Sounds really complicated doesn’t it? Your Doctor understands celiac just fine, but non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) that is another one of those imaginary diseases we come up with just to complicate their lives.
Recently a team of researchers in Norway at Oslo University Department of Gastroenterology decided that they wanted to learn more about NCGS patients and what there issues were. They did a study to measure depression, somatization, personality traits, anxiety, and general quality of life and compared them to actual celiac patients and healthy control patients. The NCGS had more abdominal and non abdominal symptoms in reaction to the gluten challenge than the celiac patients.
So the symptoms of gluten related disease (GRD) are sometimes worse than celiac…. yet it is still missed or ignored by most physicians, why? Some alternative gastroenterologist’s are saying that NCGS may affect 10-30% of the population. Celiac is also more common than people may think, 1 in 100 people are affected by celiac disease it is not RARE anymore. There are also clinic associations of gluten related or linked to autoimmune disease. Autoimmune disease also seems to be on the rise recently and the effects can be devastating.
The good news is this is avoidable and usually somewhat reversible. There seems to be an irrational resistance to recommending a gluten free diet to those who do not fit the criteria for celiac Sprue. Other gluten related disease are dermatitis herpetiformis, ataxis, peripheral neuropathy, and some forms of colitis. These people response very well to a gluten free diet. The change in their life is radical and dramatic. The response of a gluten-free is definitely not limited to only the celiac patients.
Why do most people who go on a high protein, “low carb” diet usually say they feel so much better after the first few weeks, less headaches, less fatigue, less bloating, and muscle and joint aches? These diets are notoriously low in gluten. The resistance to recommending a gluten-free trial seems to be ludicrous. However some doctors still insist that a change in diet is unnecessary. There is so much evidence supporting a gluten free diet as healthy, so what have you got to lose?
I have both personally and professionally seen the changes this type of diet can make in a person‘s everyday life. No one will tell you it is easy, but I can tell you that you miss those foods less and less every day. Continuing to eat gluten containing foods may put you at risk for autoimmune disease or other gluten related disease in your future….this is positive motivation for this important change.
Where do I start?
Gluten-free means not eating any food that is made of wheat, barley, rye or oats. The amino acids in the plant protein (gluten) in these grains are the ones you need to avoid. Even small amounts can continue to cause relapse or prevent remission.
In general avoid; thickeners, starches, hydrolyzed proteins, seitan, pasta and noodles (except rice), soy sauce, gravies, prepared marinades and beer.
Please feel free to contact us at Beyond Biology if you have any further questions about gluten-free diets 888-908-0804. We are here to help you to succeed.