Did you know….Dentists can be and often are the first identifiers of Celiac Disease? According to recent research, it looks like up to 89% of people with Celiac Disease exhibit dental enamel defects. Dental enamel defects are characterized by alteration in the hard, white, dense, inorganic substance covering the crowns of the teeth. These defects may include demarcated opacities (white spots), undersized teeth, yellowing, grooves and/or pitting on one or more permanent teeth.
Recently, a study of 128 patients on a gluten free diet revealed that changes in the permanent teeth may be the only sign of what can be for some people a symptomless Celiac Disease. It should also be noted that calcium and vitamin D deficiencies are common in Celiac Disease. Deficiencies of these nutrients lead to cavities.
“Dentists mostly say it’s from fluoride, that the mother took tetracycline, or that there was an illness early on,” said Peter H.R. Green, M.D., director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University. “Celiac disease isn’t on the radar screen of dentists in this country. Dentists should be made aware of these manifestations to help them identify people and get them to see their doctors so they can exclude celiac disease.”
Green completed a U.S. study with his dental colleague, Ted Malahias, DDS, that demonstrates Celiac Disease is highly associated with dental enamel defects in childhood—most likely due to the onset of Celiac Disease during enamel formation. The U.S. study, which did not identify a similar association in adults, concluded that all physician education about Celiac Disease should include information about the significance of dental enamel defects.
It is critical that children are identified early. Dental enamel defects will have occurred before the critical age of 7 years, when the crowns of permanent teeth have developed. Defects can also be used as a screening tool in the adult population. Those with defects should be checked for Celiac Disease to avoid other health complications, such as irritable bowel disease, weight gain, osteoporosis or cancer.
If you know someone who cannot determine the cause of their dental enamel defects, tell them to ask their physician to consider Celiac Disease.
[Information Collected via Recognizing Celiac Disease]
Edit: Triumph Dining also has published some information on this subject, which you can read here.
Hi Tiffany!
I am so glad you touched on this subject!! I too, am pleased with the variety of options ...
These do sound good! Great to see that they are interested in labeling it dairy free! That is such a ...
Hi, Tiffany! Great job - love the articles and really appreciate receiving this feed!
I'm honestly super pleased that Starbucks ...
I saw your post. My friend has a daughter that has major
problems. Was interested to talk to someone ...
Was this soft? I had some products from them and I was expecting them to be soft, but they ...
Thank you Tiffany for your glowing review of our product! We are quite proud of it ourselves :) I suppose ...
