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Y O U R IS GOING GLUTEN-FREE RIGHT FOR YOU? 12 These days it seems everyone is on a gluten-free diet. But is it really necessary? Is it healthy for everyone?

YOUNGER WOMEN FACE RISK OF HEART ATTACK 13 Incidents of Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD) are on the increase.

Younger women are most at risk for this type of heart attack.

NO SUBSTITUTE FOR MAMMOGRAMS 15 Health Canada warns that thermograms are no substitute for mammograms when it comes to screening for breast cancer.

A diet based on naturally glutenfree foods can be very healthy, says registered dietitian and author Shelley Case. Getty ImaGes THIS SECTION WAS CREATED BY CONTENT WORKS, POSTMEDIA’S COMMERCIAL CONTENT STUDIO

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recipes. Her suggestions have come in part from her own experience. She was diagnosed with celiac later in life.

“It can be challenging because gluten is in so many things,” says Case. “That’s why I wrote my book was to help people.”

Case’s book is available at most booksellers and on her website ShelleyCase.com.

RIGHT FORYOU? Jennifer Jacoby-Smith

These days it seems everyone is on a gluten-free diet.

But is it really necessary? Is it healthy for everyone?

Shelley Case, registered dietician and author of Gluten Free: The Definitive Guide, wants to set the record straight.

“Everybody is hearing about the gluten-free diet,” she says, “from celebrities to athletes and so-called wellness experts – are promoting that a gluten-free diet will cure everything that ails you.”

And that may or may not be true. So who needs to be following a gluten-free diet?

According to Case it’s only two groups of people – those diagnosed with celiac disease and those with nonceliac gluten sensitivity.

Celiac disease is a hereditary autoimmune condition.

When those with the condition consume foods with the gluten protein the body

reacts by attacking the villi of the small intestine, which are responsible for absorbing nutrients from your food.

Eventually the damage can cause serious problems such as anemia, osteoporosis and other nutrient deficits.

Case says she gets asked all the time if there’s any harm in going on a gluten-free diet if you don’t have those conditions. She says, “Technically no.” But it may not be the healthiest option either.

Going on a gluten-free diet without it being medically necessary may not be harmful, but it may not be the best thing. Gluten-free products – such as breads, pastas, and cereals – are not enriched with iron and B vitamins like those made with wheat.

It can make getting enough of those nutrients a lot more challenging.

As well, some of those processed gluten-free products are not made with the most healthful ingredients.

“A lot of gluten-free prod-

ucts on the market use a base of rice flour and some type of starches such as tapioca starch or potato (starch),” explains Case, “ and none of those are stellar for fibre or nutrients. So people think that they’re eating healthier by eating gluten-free products but that’s not necessarily so.”

Instead, Case recommends building a gluten-free diet around foods that are naturally gluten-free – such as vegetables, nuts, seeds, eggs, lowfat cheese and dairy products.

For protein, Case suggests unprocessed meats like chicken, beef, fish – and pulses – such as lentils or beans.

“If you build your diet on those naturally gluten-free foods, your diet can be very healthy,” she says.

If you think you might have symptoms that suggest celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity, Case says you should not go on a glutenfree diet until you’ve seen your doctor for a diagnosis.

That’s because the testing

for celiac disease includes a blood test and a small intestinal biopsy. Those tests may come back falsely negative if gluten has already been removed from the diet.

“There has to be gluten in your system for an extended period of time for that blood test and that small intestinal biopsy to be accurate,” says Case.

A false negative on a celiac test can be a real problem. If left untreated celiac disease can cause nutrient deficiencies, neurological complications, infertility, and an increased risk of certain cancers. It’s thought celiac disease affects approximately one per cent of the population.

The treatment for celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity is pretty straight

Shelley Case is a dietician from Regina and a leading expert on celiac disease and gluten-free living. Her book Gluten Free is a comprehensive resource for celiac patients as well as health care professionals. sUPPLIeD Photo

forward: a strict glutenfree diet for life. Even small amounts of gluten can continue the symptoms and ongoing damage to the body.

Celiac disease is tough to diagnose. In fact, according to Dr. Case, it can take up to 12 years after the onset of symptoms to get an official diagnosis. This is partly because the symptoms can mimic other illnesses or seem unconnected until resolved by a gluten-free diet.

