Food allergies are caused by an abnormal immunologic response to a dietary protein. There are 8 main food groups that contain certain proteins that cause more than 90% of all food allergies. They are: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, fish, shellfish and wheat (gluten). These are considered true food allergies.
Gluten is a type of protein (prolamin) found in wheat, rye, barley and contaminated oats. Technically, the gluten found in wheat, rye and barley is called gliadin and glutenin. They are elastic types of protein that act like glue that binds flour together in baked goods. If you have ever seen someone make bread, it is these proteins that make the dough elastic. (This is why many gluten-free baked goods are more crumbly.) The umbrella name for these types of proteins is gluten.
Someone with an allergy to gluten is considered to have celiac disease, also known as celiac sprue, or dermatitis herptetiformis. When consumed, gluten causes an abnormal immune response in the small intestines. The antibodies to gluten inflame and flatten the small intestinal villi. Basically, the body starts to attack itself. Sounds, weird, but that is what bodies do.
Intestinal villi are critical for absorbing nutrients from the food you eat. When they are flat, there are fewer surfaces available to absorb nutrients from food. This causes nutritional deficiencies in people with celiac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis. Unexplained anemia, premature osteoporosis, and vitamin and mineral deficiencies are all signs of celiac disease.
The consequences of not eliminating gluten from your diet, if you are allergic to it, are bloating and gas, diarrhea or constipation, severe intestinal damage, nutritional deficiencies, chronic fatigue, illness, joint pain, migraines and, last but not least, a several fold higher risk of developing intestinal lymphomas (cancer). Yuk!
So, if you are allergic to gluten, stop eating it – now!
I wish it were as easy just eliminating wheat, barley and rye from the diet. But, there are many derivatives of these grains that you should avoid if you are allergic to gluten. For example, couscous, durum, farina, graham flour, kamut, semolina, spelt and triticale are all types of wheat and, thus contain gluten. This is why “Wheat Free” is not gluten free.
Malt (including malt extract, malt syrup, and malt flavoring), pearl barley, Brewer’s yeast, and barley hops are all derivatives from barley. That rules out malt beer and lager (sorry!!!) Unfortunately, malt flavoring is also added to almost everything from corn flakes to chicken broth, and makes going gluten-free so challenging. Case in point, one winter evening I made a lovely risotto using a cartoon of chicken broth I bought at Whole Foods. Two days later the intestinal pain was so intense I could not move. I had been doing so well on my diet and could not imagine what could have made me sick. A little investigating led me to read the cartoon of chicken broth, which had malt flavoring. I couldn’t believe it. How puts malt in chicken broth for Pete sake?! Lesson learned – read every label!!
Rye and most oats, including oatmeal, oat bran, and oat flour, also contain gluten. Well, technically, oats don’t contain gluten, however they are usually grown close to wheat fields and processed in plants that also process gluten-containing grains. So, oats is off limits for those of us with celiac disease. However….., thanks to some awesome health conscious millers (Bob’s Red Mill being one of them), there are uncontaminated oats on the market. They are grown under the strictest of environments that make the oats gluten free and tolerable for many people with celiac disease. Personally I cannot eat them, but many of my gluten-free friends can.
Other places that gluten hides is in licorice, modified food starch, textured vegetable protein (veggie burgers and “vegetarian” chili, soy sauce (derived from wheat) and some vitamins (gluten-containing fillers) and prescriptions. The list is endless, actually. The most important thing is to keep learning (hence this blog) and don’t get caught with your pants down – read labels!
