People with celiac disease – which makes one in 100 Britons intolerant to gluten – are at increased risk of heart disease, researchers at Oxford University have found

If you have a common bowel disorder, you may be more likely to develop heart disease, research shows.

Celiac disease, which affects around one in 100 Britons, causes damage to the gut when the body overreacts to gluten – a protein found in bread – causing diarrhoea, abdominal pain and bloating.

But scientists at the University of Oxford have now found that people with celiac disease have an increased risk of heart problems, which increases the longer the disease lasts.

While previous studies also showed a link between celiac disease and an increased risk of heart disease, the researchers believed this was due to patients having other risk factors, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity.

The authors of the new study say their findings suggest otherwise.

Using hospital data to analyze the health outcomes of almost 470,000 Britons aged 40 to 69 over four years, they found that cardiovascular problems – such as heart disease and heart attacks – occur in nine out of every 1,000 people with celiac disease each year, compared with about seven in 1,000 who did not have the disease.

They said the risk remains the same even if patients are at a healthy weight and have no other problems that could affect cardiovascular health.

Celiac disease, known as an autoimmune disease, occurs when the body’s immune system, for reasons not yet fully understood, perceives substances in gluten as a threat and attacks and damages intestinal tissue. It causes ulcers and inflammation.

Patients should avoid eating anything that contains gluten, such as bread, pasta, many breakfast cereals and ready meals made from flour. Many must take medication to control flare-ups.

Celiac disease, which affects around one in 100 Britons, causes damage to the gut when the body overreacts to gluten – a protein found in bread – causing diarrhoea, abdominal pain and bloating (stock photo)

Oxford University scientists (pictured) suspect an immune system error may be behind the link, as several other autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, are also linked to an increased risk of heart attack

The scientists suspect that an error in the immune system may be behind the connection, as several other autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus are also linked to an increased risk of a heart attack.

However, they say more research is needed before they can provide a definitive explanation for their findings.

In the journal BMJ Medicine, they advise doctors to “make patients aware of their increased risk and work with them to optimize their heart health.”