Should you eat Gluten
One of the hottest topics in the nutrition world in the last 3-5 years has been gluten-free diet. As usual, the media and a general population acting like sheeple have once again blown something out of proportion.
People are needlessly following a gluten free diet just because they heard about it in the media or read about it on the Internet. Some of these people have even lost weight. But why? Most likely because they cut down on carbs altogether, or at least started eating healthier carbs.
But the question is, do YOU need to be a on gluten free diet? And the answer is, probably not. Here’s why
What is Gluten?
Gluten is found in grass grains, such as wheat and rye, and account for 80% of the proteins found in these grains. Gluten is made up from the proteins gliadin and glutenin, and is found in the endosperms of these grasses. Occasionally certain people have trouble digesting these proteins, and it causes them much bodily distress.
What is Celiac Disease?
Celiac Disease is an autoimmune disorder that affects the lower intestine, and is a reaction to gliadin. The only treatment is to follow a gluten-free diet. Approximately less than 1% of the population has celiac disease.
There are also some people that have a wheat allergy. This type of allergy has a wide-spread effect on the body, including asthma, nausea, eczema, as well as some others. Less than one-half of one percent of the population has a wheat allergy.
People with either Celiac Disease or wheat allergies who consume Gluten, not only feel the effects described above, but many also gain weight, and not the good kind. For these people, eliminating gluten and wheat from the diet, often results in dramatic weight loss.
For those that have a medical reason for not consuming gluten, it makes sense to follow the gluten-free diet. However, the number of these people are small, and for those that do not have adverse reaction to gluten, they should be consuming these proteins, and enjthe many benefits of doing so.
Tags: carbohydrates, carbs, celiac, Diet, dieting, eating, food, gluten, healthy, nutrition
