Almost everyone now knows someone who is eating a gluten-free diet, or perhaps you are doing it yourself, but there is still a lot about gluten that can be quite confusing. Let’s dig in a bit and figure it out.

First of all, why would you go gluten-free? There are 3 main reasons.

1. You have been diagnosed with celiac disease. Celiac is an autoimmune condition where your body produces antibodies to gluten, the problematic protein found in wheat. Patients with celiac almost always have significant reactions to gluten, even in trace amounts. Gastrointestinal complaints are primary. Diarrhea and abdominal pain can be severe. Celiac can also lead to skin rashes, weight loss, and other signs of systemic inflammation. People with celiac have to avoid all traces of gluten, so even though their kitchen and pantry may be completely gluten-free, eating out can be very challenging due to commercial kitchen cross contamination of cooking surfaces.
2. You have non-celiac gluten sensitivity. This is like celiac but not as severe. It’s not a full blown autoimmune condition, but you usually do have some antibodies to gluten. You typically have GI symptoms when eating gluten, and sometimes other things like joint pain or brain fog, but it’s usually not as severe as celiac.
3. You realize that gluten tends to be inflammatory and often occurs with other inflammatory toxins. Some people get joint pain when they eat gluten, but no gut symptoms. Some people get brain fog. Just because you do not have gut symptoms doesn’t mean the gluten isn’t causing gut inflammation. One reason may have to do with glyphosate, which is the toxic ingredient in RoundUp® and other weed killers. Glyphosate is often sprayed on wheat crops in the fall to get the whole field to dry up at once, making harvesting more efficient. All that glyphosate gets into the wheat, and then you eat it in your toast or your spaghetti. So just because you have no reaction to wheat doesn’t mean it’s not harming you!

So let’s talk about gluten itself for a minute. Is gluten wheat? Is wheat gluten? Not quite. Wheat has gluten proteins in it, which includes gliadin and glutenin. These gluten proteins are what make bread stretchy, soft and oh, so yummy. (That’s why gluten-free breads tend to be tolerable but not anywhere as good as glutinous bread. Sorry!) Gluten is the main protein found in wheat.  

What about other grains? Rye and barley have proteins that are not gluten, but they are close enough that they can cause the same reaction. Oats do not have gluten, but oats have been known to be contaminated with wheat during processing, so caution for celiac patients is advised.

Here’s the good news: corn and rice are naturally gluten-free!

Gluten, where art thou?

I laugh when I see a label in the grocery store on something like canned peaches: “gluten-free!” Those of us who have been avoiding gluten for years see this as humorous: fruits and vegetables do not have gluten. Meats do not have gluten. Legumes and nuts do not have gluten. Well, just to be clear, in their natural state, these foods have no gluten…because they have no grains at all in them, much less wheat!

You can contaminate food by adding seasonings or breading. So to look at a simple example, a chicken breast is totally gluten free. But a breaded chicken nugget…look out! Anything breaded has gluten. You have to be aware also, that some seasonings added to foods may have some gluten in the sauce. For example, some soy sauces have gluten. Even trickier is cookie dough ice cream. Sounds like dairy and sugar, right? But those cookie pieces…there’s your wheat.

Just ask yourself: does this food have any flour in it? If not, it’s probably fine. But the more processed and pre-cooked the food is (freezer aisle), be careful and learn to look at the product ingredients. Most foods now will list any possible allergens after the ingredients, which makes it much easier to spot hidden gluten.

What about the foods in the gluten-free aisle?

I love this part of the grocery store! I’ve been gluten free for years, and back in “the old days”, you couldn’t get gluten free bread, crackers, cornbread mix or brownies like you can in one shelving section of your grocery store. It’s so easy now to find gluten-free (GF) foods! So enjoy those GF cookies or muffins. But be careful: most of the truly healthy GF food you should be filling your cart with is around the outside edge of the grocery store: fruits, veggies, meat and possibly dairy. Add in some rice and legumes and you’ve got the basics for a healthy diet. Anything from an inside aisle tends to be high calorie, full of sugar, and nutrient-poor. Whether it’s GF or not.

What if I want to have some gluten?

If you have celiac, DON’T! I probably don’t need to convince you, as I’m sure you know what happens when you eat some. But if you have just a gluten sensitivity, more good news: you CAN occasionally have some!

Here’s how: the supplement “Zygluten” is absolutely the best gluten digestive enzyme I’ve ever seen! It is still my top favorite supplement of all time. It was originally being developed as a prescription medication for celiac disease, but the company realized that the drug approval process was going to take many years and millions of dollars. They changed their approach and brought it to market as an over-the-counter digestive enzyme. They have done research and shown that within minutes, Zygluten works in your stomach to rapidly digest gluten and break it down, so by the time it goes into your small intestine, the gluten isn’t there anymore to cause reactions.

The dose for Zygluten is 1-2 capsules, and you take it right with the first few bites of your meal. If you’re eating gluten (like going out for pasta), definitely take 2 capsules. But if you’re only concerned about a little cross contamination, or you are only having a few croutons on your salad, 1 may be sufficient. I carry my Zygluten in a small container in my purse for traveling. It is so helpful for eating out!

The other benefit of Zygluten is that it has a number of other digestive enzymes in it, as well as some ginger, turmeric and a probiotic. So if you feel bloated after eating or feel like your stomach doesn’t digest food quickly, take 2 Zygluten with your meals.

One other interesting note on gluten: European wheat is different from wheat grown in America. I’m not a farmer so I can’t say for sure why, but the wheat strains are different and they don’t use as many chemicals in Europe. For whatever reason, many gluten-sensitive folks can go to Italy and eat pasta and have no issues at all. Some people buy European wheat flour to make their own bread, and they tolerate it fine. As long as you aren’t celiac, go ahead and experiment. As always, doing your own cooking with fresh, healthy ingredients is always the best approach to good nutrition!