Coeliac disease (pronounced see-lee-yak) is a condition causing some adults and children to react to the gluten, “the protein found in wheat, barley and rye”. Some coeliacs are also sensitive to the protein found in oats. If a coeliac eats gluten the lining of the small intestine becomes damaged reducing the coeliac's ability to absorb the nutrients from food. This can lead to various symptoms and complications if undiagnosed.
More and more grocerie and health food stores are now stocking gluten-free products, which is great news for people with coeliac disease. But for some anomalous reason, the gluten free foodstuffs have blown up and are selling at an incredible rate, as people just assume because it says “gluten free” that it MUST be healthier for you. The majority of these people reaching for gluten-free products do not have coeliac disease or even sensitivity to wheat.
Peter HR Green, director of the Celiac Disease Centre – Columbia University said, “The market for gluten free products is exploding. Why exactly we don’t know. Many people may just perceive that a gluten-free diet is healthier.”
The fact is that it isn’t healthier at all. For people with celiac disease, a gluten-free diet is essential. Green goes on to say, “Unless people are very careful, a gluten-free diet can lack vitamins, minerals and fibre”. For people who do not have celiac disease, there is no need to be avoiding gluten and sidestepping common nutritional dense foods. Gluten in of itself does not offer any unique nutritional benefits but the various whole grains that contain gluten do. They tend to be rich in lots of vitamins and minerals such as B vitamins, iron and fibre.
Whole grain foods as part of a healthy diet may aid:
—Lower risk of heart disease
—Type-2 diabetes
—Forms of cancer
The take home message is that: Unless you are gluten sensitive or have celiac disease, there is no benefit to buying gluten free products.
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