Daily supplements of B vitamins may improve the overall health of people with celiac disease by reducing levels of an amino acid linked to heart disease. A study with 51 adults with celiac disease and 50 healthy controls found that people taking daily supplements of vitamin B6, folate, and vitamin B12 had significantly lower levels of the amino acid homocysteine, according to findings published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
According to researchers, “even if villous atrophy persists, B-vitamin supplements can normalize B6, folate, B12 status, and homocysteine levels.” People with celiac disease, an intolerance to gluten in wheat, are reportedly at increased risk of having high levels of the amino acid homocysteine. Because celiac disease is a typical example of a malabsorption syndrome, sufferers are at increased risk of various deficiency states, including folate and vitamin B12. Furthermore, high homocysteine levels, or hyperhomocysteinemia, are significantly more frequent in newly diagnosed celiac disease patients than healthy controls.
Celiac disease patients who used the vitamin supplements had higher serum levels of all three B-vitamins, said the researchers, compared to non-users. Furthermore, homocysteine levels were significantly lower in patients using vitamin supplements than in patients who did not or healthy controls. “The consequences of higher homocysteine levels in celiac disease may include an increased tendency to develop occlusive venous and arterial disease,” wrote the researchers. “Although this has been an understudied area, data are emerging that celiac disease confers an increased risk of vascular complications.”
Bonnie - while a very small study, I consider B-vitamin status and Ferritin levels in all clients I suspect have gluten intolerance or celiac.
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