Is Gluten Free the Way to Be?

Gluten free pizza, gluten free brownies, gluten free soap? It seems like we have become enthralled with everything gluten free, but before you go sans gluten, do you really know what it means?

I recently attended a talk given by a dietitian who specializes in celiac disease. She provided great information (mostly the sciency part of celiac disease and how to manage their nutritional needs in a clinical setting), but she also helped to dispel some of the myths associated with Celiac Diseasae, wheat allergies, and gluten free diets.

The Background:

• Gluten is a protein complex in wheat, barley and rye
• There are a variety of naturally occuring gluten free foods including fruits and vegetables, quinoa, rice, buckwheat, amaranth, corn, beans and legumes, nuts and seeds.

Whats the Big Deal With Gluten?
Celiac Disease is an "immune mediated enteropathy", meaning in the presence of gluten, inflammation occurs and the absorptive surface of the small bowel (where you absorb the nutrients from the food you eat) is damaged. As a result, you need to follow a gluten free diet to eliminate inflammation/damage to your intestines. Celiac disease is diagnosed with serological tests and confirmed with an intestinal biopsy.

I commonly read about people who claim to be "Gluten Sensitive". This basically means they feel some discomfort when eating gluten (in whatever form it may be). Before going completely gluten free, you should try to rule out a wheat allergy. A wheat allergy is NOT the same as Celiac Disease becuase it is not gluten causing the allergic reaction, it is only wheat. This means if you are only allergic to wheat, barley and rye products/derivatives would be ok in your diet.

Why go Gluten Free?
I have heard a gammit of reasons why one would go gluten free, but most commonly I hear that gluten causes inflammation and is bad for you. This is untrue. Gluten only causes "inflammation" if you have celiac disease. By skipping out on gluten containing products (whole wheat bread, whole grain pasta, many whole grain cereals) you may be missing out on some valuable nutrients like B vitamins and fiber.

Another common reason to nix the gluten? Weight loss. Yes, a gluten free diet could likely result in weight loss if you are skipping out on many gluten containing goodies like pizza, cookies, cakes and tortillas. The problem is that many times, those going gluten free for weight loss are not cutting these goodies out, they are simply paying twice the amount for the gluten free equivalent of their favorite foods. I remember the first time i saw a gluten free pizza dough mix for $9.00! Oh and the brownies go for about $6 per box!

The Verdict
A gluten free diet is not for everyone and is only medically warranted in those diagnosed with celiac disease. If you want to go gluten free in hopes of weight loss, more power to you! But i suggest sticking to the naturally gluten free foods vs the high priced gluten free convenience products to make sure you really are cutting caloreis and seeing results.