There has been a lot of debate on whether Gluten is harmful to the body! Answer is it depends on the individual. Gluten is a protein naturally found in grains such as wheat, rye, barley & spelt. It acts as a binder which holds food together & adding a stretching quality. Other grains that contain gluten include durum, wheat berries, semolina, farina & khorasan wheat. Oats- though naturally are gluten free- often contain gluten from cross contamination since oats are processed in the same facilities as the other grains listed above. Less obvious sources of gluten include modified food starch, soy sauce, lecithin & MSG.
Gluten is mostly associated with wheat & wheat containing foods that are abundant in our food supply. However, a lot of people have doubts about its place in a healthy diet. Whole gains consumption are closely associated with healthy eating. Gluten may also act as a prebiotic, feeding good bacteria in the body. Such bacteria are normally found in healthy human gut. Change in amount or activity are associated with gastrointestinal diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease & irritable bowel syndrome. So far gluten has healthy impact on human body.
When gluten poses problems?
What’s not good about Gluten is it creates problem for certain individuals. Some people react different to gluten with body sensing it as toxin & immune cells overreacts & attacks it. The impact of consuming more of gluten on a gluten sensitive person varies from mild issues such as constipation, diarrhea to senior concerns such as weight loss, malnutrition, intestinal damage as seen in celiac disease. People with celiac disease also have risk of anemia. However, removing gluten from the diet can undo the damage. Adopting & following a gluten free diet is not a trivial task since it is necessary to ensure that you get the required nutrients from gluten free diet. Other conditions that may require reduction or elimination of gluten include:
- Gluten intolerance-Intolerance due to gluten with similar symptoms as seen as celiac disease but without high level of antibodies & intestinal damage
- Wheat allergy– An allergy to one or more proteins such as gluten, albumin found in wheat. Symptoms range from mild to severe such as itching of the mouth or throat, itchy eyes, shortness of breath, nausea, diarrhoea & cramps. These symptoms are generally found in children which often outgrow by adulthood.
Gluten is a problem for those who react negatively to it. Others can eat gluten during their entire life without any side effects.
Gluten-Thyroid connection
Many thyroid issues fall under body’s auto immune system which essential means that immune system attacks its own tissues. Gluten can be a reason for immune response to thyroid in people who are gluten insensitive.
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease where gluten triggers a major response to digestive tract. Although, this directly does not impact thyroid, it is believed & research shows that people who have one autoimmune disease are at risk of attracting another( thyroid). When doctors are curing their patients of thyroid, they generally look at what inflammatory triggers are evident in their system. Gluten is one of the triggers. So how do you check if gluten consumption is the reason for Thyroid:
- Try gluten elimination diet: Remove foods from your diet which or is contaminating with gluten. It takes 3 months to completely flush gluten from your system. It means stopping consumption of gluten for 3 months & then introducing it back to evaluate if there are some changes in symptoms.
- Food sensitivity testing: There are food sensitivity tests available which evaluates what happens to your white blood cells when you are exposed to gluten. Ideally, you have to see if there is an inflammatory response.
- Testing for Celiac disease: You can after consulting your doctor can go for testing for Celiac disease. However for testing for this disease, you must be actively consuming gluten.
If you have Thyroid, it is not necessary that gluten is solely responsible for it. It can be one of the symptoms. So if you are suffering from Thyroid or at risk of attracting it, you should consider consuming the following foods:
Along with consuming naturally gluten free foods such as fruits & vegetables, eggs, legumes, fish, seeds, the following grains are gluten free:
- Quinoa
- Brown or red rice
- Buckwheat
- Millet
- Corn
- Teff
- Steel cut oats or white oats when not contaminated with gluten during processing.
Further it is not recommended to go for processed gluten free foods which are high in calories, sugar, saturated fats, sodium & low in nutrients. Foods such as gluten free cookies & other snacking foods.
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