Whats Up With Gluten Free Dieting
If you haven’t noticed the new “Gluten Free” trend, you haven’t been paying attention. Similar to when the Atkins diet was popular, restaurants and grocery stores responded with carb-free items, Gluten Free has taken the diet and food industry by storm and is bombarding us with wheat/gluten free options. But is it necessary for everyone to go “Gluten Free”?
What Is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in processed wheat products and other grains, responsible for the elastic texture in dough. Foods containing gluten include:
Cereal, Pasta, Wheat Flour, Cookies, Crackers, Soy Sauce, Desserts, Bagels, CousCous, Barley, Oats, Candy, Pretzels, Mustard, Gravy, Immitation Crab, Sausages, some Pharmaceutical Products.
What Is Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Disease?
To start, it is important to know about Celiac Disease… a condition that damages the lining of the small intestine and prevents it from absorbing nutrients from food. This damage is due to eating gluten. The list of symptoms caused by Celiac Disease range from run of the mill gastrointestinal disturbances to even more serious symptoms due to the lack of nutrients absorbed by the body. If you have Celiac Disease, you can become extremely ill from ingesting even small amounts of gluten. To determine if you have Celiac Disease, there are tests that can be administered by your doctor. However, Celiac affects only about 1 in 100 people. So if you don’t have full blown Celiac Disease, could you have a “Gluten Intolerance”? About 15% of the population (including those with Celiac) have a “Gluten Intolerance” or sensitivity. The symptoms can often be the similar for both those with Celiac and those with a milder intolerance or sensitivity. There is a spectrum of reactivity to gluten, with those with Celiac being at the worst end of it. So how do you know if you have a gluten sensitivity? The easiest way to determine your level of tolerance is to eliminate gluten from your diet entirely, which is very difficult to do since gluten is used in many unsuspecting foods (soy sauce, processed meats). You would need to follow a gluten free diet for at least a couple of weeks and re-evaluate your symptoms to determine if there is any improvement in your energy, digestion, skin, and overall well being. Or, there are blood tests that some doctors perform to look for certain anti-bodies in your body specific to gluten. If you are concerned about Celiac or a Gluten Intolerance, you should seek professional help from your doctor, preferrably a Gastrointestinal doctor.
What Changed With Wheat?
Over the course of the last 50 years, hybridization of wheat to create a shorter, more durable plant has created an entirely new wheat that is, coincidentally, higher in gluten. The wheat we eat today is literally only a distant relative of the wheat our great grandparents ate.
Gluten Free and Weight Loss
There is really no correlation between following a gluten free diet and weight loss. Some followers of gluten free diets claim they feel less bloated, and maybe have even lost a few pounds. If they truly have a Gluten Intolerance, that could cause excess bloating, and eliminating gluten could therefore result in some weight loss. However, I suspect gluten free dieters have eliminated many foods that contribute to weight gain (baked foods, bread, cookies, crackers, and desserts) and that is the true cause of said weight loss. Such is the case with most elimination diets… by getting rid of the junk, you lose weight.
Conclusion
Eliminating certain gluten containing foods can not only be better for your health, but could help you lose weight if you are replacing those foods with fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole foods. Steer clear of “gluten free” products that are just high-calorie, high-sugar alternatives to their gluten containing counterparts (gluten free pretzels, cookies, bread, pizza, etc.) If you are concerned about Gluten Intolerance or Celiac, you should see your doctor. It certainly doesn’t hurt to try an elimination diet and see how you feel. You know your body better than anyone, and if you can become attuned to what foods make you react negatively, you are well on your way to feeling more energized and healthy. The journey to discovering the best path to health for you can be long and sometimes confusing, but listen to your body and it won’t let you down.
Thanks for reading!
Tara
Sources:
Barbara Toman, July 2010, Mayo Clinic Online Research Magazine
Anna Wild, Gluten Free Network
the-gluten-free-chef.com
less bloated??????
it has xyanthum glum or guar gum in it. that causes bloating.
i have celiacs disease and hate these “gluten-free” dieters because they “steal” from those of us who have to be gluten-free by buying all the gf foods.
I can tell you from experience from having to eat a gf diet. you do not lose weight. in fact gluten-free foods are even more starchy
and to the op, people with celiacs are missing a digestive enzyme to digest the gluten. not what you said about we get it from damage of the intestine. if you have it you are born with it. some effects come at a later age
also celiac’s disease has been around for centuries only now has it been more recently diagnosis
In the second century AD, a Greek physician known as Aretaeus of Cappadocia wrote what is thought to be an early description of this illness. In this account, he referred to a condition involving a number of signs and symptoms, including bellyache that afflicted some children of his time. Some 1,700 years later, these writings were translated to English, and the Greek word for “bellyache” was anglicized to “Celiac,” which has since been used to describe the condition. Today, we know that Celiac Disease is an intestinal disorder that affects susceptible individuals when they are exposed to certain cereal grains in the diet. http://celiac-disease.com/the-history-of-celiac-disease/
so your idea that in the last 50 years- is not true