If I went off a gluten free diet and kept my mouth shut, could I join the military with celiac disease?
July 19th, 2010 | 
Author: I just got diagnosed. It’s basically a wheat/barley/rye intolerance. This makes it so there’s a very good chance I couldn’t serve in the military. However, though it’s probably not the smartest thing to do, could I just avoid mentioning it and get in? Probably a stupid question >.>
bkc99xx – Ahh..good point. That isn’t the best thing to hear but probably necessary. Kind of a wake up call. Thanks.
Although I don’t have Celiac disease, I’m very familiar with it. I asked some recruiters last year about the possibility of a friend of mine getting a waiver to join the military with Celiac disease. They said it was impossible due to the potential health hazards. When stationed in places that don’t offer a wide variety of food choices, (BMT, in the field, bases overseas) the chow halls only serve generic food that the majority of the population will eat. This is just for convenience sake and to save money. So, at BMT, vegetarians might not be able to find a salad on the lunch line, and unfortunately for people with Celiac disease, a lot of the meats are probably processed. When you’re in the field, you’ll only have MREs to eat. Sadly enough, it’s all gluten. I’ve tried many different ones, and I don’t recall ever seeing one that didn’t have some form of wheat/flour in it.
In BMT, you should only have to eat MREs for a week, so it’s up to your discretion if you’d want to try to put yourself through that. Now try to imagine eating MREs for much longer, say, if you were on an exercise in the field for weeks at a time.
I guess theoretically, you could pick a job that wouldn’t require you to ever be in the field, and when it came time for BMT, you’d just have to stick with baked chicken and rice the entire time… except when it came time for Warrior Week/Hell Week/etc where all you get is MREs. Then you’ll just have to tough it out. Note that this also depends on how badly you’re allergic. The typical "non-gluten" food, such as baked chicken, rice, canned vegetables, etc. that the chow halls serve might have some slight gluten contamination just from being around the other food.
So, yeah. I guess it’s possible. But you’d be in a hell of a lot of trouble if you got really sick, got sent to the hospital, and they found out you had Celiac and KNEW about it… lol.
Edit: And I don’t think wanting to get in while hiding it has anything to do with your character or maturity level. The fact that you want to serve and are well aware that it will be difficult for you says a lot about your character. In fact, a large percentage of the military serves in secret because there’s a regulation that could kick them out… but that’s another debate.
Posted in Celiac Diet
6 Responses to “If I went off a gluten free diet and kept my mouth shut, could I join the military with celiac disease?”
Yep… most definitely a stupid question.
Was this diagnosed by a medical doctor? If so then it is in your medical records and you are required to disclose it. Since it is a DQ issue… you can’t serve.
Do you have any idea how often glutens are used in food? It would be nearly impossible to eat in any chow hall, let alone MREs with celiac disease
References :
USAF Retired
Try asking a recruiter. Bet they have a long list of diseases that are acceptable and unacceptable in terms of being fit for serving.
However, they expect honesty in the service and the fact that you would somehow consider it acceptable to lie about this to get in brings either your character or maturity into question.
References :
I’m going to "ditto" Rodger. Not only will it be in your records which the service will look at but you’d NEVER be able to eat in the mess hall.
References :
Although I don’t have Celiac disease, I’m very familiar with it. I asked some recruiters last year about the possibility of a friend of mine getting a waiver to join the military with Celiac disease. They said it was impossible due to the potential health hazards. When stationed in places that don’t offer a wide variety of food choices, (BMT, in the field, bases overseas) the chow halls only serve generic food that the majority of the population will eat. This is just for convenience sake and to save money. So, at BMT, vegetarians might not be able to find a salad on the lunch line, and unfortunately for people with Celiac disease, a lot of the meats are probably processed. When you’re in the field, you’ll only have MREs to eat. Sadly enough, it’s all gluten. I’ve tried many different ones, and I don’t recall ever seeing one that didn’t have some form of wheat/flour in it.
In BMT, you should only have to eat MREs for a week, so it’s up to your discretion if you’d want to try to put yourself through that. Now try to imagine eating MREs for much longer, say, if you were on an exercise in the field for weeks at a time.
I guess theoretically, you could pick a job that wouldn’t require you to ever be in the field, and when it came time for BMT, you’d just have to stick with baked chicken and rice the entire time… except when it came time for Warrior Week/Hell Week/etc where all you get is MREs. Then you’ll just have to tough it out. Note that this also depends on how badly you’re allergic. The typical "non-gluten" food, such as baked chicken, rice, canned vegetables, etc. that the chow halls serve might have some slight gluten contamination just from being around the other food.
So, yeah. I guess it’s possible. But you’d be in a hell of a lot of trouble if you got really sick, got sent to the hospital, and they found out you had Celiac and KNEW about it… lol.
Edit: And I don’t think wanting to get in while hiding it has anything to do with your character or maturity level. The fact that you want to serve and are well aware that it will be difficult for you says a lot about your character. In fact, a large percentage of the military serves in secret because there’s a regulation that could kick them out… but that’s another debate.
References :
Served in the Air Force.
i know for a fact the ciliac disease is unacceptable in the Military, reason for this is they cant have a gluten free diet separate from what everyone else eats. especially out in the field as the ration packs and etc are not gluten free.
I’m sure your doctor has told you when you where told you have the disease but if you lie about it to the military and eat foods containing gluten it is very dangerous and can make you extremely sick which will prevent you from doing your job anyway.
as celiac disease is becoming more common i can imagine in some years they will eventually do something for them in the Military and allow them in.
References :
No, They will catch that when you report to the Medical In Processing Station!!
References :