Gluten-free Diet Clears Up a Host of Health Problems

Foods you enjoy every day and think of as healthy, like whole grain breads, cereals and pastas, may be causing big problems without your knowledge. Wheat, barley, rye, kamut, and spelt all contain a protein called gluten, which causes a problematic immune response in an increasingly large segment of the population -- possibly up to 50%. This leads to a wide range of health problems, from mild indigestion to debilitating neurological diseases and fatalities from cancer and heart disease. In fact, some health practitioners are finding that a gluten-free diet clears up a host of health issues in many of their patients. Immune reactions to gluten, often referred to as "gluten intolerance" (GI), can start early in life, and are associated with the development of numerous autoimmune diseases. GI creates silent inflammation and tissue damage in the intestines, brain, heart, joints, skin and/or elsewhere in the body. In the small intestines, inflamed and irritated tissue prevents absorption of nutrients creating deficiencies of many crucial vitamins and minerals. Most people are unaware anything unusual is occurring, and even when they begin having symptoms or develop a specific disease, they have no idea GI is causing their problem. But irritable bowel syndrome, osteoporosis, asthma, hair loss, dementia, chronic fatigue, epilepsy, peripheral neuropathy, depression, liver disease, lactose intolerance, anemia, or just about any of the autoimmune illnesses, are but a few diagnoses associated with either the autoimmune tissue damage or nutrient deficiencies caused by GI. Celiac disease is an extreme form of GI with a genetic component that is defined by extensive damage to the gut lining as determined by blood tests and tissue biopsy. It's bad enough that over 95% of the estimated 3 million Americans with celiac disease go undiagnosed, but celiac is only the tip of the iceberg, a fraction of those who are being harmed by gluten, and usually don't know it. But why has a slice of organic, wholegrain bread suddenly become a possible health hazard? I've gone into this in greater detail in my new book, Never Fear Cancer Again, but gluten has always posed certain challenges to human digestion, and as wheat has come to dominate our diets, it's also been hybridized to contain more and more gluten. Added to this, gluten now shows up in just about all processed foods -- from soups to candies to cold cuts to salad dressings to ice cream and much more -- it's even in many prescription drugs. We're being deluged with the stuff, and the result is an epidemic of GI. There are certain genes that predispose towards GI, but it can afflict virtually anyone. Armed with this information, what should you do about it? The average person without any specific health issues should avoid wheat and processed foods (a major source of gluten). For anyone with a diagnosed chronic disease, especially an autoimmune disease, a gluten-free, or even grain-free diet is recommended. Although following a gluten-free diet involves some learning as well as habit changes, there are many Internet resources, often listed under celiac disease, that can help. Anyone with GI will have some gut damage, meaning a history of malabsorption. The gut lining renews itself every 3 days, however its return to normal can take 6 months or more. To remedy the accumulated nutritional deficits can take even longer, and requires a high-quality supplement program. But the good news is that many illnesses currently misdiagnosed and mistreated with ineffective and toxic drugs can be improved with a gluten-free or grain-free diet if GI is the underlying cause. Even if GI is only a factor, inflammation can be brought down, nutrient deficiencies can be remedied, and symptoms can be significantly improved.