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Is Gluten Free Better For You

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Benefits Of Eating Gluten

Top 10 Healthiest Gluten Free Foods At The Grocery Store

Gluten-free diets have become extremely popular lately, and most of us know someone who is currently living a gluten-free lifestyle. Some people embark on a gluten-free diet as the treatment for Celiac Disease, which is an auto-immune disorder caused by gluten which attacks the lining of the small intestine.

The only treatment for Celiac Disease is strict adherence to a gluten-free diet. In 2012, a survey conducted by the Mayo Clinic determined that over 1.8 million Americans have Celiac Disease.

But far more individuals in the US have gluten sensitivity, which can cause symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, or other issues. Some estimates suggest that nearly 7% of Americans or 18 million people are sensitive to gluten and wheat products, and some surveys suggest that over 40 million people purchase gluten-free products on a regular basis.

Gluten sensitivity is more difficult to accurately diagnose than Celiac Disease, but many people claim to feel significantly better when they are on a gluten-free diet. Research is beginning to show the positive benefits of avoiding gluten whether or not you have an auto-immune disorder. Here are some of the many ways that you may benefit from a gluten-free diet.

Is Gluten Free Good For Diabetes And Blood Sugar

Many people with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes automatically think that following a gluten-free diet is going to help their blood sugar levels.

While it certainly can, unfortunately its not in the way people think. For instance, many gluten-free foods are high in carbohydrates and low in nutritional quality. Whereas, the type of diet we encourage here at DMP, which is naturally gluten free, is helping people get great results.

Read more as we explore the question: is gluten free good for diabetes and blood sugar.

When It Comes To Choosing Pasta It’s More Important To Pay Attention To The Nutrition Facts And Ingredient Labels Rather Than Making Irrational Decisions Based On Marketing Strategies And Buzzwords To Get The Most Bang For Your Nutritional Buck See What Our Experts Suggest About Picking A Pasta That’s Healthiest

Too many times, people are walking down the grocery aisles in search of the healthiest products. When it comes to pasta, there is a plethora of versions and variations. Commonly, individuals try to choose whole wheat pastas over white pastas. Additionally, when “gluten” surfaced and became commonly misunderstood, reaching for “gluten-free” products developed into the new health trend. However, is gluten free pasta healthier? And is whole wheat pasta better for you?

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What Is Gluten And Celiac Disease

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley and countless processed foods including pasta, breads, and cereals. Some people avoid gluten because they have celiac disease.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder that happens when the bodys immune response to gluten damages the small intestine lining. This can result in abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, diarrhea, and weight loss. Some other symptoms of celiac disease include dermatitis herpetiformis , anemia, loss of bone density, headaches, fatigue, and joint pain.

Other people avoid gluten because of gluten intolerance. Gluten intolerance mimics symptoms of celiac disease without the immune response.

Are There Risks To Trying A Gluten

The Better Gluten

If you cut all gluten out of your diet, theres a risk that you could miss out on nutritious whole grains, fiber and micronutrients. Getting enough whole grains in your diet is especially important if youre at risk for heart disease or diabetes. Whole grains can lower cholesterol levels and even help regulate your blood sugar. In addition, some gluten-containing foods are sources of important vitamins and minerals, such as B vitamins, iron and magnesium.

Keep in mind that some processed gluten-free foods contain high amounts of unhealthy ingredients such as sodium, sugar and fat. Consuming these foods can lead to weight gain, blood sugar swings, high blood pressure and other problems. So, a gluten-free label doesnt necessarily make a food healthy.

If you dont have celiac disease or gastrointestinal irritation, Rajagopal recommends removing highly processed foods from your diet before removing gluten. Add in more fruits, vegetables, whole-grain bread or pasta, and lean proteins. Many people find they feel better just by eating better, not by removing gluten.

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People Are Also Reading

But gluten or other components of wheat can cause health problems in some. For the estimated 1% of people worldwide who have celiac disease, a serious autoimmune condition triggered by eating gluten, the protein causes intestinal damage that can impair nutrient absorption and lead to symptoms like diarrhea, weight loss, fatigue, anemia and a blistery, itchy rash. The only effective way to manage celiac disease is strict and lifelong gluten avoidance.

For others with milder wheat-related sensitivities, eating the grain doesn’t cause the intestinal damage found in celiac disease, but it can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and symptoms like fatigue and headache that usually go away when wheat is avoided. It’s not clear how many people have this condition, called non-celiac wheat sensitivity, but it may be more common than celiac disease.

A third, much less common wheat-related condition is a wheat allergy, which can cause allergic reactions like diarrhea, vomiting, facial swelling or difficulty breathing within minutes to hours after eating wheat.

However, none of these beliefs are true, said Anne R. Lee, a registered dietitian and assistant professor of nutritional medicine at the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University Medical Center.

“Typically, the gluten-free products are higher in fat, higher in sugar, higher in salt and lower in fiber and your B vitamins and iron,” she said.

I Dont Have Celiac Disease Or Gluten Intolerance Is It Safe To Avoid Gluten

Absolutely! Some people choose to follow a gluten-free diet merely because it provides structure to eating healthier and adopting a healthy lifestyle.

