Young gluten allergics' support

Sioned ap Robert has had to learn to be careful with her diet

A woman with coeliac disease has set up a bilingual web site in English and Welsh to offer help and support to younger people allergic to gluten.

Sioned ap Robert, 24, of Penrhyndeudraeth, Gwynedd, said she set up Coeliac United after finding advice pages were geared towards older people.

"I felt really lonely when I first found I had coeliac, and this site will let fellow young sufferers get together," she said.

Coeliac UK called it a fantastic idea.

Coeliac suffers have to avoid all foods containing gluten, and suffer symptoms including diarrhoea, weight loss and tiredness.

I felt very lonely when I was first diagnosed, and the website will provide somewhere for younger people in the same situation to have a chat Sioned ap Robert

If left untreated, coeliac disease can lead to anaemia, bone disease and, rarely, some forms of cancer.

Ms ap Robert, who was diagnosed with the illness 12 months ago, said: "I had been tired but it wasn't until I went to give blood that I was told I was anaemic, and following blood tests found I was unable to tolerate any foods containing gluten."

It meant Ms ap Robert had to radically alter her diet, with sufferers unable allowed to eat such foods as bread, biscuits, cakes, pastries, puddings and pies, which are all usually made with flour containing gluten.

Biscuits made with flour containing gluten are on the banned list

"The one thing I really miss is going shopping and popping into a cafe for a cup of tea and a piece of cake," she said.

"Every so often I get a craving, but I know how ill I'll be, and it's just not worth it."

She hoped the use of the internet would bring sufferers closer together, regardless of where they live.

"I felt very lonely when I was first diagnosed, and the website will provide somewhere for younger people in the same situation to have a chat," she added.

Mair Williams, of Coeliac UK Gwynedd, said: "I remember walking out of the hospital when I was diagnosed in 1977 with the word coeliac written on my hand because I'd never heard of it.

"I didn't speak to anyone who had the illness until two years later when the Gwynedd support group was set up.

"This website will be brilliant for children, young people, and indeed their parents," she added.