What Exactly IS Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. Gluten basically gives elasticity to food… and acts a bit like ‘glue’ in the bowels (so isn’t great for those with sluggish metabolism!).
It appears to be problematic for many people, who literally can’t stomach it. Now, the most extreme of gluten intolerances is called Coeliac disease, where even the minutest amount of gluten triggers an autoimmune assault on the small intestine. In Australia, the number of people with Coeliac disease has increased four-fold over the past 50 years. Basically, the prevalence of Coeliac disease is DOUBLING every decade.
Then, there is Gluten-sensitivity (or intolerance), which is when your system has a lot of trouble dealing with the pro-inflammatory gluten protein. It is estimated that over one million Australians are currently on some kind of gluten-restricted diet, for suspected gluten sensitivity. Now, imagine the standard Aussie diet (the ‘SAD’ diet) – Breakfast cereal or toast, followed by a muesli bar, sandwich, biscuits and maybe some pasta for dinner…wheat, wheat and more wheat! No wonder so many people are feeling unwell, and are opting for GF options.
A World-Wide Trend
Going gluten-free (GF) is proving to be one of the most popular and fastest growing dietary trends in the world. Gluten-free foods have experienced phenomenal growth and sales in Australia and sales are predicted to reach $94 million by 2015 (see below chart).
As an aside, from a land management perspective, wheat flour production isn’t particularly sustainable. We use 10sq meters of wheat to produce just FOUR loaves of bread (which takes 9 months from planting seed to producing flour). Yikes!
Introducing Zonulin
Sounds like a city from out of space, but Zonulin is proving to be a very interesting molecule indeed. Zonulin is a protein that modulates the permeability of tight junctions between cells of the wall of the digestive tract. It is the ONLY known physiologic modulator of intercellular tight junctions (so far), and is released after gluten consumption (thanks to gliadin, another molecule found in gluten). Basically, it makes out guts VERY “leaky”, thus being a potent driver or immune dysfunction and autoimmune disease (for more research – click here).
A Word of Warning – Avoid Gluten-free JUNK Foods
I actually class many commercial GF foods as JUNK foods. Many GF foods are packaged, highly processed, devoid of fibre, and full of sugar. Many GF packaged foods also contain added fat and salt to make them look and taste better. If you’re serious about going GF, avoid the packaged stuff, and eat the NATURAL gluten-free foods (of which there is abundance!). Don’t be someone who jumps of the GF junk food bandwagon, will NOT feel any better for it.
Bottom Line…
Consider this – for 99.9% of our evolutionary history we have been consuming a diet devoid of gluten. Add to this the fact that the wheat we eat today (aka “modern wheat”) has been genetically modified…thus making it VERY difficult to digest the protein. In fact, we only have the enzymatic capacity to digest fragments of the gluten found in modern wheat.
This means that the gluten found in modern wheat is problematic for us ALL, not just those who are allergic or intolerant. Moreover, gluten is highly inflammatory, and is a potent driver of immune dysfunction. Rather than being just another fad diet, I believe the food industry (as well as the consumer) is simply reacting to a modern day health crisis.
Until next time, Stacey.
