Gluten Is Not the Enemy
It is estimated that about 3 million Americans have a condition known as celiac disease, or celiac sprue. Celiac disease, technically speaking, is not an allergy to or intolerance of gluten. The University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center explains celiac disease succinctly:
“Celiac disease is an inherited autoimmune disorder that affects the digestive process of the small intestine. When a person who has celiac disease consumes gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley, the individual’s immune system responds by attacking the small intestine and inhibiting the absorption of important nutrients into the body. Undiagnosed and untreated, celiac disease can lead to the development of other autoimmune disorders, as well as osteoporosis, infertility, neurological conditions and in rare cases, cancer.”
So, to recap, celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder (ie, a disorder in which a person’s immune system attacks his or her own body), and, for people who have celiac disease, exposure to gluten can stimulate the immune system to attack the GI tract. It isn’t that gluten is an inherently dangerous or unhealthy substance, but rather that people with celiac disease may experience a flare-up of this previously existing condition when they ingest gluten.
My point here is that, despite the popularity of gluten-free diets among gushing celebrities, there is absolutely no evidence that it is unhealthy for people without celiac disease to ingest gluten.
There are many reasons why someone who does not have celiac disease may feel better after switching to a gluten-free diet — perhaps they are eating healthier food generally; perhaps they feel better because they expect to feel better — but there is, at this point, no scientific evidence that avoiding gluten improves health in people without celiac disease. In fact, a recent study showed that even for people with celiac disease, avoiding gluten may not keep them from developing severe long-term effects of their condition, such as cancer.
This issue is of interest to me because I love baked goods, most of which depend to some degree on gluten for structure. Like many people I’ve had this nagging little sense of unease, thinking that I should at least minimize my gluten consumption. I have now concluded that I will avoid gluten in the future if I ever find reliable evidence that doing so will benefit my health. In the meantime, I’m going to go on loving bread, cake, cookies, whoopie pies and all the other wonderful gluten-dependent goodies that make life so worthwhile.
J
March 3, 2011
I do not have celiac disease, however when I eat wheat-containing products my joints swell (especially my ankles) and my sinuses swell, even from just a bite. I could easily ignore these discomforts, take some nasal decongestants and go on eating my bread and pasta but there is increasing evidence and studies showing that chronic inflammation leads to many diseases. So if my sinuses and ankles are swollen I can assume I have inflammation in my body where I can’t see it too and if I continue to eat wheat and keep the inflammation ongoing it may likely lead to disease. Therefore I think saying that “there is absolutely no evidence that it is unhealthy for people without celiac disease to ingest gluten” is quite possibly untrue and misleading. I hope to someday see some gluten-free option from Mom’s Vegan Kitchen!
Mom
March 3, 2011
I must confess right up front: I am a skeptic. As a fellow skeptic once said, I don’t want to believe. I want to know. When it comes to understanding how the human body works, there is simply no justification for choosing intuition over science.
One basic tenet of science is that correlation does not prove causation. The fact that two things occur together or in succession does not in itself prove that one caused the other. All variables must be accounted for, and other explanations ruled out.
I have no doubt that you experience the inflammation you describe, and you are wise to pay attention to it. If it occurs only when you ingest wheat, by itself, with no other ingredients, and if it never occurs at any other time, this suggests – but does not prove – causation.
However, gluten is just one component of wheat, and glutenin and gliadin, the two proteins that combine in the presence of water to form gluten, are themselves composed of many smaller proteins. Additionally, wheat used in commercial products such as bread and pasta undergoes a number of processes that alter it from its natural form, and then it is combined with still other, completely unrelated, ingredients to make up the products you describe eating, introducing still other possible culprits.
So, I stand by my statement. The mechanisms of food sensitivities are so poorly understood that even going to an immunologist for extensive testing might not provide you any definite answers. You should absolutely use your knowledge of your own body when deciding what to eat and what not to eat, but the jury is still out on gluten.
Meanwhile, although we have no plans to introduce a GF line, an entire industry has sprung up to accomodate the growing demand for GF products, giving you many, many options. Mom’s French toast mix happens to be naturally gluten-free, not by design but because rice flour has smaller particulates and remains in suspension better than spelt. It is not produced in a dedicated GF facility and will not appeal to everyone, but you might want to give it a try!
J
March 9, 2011
I will give it a try! Thanks for your reply!
Pythagorean Crank
November 4, 2011
Thanks Mom, right on! This vegan G-free thing really peeves me out. I wrote about it too btw: http://pythagoreancrank.com/?p=1366
Thanks and keep on keeping it real.