What is Celiac Disease?

PureFit nutrition bars are all about what they do not contain in terms of potentially harmful ingredients or ingredients which may interfere with the bar’s ultimate nutritional value. For example, PureFit nutrition bars don’t contain any dairy, artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils, trans fats, or sugar alcohols. They also don’t contain gluten.

The fact that PureFit bars are gluten-free is important to many people but especially to those who suffer from Celiac Disease. Celiac Disease (also called celiac sprue, nontropical sprue, gluten-sensitive enteropathy, or, simply, CD) is a genetic, autoimmune, intestinal disorder triggered by gluten. It affects, on average, 1 out of every 133 people, and yet 97 percent of people who have Celiac Disease don’t even know they have it. As many as three million Americans are believed to have Celiac Disease, and, if left untreated, these people run the risk of additional complications including, but not limited to, osteoporosis, cancer and autoimmune diseases.

For somebody who has Celiac Disease, exposure to gluten (wheat products) damages the villi of his or her small intestine making it difficult for him or her to absorb essential nutrients from food. Currently, the only effective treatment for celiac disease is a gluten-free diet.

PureFit has long been committed to making a product that is gluten-free, but we also feel it is vitally important to educate people about Celiac Disease. This is a topic to which we will continue to return over the coming months, and it is one that is core to the PureFit philosophy. In the meantime, for additional information on Celiac Disease, check out the following resources:

National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA)

Celiac Disease Foundation (CDF)

Celiac Sprue Association (CSA)

PureFit is a proud supporter of the Celiac Sprue Association (CSA).