    Jefferson Adams

    Jefferson Adams is Celiac.com's senior writer and Digital Content Director. He earned his B.A. and M.F.A. at Arizona State University. His articles, essays, poems, stories and book reviews have appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and websites, including North American Project, Antioch Review, Caliban, Mississippi Review, Slate, and more. He is the author of more than 2,500 articles on celiac disease. His university coursework includes studies in science, scientific methodology, biology, anatomy, physiology, medicine, logic, and advanced research. He previously devised health and medical content for Colgate, Dove, Pfizer, Sharecare, Walgreens, and more. Jefferson has spoken about celiac disease to the media, including an appearance on the KQED radio show Forum, and is the editor of numerous books, including "Cereal Killers" by Scott Adams and Ron Hoggan, Ed.D.

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