By Nicolette Helling & photojournalist John Thain, FOX 21 News

DULUTH - Researchers are calling it a potentially "significant public health issue."

According to a new study by the Mayo Clinic, celiac disease is four times more likely to be diagnosed today than it was 50 years ago.

It's not just being recognized more, celiac disease is occurring more in the U.S., according to a new study by the Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Steven Squillace is a gastroenterologist at St. Mary's Duluth Clinic and diagnoses people with celiac every week.

"We're seeing a lot of immune disorders increasing in frequency in the past 10 to 20 years and it's really not clear whether it's the processing of our foods or what we're eating or the viruses that we're exposed to or what... We just don't know," said Squillace.

Dr. Squillace says one in one hundred people are being diagnosed with the immune reaction to gluten called, celiac disease.

Though a genetic susceptibility has been confirmed, why celiac is occurring more often and why it affects some people and not others, is still unknown.

"The primary area of involvement with celiac disease occurs in the upper portion of the small intestine," said Squillace.

Gluten causes chronic inflammation of the intestinal wall and prevents nutrients from being absorbed.

Symptoms include headaches, fatigue, anemia, gas, bloating, diarrhea and weight loss.

Dr. Squillace uses a blood test and an intestinal biopsy to confirm the disease's presence in his patients.

"The treatment is a gluten free diet and it's really a big event in a person's life so I like to be as certain as possible," said Squillace.

The treatment of celiac doesn't involve drugs, it's purely dietary; no more gluten.

That means no wheat, no rye, no barely.

Even some oats are restricted.

"The more people are diagnosed, the more people are looking for these foods," said Shannon Szymkowiak.

At the Whole Foods Co-Op in Duluth, nearly every shelf has gluten free foods.

Szymkowiak is the promotions and education manager and says the co-op fills a niche market, making life a little bit easier for people who are new to gluten free.

"We learn to recognize those people. They come in and they look a little bit overwhelmed," said Szymkowiak.

They're overwhelmed because learning to eat gluten free means a crash course in reading ingredient labels, says Dr. Squillace.

"Gluten is used as a filler in a wide variety of products. So, it's not just bread or cereal that you have to avoid, it's really quite a big deal because they put it in things like ice cream and ketchup and all sorts of products. So it becomes quite a challenge," said Squillace.

The Whole Foods Co-Op has gone from carring a couple gluten free brands, to offering dozens in the past 20 years, a fact Szymkowiak correlates with the increasing number of people being diagnosed with celiac.

"Food is such an important part of our lives. I mean, there are memories attached to our food, there's all kinds of things and it's hard to change your habits. It just is," said Szymkowiak.

Fruits and vegetables are naturally gluten free.

But you really have to get good at reading ingredient labels.

Some taco mixes for example have maltodextrin in them, which means, ithey could have gluten.

Micheal Karsh is the produce manager at the Whole Foods Co-Op.

He also has celiac disease.

"It was really hard," said Karsh. "I was eating bread and wheat stuff all the time."

Karsh said it took about a year and a half to adjust to his new diet.

Now, not only does he feel better, he knows he can still enjoy the same foods he used to eat, just without gluten.

The Mayo Clinic's study also found that there was an increased death rate among people who had celiac disease and did not follow a gluten free diet.
Also an increased risk for certain types of cancer was present in people with untreated celiac.

Celiac disease can be developed at any age.

Researchers have found that people with a certain genetic make-up, as well as people with type one diabetes or downs syndrome are more likely to develop the gluten allergy.

It is also more likely if you have a first degree family member with celiac.

If you suspect you might be allergic to gluten, you should talk with your doctor.
For more information on celiac disease, visit www.celiac.org.