on the table
By Laura Berger
Go Go Gluten To eat or not to eat?
L
aura Berger is a Westerville dietitian with a knack for cooking and a passion for helping others reach their own health goals, too. This issue we asked her questions about diet myths, healthful food choices and mindful lifestyle choices. We’re hungry for answers and Berger is serving them up hot! Let’s discuss a glutenfree diet. What the heck IS gluten? Why do some people take Laura Berger it out of their diets? Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye and spelt. While it is a component of a carbohydrate food, like wheat and other grains, it is the protein component of these grains. Who might consider a gluten-free diet? There are many reasons one might choose to eliminate gluten from their diet. For those who have celiac disease, an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the digestive tract in response to digesting gluten, causing inflammation, pain and damage in the intestinal cells, along with other manifestations such as infertility and metabolic bone disease, among others; the only treatment is a total gluten elimination. Others find they have an allergy or sensitivity to gluten, known as non-celiac gluten sensitivity, an intolerance or immune response when gluten is ingested, causing myriad symptoms similar to those present in celiac disease, ranging from irritable bowel (diarrhea and/or constipation), acid reflux, hives and other autoimmune or inflammatory conditions. What types of foods have a lot of gluten in them? Any foods containing wheat, barley, rye or spelt contain gluten, with baked goods and many processed, packaged or premade 28 March/April 2021
foods being the biggest culprits. If you look at most grain-based or starchy processed foods, they contain enriched wheat flour as their main ingredient: breads, buns, wraps, deep fried or breaded foods, pastas, cookies, cakes, crackers and cereals contain the largest amount of gluten. Even if you are not allergic to gluten, should you still avoid it? If someone does not have a food allergy toward wheat or gluten and are experiencing digestive distress, skin disorders, migraines, autoimmunity or other potential symptoms of gluten intolerance, they could have a gluten sensitivity and might benefit from a gluten-free diet. If they trial a gluten-free diet and feel better or notice
symptoms improving, it may be beneficial to avoid gluten long term. How does one know if they have a gluten sensitivity? The best way to find out if you are sensitive to gluten is to do a total gluten elimination diet for at least eight weeks, meaning you not only remove the obvious wheat (gluten) foods like breads and pastas, but also hidden sources found in sauces, canned soups and other processed or premade foods. Then, add a significant source of gluten back in and carefully evaluate any symptoms. In addition, there are blood tests to determine if you have the gene for celiac disease or a food sensitivity blood test or www.westervillemagazine.com
