One Celiac Man's Harrowing Covid-19 Survival Story

13 hours ago, Scott Adams said:

I’m not condoning it, but he was very I’ll, and that’s what he ate...he had celiac disease, right there in paragraph 1. Again, he may be one the ~25% of celiacs who regularly cheat, or this may have been a one time thing based on the belief that he may die, we just don’t know. 

He indicates he had lost over 15 pounds, was having issues eating, AND ”He said he was beginning to comprehend the mindset of people he had known who elected to end their misery by suicide.” I’ll stick with my interpretation that he thought he was dying.

I occasionally go to fast food restaurants and order food w/o the bread.

Sorry, I lost respect for the article one paragraph in when it defined celiac disease as a wheat allergy.   I skimmed a bit after that, but knowing that this person picked up and presumably ate a couple of breakfast sandwiches from McDonald's somewhere down the line....well, with no respect for the journalism, and diminishing respect for the patient.....I didn't get very far, and closed the article. 

Yes, the Kentucky newspaper defined celiac disease as "being allergic to wheat," but not the guy with celiac disease who is the subject of the article. This fact doesn't, in my opinion, detract from the man's story, or the overall article. Having been involved deeply with celiac disease for 25 years now, I think I understand that you may feel strongly about these things, however, my past experience has also taught me not to instantly judge those who use "celiac's disease" instead of "celiac disease," or even "gluten allergy," and to use these times as an opportunity to educate and raise awareness.

On 5/20/2020 at 5:26 AM, RMJ said:

 Reading this article, I was waiting for something related to Celiac that would be pertinent to this audience. Seems like just another person who came down with COVID. In heading to the hospital, ingested some McDonalds. There's the reason for weight loss. 

Thinking the same thing!

On 5/26/2020 at 9:44 AM, Guest Diane said:

It is possible if he was following his  celiac diet he would not have been as sick or sick at all.   This story feels like a hoax.   

There's no indication the man was eating gluten before becoming sick with Covid-19. Given that he nearly died, and was in the hospital for a long stretch, maybe he just decided he wanted a hamburger, gluten-be-damned. It's not smart, but people do it. Some have more repercussions than others. 

On 5/26/2020 at 2:28 AM, vew573 said:

I didn't read anything about anyone with Celiac  eating at McDonalds??????

I am coeliac and cDonalds is my emergency meal. Only fries and orange juice, but both are gluten-free in Europe

In the U.S., McDonald's formerly used a dedicated fryer for their fries which were at that time touted as gluten-free. I believe that has changed.

On 5/26/2020 at 11:53 PM, Scott Adams said:

I’m not condoning it, but he was very I’ll, and that’s what he ate...he had celiac disease, right there in paragraph 1. Again, he may be one of the ~25% of celiacs who regularly cheat, or this may have been a one time thing based on the belief that he may die, we just don’t know. 

He indicates he had lost over 15 pounds, was having issues eating, AND ”He said he was beginning to comprehend the mindset of people he had known who elected to end their misery by suicide.” I’ll stick with my interpretation that he thought he was dying.

McDonalds as a “last meal”???  I feel he is one of “those people” who cause issues for those of us with Celiac who take it seriously!  It makes the rest of us not to be taken seriously.  So many times I’ve heard someone say they have Celiac, but cheat from time to time.  Or order at a restaurant, asking for gluten free menu, informing server they have Celiac, yet ordering an item that contains gluten.  
mom not even sure why Celiac.commeven write this article as COVID and Celiac seem to have no bearing on the other.