Key Benefits

• Check for anemia, low iron, and vitamin shortfalls linked to celiac.
• Spot iron deficiency early with low ferritin, even before hemoglobin drops.
• Clarify fatigue and nerve symptoms by identifying iron, folate, or B12 deficits.
• Guide iron, folate, or B12 replacement and assess response to a gluten-free diet.
• Protect fertility and pregnancy by optimizing folate, iron, and B12 before conception.
• Track recovery as hemoglobin rises and ferritin replenishes with gut healing.
• Flag ongoing inflammation with ESR, prompting checks for active celiac or other causes.
• Best interpreted with celiac antibody tests and your symptoms to pinpoint cause.

What are Celiac Disease

Celiac disease biomarkers are the body’s telltale signals that gluten has triggered an immune attack on the small intestine. Most are antibodies made by your immune system that rise when gluten exposure sets off autoimmunity, especially against the gut’s lining. The key blood markers are tissue transglutaminase antibodies (tTG-IgA), endomysial antibodies (EMA-IgA), and deamidated gliadin peptide antibodies (DGP-IgA/IgG). These antibodies reflect active immune activity and track with microscopic injury to the intestinal villi, the tiny projections that absorb nutrients. Some tests also look at inherited risk genes (HLA-DQ2/DQ8), which signal susceptibility rather than current damage. Together, these biomarkers let clinicians screen noninvasively, support a firm diagnosis, decide whether a biopsy is needed, and monitor healing over time on a gluten-free diet, as antibody levels typically fall with strict avoidance. In short, celiac biomarkers translate a hidden intestinal process into measurable signals—showing when the immune system is misdirected by gluten and helping guide clear, timely care.

Why are Celiac Disease biomarkers important?

Celiac disease biomarkers show how an immune reaction to gluten is reshaping whole‑body physiology. Antibody tests flag the disease; nutrient and inflammation markers reveal the consequences—whether the small intestine can absorb iron and vitamins, whether inflammation is quiet, and how blood, nerves, and bones are faring.

Hemoglobin typically spans about 12–16 in women and 13–17 in men, with well‑being near the middle. Ferritin often ranges roughly 15–200 in women and 30–300 in men; the middle tends to best reflect steady iron stores. Folate commonly falls around 3–20 and vitamin B12 around 200–900, with function often best in the mid‑to‑upper portions. ESR is normally low; lower numbers align with less active inflammation.

When these are low, they signal malabsorption from villous injury. Low ferritin and hemoglobin indicate iron‑deficiency anemia from proximal small‑bowel damage—fatigue, shortness of breath, headaches, hair shedding, brittle nails, and restless legs—and can be more pronounced in menstruating women. Low folate or B12 points to more extensive involvement, bringing tingling or numbness, tongue soreness, memory fog, and enlarged red cells; in children this may slow growth and delay puberty, and in pregnancy it heightens anemia risk and fetal neural development concerns. If ESR is elevated—or ferritin is normal or high despite anemia—ongoing inflammation is likely. Very high ferritin may reflect inflammation or liver stress; unusually high hemoglobin is uncommon in celiac; high B12 or folate often reflects supplementation.

Big picture: these markers map the gut–immune–blood axis, connecting mucosal healing with energy, cognition, fertility, bone density, and long‑term risks like osteoporosis, neuropathy, adverse pregnancy outcomes, and persistent fatigue.

What Insights Will I Get?

Celiac disease disrupts small-intestinal mucosa, reducing nutrient absorption and driving immune inflammation. This impairs energy production, cognition, hormonal balance, and cardiovascular resilience. At Superpower, we test Hemoglobin, Ferritin, Folate, B12, and ESR to track oxygen delivery, micronutrient reserves, and inflammatory load.

Hemoglobin is the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells; it falls with anemia from iron, folate, or B12 deficiency caused by malabsorption. Ferritin is the iron-storage protein; it typically drops early in celiac-related iron deficiency, but can rise as an acute-phase reactant with inflammation. Folate (vitamin B9) is absorbed in the proximal small intestine—the main site of celiac injury—so deficiency is common. Vitamin B12 (cobalamin), absorbed in the distal ileum, can also be low when disease is extensive or microbiota are altered. ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) is a nonspecific marker of systemic inflammation and may increase with active disease.

For stability and healthy function, a normal hemoglobin indicates reliable oxygen transport and physical stamina. Replete ferritin reflects buffered iron stores that support steady red blood cell production. Adequate folate and B12 signal intact absorptive capacity and efficient DNA synthesis, red-cell maturation, neural myelination, and methylation balance. A low ESR suggests a quieter immune milieu; a higher ESR indicates ongoing inflammation that can sustain malabsorption.

Notes: Interpretation varies with age, menstruation and pregnancy (iron demands), acute infection or flare (raises ESR and ferritin), liver or kidney disease, alcohol use, and medications (e.g., proton pump inhibitors, metformin, antifolates). Dehydration can raise hemoglobin; recent transfusion alters results. Lab methods and reference ranges differ; trends are most informative.