In her book, Case has many gluten-free resources – including a list of over 3700 gluten-free products, tips for eating out, labeling laws, how to do substitutions, as well as

dO YOU HAVE CELIAC dISEASE? There are many symptoms of celiac disease. The following are just a few the most common symptoms of celiac disease For a full list visit ShelleyCase.com.

Visit your doctor to get tested if you suspect you might have celiac disease.

Iron, folic acid, and/or vitamin B12 deficiencies Other vitamin or mineral deficiencies (Vitamins A, D, E, K, calcium, etc) Chronic fatigue and weakness Abdominal pain, bloating, and gas Indigestion/reflux (“heartburn”) Nausea and vomiting Ongoing or intermittent diarrhea and/or constipation Weight loss Bone/joint pain Migraine headaches Elevated liver enzymes Taken from Shelleycase.com.

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TrY THIS SCIenCe-BACkeD wAY TO LEARN IN YOUR SLEEp

The brain never rests, it’s true. But is it possible to learn while you sleep? Here are some tips to help you try. BPt Photo

slept, recordings of the words were played for them. Meanwhile, the other half stayed awake, listening to the recordings.

At 2 a.m., scientists tested the knowledge of the two groups. (The first group was awakened and the second group was still awake.) The group that had slept recalled more Dutch words than the group that stayed awake.

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Another finding lends startling insight as to why the sleeping minds might have had better recall.

Brain scans taken from the sleeping subjects indicate that their brains responded to the spoken words, helping them solidify a meaningful connection with the words.

Tips for learning in your sleep Before you leap into your language study, give it a test run with

TRY OU R

helps us process emotional events.

In 2014, scientists from the Swiss National Science Foundation published study results in the journal “Cerebral Cortex” that could help your “tulo” game. Here, 60 German-speaking students were asked to memorize some Dutch words before 10 p.m., words that were unfamiliar to them. Half the students were then allowed to sleep. As they

TE

(BPT) The brain never rests. If you’ve shared a room with a sleeptalker or woken from an intense dream, it’s pretty clear the brain is always active, even during sleep.

If we better understand what is happening up there while we rest, perhaps we can direct that activity into something meaningful that improves our lives. Did you know that, for example, sleeping can help you learn a new language? Recent research has shown that while we sleep our brains are solidifying memory, and that has implications for our language skills.

Despite what we’ve seen in science fiction, it turns out that learning in your sleep does not happen by osmosis. You still have to learn the words while you’re awake.

To use an example on how to do this, take the word “tulo.” Before you go to bed tonight, repeat to yourself, “Tulo means sleep.” That’s what it means in the language of Chichewa, which is spoken in the countries of Zambia and Malawi.

When you lie down and close your eyes, say it a few more times. “Tulo means sleep.”

What does the brain do while we’re sleeping?

In order to understand how you can use sleep to help you commit the word “tulo” to memory, it’s important to understand something about sleep and brain science.

When you think about it, sleep doesn’t make a lot of sense from an evolutionary standpoint. We hate to lose all that productivity, not to mention that sleep makes animals in the wild vulnerable to predators.

We still don’t fully understand why we sleep, but as scientists study sleep in humans and animals, its benefits keep emerging and unfolding. For example, scientists have discovered that sleep flushes toxins from our brains, and dreaming

“tulo.” Follow these three steps to see if the insights from the brain and sleep studies help you commit the word to your memory.

Prime the mind: Again, this learning does not happen by osmosis. Before you sleep, it’s important to spend some time with the word “tulo.” Write it down, say it to yourself in a sentence, and tell others about it. “Tulo means sleep.” That alone may or may not be enough to help you remember what you need to know, but at the very least, you are creating the conditions.

Create a good sleep environment: You can’t get the full benefits of sleep if you’re not getting enough of it, and that also applies when you’re trying to memorize new words. In order to capture these full benefits, make sure you set yourself up for the best possible night’s sleep. Stay away from caffeinated beverages four to six hours before bedtime, exercise regularly, and keep your bedroom dark and quiet, and at the right temperature. Make sure you’re going to bed and waking at the same time every day.

Play a recording: Make a recording of yourself saying, “Tulo means sleep,” and have it play on repeat for a few hours while you’re in dreamland. Be sure and have a sticky note posted near your bed to remind you when you wake up - “what’s that word you have to recall?” When you wake up and read it, chances are, the answer will come right out: “Tulo.”

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