A new study examining avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) among patients with celiac disease found that the condition is common but is not associated with any difference in disease control. The findings suggest that some with celiac disease may pursue dietary control too far, but experts warn that ARFID is only recently being recognized in patients with GI diseases, the definition is in flux, and it's important to not overpathologize patient behavior.
The new study, published in Gastro Hep Advances, comes in the wake of a 2021 cross-sectional study, which found that 53.7% of celiac disease patients met the criteria for ARFID based on the Nine-Item ARFID Screen, and were more likely to have anxiety, depression, and reduced food-related quality of life.
"I think both studies are hypothesizing that there might be greater fear around eating in these patients with celiac, but that the possible outcomes related to their disease may not actually be different," said Helen Burton Murray, PhD, director of the GI behavioral health program and staff psychologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, who was asked to comment on the study.
She also noted that ARFID may represent a subgroup of celiac patients with more severe disease or worse quality of life, though the two studies can't definitively prove that.
