9 Common Celiac Disease Symptoms Even Older Adults Can Experience
Written by TYE Medical on Apr 14th 2025
If you suffer from random bouts of digestive trouble and can’t trace the source, it could be celiac disease flare-ups. Celiac symptoms can arise in midlife and later, seemingly from out of nowhere. It’s not uncommon for people to live without symptoms, but eventually, the disease and an aging body begin to show signs.
You might notice that along with digestive symptoms, you also have other symptoms like weight loss or iron-deficiency anemia. Since celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder, you can experience a host of symptoms beyond digestive trouble, including what seems like unrelated issues like fatigue, nutritional deficiencies, and even skin problems.
Whether or not you experience symptoms, if you have the disease, gluten still triggers intestinal damage. You are at higher risk if you or a parent have any other autoimmune disease or if one of your parents have celiac disease.
Here are 9 common celiac disease symptoms that even older adults can experience.
What Causes Celiac Disease Symptoms?
When you consume gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley, it triggers an immune response, causing your body to attack the villi in your small intestine. These small, bumpy features of your intestine absorb nutrients from food as it moves to your large intestines.
When your immune system damages these villi, your body doesn’t receive all the necessary nutrients from food. Over time, this can cause malnutrition and related symptoms. Additionally, the inflammation that accompanies an immune response also causes symptoms that may seem unrelated to digestion.
The list of celiac symptoms is extensive and varies widely among individuals. If you experience any of these symptoms on a regular basis or if they seem to come and go, consider getting tested, especially if autoimmune diseases run in your family.
1. Diarrhea Common Celiac Disease Symptom
About 43% of people with celiac disease report diarrhea or watery stool as a symptom, making it one of the most common indicators of celiac disease. If you’re following a gluten-free diet, this inconvenient symptom should diminish. Remember that many causes of diarrhea exist, including other intestinal issues or food intolerances and infections.
2. Bloating
Another common but uncomfortable symptom of celiac disease is bloating. When you ingest gluten your digestive tract becomes inflamed, triggering bloating and other digestive symptoms. Bloating makes you feel significantly full or inflated, especially in your midsection. Fortunately, bloating symptoms dramatically improve when following a gluten-free diet.
You may also experience gluten-induced bloating if you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Eating gluten may worsen other symptoms of IBS like fatigue and stomach pain.
Still other reasons for your bloating may include:
- Chronic gas
- Constipation
- Bowel obstruction
- Digestive disorders
3. Gas
It’s not uncommon for both children and older adults with untreated celiac disease to have noticeable gas. When you eat gluten the protein moves through your small intestine slowly, absorbing additional water and collecting gut bacteria in the large intestine, causing fermentation. Gas and bloating are the byproducts of this fermentation process.
But as with bloating, there are several other reasons for flatulence, such as:
- Indigestion
- Constipation
- Lactose intolerance
- IBS
4. Fatigue
People with celiac disease often experience increased fatigue and lower energy levels that improve on a gluten-free diet. While you are more likely to have sleep problems with celiac disease, the fatigue is also closely associated with the inflammation and nutrient deficiency that result from small intestine damage.
Thyroid problems, infections, anemia, and depression can also cause significant fatigue, so it’s important to consult with a doctor to find the underlying causes.
5. Weight Loss
In both children and adults weight loss is a common symptom of celiac disease, which is largely due to nutrient depletion resulting from the damaged small intestine. Especially for children, unintended weight loss is an early indicator. As with other symptoms, eating gluten-free can help you return to an appropriate weight and maintain a healthy BMI.
Keep in mind that other serious conditions could be causing unexplained weight loss. Possibilities include a form of cancer, type I diabetes, hyperthyroidism, or depression.
Also consider that thin people aren’t the only individuals diagnosed with celiac disease. While unintended weight loss is a symptom, it’s not a requirement. Some people are overweight when receiving the diagnosis and others are of average weight. Celiac disease may actually cause you to gain weight, although it is less common.
6. Iron Deficiency Anemia
When you have celiac disease, iron is one of the nutrients your body may lack. Anemia develops when you have an inadequate amount of healthy red blood cells. About 40% of people with celiac disease also have iron deficiency anemia. For some, this problem continues even after adopting a gluten-free lifestyle. But most often, the anemia resolves after eating gluten free for about one year.
