Gluten allergy - or coeliac disease - used to be considered a rare condition, but new research suggests that 1 in 100 may be affected. Symptoms vary from digestive complaints and fatigue to headaches and anaemia, although a gluten allergy can underpin any type of unexplained ill health. Historically, diagnosis has been time-consuming and intrusive. Until now that is.

Your daily bread may be your deadly bread, and you may not even know it. Wheat, some other grains and the cereal proteins gluten and gliadin could be a big factor in any feelings of unwellness you're experiencing.

The old view was that about 1 in 5,000 people had coeliac disease, the genetically transferred digestive and malnutrition disorder caused by an extreme allergy to gluten. However, new research shows that gluten allergy affects possibly as many as 1 in 100 normal, symptom-free people, often showing no digestive symptoms at all, and as many as 1 in 10 people with diabetes or thyroid disease.

Traditionally, coeliac disease has been diagnosed by a gut biopsy to see if the villi - tiny finger-like protrusions in the intestine walls that aid nutrient absorption - had shrivelled up and flattened. Today, advances in medical technology mean that a simple blood test is all that's required. This measures for Ig anti-tissue transglutaminase (IgAtTG) antibodies and is now available as a DIY home test from ANI Biotech that gives you a result in just a few minutes.

When an IgAtTG test was randomly carried out on schoolchildren, a positive result was found to occur in 1 in every 167 so-called normal, healthy children and 1 in every 111 normal, healthy adults. [1] Among those who report gastrointestinal symptoms, it occurs in 1 in 40 children and 1 in 30 adults. Among those who have a father, mother, brother, sister or grandparent with coeliac disease, the risk is 1 in 11. So the condition is far from rare.

So what are the symptoms of a gluten intolerance? The table below gives the most common ones. Remember, however, that many gluten sensitive people have no digestive symptoms at all. If you have a number of these symptoms, or risk factors, I strongly advise you to get tested.

Common symptoms of gluten allergy
. Upper respiratory tract problems like sinusitis and 'glue ear'
. Fatigue caused by malabsorption of nutrients
. Chronic fatigue syndrome
. Mouth ulcers
. Anaemia
. Osteoporosis
. Weight loss
. Short stature in children
. Iron-deficiency anaemia
. Diarrhoea
. Constipation
. Abdominal bloating
. Crohn's disease
. Diverticulitis
. Depression
. Attention and behavioural problems in children, including ADHD
. Autism

Going gluten-free
While gluten is the key protein in wheat, it's also found in rye, barley and oats (although oats don't contain another protein gliadin and therefore can sometimes be tolerated by coeliacs). Non gluten grains include rice, corn, buckwheat, quinoa, millet and amaranth.

If you have any of the symptoms listed in the above and suspect you may be wheat or gluten intolerant, it's a good idea to test for coeliac disease. As Pat S. shows, it's never too late to test.

Pat S. suffered from unexplained chronic iron deficiency anaemia, weight loss, fatigue, lower back pain, premature osteoporosis, gastrointestinal bleeding, bloating and loss of appetite.  After 35 years of these debilitating symptoms, Pat was diagnosed with coeliac disease - confirmed by both blood tests and biopsy.  Within three months of excluding gluten from her diet, her iron levels had normalised and she had achieved a normal body weight.

If, you test positive for coeliac disease, you'll need to give up all the gluten in your diet. Gluten is found in bread and any flour products, and is also present in many processed, packaged foods. Avoiding it can be challenging, especially when eating out. But being strict is vital: it takes less than half a gram of gluten a day to cause toxic inflammation and cell death in your intestines. Your best bet would be to get some guidance from a qualified nutritional therapist.

To find out more about Home Coeliac Tests  click here
These home tests are quite simple. You will receive a sterile pack that contains all you need to take a painless pinprick sample of blood and test it in a special measuring device. Results can be seen in minutes and are as accurate as those performed by a hospital laboratory