National Foundation For Celiac Awareness Changes Name To Beyond Celiac
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- After working 12 years to raise awareness of Celiac Disease and its dangers if left untreated, the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness has changed its name to Beyond Celiac.
Founder and CEO Alice Bast says the Beyond Celiac name reflects the organization's broader mission.
"We have an expanded role, where we're really looking to focus on early diagnosis," she says, "but what we're really looking to do is to cure Celiac Disease by 2025."
Bast says Celiac is the only autoimmune disease for which there's a known trigger -- gluten.
"It sets off that autoimmune reaction and it causes inflammation," she says, "and if you have continued inflammation, it actually leads to long-term health consequences, such as cancer and other autoimmune diseases. In my case, it actually led to a stillborn child. So it's really important to have that early diagnosis."
Bast believes Beyond Celiac's efforts will lead to progress in understanding other maladies.
"We want to reach beyond Celiac Disease," she says, "and have a broad impact across all autoimmune diseases."
To learn more about Celiac Disease and the fight for a cure, visit the Beyond Celiac website.
