Gluten-free
(Picture resource: Power of food)
A gluten-free diet is a diet that excludes the protein gluten. Gluten is found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. The protein gluten causes celiac disease which is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine because of gene mutation. The vast majority of people who have celiac disease do not know it. Eating a gluten-free diet is a treatment for people with celiac disease by controlling their symptoms and preventing complications. People with celiac disease must eat a strictly gluten-free diet and must keep on the diet for their remaining lives.
Medical experts largely agree that there is a condition related to gluten other than celiac, called non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is a medical term used for someone who does not have celiac, but whose health improves on a gluten-free diet and worsens again if gluten is eaten. It could even be more than one illness.
Kristen Golden Testa, who is health program director in California for the Children’s Partnership, is one of the gluten-sensitive. Although she does not have celiac, she started a gluten-free diet. She says she has lost weight and her allergies have gone away. She did not consult a doctor before starting a gluten-free diet, and she also does not know whether avoiding gluten has helped at all. Also, she gave up sugar at the same time and made an effort to eat more vegetables and nuts. People like Ms. Golden Testa say that gluten-free diets have improved their health. They believe that avoiding gluten gives them more energy and alleviates chronic ills.
Dr. Stefano Guandalini, medical director of the University of Chicago’s Celiac Disease Center, said that “it is not a healthier diet for those who don’t need it. These people are following a fad, essentially”.
Experts also worried that people could end up eating less healthfully. A gluten-free muffin generally contains less fiber than a wheat-based one. Many grains are enriched with vitamins. Avoiding grains with a gluten-free diet may mean eating fewer of nutrition enriched products.
If you think you are having problems with gluten, you should be tested for celiac disease. You can’t cut out gluten before being tested. Celiac experts urge people to not to do self-diagnose. Celiac disease can be silent, causing damage you can’t see or feel, so you need regular monitoring and tests, especially since it’s so easy to be accidentally exposed to gluten. It is also highly recommended to visit a doctor or a licensed nutritionist before starting on a gluten-free diet.
Here’s a video more about gluten-free diet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLJSmJ0bMlk
Reference
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten-free_diet/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coeliac_disease/
http://www.glutenfreefind.com/
KiWon Min
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