By: Ivana Dragica |
Danger: Gluten in your food! |
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Do you have frequent headaches and stomach pain and experience mood swings you can’t explain?
Maybe you are sensitive to gluten, a substance found in wheat.
It is one of the biggest food allergy “culprits.”
Even though many associate food allergies to immediate reactions after consuming the food in question, they can manifest themselves in the form of delayed allergic reactions with other types of symptoms.
Therefore, it is possible to struggle with a gluten allergy for years, while suspecting entirely different problems and illnesses.
The body’s sensitivity to gluten can be explained by a number of reasons, one of which is the fact that wheat today differs greatly from wheat of old which our grandparents used.
Seed modification, protective chemicals, the process of industrial productions and other factors have changed the quality and components of foods which contain gluten and with that their effect on the human body.
Gluten – all the places where it hides
Gluten, a sticky protein composite which gives dough its elasticity, is found in products many of us consume every day.
It is found in wheat, barley and rye and also in all products which are made from them or which contain traces of them.
Gluten can therefore be found in pasta, pizza, snacks, soups, industrial food, and even in baby food.
The problem is that gluten can be hiding in additives, preservatives and various food stabilizers where you wouldn’t’ normally look for it.
Sometimes it is found in processed food, oral hygiene products and even in medicines.
What it causes
Science is increasingly admitting that numerous diseases can be linked to foods.
This doesn’t mean regular allergies, but rather unique symptoms for each individual the source of which is unclear.
In spite of the great differences in these diseases, gluten can be the primary cause in all of them, or it can bring about the worsening of existing symptoms.
Check and see if you have the following symptoms. Gluten just might be the reason:
- Depression and anxiety
- Confusion and inability to concentrate
- Arthritis
- Headaches
- Mood swings
- Bloating and stomach pain
- Diarrhea
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Chrone’s Disease
- Eczema
- Hyperactivity
- Ulcerative Colitis
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- Epileptic seizures
- Psoriasis
In children, gluten can cause difficulty breathing and frequent ear infections.
Gluten and celiac intolerance
You can get rid of years of doing rounds at the doctors in search of a solution by simply throwing gluten out of your diet.
It is estimated that 9 out of 10 people who are gluten intolerant do not know they are. It is believed that in Croatia only 1 out of 500 people know they are allergic to gluten.
Identifying a gluten intolerance isn’t easy, particularly in its early phases. Later, in can even grow into celiac disease.
Celiac disease or gluten-sensitive enteropathy is the most common chronic gastrointestinal autoimmune disease characterized by the body’s intolerance to gluten.
Symptoms are lasting diarrhea or frequent and uncomfortable abnormal stool movements, stomach pain, weight loss, loss of appetite, loss of muscle mass.
In the majority of adolescents who suffer from celiac disease, developmental delays in puberty have been observed.In infants it can appear a few months after introducing food with gluten into the diet.
It is believed that the culprit is not adhering to the feeding calendar for babies. Their intestines are not developed en
ough to digest such foods and this causes them to develop celiac disease.
If you have an infant, postpone their switch to foods with gluten until you are sure their digestive system has developed completely.
Untreated celiac disease can have an array of serious consequences.
Among them are intestinal damage which is linked to auto-immune diseases, stunted growth (sometimes the only symptoms of the disease) and chronic inflammation of the liver.
In addition, celiac disease can influence thyroid gland disorders and various hormonal imbalances.
Studies have shown that the likelihood of developing malignant disease is increased by 40 percent!
The only solution to celiac disease is a gluten-free diet.
Such a diet enables the patient to lead an entirely normal life and it does not disturb him in carrying out his activities.
Such a diet is much healthier than one with gluten, and when it is started on time, processes in the body are normalized.
However, if the switch to a gluten-free diet is postpones, consequences are often inevitable and very difficult to treat.
Testing for celiac disease
A blood test for gluten anti-bodies or identifying genetic predispositions can remove your suspicion of celiac disease with 80% accuracy.
For a precise diagnosis, it is necessary to do a biopsy of the lining of the small intestine.
Testing with changes
If you suspect gluten is bothering you or worsening your health problems, you can test your intolerance to it on your own.
