Ten years ago, through strategic planning, we conducted a gap analysis and assembled our stakeholders. Our name, Beyond Celiac, came from those conversations where we realized that our goal is not simply managing celiac disease—it’s finding treatments that help people move beyond the limitations of the gluten-free diet, better understanding non-celiac gluten sensitivity and it’s looking to unlock other autoimmune conditions that can benefit from celiac research. Many autoimmune diseases function similarly to celiac, but the key difference is that we know what triggers an autoimmune reaction in celiac disease – gluten. Through this understanding, we can unravel the complex reactions in other autoimmune diseases, truly taking our research beyond celiac.
Plus, there is inherent hope in the vision of a world where a celiac disease diagnosis causes only a minor inconvenience rather than major life changes, where long-term effects are mitigated, and where a gluten-free diet is a worry of the past. A world beyond celiac is possible.
This month, Celiac Awareness Month, we are thinking about what life beyond celiac would be like in a day-to-day sense. For me, it would mean being invited over to friends’ homes and the ability to travel and eat without fear. Less social isolation and getting “accidentally glutened.” For members of the Beyond Celiac team, it would mean:
More dining experiences; less menu anxiety.
More dinner invites; less “I’ll just eat before I come.”
More casual conversations; fewer awkward food questions.
What does a life beyond celiac disease look like for you or your family? Can you imagine enjoying more parties with friends and family, and worrying less about getting too ill from a dubious meal, and leaving early? What if celiac disease didn’t have to dictate your travel destinations, your college of choice, or even your career? How would your world change with less stigma and judgment and more time simply enjoying life?
Fortunately, we are closer than ever to turning these hopes into realities. Every day, thanks to partnerships with doctors, academics, researchers, regulatory agencies, pharmaceutical teams, and, of course, community members like you, we are a day closer to treatments that could mean more spontaneous pizza parties and less ingredient checking.
Join me in celebrating Celiac Awareness Month by sharing the hopes we can turn into reality by securing treatments toward a cure. Email your thoughts to [email protected] or post to your social media channels and tag Beyond Celiac on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, or YouTube. You can also visit our website to download and share celiac facts, find support tips, get other awareness month ideas to post throughout the month to help your followers understand the condition and what their support means to people with celiac disease.
Celiac Awareness Month is an important part of driving our community and partners toward greater understanding and action toward a life beyond celiac disease. Thank you for all the ways you contribute to a world with more joy in exploring new places, less time researching restaurants; more sharing plates, less sitting out; more savoring the moment, and fewer missed moments.
Together toward a world beyond celiac,
—Alice Bast, CEO
May is Celiac Awareness Month, and there are more ways than ever for you to get involved! Whatever supporting the community looks like to you—attending a local meet-up, listening at a virtual event, sharing facts on social media—we’re sure there’s a way for you to engage this May.
This May, we’re partnering with two MLB teams for Celiac Awareness Month! If you purchase tickets through the links for the May 17 game in Fenway Stadium as the Red Sox take on the Braves or the May 25 game in Target Field as the Twins take on the Royals, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Beyond Celiac. So invite your friends and family and head out to the ballpark—together, we can strike out celiac disease!
Get tickets for the Red Sox-Braves game in MA
Get tickets for the Twins-Royals Game in MN
Support our work by signing up for the annual virtual Step Beyond Celiac, presented by Takeda, DiGiorno, Jack’s, and California Pizza Kitchen! Participants in the virtual event can walk, run, bike or roll 3.1 miles anywhere, anytime this May, which is Celiac Awareness Month. Proceeds will go toward our work to find treatments and a cure for celiac disease, and our top fundraisers will receive fabulous, gluten-free prizes, donated by our generous sponsors.
Wherever you are, lace up your shoes and help us race toward the ultimate finish line—a cure for celiac disease!
Step Beyond Celiac is proudly presented by:
Cookout season is here, and the perfect side to bring is slow-cooker beans! Enjoy alongside corn-on-the-cob, watermelon, hamburgers, and hot dogs. They’re great eaten alone or with salty tortilla chips.
Ricotta cakes are a delectable mix between a sponge cake and a cheesecake. Try this recipe with lemons or oranges for a citrusy lift, and top with powdered sugar, almonds, or more fruit, whatever suits your tastebuds!
“I had been experiencing symptoms for around eight months before officially getting diagnosed with celiac disease. I was sick so often that I had to stop going to public school, and I wasn’t healthy enough to do the things I loved. All of those things took a major toll on my mental health. I wondered if I was going to get healthier.
I recall that doctors kept telling me and my mother that I was probably just nervous, and that it was nothing serious. It took such a long time for them to realize that I was actually incredibly sick.”
In what century was celiac disease first written about?
The earliest surviving account of celiac disease that we have today is from the second century AD. Greek physician Aretaeus of Cappadocia writes about a condition he calls “the coeliac affection,” noting that, “if the stomach be irretentive of the food and if it pass through undigested and crude, and nothing ascends into the body, we call such persons coeliacs.” Learn more about the history of celiac disease.
Neurological symptoms of celiac disease are less well known than gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea and abdominal pain. Beyond Celiac conducted a study on neurological symptoms and presented it at AAN to draw neurologists’ attention to symptoms that might not be recognized as signs of celiac disease in their patients.
Even those with celiac disease who follow the gluten-free diet and have healing of their intestines sometimes continue to have anemia, a recent study found.
Read more research news on our Research News Feed
Beyond Celiac is seeking applications for its 2025 Beyond Celiac Early Career Research Award. The Award consists of a two-year grant of up to $100,000 annually, which includes up to 8 percent in indirect costs. The award is intended to support a research project focused on translational research, with the potential to advance disease knowledge and accelerate discovery and/or development of treatments for celiac disease. The funding period covers October 1, 2025–September 30, 2027. The application deadline is May 26, 2025.
The Celiac Disease Program at Children’s National Hospital is currently enrolling for the Gluten-Free Resilience and Overall Wellness (GROW) Project, a behavioral research study led by Dr. Shayna Coburn. They are enrolling on a first-come, first-serve basis. Read on for more details and click the link at the bottom to see if you and your teen are eligible.
About the GROW Project:
Eligibility:
To see if you and your teen are eligible, click here. Reserve your spot today!
U.S. Education Cuts: What’s the Impact on School Allergy Rights?
Cuts to the U.S. Office for Civil Rights (OCR) are eliciting uncertainty and fear in the food allergy and asthma communities. Concerned parents wonder what the dismantling of the federal Department of Education, which includes the OCR, means for their children’s accommodations in school.
Attend an In-Person or Virtual Event This May
There are more celiac disease-related events in May than in any other month—now’s your chance! Whether you’re looking for in-person community events in major metropolitan areas or joining virtual events from home, this is the month to do it.
Raise Money for Beyond Celiac on Facebook!
Happy birth-month to all our May-born community members! When your big day rolls around, consider raising money for Beyond Celiac so that we can help fund new research by scientists in the celiac disease field. And a HUGE thank you to everyone who’s created fundraisers for us throughout the years! These fundraisers help make our important work possible.
Opt-in to stay up-to-date on the latest news.
Yes, I want to advance research No, I'd prefer not to
