How This Division I Swimmer Manages Celiac Disease
Brendan Viera, one of Phillipsburg High School’s best-conditioned swimmers, had always kept himself in tip-top shape every season, and his senior season was no different. Viera swam for his club team during the summer to keep himself in shape and regularly kept tabs on his diet.
He was doing all of the right things that every swimmer should do. So it was extremely odd to see Viera, who primarily swims freestyle, fail to hit the times that he usually would. Even more bizarre was the way that his body felt after competing.
Viera had always eaten a high-carb, mainly gluten diet to replace the lost calories from swimming, but it became too much for his body to handle.
“I would carb up before my bigger meets and I would always feel so tired and sluggish (throughout the meet and afterward),” Viera said. “Me and my mom decided to go to the doctor and find out the issue, and they told me that I had celiac disease.”
Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition in which the intake of gluten foods leads to inflammation in the small intense. It can cause severe diarrhea, bloating, anemia, and other serious medical complications in the small intense. Unbeknownst to him, Viera had been showing symptoms of celiac disease well before his senior year of high school.
“I never dealt with any of the (common symptoms) of celiac,” Viera said. “Most of my problems included sluggishness, heartburn, and migraines. My mom said I’ve had these chronic conditions since I was a baby, but I just shrugged it off until (senior year).”
Sometimes, the symptoms would be incredibly severe.
“Celiac does a lot to the body when you eat gluten,” Viera said. “When I was eating gluten, I would get migraines 2-3 times a month, and I wouldn’t be able to go to school or practice.”
Immediately after finding out about his diagnosis, Viera transitioned to a strict gluten-free diet and hasn’t looked back. Thankfully, the diet change has translated to results inside the pool, as Viera placed 15th in the 50 freestyle at the 2019 New Jersey Meet Of Champions, the state’s premier championship meet. He also posted top-five finishes in his respective county and conference championship meets that same season.
Viera mentioned the switch to eating gluten-free paid dividends during his final season at Phillipsburg.
“It was a complete change,” Viera said. “I was able to hit my best times and break my own records (50 free and 200 freestyle relay). Not eating (gluten) foods like junk food and bread really changed the game for me.”
Since transitioning to a gluten-free diet, Viera believes that his eating habits have improved significantly. Fatty foods have been nearly eliminated from his diet. Instead, chicken, vegetables and salads have been his go-to meals. Currently, his pre-game meal consists of Quinoa, a grain food made up of seeds, along with meat or vegetables of his choice.
While the transition to eating gluten-free led to results for Phillipsburg High School star swimmer, it didn’t come so easily.
“Once I began the switch, I was feeling a lot better because I was actually gaining nutrients and holding my endurance,” Viera said. “I was finally able to practice without feeling sick. The only problem was I was starting to gain a lot of weight quickly because I was taking in more nutrients, so I had to go to the gym more and go on more runs.”
St. Peter’s University
Viera eventually committed to St. Peters University in Jersey City, N.J., a Division I school in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). While the talent was there for Viera to compete at the Division I level, how would he be able to adjust his diet now that he was living away from home? His mother typically made him gluten-free foods at home, but St. Peters University only had one dining hall on campus, which would make maintaining his gluten-free diet a strenuous task.
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“Eating the right foods in college was definitely the hardest part, especially as a freshman,” Viera said. “St. Peters does have one dining hall, and they do have gluten-free options, but it isn’t very consistent when it comes to giving out the right kinds of food.”
Since the dining halls had limited gluten-free options, Viera often would have to make the hour drive back to his hometown in Stewartsville, N.J. to stock up on gluten-free snacks and sandwiches that he could eat.
Viera wasn’t the only swimmer who had similar issues with food at St. Peters. Tierney Hartnett, a senior captain on the women’s team, also struggles with celiac disease and has been pushing the school’s administration to provide more gluten-free options for students on campus.
“I was a part of our Student Government Association as a senator for my class and my big thing was to fight for more dietary-friendly options,” Hartnett said. “Although they have definitely expanded what kind of foods they offer in the cafeteria, there’s still a pretty big risk of cross-contamination and foods being labeled as not containing gluten but in actuality containing it.”
Harnett went on to discuss the few options available for students with celiac disease and gluten allergies.
“I was able to get them to make a designated gluten-free section in our Quick Zone, which is basically a mini-mart, which was really rewarding but the only options that are consistently (foods) you need a kitchen for which not all students have access to.”
Thankfully, Viera has found a temporary solution that has helped him maintain a more balanced gluten-free diet.
“I actually have the head chef (of the university) in my phonebook,” Viera said. “Over the weekend, they close the gluten-free section (of the dining hall). I have to text him and be like, ‘Hey, I’m coming in is there. Any way you can whip up something gluten-free for me,’ and he’ll usually have no problem with it.”
He has continued to stay patient with the university despite the less than ideal dining situation.
“I became friends with a lot of the dining hall staff,” Viera said. “Even though most of the staff are educated on celiac and they’ve been taught how to (prepare food), it’s rare to see people with celiac at St. Peters so they don’t really take the initiative. But whenever they see me they’ll switch their gloves and take precautions.”
Despite the constant stress and anxiety of finding gluten-free foods in college, Viera still put together an impressive freshman campaign in the 2019-2020 season. He participated in eight meets on the season, with the highlight of his season being a second-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle against Manhattan. He also had two third-place finishes in the 400-yard freestyle relay and 200-yard medley relay races against Lafayette College.
Viera mentioned how his increased endurance from eating gluten-free really helped him to adjust to Division I swimming.
“Being able to now hold my endurance changes a lot,” Viera said. “When I go to college meets, which are quicker than high school, (I’ll race) in back-to-back events and I’m able to (compete) to the best of my ability. I have much more endurance now because I’m keeping up with my diet.”
His best advice for swimmers who have celiac disease? Communicating with others about your condition and making sure you protect yourself from cross-contamination.
“Many people who have celiac look over (cross contamination) and then wonder why they get sick,” Viera said. “It’s a game-changer to make sure that you’re eating safe. You should also talk to your head chef (if you’re in college) because most of the time they don’t want to see their customers getting sick, so they’ll make sure that you are eating the right kinds of foods.”