Iron deficiency anemia symptoms include:
- Weakness
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Chest pain
- Dizziness
If you know you have celiac disease, it is critical that you avoid gluten. According to one study, older adults with anemia are twice as likely to have severe small intestine damage and low bone mass resulting from celiac disease. It’s important to abstain from gluten to protect your small intestines and other bodily systems.
But celiac disease is not the only cause of iron deficiency anemia, other possibilities include:
- Using pain relievers like aspirin long term
- Eating a poor diet low in iron
- Heavy or chronic blood loss
7. Constipation
Celiac disease triggers diarrhea in some people and constipation in others. Damaged villi in your small intestine may fail to absorb nutrients and absorb additional fluid instead, making it difficult to pass the hardened stool.
For some, constipation clears up after adhering to a gluten-free diet, but others may continue to struggle while eating gluten free. This is because many gluten-free foods naturally contain less fiber, fiber that helps your digestive system run smoothly.
To combat this, you should consume more produce and gluten-free gains like quinoa, buckwheat, brown rice, and gluten-free oats. Also be sure to drink plenty of hydrating fluids.
Dehydration, lack of physical activity, and a poor diet low in whole foods, produce, and fiber can also cause constipation.
8. Depression
This is another symptom that expands beyond the digestive tract. Research suggests that depression can be more severe and even more common in adults with celiac disease. It can even increase your risk for anxiety, eating disorders, and depression.
Depression, fatigue, and anxiety dramatically affect quality of life and are more common with untreated celiac disease. Why? Damaged intestines allow more particles to pass through the intestine wall and into the bloodstream. Some research suggests that some of these substances affect brain function.
Other possible causes of depression include:
- Stress
- Hormonal shifts
- Genetics
- Grief
9. Skin Rash
Another more common celiac disease symptom is an itchy, blistering skin rash known as dermatitis herpetiformis. It often appears on your knees, buttocks, or elbows but can be found on the backs of the hands. Rashes can help a doctor quickly flag celiac disease as a possibility.
While a gluten-free diet often clears the rash, it can reappear if you’re not faithfully adhering to gluten free foods. If you experience the rash as a symptom, it’s possible you won’t have any or many of the digestive symptoms.
Other reasons you may develop a similar skin rash include:
- Dermatitis
- Psoriasis
- Eczema
- Hives
Other Health Conditions Related to Celiac Disease
The biggest concern is what can happen if celiac disease is left untreated and you continue to consume gluten. When this is the case, you may develop other health problems, such as:
- Infertility
- Osteoporosis
- Bone, muscle, or joint pain
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Gluten neuropathy (tingling, numbness, and nerve pain)
It’s important to remember that if you have one autoimmune disorder, you are always at risk for having another. Other autoimmune disorders that may exist concurrently with celiac disease include:
- Hashimoto’s disease (thyroid condition)
- Ulcerative colitis
- Multiple sclerosis
- Grave’s disease
- Chron’s disease
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Lupus (systemic)
Best Ways to Manage Celiac Disease Symptoms
Celiac disease has no cure which means that your only option is to manage symptoms.
Most importantly, you must strictly adhere to a gluten-free diet, abstaining from all wheat, rye, barley, or spelt. Additionally, to be certain that no gluten enters your system to trigger an immune response, you must also avoid foods that could be cross-contaminated like oats. Purchase oats that are certified gluten free as they are often at a higher risk of more dramatic cross-contamination.
Gluten-containing foods to avoid unless labeled as gluten-free include:
- Bread
- Pasta
- Crackers
- Dressings
- Sauces
- Piese
- Cakes
- Cookies
- Beer
- Gravies
Your best defense is to become well-versed in reading labels and finding high-risk products that are certified gluten free.
After understanding the foods you must avoid, remember that there are still plenty delicious foods you can partake of such as:
- Eggs
- Dairy (if tolerated)
- Meat, seafood, poultry
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Legumes (beans, lentils, etc.)
- Healthy fats
- Herbs and spices
- Rice
- Quinoa
- Millet
- Buckwheat
If you think you have celiac disease, talk with your doctor about testing. Be sure to continue eating as normal and don’t start a gluten-free diet until after the test. You will need to have gluten in your system for the test results to be accurate.
