PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
AWARENESS OF COELIAC DISEASE (9 May 2006)

That this House is concerned that the average general practitioner has little or no experience of coeliac disease, an extremely debilitating illness that affects one in 100 of the population, of which four out of five people are undiagnosed, and which can lead to serious complications such as osteoporosis and bowel cancer if left undiagnosed; regrets that the lack of experience of this condition prevents many people with coeliac disease from receiving early diagnosis; is dismayed that there is no Government support for the charity Coeliac UK that provides literature, advice, helpline and dietary information to address this need; and calls on the Government to promote measures to ensure that general practitioners receive more appropriate training and support to enable them better to recognise and more accurately to diagnose the disease.

Sponsored by:
Gordon Banks (Labour)