Sit down and grab a cup of your favorite beverage {mines usually coffee}. We are going to school today …
So we hear the word gluten but do we really know what it is? It is a word plastered on the side of grocery store products and appears to be all the rage with fad-dieters, but what is it? Today we will be taking a closer look and tomorrow we will dive into the truth that lies behind dairy.
Gluten is the protein composite that makes our food have that stretchy, elastic consistency that we all love and crave. Gluten is a protein found in the grains wheat, barley, and rye. {oat too due to manufacturing and the extremely high likelihood of cross contamination.} It is the protein composite that makes your pizza dough stretchy and gives your bread that special bounce. It is believed that as many as 1 in every 133 persons are affected by gluten in some way.
What is an intolerance or gluten sensitivity?
Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity {NCGS} is the bodies response to ingesting gluten; cramping, bloating, and discomfort. NCGS was not recognized as an actual diagnosable problem until recently. It is the bodies reaction to the protein composite without the deterioration of the small intestine. {Although, I tend to personally believe after prolonged exposure you would find similar deterioration and nutrition deficiencies as you see with actual celiac disease patients.}
What is celiac disease?
At this present time there’s no medical consensus on how to diagnose gluten intolerance or gluten sensitivity. Until recently medical doctors did not even think it truly existed. It has since been proven that those individuals adults and children alike that do in fact test negative on a celiac disease test but are still symptomatic may benefit from following a gluten free diet regardless of the test results.
Many people suffer from chronic digestive disorders such as celiac disease, and for them gluten is truly evil: their bodies regard even a tiny crumb of it as an invader/enemy. After enough gluten exposure this autoimmune disease begins to severely damage the small intestine as a result of trying to ward off the enemy; causing both great gastrointestinal distress and nutritional deficiencies. The proven long term effects being cancer, infertility, and osteoporosis.
How are adults and children diagnosed?
A series of blood tests looking for specific antibodies maybe administered and possibly an endoscopy in search of intestinal damage. It is not uncommon to get a false negative on these tests especially with children as their tiny bodies are changing so rapidly. The treatment is the exact same regardless of an actual medical diagnosis.
Is there a cure and or treatment available?
Yes, do not eat gluten; not even the tiniest crumb. {Yes, we really do have a gluten free toaster slot and never double dip a knife in butter, jam, or peanut butter. I am the crumb police in our home.}
What are some signs and symptoms to consider gluten as a cause?
There are literally hundreds of symptoms but the most common are; abdominal cramping and discomfort, diarrhea or constipation, anemia, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, headaches, brain fog, and tingling of extremities. {the fire she would start with her feet}
Fun facts;
As many as 15% of people with ADHD may in fact have celiac disease, and adopting a gluten-free diet may relieve some if not all of their symptoms.
Many people who have celiac disease do not know it. If all these people were diagnosed, celiac disease would be more common than type 1 diabetes.
Help spread awareness and share this. My goal is to never let anyone experience the unknown road that we once had.
