Are You Gluten Sensitive?
Feeling hungry and deciding to shoot down to McDonald's to get a burger is something most of us
If you suffer from bloating, abominable discomfort or even diarrhoea, chances are you may have a gluten sensitivity.
Gluten is the protein component of wheat as well as some other grains and found in breads pasta cookies and many other items many foods have hidden gluten (list of foods with hidden gluten). If you think that you or someone in you family may be gluten intolerant the best approach is to remove foods with gluten in them from the diet and take note of any changes. Personally I only seem to have a problem if I eat to much bread or bread that is of inferior quality.
What is Gluten sensitivity
It seems that a lot of us out there don't really know what gluten is or does. Basically gluten is a protein found in wheat and other grains such as barley and rye and oats. celiac disease can be the most severe gluten related disease consuming only a tiny amount of gluten will bring on symptoms like, belly pain bloating and such. gluten causes the the immune system to damage or destroy villi. tiny little finger like structures that line the small intestine and absorb nutrients into the blood stream. we are not all celiac, but more gluten sensitive which lead us to sometimes feel tired, stressed or experience flu like symptoms and our stomachs are bloated ore we get unexplained diarrhoea.
so its important to know what your eating. its not to hard to eat food with gluten in it and monitor any affects the food may have on you.
Being a baker for thirty years has given me insight in to why some breads cause more sensitivity than others. I discovered that almost all commercial bread has added gluten on top of what the flour already has in it. Most flour has 8-14% gluten. Biscuit flour being the lowest the highest being used for breads and sometimes pastries gluten is also a way some bakeries "stretch" their dough gluten adds strength and structure to the dough allowing a smaller piece of dough to grow much bigger than normal therefore saving money eg. instead of weighing a loaf at 500g you can weigh it at 250-300g almost doubling your yield.
so it is my belief that this practise has contributed to more people being affected by gluten sensitivity.
Below is a list of symptoms of Gluten Intolerance.
- Abdominal Distention
- Abdominal Pain and Cramping
- Alternating Bouts of Diarrhoea and Constipation
- Anaemia
- Arthritis
- Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
- Autism
- Bloating (see Gluten Intolerance Bloating)
- Bone Density Loss
- Borborygmi (stomach rumbling)
- Constipation (see Celiac Disease Constipation)
- Stunted Growth and Failure to Thrive
- Depression, Anxiety and Irritability (see Celiac Depression)
- Dermatitis Herpetiformis (skin rash — see my Dermatitis Herpetiformisarticle)
- Diabetes
- Diarrhoea
- Fatigue
- Low Ferritin Symptoms
- Malodorous Flatulence
- Malodorous Stools
- Gluten Ataxia (see my Gluten Ataxia article)
- Grayish Stools
- Hair Loss (Alopecia)
- Headaches and Migraines
- Hypoglycemia
- Infertility (see Gluten Intolerance and Pregnancy)
- Joint pain
- Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
- Lactose intolerance
- Mouth sores or mouth ulcers
- Nausea
- Numbness or tingling in the patient’s hands and feet
- Osteoporosis
- Peripheral Neuropathy (including either a tingling or sensation of swelling your toes and fingers)
- Sjogren’s Disease
- Steatorrhea (high lipids in the stool, which may cause the stool to float)
- Teeth and Gum Problems
- Turner Syndrome
- Vitamin and Mineral deficiencies
- Vomiting
- Unexplained Weight loss
- Urticaria
Food Allergy Overview and How to Fight It
Isn't it annoying when you smell the delicious aroma of a meal only to find out that it has an ingredient to which you are allergic? Ah! The demise of every person with food allergies! It is no fun to watch other people devour food that seems so delicious but you can't take part of the experience. How many times have you encountered comments like, great food isn't it? And sometimes you just can't bear to admit you are allergic and just smile as if you knew how it tasted.Then you try to ask questions, what is food allergy? What are causing these annoying symptoms? What is happens inside the body during allergic reactions? Ah! Understanding ones own health condition will better help them accept and overcome whatever is bothering them.
To start with, food allergy is unusual reaction to certain type of food allergen. An allergen is the substance or thing that causes the allergic reactions. Exposure to the allergen sets off the alarm in the human immune system which consequently releases antibodies to fight off the invasion of the perceived foreign body that is the food allergen. It then causes the symptoms you would see when you are in a state of allergic reaction.
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