Why Gluten-Free?
Gluten is a protein found in wheat flours and other grains, such as rye, barley, spelt, kamut, bulgar, semolina, triticale, matzo, farina, and durum. Gluten is harmful to all people with Celiac Disease (CD), which is an autoimmune disorder that creates a digestive condition, damaging the villi in the small intestine and causing malabsorption of nutrients from food. The villi are small, finger-like projections in the small intestine that absorb basic nutrients, such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, water and bile salts. When they are damaged, both chronic and life-threatening conditions can occur that are both nutrition and immune related, if CD goes untreated: iron-deficiency anemia, early onset of osteoporosis, vitamin K deficiency, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, pancreatic insufficiencies, neurological manifestations, gallbladder malfunction, among other autoimmune disorders. The exact cause of CD is unknown, however it can be triggered at any time during one’s life; severe emotional stress, trauma, surgery, viral infection and pregnancy can all cause CD to appear. Once triggered, CD becomes a lifelong digestive disorder causing bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, gas, among many other non-gastrointestinal-related conditions. The symptoms are very similar to Crohn’s disease, anemia, gastric ulcers and irritable bowel syndrome, so in order to determine if one has CD, a specific antibody blood test is used. If one is found to have CD, the only treatment for this chronic disorder is lifelong adherence to a gluten-free diet. Once gluten is removed from the diet, the small intestines heal and overall health improves. When following a gluten-free diet, label reading becomes extremely important because gluten is found in many flours and grains. Although you need to avoid cakes, pies, cookies, crackers, cereals, breads, pastas, gravies and sauces, there is so much that can be eaten and many foods now have gluten-free options. Foods such as fresh meats, fish, poultry, vegetables, fruits, potatoes, rice and dairy are all naturally gluten-free. Safe grains and flours include: potato, rice, soy and corn flour, tapioca, cornstarch, teff, quinoa, amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, flax, potato and millet. Also, beans, legumes and nuts are gluten-free.
Even if you do not have CD, you can develop an intolerance to gluten, which causes an immune reaction in the small intestines, resulting in the same side effects as CD. Therefore, following a gluten-free diet can be beneficial to your health. Gluten is used in a lot of baked goods and processed carbohydrates, but it is also added as a stabilizing agent in products like ice cream and ketchup. Unidentified starch, binders, fillers, extenders, excipients, and malt all contain gluten. We do not need these manufactured products in our diet. It’s like the sludge that coats the inside of your car hoses or kitchen sink drain. We do not want anything like that blocking our intestines, preventing our body from properly digesting and absorbing the nutrients we need to live a healthy life. Removing the foods that contain gluten from our diet just make our bodies that much healthier. All of the naturally gluten-free products found in our grocery stores are more than sufficient to provide us with what we need. Do your body a favor and try removing those processed, unnatural products from your diet. Your gut will thank you!
For more information on Celiac Disease and foods that are gluten-free, try these resources:
www.celiac.org
www.giforkids.com
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/celiacdisease.html
http://www.csaceliacs.org/index.php
http://www.celiac.nih.gov/Default.aspx