Simply remove from your diet all foods and ingredients which contain gluten.
Stick to a gluten-free diet for one week and carefully monitor whether you feel better and whether your symptoms – such as diarrhea, bloating or headache – have bene relieved.
The following week, eat foods which are high in gluten. Monitor the changes in your body.
Do you notice a worsening of symptoms such as pain, nausea or fatigue?
Remember that it’s possible for symptoms not to appear until two or three days later.
This type of testing can be used for all ingredients you suspect might be bothering you.
Additionally, you can contact your doctor and make a RAST test, which aids in the initial steps of identifying food allergies, though it is not complete proof of one.
According to allergy specialists, the only real proof is the result of testing with changes to your diet.
Allowed and forbidden ingredients
Cooking gluten-free requires a familiarity with grain and starch products which are and are not allowed.
These recommendations can help you in choosing quality solutions for changing your eating habits.
List of allowed starch and grain products:
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These are ingredients you should avoid:
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Be careful with products which contain artificial coloring or flavors, even though they may be advertised as natural.
It is not recommended to consume beer, fried food, mustard, marinades, candies and foods with modified starch, thickeners and various fillings.
This includes all instant soups, sauces and stocks as well as salad dressings.
Caution is also advised for the use of brown rice syrup, a product which contains maltose and maltodextrin, vitamin and mineral herbal supplements, and certain medications.
When choosing cosmetics, be careful with the ingredients found in lipsticks, lip glosses and lip balms as they can also contain traces of gluten.
The glue on envelopes also contains gluten.
Advice for a gluten-free life
When you are in the store, be sure to read the ingredients found in products because as a rule the majority of them do contain gluten.
Choose ingredients which are in as natural a form as possible and from trusted sources in order to be sure they are not contaminated.
Prevent contaminating ingredients with gluten.
If you have an old toaster, buy a new one and use it only for gluten-free toast.
Store or freeze gluten-free flour in marked containers. Keep cooking surfaces clean.
Do not use the same spoon to mix foods with gluten and gluten-free food.
Try a number of types of gluten-free mixtures and flours. That way you will discover what suits you best and not waste money.
People who have been diagnosed with celiac disease have the right to a prescription for a certain amount of gluten-free flour.
Find a good source of gluten-free recipes. Learn as much as you can about gluten, as doing so will make it much easier to cook and come up with tasty recipes.
Gluten-free diets are hard to maintain, but are well worth it. You will feel indescribably better.
To start, we bring to you two tasty recipes.
1. Potato and buckwheat soup
Ingredients:
- 400 grams of potato
- 5 tablespoons of buckwheat
- 1 onion
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 200 ml whole fat yogurt or soy yogurt
- oil
- salt and pepper
- laurel and lovage
Preparation:
Briefly sauté the onion and garlic. Then add the spices, buckwheat and chopped potatoes. Add just enough water to cover the ingredients.
When the potato is cooked, take out the laurel and blend the potato with a mixer. Add yogurt and enough water to get a creamy soup consistency.
Bring to a boil and serve warm.
2. Irish soda bread
Ingredients:
- • 2.5 large cups of almond flour
- • ¼ teaspoon of salt
- • 1.5 teaspoon of baking soda
- • Half a cup of raisins
- • 2 bananas
- • 2 spoons of honey
- • 2 spoons of apple cider vinegar
- • A pinch of cumin seeds
Preparation:
In a plastic bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking soda and raisins.
In a separate bowl mix together the bananas, honey and apple vinegar.
Blend the ingredients and mix it into the dough.
Put the dough on a baking paper and shape it into a 5-centimetre high ball.
Cut an x into it and drizzle with cumin seeds.
Bake the bread for 20 minutes at 170 °C.
Turn off the oven and let it sit inside for another 10 minutes.
Sources used for this article:
[url=http://www.zajedno-do-zdravlja.hr]http://www.zajedno-do-zdravlja.hr[/url]
[url=http://glutenfreecooking.about.com]http://glutenfreecooking.about.com[/url]
[url=http://celiacdisease.about.com]http://celiacdisease.about.com[/url]
Jean Carper,“ Food – Your Miracle Medicine “
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