Gluten-Free Diets: Don’t Fix Something That Isn’t Broken

Gluten is a term for proteins that are found in wheat, barley, rye, and oat as well as food products derived from these grains. Glutens have viscoelastic properties, which give the dough its elasticity, helping it rise and keep its shape and often leaving the final product with a chewy texture.

Glutens are normal constituents of our “daily bread.” For many nations all over the globe, bread has been a staple food for millennia.

True gluten is limited to the grains listed above. The proteins in maize and rice are sometimes called glutens, but they differ from true gluten.

Gluten can trigger adverse autoimmune reactions responsible for a broad spectrum of gluten-related disorders, including celiac disease, non-coeliac gluten sensitivity, gluten ataxia and dermatitis. However, only a small part of the general human population is intolerant to gluten, for instance, celiac disease affects about 1% of the adult population.

Gluten-free diets are harmful to healthy individuals, especially for kids!

A gluten-free diet, when given to healthy people, may cause more harm than good. In fact, shifting to a gluten-free diet may even deprive them of good nutrition.

Gluten-free diet is nutritionally deficient, high in fat and sugar, and costly

Dr. Norelle Reilly, assistant professor of Pediatrics and director of Columbia University Medical Center’s Pediatric Celiac Disease, wrote a commentary in the Journal of Pediatrics detailing the facts that must be considered before gluten is removed from a diet. Gluten has not been established to cause any intestinal problem. Gluten-free packaged foods frequently contain a greater density of fat and sugar than their gluten-containing counterparts. Increased fat and calorie intake have been identified in individuals after a gluten-free diet. Obesity, overweight and new-onset insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome have been identified after initiation of a gluten-free diet. It also may lead to deficiencies in B vitamins, folate, and iron, given a lack of nutrient fortification of many gluten-free products. Reilly explained that gluten-free processed foods are fortified unevenly that they may be lacking in nutrients that people (especially children) need, such as vitamin B complex, vitamin D, fiber, folate, calcium, magnesium and iron. [https://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476%2816%2930062-2/fulltext]

Gluten-free foods are commercial tricks!

The sense of being “healthy” is driving the gluten-free industry to the overwhelming profit: due to the growing popularity of gluten-free products, sales are expected to balloon to as much as $24 billion by 2020.

In reality, remarkably little is known about the motives of most individuals who adopt a gluten-free lifestyle. According to a 2015 survey of more than 1500 American adults:

  • “no reason” (35%) was the most common explanation for selecting gluten-free foods
  • “healthier option” (26%)
  • “digestive health” (19%)
  • “someone in my family has a gluten sensitivity” (10%)
  • “I have a gluten sensitivity,” which was the least common rationale cited (8%).

There are no data supporting the presumed health benefits of a gluten-free food.
Don’t shift to gluten-free diet just because it is a popular choice!
If you think that gluten-free foods are a healthier option, think again!

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