Going gluten free seems to be an increasingly popular term, but most people aren’t clear what it means exactly. Going gluten free means committing to a diet without the protein gluten; grains like rye, barley, and wheat all contain gluten.
It may not seem too hard to cut those grains out of your diet, but gluten makes its way into the majority of processed foods today.
Unless labeled gluten-free, random foods such as candies, salad dressings, french fries and even soy sauce generally contain gluten. Most commonly, people go gluten-free to treat celiac disease, a condition where gluten causes inflammation in one’s small intestines.
However, going gluten-free is becoming increasingly popular and for more than people with health restrictions.
“For almost a year and half, I have been gluten-free for health reasons. I read a book, “Wheat Belly”, from a cardiologist about what has happened to wheat in the past 30 years. I read this book, and it made me want to be gluten-free,” said math instructor Isabella Santos.
Around one percent of the world’s population suffers from celiac disease; however, many more people claim that going gluten free just makes them feel better overall.
Although this theory lacks direct scientific proof, some studies have found that people tend to feel better when they cut gluten from their diet.
“Right now it doesn’t feel any different, but in the first two or three months, you do feel it. You get sort of addicted to food when you are eating a lot of processed foods and you feel heavy, being gluten-free forces you to eat different foods,” said Ms. Santos.
“If a person has a choice between eating wheat and not eating wheat, then for most people, avoiding wheat would be ideal,” said chiropractor Thomas O’Bryan in a New York Times article.
Stars such as Victoria Beckham, Miley Cyrus, Gwyneth Paltrow and Novak Djokovic boast going gluten free, consumers, who have increased the market of gluten free foods to $4.4 billion according to Packaged Stats, must eventually learn that going gluten free does not encourage weight loss.
A gluten free diet is only healthy if you replace the fiber, vitamins and minerals one would normally get from grains in a healthy way. Because most gluten-free products are combined through fattier foods such as oil, butter and eggs, going gluten free does not generally lead to weight loss.
Although gluten-free advocates will say it is worth it, for some it is asking too much to pass up on that perfect doughnut to go with your morning coffee or piece of bread that is placed in front of you at restaurants.
As senior Allie Towbes, who has been gluten-free for a 15 months, said, “it was really hard going off of gluten, and I really didn’t want to, and some days all I want is lasagna, but I have been able to find a lot of really delicious gluten free things. Just the other day a friend made me a gluten-free gingerbread peach tart, and it was maybe the best thing I’ve ever tasted!”
Trying a gluten free diet is easier with stores like Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Vons, and Albertsons carrying a wide variety of gluten free items.