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Folate Deficiency (Folic Acid)

Lovely Lettuce Briming With Folates.
Lovely Lettuce Brimming With Folates.

What Is Folate?

[dropcap]F[/dropcap]olate, also called folic acid or vitamin B9, is a family group of essential water-soluble B vitamins needed to produce healthy blood cells and other tissue cells.

Folate is required for healthy blood cells, the metabolism of at least 5 amino acids, the production of DNA, RNA and tRNA (genetic material), the normal development of a baby in the womb, male and female fertility, and regulation of homocysteine (amino acid) by reduction of harmful blood levels in conjunction with vitamin B6 and vitamin B12.

Urinary excretion of folate cannot be detected when vitamin intake is below the required levels. On the other hand, when intake exceeds saturation in the body, the vitamins and/or their metabolites are actively excreted into urine to prevent excessive toxicity of the vitamins.1

What Is Folate Deficiency In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Sources:
  1. Shibata K, Hirose J, Fukuwatari T. Relationship Between Urinary Concentrations of Nine Water-soluble Vitamins and their Vitamin Intakes in Japanese Adult Males. Nutr Metab Insights. 2014 Aug 5;7:61-75. doi: 10.4137/NMI.S17245. eCollection 2014. [↩]

Hemochromatosis (Iron Overload Disease)

Hemochromatosis
Microscopic View of Hemochromatosis Stained Blue. Courtesy Wikimedia

What Is Hemochromatosis?

[dropcap]H[/dropcap]emochromatosis, also called iron overload liver disease, is a common inherited disease in the Caucasian population that is characterized by increased iron deposition within the tissues (overload) associated with injury to them.

Hemochromatosis is an autosomal recessive disease, meaning a pair of abnormal genes are inherited from each parent. Parents are unaffected because they carry only one gene.

Q: Where is iron deposited?

A: In hemochromatosis, more iron is absorbed from the small intestine than is needed by the body. Subsequently, because the body has no satisfactory means to release iron overload, excess iron is deposited in various organs such as the liver causing cirrhosis, joints causing arthritis, and the pancreas causing diabetes mellitus.1

Consumption of alcoholic drinks with food should be avoided because alcohol increases leaky gut and greatly increases the absorption of iron. On the flip side, eggs and foods containing calcium such as milk and cheese are beneficial for hemochromatosis because they impair the absorption of iron. Another iron inhibitor is food that contains phytic acid which includes the bran and outer layer of grains, seeds, nuts, peas, beans, and lentils.

Iron overloading, as measured by a random (non-fasting) elevated transferrin saturation value, is estimated to occur in 1 to 6 people per 100 in the United States according to the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). Too much iron increases the risk for metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cancer, liver disease, and osteoporosis.

Medical treatment to remove excess iron from the body uses phlebotomy that draws blood through a vein and/or certain injectable drugs (deferoxamine and deferairox) that bind to iron.

What Is Hemochromatosis In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Sources:
  1. www.irondisorders.org [↩]

Hyperprolactinemia (Excess Prolactin Hormone)

Prolactin Structure. Courtesy Boris TM at Wikipedia.
Prolactin Structure. Courtesy Boris TM at Wikipedia.

What Is Hyperprolactinemia?

[dropcap]H[/dropcap]yperprolactinemia is an excess secretion of prolactin hormone causing an elevated blood level that is characterized by its effects on reproduction: in females causing  amenorrhea and in males causing reduced sexual potency.

Q: What is prolactin?

A: Prolactin is a hormone produced by the the anterior pituitary gland that is transported by the bloodstream to stimulate androgen hormone production in male and estrogen hormone production in female sex glands. However, too much prolactin inhibits hormone production of estrogen in women and testosterone in men.

In pregnant females upon delivery of a baby, prolactin stimulates breast development and milk production for the purpose of feeding the infant. Sucking by the infant stimulates the release of prolactin which keeps the milk supply adequate.

Prolactin also promotes autoimmune mechanisms. Prolactin interferes specifically with B cell tolerance induction, enhances proliferative response to antigens and mitogens and increases the production of immune globulins, cytokines and autoantibodies.1

Other conditions that can stimulate prolactin release include nutritional deficiencies, thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) produced by the pituitary gland, stress, exercise, and anterior pituitary tumors.

What Is An Elevated Prolactin Level In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Sources:
  1. Shelly S, Boaz M, Orbach H. Prolactin and autoimmunity. Autoimmun Rev. 2012 May;11(6-7):A465-70. doi: 10.1016/j.autrev.2011.11.009. [↩]