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Gluten Intolerance

Gluten intolerance is a sensitivity to gluten in wheat and wheat products, which effects a significant number of people. It is a low grade food intolerance rather than a full allergic reaction to gluten, which produces coeliac disaese, which is much rarer. Estimates vary but a figure of around 6% of the population is often quoted, though others suggest that figures as high as 50% of the population may have gluten intolerance.

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Gluten Intolerance & Coeliac Disease

Gluten intolerance is a sensitivity to gluten rather than a full blown allergic reaction. This has been widely recognised by complementary practitioners for a long time, but the medical establishment has not recognised this condition. However, estimates of up to 50% of the population are thought to be gluten sensitive, which can produce a wide variety of symptoms, which conventional medical practice finds difficult to treat, such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Newer research is now showing that this condition does have some medical justification, and is not based on anecdotal evidence.

Many people find that removing gluten from their diet improves some medical conditions, and some leading US complementary doctors estimate that two thirds of their patients benefit from eliminating gluten from their diet. Sensitivity to gluten produces inflammation of the lining of the gut which then does not work properly. The gut wall can leak and let partially digested food products into the body (Leaky Gut Syndrome). These food products can cause all sorts of allergic reactions, causing a wide spectrum of health problems, including joint problems and autoimmune reactions, including thyroid problems. Wheat from the US seems to cause particular problems, as it has been bread for a high gluten content, and European wheat appears to have a lower content.

"Gluten sensitivity can be primarily and at times exclusively a neurological disease, affecting not only the brain and nervous system directly, but also cognitive and psychiatric illness". - Journal of Neurology (2001)

Gluten intolerance can be be tested for, but such tests are not available on the NHS and you will have to do them yourself. We recommend the York Test home test kit to do this.

Gluten free foods which can be used as alternatives to wheat include rice, corn, quinoa, soy and amaranth seed. Specially prepared gluten free foods are available from pharmacies, and increasingly from supermarkets.

Coeliac disease is a full allergic response to gluten, and is a serious medical condition affecting about 1% of the population. There are specific medical criteria to diagnose it, and it should be diagnosed by your doctor.