What happens in untreated coeliac disease?

The small intestine can be found between the stomach and the large intestine (colon).

In a healthy small intestine, the villiYour villi stick out like tiny fingers from the wall of your gut. If you have coeliac disease and are not following a gluten-free diet, these become flat and you have difficulty absorbing nutrients. allow the body to absorb nutrients from the food we eat into the blood.

This picture shows healthy villi:

In untreated coeliac diseaseA condition where a person is unable to eat gluten as it makes their body attack itself. , villi become inflamed and flattened together. In some cases, they can even disappear. This is called 'villous atrophy'. 

When the gut is damaged in this way, it means the body can not absorb all the nutrients from food properly. This is called 'malabsorption'.

This picture shows the damage to the villi in someone with untreated coeliac disease:

This damage causes many of the symptoms of coeliac disease and adds to the health risks found with coeliac disease such as anaemia and osteoporosisA condition where your bones lose bone mass and become brittle. .

The way the body's immune system reacts to glutenA protein that is found in the cereals wheat, barley and rye. can affect other parts of the body as well. For example, the skin rash called dermatitis herpetiformisUsually shortened to DH, this is a form of coeliac disease where the skin is affected with small blisters. may develop.