Dating with celiac disease involves struggles with dining out, communicating needs
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CHICAGO — Patients with celiac disease reported various challenges when dating, notably communicating their needs and managing feelings of sadness, anxiety and embarrassment, according to data at Digestive Disease Week.
“We already know that that the only treatment for celiac disease is lifelong adherence to a gluten-free diet and many studies have shown the negative impact the diet, especially dining out, has on quality of life,” Jessica Lebovits, RD, CDN, a clinical dietitian at the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University, told Healio. “But there was a gap in the research when it came to dating with celiac disease.”
Lebovits continued, “When seeking a new romantic partner, dating tends to revolve around food, especially dining out at restaurants. In clinic, some patients wanted to discuss the struggles of their dating experiences, but others admitted they were too embarrassed to bring up these topics with their providers.”
Lebovits and colleagues aimed to identify challenges and emotional concerns of dating as well as ideal partner attributes among adult patients with celiac disease by conducting a qualitative analysis within a quantitative study. They invited 11,884 adult patients from the Celiac Disease Center, all of whom followed a gluten-free diet, to participate in an online survey.
Within the survey, three open-ended questions captured information on dating behaviors, emotions and attitudes toward dating with celiac disease. More than 10% completed the survey, most of whom were women (87%) and 44% reported dating with celiac disease.
“We found that dating with celiac disease involves various struggles and emotional challenges, specifically around dining out, communicating needs related to celiac disease and managing feelings of sadness, anxiety, unwanted attention and embarrassment,” Lebovits said. “One respondent explained their struggle as ‘relaying the seriousness of the disease without completely scaring the other person away.’”
In response to the question about the greatest struggles when dating with celiac disease, the most common themes were dining out (41%), communicating their disease to a date (19%), experiencing negative emotions (19%) and kissing (4%). More than half of respondents reported feeling sadness, shame or neglect on a date (53%), while 18% felt anger or irritability, 11% unwanted attention and 7% fear or nervousness.
Respondents noted their most valued partner attributes were understanding (22%) and compassion (16%).
“We can use this information to guide clinical practice and help patients develop strategies to manage the gluten free diet in social settings and minimize its impact on dating,” Lebovits said. “Our findings highlight the importance of continuous follow-up with a dietitian for celiac disease management as these conversations about specific social barriers and quality of life take time.”
Reference:
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Lebovits J, et al. Poster Tu1351: Emotional concerns and desired partner attributes for individuals dating with celiac disease. Presented at: Digestive Disease Week; May 6-9, 2023; Chicago (hybrid).
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