Gluten-free Diet

Gluten-free diet is recommended in the treatment of celiac disease and people with wheat allergy, it is a diet which needs to be completely free of ingredients derived from gluten. Foods that contain cereals, wheat, barley, rye, as well as the use of food additives flavouring and thickening agents, many people whom are recommended to use this diet can tolerate oats and many practitioners say they are permitted in moderation. In celiac disease, gluten causes the immune system to produce antibodies that attack the lining of the bowel, which is then unable to absorb nutrients and vitamins from food.

Parents of children with autism have reported that a gluten-free diet helps their children some are incapable of digesting protein in cereals completely, many parents have noticed that removing gluten from the child's diet helps increase attention span and helps with a general overall happier mood with a big decline in tantrums.

What damage does gluten do to the bowel?

The small bowel contains villi, which are tiny finger-like projections that are only visible under a microscope; they provide a surface area over which we absorb nutrients such as vitamins, folic acid, calcium and iron. A reaction occurs when gluten comes into contact with the lining of the small bowel the villi are attacked by the immune system and are eventually destroyed, this results in food going down the gut without being absorbed (malabsorption), and can lead to diarrhea, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, osteoporosis and anemia and thin bones. Taking gluten out of the diet allows the damage caused to the gut lining to heal, and symptoms of celiac disease to resolve.

Following gluten free diet can be frightening but needn't be a curse as long as you broaden your repertoire of foods and are alert in checking whether the food prepared by someone else, be it an individual, a restaurant or a manufacturer, contains no gluten. If you don't have celiac disease, but nevertheless feel better when you eat less gluten or wheat-containing foods, remember that it may be the wheat, not the gluten that has an adverse effect on you.

 By Mark Richard Moran