"Going to restaurants or dinner at a friend's house can pose dangers to a person with celiac disease," said Keshavarzian. "It can really impact a person's quality of life."

For most people, following a gluten-free diet will stop symptoms, heal existing intestinal damage, and prevent further damage.

Improvement begins within days of starting the diet. The small intestine usually heals in three- to six-months in children but may take several years in adults. A healed intestine means a person now has villi that can absorb nutrients from food into the bloodstream.

Patients enrolled into the Celiac disease and mind/body study at Rush will be randomly assigned to two course assignments for eight weeks. Patients eligible for the study must be over 18 years of age, have received a diagnosis of celiac disease in the past four weeks or within two weeks of starting a gluten-free diet, and have not previously attempted a gluten-free diet.

Source: Rush University Medical Center