Ep 105 Celiac Disease & Dental Education and Research with Dr. Melissa Ing

Let’s start the blog with the show notes for this Episode –

This week I have the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Melissa Ing D.M.D.  Melissa is Canadian, now working as an educator at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston.  Recently, her focus has been on educating dental professionals about the relationship between celiac disease and oral health.  Melissa’s research of late has involved the materials and substances used in dental procedures and how suitable they are for someone on a strict gluten free diet.

Melissa, would like all dental professionals to have the knowledge about the oral signs of celiac disease, so they can refer patients for CD testing, even before it may come to the attention of their GP.  Melissa has participated in educational videos, online webinars and sponsored presentations to raise awareness of CD among dental professionals.

I have many different interviews scheduled for the first couple of months of 2020, and if there is anything you’d like me to cover, please email me at acdnceliacpodcast@gmail.com.

Sue’s Websites and Social Media –

Podcast https://acanadianceliacpodcast.libsyn.com

Podcast Blog – https://www.acanadianceliacblog.com

Facebook – @acanadianceliacpodcast

Twitter – CeliacPodcastCA

Email – acdnceliacpodcast@gmail.com

Baking Website – https://www.suesglutenfreebaking.com

Instagram – @suesgfbaking

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUVGfpD4eJwwSc_YjkGagza06yYe3ApzL

     (search Sues Gluten Free Baking)

Email – sue@suesglutenfreebaking.com

Other Podcast – Gluten Free Weigh In – https://glutenfreeweighin.libsyn.com

My Thoughts –

Dr. Ing and I spoke at length, both before I recorded the interview, and after the recording button was switched off.  I was interested to learn that she had been diagnosed with celiac disease many years ago, only to find out later it was an allergy.  The irony is both conditions required a strict gluten free diet. 

Over many years, I have spoken with people who have odd, sometimes confusing and often sad stories of their diagnosis.  It is not uncommon to be mis-diagnosed, but I’ve been surprised to hear of cases of proper diagnosis, but mis-communication.  This has come to my attention a few times, where patients were tested for CD, but somehow, the positive results were never communicated to them.  One particularly sad situation involved a woman who was tested for CD when she became ill and was subsequently diagnosed with cancer.  For some reason, the doctor thought to only pursue the cancer treatment and disregarded the CD diagnosis.  In another case, a patient was only told of his positive CD test results when he changed doctors. 

We can always question the how’s and why’s of situations like these, but it boils down to human error or mis-judgement.  That’s why I’m excited about the education Dr. Ing is involved in.  We often think of our health being in the sole care of a physician, and forget about the other health care professionals we come into contact with.  The complexity of a CD diagnosis should fall on our family of health care providers, including chiropractors, physiotherapists and of course dental professionals.  If they receive the proper training, they can raise red flags when they see symptoms that may indicate an autoimmune condition, and pass this information on to the GP.

Kudos to Melissa for taking on the mammoth task of educating a generation of dental professionals, and re-educating those who have been in practice for years.  She’s getting funding for research, and sponsorship for presentations, and it’s all about putting a spotlight on celiac disease.