Nutritional Status of Moroccan Pediatric Patients With Celiac Disease

Abstract

We aimed to assess the nutritional status at diagnosis and during the follow-up of gluten free diet (GFD) therapy among 127 children with celiac disease (CD) in comparison with 127 controls. The median body mass index of children with CD was significantly lower than that of controls. At the time of diagnosis, children with CD had a significantly higher rate of undernutrition, with underweight (37.8%), height insufficiency (54.3%), and thinness (22%). During GFD follow-up, we noticed a significant decrease in thinness (P = .047) and a moderate increase in obesity. This emphasizes the role of the dietitian in implementing a nutritionally balanced diet.