and
WHEREAS, This intestinal damage can cause more than 200
debilitating symptoms; and
WHEREAS, According to the University of Chicago Celiac
Disease Center, gluten ingestion for people with celiac disease
causes permanent immunological scarring, doubles the risk of
heart disease and acts as a carcinogen, quadrupling the risk of
small intestinal cancers; and
WHEREAS, Celiac disease research is severely underfunded in
proportion to the scale of the disease, treatment burden and
lack of available treatment options; and
WHEREAS, According to an analysis published in 2017 by the
American Gastroenterological Association titled "Disparities
Among Gastrointestinal Disorders in Research Funding from the
National Institutes of Health," celiac disease receives the
lowest amount of National Institutes of Health funding over a
five-year period; and
WHEREAS, This funding averaged $3 million annually or $1.50
for every person with celiac disease in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Celiac disease research also received the lowest
amount of National Institutes of Health grants; and
WHEREAS, Currently, a strictly gluten-free lifetime diet is
the only way to manage the disease, and this is inadequate given
that 80% of foods contain gluten, there is a constant risk of
cross-contamination and gluten is not required to be labeled on
packaged foods in the United States; and
WHEREAS, On April 26, 2023, the Food Labeling Modernization
Act of 2023 was introduced in the United States Congress,
legislation which would make gluten the 10th major food allergen
and require that gluten be labeled on all packaged foods in the
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