April Newsletter - Project updates

News | Research | Project updates | Upcoming events

Nutritional adequacy research

Coeliac UK completed a systematic literature review looking at the nutritional adequacy of the gluten-free diet. Dietitians from the Charity's Diet and Health team along with researchers from Booth Hall Children's Hospital Manchester and York Hospital completed the report. The project report is published on the Food Standards Agency website.

This research looked specifically at the nutritional adequacy of the gluten-free diet with regard to calcium, iron and B vitamins to inform the Agency with regard to fortification policy on gluten-free cereals. The findings of the report showed that specific nutritional deficiencies do not present a significant problem for people with coeliac disease, who are established on a gluten-free diet. However, there was a limited amount of research in this area and this report highlights the need for more substantive research on the nutritional status of the coeliac community. The research team recommended that gluten-free flours used to make gluten-free substitute products (bread, flour) should be fortified to make them in line with the fortification of wheat flour used to make normal staple products which are currently covered by legislation.