DiGeronimo says, Its safe, but not necessary. Gluten free foods tend to lack certain vitamins/minerals and fiber.

Just remember to consume a varied diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and legumes to avoid vitamin/mineral deficiencies and promote a healthy weight and lifestyle.

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The Gluten Free Diet All You Need To Know About The Diet That Will Make You Well Again

  • If you have coeliac disease you will have to avoid gluten for life.
  • A gluten free diet is the only treatment for the condition.
  • Gluten is found in the grains wheat, barley and rye.
  • On the gluten free diet you can eat many foods including meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, rice and potatoes.
  • You can also eat gluten free substitute foods and processed foods that don’t contain gluten.
  • You can tell whether gluten is in a food by learning about allergen labelling – it sounds scary, but you get used to it once you know how.

If you have been medically diagnosed with coeliac disease then your immune system has been reacting to gluten and damaging your gut. To get better, you must remove gluten from your diet, which is the only treatment for coeliac disease. Gluten is found in the grains wheat, barley and rye.

You may have heard the term ‘gluten free diet’ before. This can be a bit confusing to some people because it isn’t a diet in the way that most people understand it – it’s not designed to help people lose weight. It’s just a way of eating that helps you heal your gut so you can start absorbing all the nutrients you need from your diet.

Improve The Nutritional Profile Of The Gluten

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Good sources of fiber in the gluten-free diet include fruits and vegetables, beans and legumes, and gluten-free grains, in particular buckwheat, quinoa, millet, sorghum, and teff. Table 2 provides a list of practical ways to encourage increased consumption of fiber and whole grains on the gluten-free diet. Patients should be advised only to purchase grain products specifically labeled gluten-free because of potential contamination of grains in the fields, in transport, and during processing .

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Type 1 Diabetes And Celiac Disease

The prevalence of celiac disease is increased in those with other autoimmune diseases, including type 1 diabetes. The prevalence of celiac disease in people with type 1 diabetes is estimated to be between 1.4 and 19.7% . The common denominators in both conditions are the HLA DQ2 and HLA DQ8 genes however, environmental factors such as infections, infant feeding practices, and breastfeeding may play a role, although to what extent is unknown . In addition, there is emerging research into the potential role of the gut microbiome .

Adult patients with new onset type 1 diabetes may be even more likely to develop celiac disease. Bakker et al. found that 42% of those with adult-onset type 1 diabetes developed celiac disease 10 years after diagnosis. A delay in celiac disease diagnosis may occur in adults, whose gastrointestinal symptoms may be incorrectly attributed to neuropathy . One study found that 48% of adult patients with type 1 diabetes had been symptomatic for > 5 years before being diagnosed with celiac disease .

There does not appear to be a link between type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and the development of celiac disease. One study showed a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome in those with celiac disease, even after controlling for BMI, which was significantly lower in those with celiac disease .

People With Dermatitis Herpetiformis

Dermatitis herpetiformis is when gluten triggers a severe rash on the elbows, knees, head, buttocks, and torso. Most people with dermatitis herpetiformis will also experience the same small intestinal damage as those with celiac disease.

However, unlike people with celiac disease, dermatitis herpetiformis patients might not experience digestive symptoms such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, or constipation.

A gluten-free diet is recommended to treat dermatitis herpetiformis, although medications can also help control symptoms in the short term.

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Celiac Disease And Diabetes

There is no established link between celiac disease and type 2 diabetes. However, a link does exist between celiac disease and type 1 diabetes, as these are both autoimmune conditions.

If you have type 1 diabetes, your chances of getting celiac disease are approximately 6% compared to 1% for the general population.

Ward Off Viruses And Germs

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Many foods that are recommended on a gluten-free diet contain more antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, than common processed foods that contain gluten. Assuming you substitute wheat and gluten products with healthy alternatives like fruits, vegetables, and high-quality proteins, then a gluten-free lifestyle will most likely strengthen your immune system, providing you with an increased ability to combat viruses and germs.

Food sensitivities, such as gluten, are one of the primary reasons for a weak immune system. In addition to a gluten-free diet, you may consider taking an adult strength multi-vitamin, to combat any potential nutritional deficiencies. Even minor nutritional deficiencies can result in a lowered resistance to common viruses like cold viruses, or the flu.

If you are stressed, it is likely that your immune system is being challenged, as well. To get back on track, stick to a whole foods gluten-free diet, with significant emphasis on fruits, vegetables, and lean sources of protein.

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What To Do If You Have Symptoms

If you have diarrhoea or you are vomiting, its important to keep yourself well hydrated by drinking lots of water.

Some people find that taking medication to treat constipation, diarrhoea or headaches can ease symptoms, but check with your pharmacist or GP.

The most important thing is to get back onto your gluten free diet to try to prevent further symptoms.

If your symptoms are very severe or do not improve, speak to your GP.

Coeliac UK support gluten free food safety for people with coeliac disease and gluten related conditions. To find out more, click here.

