The History of Celiac Disease and a Gluten Free Diet
If you’re wondering how long celiac disease has existed, how doctors realized a gluten free diet was needed to treat celiac disease or anything related to the history of celiac, you’re in the right place!
This post should not be considered medical advice. All research and sources are linked below.
1-100 AD: a 2000-year-old skeleton with signs of celiac disease was found in Italy in 2008. This is the oldest skeleton with celiac disease found so far, and she showed signs of malnutrition, failure to thrive and had the celiac gene HLA-DQ2.5. Further research also found that ancient Romans may have tried to treat this woman’s celiac with Chinese medicine.
101–200 AD: Aretaeus of Cappadocia describes “the coeliac affection” that has started appearing after greater agricultural developments had spread to the Fertile Crescent. The main symptom he describes is “fatty stools” or diarrhea.
Late 1880s: English doctor Samuel Gee begins writing & speaking about a condition called celiac disease characterized by “chronic indigestion.” He believed it could be treated by diet but was unable to pinpoint what diet would improve symptoms.
1924: Dr. Sydney Haas begins promoting a “banana diet” as a cure for celiac disease, but it was viewed as a temporary treatment & patients were told to return to eating wheat after their symptoms dissipated. As a result, many celiac patients still faced long-term health problems or early death.
1952: Willem Karel Dicke identifies gluten as the trigger for celiac disease.
1956: Gastroenterologist Margot Shiner develops a new way to biopsy intestines, which aided with the diagnosis of celiac disease.
1960-1990s: researchers discover the existence of gluten antibodies in those with celiac disease and that specific HLA gene variants are correlated with celiac. This helped increase diagnoses of celiac disease & non celiac gluten sensitivity, and allowed researchers to identify atypical / non-digestive symptoms of celiac. Celiac is accepted as an autoimmune disease that often occurs with other autoimmune conditions.
1974: the Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) is founded to aid those following a gluten free diet. Their founder, Elaine Hartsook, wrote one of the first books on the gluten free diet.
2003: Beyond Celiac, formerly National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, is formed as one of the first advocacy groups for those with celiac.
2005: the Gluten Intolerance Group forms the Gluten Free Certification Organization to certify products as gluten free, requiring them to meet a 10 ppm gluten threshold and a 80-point verification process.
2006: the first potential drug treatment for celiac disease (Larazotide acetate) starts clinical trials.
2013: the FDA sets a standardized definition of “gluten free” labeled foods in the US, requiring them to meet a 20 ppm gluten threshold, along with additional requirements.
2020’s: continued research and clinical trials are still being done, including new findings on where the gluten reaction begins; potentially diagnosing celiac disease through a blood test for unique protein signatures or saliva samples, and more!
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