About Gluten Sensitivity and Intolerance

It's everywhere you look these days...gluten free. Sales of gluten-free foods have grown to an estimated $4+ billion market and continue to grow. Is it just a fad, a marketing ploy that companies are using to their advantage? Or is the growth being fueled by consumer demand based on awareness and food allergy/sensitivity testing?

So why is gluten so bad for us? What does it do in the body? Doesn’t gluten come from “natural” sources? Haven't we been eating wheat for hundreds, if not thousands of years?

It's impossible to fully explore this topic of gluten on this page, but here are some of the main things to know. Our American diet has become very high in grains and highly processed food. Our ancestors didn't consume that much gluten, not as much as we do today. In addition, the wheat that we consume today is different than it was back than. Commercially grown wheat has been modified to contain MORE gluten. It also goes through a process called deamination which can cause severe allergic reactions, even in wheat tolerant people. Basically, wheat today isn't really what mother nature intended with the modifications and processing.

An additional factor is that the Standard American Diet has very little nutritional value and that coupled with a high stress, fast-paced society results in breakdown of our immune tolerance for substances like gluten.

The end result is that gluten does indeed cause many health problems in our culture today with an estimated 18 million Americans affected. This number is most likely grossly underestimated because many people are misdiagnosed or never report symptoms. Wheat is now one of the top eight food allergens in the United States.

Symptoms

Symptoms do not always appear right away after consuming gluten. They can appear hours and even days later. Symptoms can include:

• "Foggy" mind

• Depression

• ADHD type behavior

• Abdominal pain

• Bloating

• Diarrhea or constipation

• Headaches

• Joint pain

• Chronic fatigue

• Nausea and vomiting

• Hives or rash

Where to Go From Here

It is important to not self-diagnose so talk with us about testing before you start a gluten-free diet. This is the only way to ensure accurate test results and protect your long-term health.

There is life beyond a diet of gluten containing foods! We can give you a specific food plan to follow for your recovery and beyond.