Coexisting Diabetes And Celiac Disease: Special Challenges

For patients with concurrent diabetes and celiac disease, the gluten-free diet must be carefully planned to meet nutritional needs while controlling blood glucose. This is best accomplished through consultation with a registered dietitian nutritionist who is experienced in treating celiac disease and diabetes. The carbohydrate and fat content of gluten-free foods often is higher than in gluten-containing foods . In addition, the fiber content is typically lower, particularly if individuals eat the majority of grain servings in the form of rice-based, refined, and processed foods. Early studies in this area found that gluten-free foods may have a higher glycemic index than comparable gluten-containing foods, but more recent research does not support this conclusion . It is important for patients to read the labels of gluten-free foods for carbohydrate content and because serving sizes may differ from those of similar gluten-containing foods.

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Why Many People Feel Better

There are several reasons why most people feel better on a gluten-free diet.

First, avoiding gluten usually involves cutting back on processed foods, as its found in a wide array of highly processed foods, such as fast food, baked goods, and sugary cereals.

These foods not only contain gluten but are typically also high in calories, sugar, and unhealthy fats.

Many people say that they lose weight, feel less fatigued, and have less joint pain on a gluten-free diet. Its likely that these benefits are attributed to the exclusion of unhealthy foods.

For example, diets high in refined carbs and sugars have been linked to weight gain, fatigue, joint pain, poor mood, and digestive issues all symptoms related to NCGS .

Whats more, people often replace gluten-containing foods with healthier options, such as vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, and proteins which can promote health and well-being.

Additionally, digestive symptoms may improve as a result of reducing intake of other common ingredients, such as FODMAPs .

Although improved symptoms on a gluten-free diet may be related to NCGS, these improvements could also be due to the reasons listed above or a combination of the two.

Summary

Cutting out gluten-containing foods may improve health for several reasons, some of which may be unrelated to gluten.

Who Should Avoid Gluten

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As mentioned, people with celiac disease avoid sickness and maintain much better health if they follow a gluten-free diet. For them, a gluten-free diet is nothing short of essential.

And then there are people described as gluten-sensitive. Their tests for celiac disease are negative , yet whenever they eat food containing gluten, they experience symptoms like bloating, diarrhea, or crampy abdominal pain. One cause is wheat allergy, a disorder that can be diagnosed by skin testing. But for many others, the diagnosis remains uncertain. Some have begun calling this non-celiac gluten hypersensitivity, a poorly defined condition about which we have much to learn.

Avoiding gluten makes sense for people with celiac disease, wheat allergy, or those who feel unwell whenever they consume gluten.

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A Commonsense Way To Go Gluten

If you must cut out gluten, be sure to do it the healthy way:

Get your grains. Whether you’re on a gluten-free diet or not, eating a variety of grains is healthy, so don’t cut out whole grains. Replace wheat with amaranth, corn, millet, quinoa, teff, and the occasional serving of rice.

Shop the grocery store perimeter. Stick with naturally gluten-free whole foods: fruit, vegetables, lean meat and poultry, fish, most dairy, legumes, some grains, and nuts.

Read the label! Minimize your intake of packaged foods made with refined rice or potato flours choose those with no-gluten, non-rice whole grains instead. Whenever you buy processed foods, keep an eye on the sugar, fat, and sodium content of the product.

Editor’s Note:

You Might Still Be Eating Gluten Anyway

A recent study in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition looked at 158 food products labeled gluten-free over three years. It found that about 5 percentincluding some that were certified gluten-freedidn’t meet the FDA’s limit of less than 20 parts per million of gluten. The products were tested before the FDA’s rule went into effect last summer. Still, that standard doesn’t stipulate that manufacturers must test their products before making a gluten-free claim. “Cross-contamination can occur,” Levario explains. “Gluten-free products may be manufactured on the same equipment used for wheat or other gluten-containing products.” That can also happen when wheat is grown next to other grains. For example, oats are often grown in or near fields where wheat has been grown. As a result, wheat finds its way into the oat harvest and contaminates its subsequent products.

There’s no way to completely protect yourself, but you can call manufacturers. “They should be transparent about what tests they use to determine whether a product is gluten-free,” says the study’s author, Tricia Thompson, M.S., R.D., founder of Gluten Free Watchdog. “If they insist that it’s proprietary information, that should set off an alarm.”

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What About Autism Epilepsy And Schizophrenia

Some people are concerned that gluten could be linked with developmental differences or medical conditions. This is a misconception. While gluten intolerance may be more likely in these populations, there is no evidence that eating gluten causes these differences.

The following sections explore this in more detail.

Autism

concluded that there is little evidence that a gluten-free diet has benefits for the symptoms of autism in children.

Epilepsy

There may be a link between celiac disease and epilepsy.

In a small 2016 study of 113 people with epilepsy, around 6% tested positive for celiac disease.

In this study, 6 out of 7 of these patients had their seizures completely under control and were able to discontinue antiepileptic medications after 5 months on the gluten-free diet.

This suggests that people with epilepsy and celiac disease will benefit from a gluten-free diet.

Schizophrenia

People with schizophrenia may be more likely to have celiac disease.

A found that a gluten-free diet may benefit a subpopulation of people with schizophrenia who have a sensitivity to gluten.

However, more research is needed before recommending a gluten-free diet for a person with schizophrenia.

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