The Coeliac Society of Ireland has said that better Government oversight of the Hot School Meals scheme is required to ensure that the nutritional needs of children affected by the disease are met.

Coeliac disease is a common chronic condition where an intolerance to gluten leads an individual's small intestine to be come inflamed.

Gut related symptoms include diarrhoea abdominal pain and indigestion, but the disease can also cause tiredness, unexpected weight loss and nerve damage, among other things.

The Coeliac Society (CSI) are currently taking it upon themselves to liaise with the catering companies supplying meals to ensure that there are safe options available for children with the disease.

Spokesperson for the CSI Gill Brennan told The Hard Shoulder that children with coeliac disease are "currently not very well catered for" under the scheme.

"Really what the issue is, is that there's no oversight of the programme in relation to the ingredients or the nutritional contents of the meals that are being provided, with the result that you will find that there's a lot of meals that are actually going out to schools that have a lot of gluten in them," she said.

"Which means then if you have a child who's a coeliac in the class, whether they're symptomatic or asymptomatic, they can't participate.

"So, they're paddy-little-man or little-woman sitting in the corner on their own not being able to participate in the hot meals programme with their friends."

You can listen back to the full interview here: