Celiac Diagnosis Most Common in Middle Age: Learn the Symptoms and Causes
Written by TYE Medical on Apr 14th 2025
Most celiac diagnoses happen between the ages of 40 and 60, but you might experience symptoms for years prior. Contrary to common belief, celiac disease is not primarily a children’s condition. Even if you seemed to have digested wheat products your entire life without backlash, you shouldn’t ignore new symptoms and dismiss the possibility. But the questions remain, what causes celiac disease and what are the troubling symptoms that occur mid-life?
What Is Celiac Disease?
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks the small intestine when you consume gluten, a protein found in wheat and similar grains. In other words, gluten triggers an immune response directed at the small intestines, creating notable damage over time, even reducing the ability to absorb important nutrients. The only treatment is to completely avoid gluten, thereby disarming the trigger.
Why Does Celiac Disease Seem to Strike in Mid-life?
When it comes to diagnosis, celiac’s is a disease of middle age. Symptoms that were undetectable or dismissed for years suddenly become more obvious or burdensome as you hit mid-life. This is also a time when people become more health conscious and see a doctor more routinely, which makes detection more probable.
As you age, so does your digestive system. Even if you were asymptomatic for years, it becomes more difficult for your intestines to mask the damage, and you begin to feel the effects.
What Causes Celiac Disease?
Researchers still can’t pinpoint an exact cause for the condition. But genetics is believed to play a major role, and the likelihood of developing celiac disease greatly increases if you’re diagnosed with any other autoimmune disorder, like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, muscular sclerosis, sjogren’s syndrome, or type 1 diabetes.
Environmental factors may also trigger the condition, but the particulars are a bit fuzzy. There is much speculation about the quality and contents of mass produced wheat and wheat products in the Western world and how much this contributes to the increased intolerance for gluten. Gluten as an isolated protein is often used as a filler in products that don’t contain wheat and is added to baked goods like commercial breads that already contain the protein naturally. Increased amount of gluten can improve the texture of baked goods and serve other purposes. In other words, people are consuming a lot more gluten than they realize. Again, research has not proven anything definitively, but these are some considerations. Until the medical world understands autoimmune disorders more fully, we probably won’t know much more about the causes of celiac disease.
What Are Symptoms of Celiac Disease?
Celiac symptoms can be tough to pinpoint for some people, because they are diverse and vary among individuals. In fact, some people don’t show symptoms at all and are considered asymptomatic. But usually there are some red flag signs that celiac or at least a gluten sensitivity is causing problems.
Digestive symptoms
Celiac disease can cause troubling digestive issues for those who suffer with the condition. However, children are more likely to develop these symptoms. Some common digestive symptoms of celiac disease are:
- Chronic diarrhea
- Constipation
- Abdominal pain, bloating, gas
- Pale, oily, smelly stool
- Nausea, vomiting
- Unexplained weight loss
Again, children are more likely to notice these digestive symptoms while adults with celiac tend to experience other, non-digestive symptoms most notably.
Non-digestive Symptoms
Some celiac symptoms that occur in other parts of the body and are more likely to occur in adults are:
- Fatigue (extreme and doesn’t improve with rest)
- Anemia (low red blood cells)
- Depression/anxiety
- Irregular menstrual cycle (missed periods)
- Ulcers or canker sores appearing in mouth
- Bone or joint pain
- Infertility or miscarriages
- Skin rashes
- Hair loss
- Headaches
- Tingling/numbness in hands or feet
- Seizures
When Do Celiac Symptoms Stop?
Symptoms of celiac disease continue for as long as you consume gluten, and the destructive effects on your small intestine continue as well. However, it’s largely true that within a few weeks to a few months of ceasing gluten consumption, your symptoms should taper off and stop. Your immune system will gradually calm and stop the attack on your digestive system, and the accompanying inflammation will also subside. This means your symptoms will improve and stop completely for as long as you are gluten free.
However, there are some celiac sufferers who claim that some of their symptoms continue even after being gluten free for months or even years. If this happens, it’s important that you look for hidden sources of gluten in your diet. Often, even products that claim to be gluten free, especially grain products, tend to contain varying degrees of cross contamination with gluten. This means you might be getting more gluten than you think. For more guidance, discuss your symptoms and diet with a registered dietician who is familiar with managing a gluten free diet.
Also, if your symptoms continue after eliminating gluten, you might be sensitive to another type of food. Many people who are gluten sensitive or have celiac diseases are also lactose intolerant. Some celiac symptoms and lactose intolerant symptoms are the same. Try reducing or eliminating dairy, especially high-lactose dairy to see if your symptoms improve.
Next Steps If You Suspect Celiac Disease
The easiest way to diagnose this condition is through a blood test that checks for the antibody your body produces to defend against gluten. Before trying to go gluten free, discuss your concerns with your doctor who can order the necessary tests. The antibodies test is only effective if you’ve been eating gluten and your immune system is in attack mode.
However the most definitive test is an intestinal biopsy that will reveal a damaged small intestine if you indeed have celiac disease. This is a bit more invasive and is usually performed if your symptoms are severe or if the blood test shows equivocal or unreliable results.
If the test comes back normal, that doesn’t mean gluten isn’t the problem. You may not have the autoimmune condition known as celiac disease, but you may be gluten sensitive or intolerant, which means your body doesn’t process the protein well even if it’s not an autoimmune response. You will still want to avoid gluten. It can take up to three months on a gluten elimination diet for you to experience improved symptoms.
