What’s the deal with Gluten?

I've heard many things from people about gluten such as...

"you should go gluten free"
"I'm Celiac"
"I'm allergic to gluten"
"I'm gluten intolerant"
"I can't eat gluten, it bloats me"
"You should cut out grains"
"I have a gluten sensitivity"
"I went gluten free and it didn't make a difference"
"Everyone should be gluten free"
"Gluten constipates me"

Gluten is a BIG problem for some, but does EVERYONE need to be gluten free?

Many people are making a connection between gluten and their poor health and cutting it all out together. Do they need to?

Let's explore it further...

If you feel like gluten is an issue for you, the first thing you must do is visit your doctor and get tested for Celiac Disease. I find that many people are assuming they have Celiac Disease but not getting the proper testing done.

The first thing your doctor will do is order a blood test to see if your body is reacting to gluten. Keep in mind that you must be eating gluten (for 6 weeks) to see if your body is reacting to it. The blood test will see if there is an immune response occurring from the exposure to gluten.

If the blood test comes back with no antibodies (IgA) then you do not have Celiac Disease.

If the blood test comes back with antibodies, it means that there is an immune response occurring to gluten and there needs to be further investigations. 

Your doctor will send you for a colonoscopy and a biopsy will be taken of the intestinal wall. Here, they will look for damage to the villi and micro-villi of the intestinal cells, and if there is damage, then you will receive your diagnosis.

If you receive a diagnosis for Celiac Disease, then unfortunately, there is no gluten for you. It is completely off the menu. You body is reacting to it and attacking its own intestinal cells as a result. 

Now, what if that blood test shows as not having Celiac Disease, but every time you eat gluten you feel absolutely rubbish?

This is called "Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity" and has a variety of signs and symptoms that are specifically caused by gluten exposure. They are two groups of symptoms:

GI symptoms: Bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, repeated occurrence of mouth ulcers, alternating bowel habits and constipation.

Extra intestinal symptoms:  Foggy brain, inability to concentrate, reduction in mnemonic capabilities, tiredness, headache, anxiety, numbness, joint/muscle pain, skin rashes and dermatitis.

In Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity you can have one or many of these signs and symptoms and they are all caused by gluten. 

Why do some people react this way?

One of the main reasons why gluten can cause so many issues is because we can't break it down properly.

See, gluten is a protein and proteins can be tricky for some of us to digest. What then happens is that you have a half digested protein and that is what causes all the issues.

When gluten is half digested it will cause disturbances within the gut and contribute to imbalances within the bacteria. 

When gluten is half digested it will trigger the immune system and it will send inflammation to certain parts of the body (joints, brain, airways).

When gluten is half digested it can act as a morphine like substance and have an opioid effect... yes, it can act like morphine and opium and will give you brain fog, confusion and even a high pain threshold. Children can be more sensitive to this effect that adults. I find that around 50% of children who have brain fog and seem to be in their own world, respond positively when removing gluten and casein from their diet. 

Why can't we break down gluten properly?

I have 2 answers to this...

Firstly, your digestion is not the best. When there is poor digestion, gut imbalances and a lack of digestive enzymes being produced by the pancreas, your body will really struggle with breaking down proteins. When working on improving digestion and healing the gut, gluten should be removed from the diet and then reintroduced at a later stage to see if it is still a problem. 

Secondly, here is Australia and other western countries, our sources of gluten seem to have changed. 

I get told by many of my clients that they can eat all the bread, pasta and pastries they like when they are travelling across Europe and they don't get any tummy troubles or brain fog. In particular, when they travel to France. Then when they come home, all their signs and symptoms return when they start consuming Australian wheat again. 

In France they consume an ancient type of wheat that they have been growing for thousands of years and every generation has consumed it. Their bodies know how to digest it. It is grown traditionally in an environment that encourages it growth and it is then used in traditional baking practices like making sourdough bread.

This is very different to western cultures where a lot of our breads and gluten products are highly processed and over consumed.

Wheat flour is a big business in Australia and we export it all over the world to countries that can't grow it, such as Vietnam.

I encourage you to look at your heritage and to see if gluten grains are a common staple. Many cultures do not consume these grains and I find people from these cultures find gluten hard digest.

Explore gluten products that have been made traditionally with minimal processing. Find an authentic baker who makes sourdough bread and explore different grains like rye.

If gluten is a big issue for you, try baking with flour that has been imported from France. I do this with my gluten intolerant son and he can digest it perfectly- no tummy troubles at all!

Overall, I do feel we consume to much gluten flour products and that this contributes to the problem. Incorporate different types of grains, vegetables, legumes, meats, dairy products, meats, herbs, spices, nuts and seeds in your diet. If you are finding it hard to cut our gluten for a few days it means that you are consuming too much of it. 

I don't believe everyone needs to be gluten-free. I believe you should be eating real food that your body agrees with and various types of it.