Some Benicar users have experienced symptoms of celiac disease that started after taking Benicar for at least four months.

The Mayo Clinic published a report in August 2012 that showed Benicar patients who exhibited celiac disease symptoms during Benicar use actually experienced a decrease in symptoms after stopping the drug. The report suggested that Benicar created false celiac disease diagnosis for many users.

While examining many possible sources of celiac disease, a recent Time magazine article includes an expert who suggests celiac disease could be caused by something other than gluten.

Celiac Disease Studies

The Time article, “The Rise of Celiac Disease Still Stumps Scientists,” examines two studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine. One study questioned whether age could affect a celiac diagnosis. If gluten was introduced to the human body at a later age, would the body react differently?

The researchers kept a control group of newborns gluten-free for a year. However, they found that while it might delay the onset of celiac disease, delaying gluten introduction ultimately had no effect on the overall development.

Another study tried to create a gluten tolerance in children by slowing introducing gluten to breastfeeding infants. This study was, as Mayo Clinic researcher Dr. Joseph A. Murray said, “a spectacular failure.”

The Time article continued to question why there has been such a dramatic increase in celiac disease. While only 1 percent of the American population is diagnosed with celiac disease, the chances of getting celiac disease is far greater now than it was 50 years ago, and medical experts are still unsure as to what causes it.

Murray suggested that perhaps the cleaner environment we have created (as well as the increased use of antibiotics and the changes in gluten product preparation) might have caused our immune system to react to gluten because it had little else to do.

Benicar Celiac Disease

Benicar has allegedly increased the risk of several gastrointestinal problems in its users. Some Benicar patients experienced celiac disease symptoms and therefore received celiac disease treatment.

Symptoms of celiac disease include digestive problems, a severe rash, low blood count, muscle/joint/bone pain, growth problems, seizures, tingling sensations in the legs, sores in the mouth, and missing menstrual periods. These symptoms are similar to Benicar side effects (which also include severe diarrhea and substantial weight loss).

Villous atrophy is a dangerous condition that is caused by the deterioration of the villa in the intestinal tract. This prevents nutrients from being properly absorbed, which can lead to dehydration, malnutrition, a weakened immune system, and electrolyte problems. Some doctors believe that villous atrophy is caused by celiac disease, but Benicar is becoming more associated as the source of both villous atrophy and celiac disease symptoms. Because doctors would diagnose Benicar users as having celiac disease, the patient could become susceptible to other negative Benicar side effects without being aware of the risk.

Benicar side effects warnings were not added until 2013, which led to several Benicar lawsuits being filed. Many plaintiffs claim that they were misdiagnosed with celiac disease, but could have avoided their medical problems if they had been warned that Benicar could cause those side effects.