World Digestive Health Day in Paraíba: A report of a social action in the northeast of Brazil - Tarciana Costa, PhD

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19 WORLD GASTROENTEROLOGY NEWS NOVEMBER 2016 Editorial | Expert Point of View | Gastro 2016: EGHS-WGO | WDHD News | WGO & WGOF News | WGO Global Guidelines | Calendar of Events World Digestive Health Day in Paraíba: A report of a social action in the northeast of Brazil Food intolerances are responsible for many digestive symptoms, such as bloating, abdominal distension, abdominal pain and diarrhea. In Brazil and other countries in South America, there is a high prevalence of lactose intolerance, and it is estimated that 70% of the adult population has different degrees of it, with typical clinical symptoms such as abdominal pain, flatulence and diarrhea1. In the pediatric population, allergy to cow’s milk protein (CMPA) should be investigated when the child develops gastrointestinal symptoms when hav-ing contact with cow’s milk. In Eu-rope, the prevalence of allergy to cow’s milk protein in the first year of life is 2% to 3%, and after 6 years, drops to 1%2. A Brazilian study found that the incidence of CMPA is 2.2% and the prevalence is 5.7%3. Celiac disease is an inflammatory disease of the small intestine associated with permanent intolerance to gluten, occurring in genetically susceptible individuals4. In the past, it was seen as rare; however, recent population studies have shown prevalence between 1:120 and 1:300 in the general population, both Euro-pean and North American5. In Brazil, studies among blood donors demon-strated prevalence of 1:6816, 1:2737 and 1:2148, suggesting that this is not rare in our country. The Gastroenterology Society of Paraíba (SGPB), under the manage-ment of Prof. Heraldo Rocha, PhD (2015-2016), in partnership with the Brazilian Federation of Gastroenterol-ogy (FBG), promoted a social event to celebrate World Digestive Health Day, celebrated every May 29. The event happened on May 30, 2016 in the city of João Pessoa (Paraíba/ Brazil), Tarciana Costa, PhD Scientific Director of Gastroenterology Society of Paraíba (2015- 2016) Titular member of Brazilian Federation of Gastroenterology Gastroenterology Society of Paraíba and Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB) João Pessoa, Brazil Members of SGPB


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