Originally published September 1 2012
Just how beneficial is a gluten-free diet for those without celiac disease?
by PF Louis
(NaturalNews) The wheat in our daily bread today is not the same wheat of a little over 50 years ago. It is a hybrid that attains only half the height of those old film and photo scenes showing "amber waves of grain."
Wheat has been genetically morphed into a high glycemic index (GI) food that spikes your blood sugar as bad as or worse than sugar. This morphing was done over decades of cross breeding compatible plants, not by laboratory GMO freaks.
Even worse than its high GI is the fact that those wheat kernels and other grains contain a type of protein called gluten. It's a sticky sort of protein that's useful for binding.
According to naturopath Glen Depke, it appears that the old wheat was three percent gluten, and now it is 50 percent. This hybrid was created to make better textured breads and pastries and produce a higher crop yield.
50 years of cross breeding wheat doesn't give the human species time enough to genetically adapt to this large of a gluten expansion.
So gluten may be perceived genetically by many as a foreign invader to over stimulate the immune system, creating inflammation. Chronic inflammation from chronic consumption of a perceived allergen leads to an assortment of autoimmune diseases.
Foods containing gluten
Though wheat is the main gluten carrier, gluten in lesser amounts is in durum flour, semolina, rye, couscous, bulgar, triticale, kamut, and even spelt. But it's not only our favorite grains that carry this potential hazard, there are gluten additives in processed foods.
Dextrin, flavorings, extracts, modified food starch, and hydrolyzed vegetable protein are commonly found in processed foods, even those sold as natural. Beware of creamed products, sauces, and soups.
Organic whole wheat and other organic whole grains are not necessarily gluten free. Organic whole wheat also has that starchy high GI to spike your blood sugar, which repeated over time may lead to diabetes II.
Weston A. Price researchers have determined that sprouted grains contain enzymes and other nutrients that counteract the downside of wheat, including the high GI (glycemic index).
Grains that don't contain gluten include rice, buckwheat, which is not really wheat, amaranth, arrowroot, quinoa, lupin, teff, sorghum, oat groats, and millet. Beware, often these are mixed with gluten grains. Steel cut oats are free of gluten unless externally contaminated.
Sorting this all out
There are hair, saliva, stool, and blood serum tests that can determine if you are gluten intolerant. If you are experiencing symptoms that can't be diagnosed or explained, even mild emotional or mental malaise, it may be wise to explore the gluten intolerance issue.
Two sources for testing glucose intolerance you can look into are: (https://www.enterolab.com/StaticPages/TestInfo.aspx) and (http://www.testyourintoleranceusa.com/).
Celiac disease is the combination of damaged small intestinal inner wall and villi damage and gluten sensitivity. Absorbing food nutrients depends largely on intestinal villi. A celiac individual will experience stomach pains and diarrhea upon consuming foods containing gluten.
It is possible to have one malady without the other. There are more gluten intolerant folks than celiac disease sufferers. What's tricky is juggling your food intake according to your needs.
For example, to help lose weight and rid oneself of a pre-diabetic condition, it would be wise to cut out high GI wheat products. But shifting to a totally gluten-free diet would be counter-productive for those purposes, since there are high GI substances such as potato starch and tapioca used in gluten free foods.
A prudent approach would be to eliminate a couple of high GI and/or gluten grain foods and notice how you feel after a couple of weeks.
Sources for this article include:
http://www.askdepkewellness.com/2012/03/gluten-silent-killer.html
http://www.coreonehealth.com/bread-staff-of-life-or-silent-killer
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/gluten-sensitivity
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