I'm on it. I've been having problems with my health for quite a while and I read a book about it ( link - good book by the way) and decided to try it. Didn't notice much of a difference. I was actually thinking of stopping when a little while later I went to the doctor and lucky me, I found out I have coeliac disease so now I'm on it for life.
Gluten-free diets aren't a fad or trend. The existence of coeliac disease is well known and documented. There's also reams of anecdotal evidence of people who were never diagnosed with it experiencing dramatic improvements in the health and baffling their doctors after going gluten-free. What makes it seem trendy is the fact that it's easier to try it and see how your body reacts than it is to either get a diagnosis. If you test positive for serum IgA antibodies (like I did), it's pretty much considered a positive diagnosis. However, if you test negative (like most people) you may still have coeliac (or gluten sensitivity) in which case an endoscopy and a biopsy might be needed to either diagnose it or rule it out. So it's either try the diet or camera up the ass. Most people decide to try the diet.
Gluten may not be adversely harmful to everybody but it doesn't really have any nutritional value either and it's hard on your digestive system. It's certainly not a panacea (although it has been credited with some amazing recoveries) but you only stand to gain by cutting it out. Apparently it doesn't always take effect quickly either. You need to be on it for at the very least 3 months to have given it a proper go. That's the general rule of thumb.
I think the primalists make a good case that man wasn't meant to eat grains. The gist of it is that homo sapiens are originally a hunter-gatherer species that lived off the land for 100,000 years or so. Only since the agricultural revolution did we start eating grains - a food which evolution did not design our digestive systems to process. More on that here link and here link
And even if gluten isn't all that bad for you, all the excess carbs are. I haven't had any miracles but I have lost a lot of weight.
Don't you know Prof_Don some people can digest gluten products. Although it does make sense that it sounds like a trend, and I can see why people would get mad when you call it a trend! Because gluten free people have to deal with it, and they don't want sound like they are part of a fad xD!
My girlfriends sister is gluten free, she can't eat those things. Is that why she's so antsy sometimes? lol
I feel bad for gluten free people, I wish they didn't have to deal with it, I would never want to have a child with a gluten free person. That would be so cruel for the child. :(
It's...not an option for me, to eat gluten. I throw up, get massive migraines and literally cannot move for about a half an hour or more after I've had gluten, and that's only with contamination. I was taking ibuprofen (Advil) every day, sometimes twice a day, for two years, just to be able to deal with the pain. I haven't actually been tested for celiac, because the standards are ridiculously high (we had a family friend, who it took 11 years to finally be diagnosed), and since I know it hurts me anyways, there is no point.
Supposedly a ton of old age problems, especially those dealing with bones and the brain, have been linked to a gluten sensitivity. The grains that contain gluten have been so over produced and mutated, that they can't be properly digested by humans. A sensitivity to it can cause gut, bone or brain damage, slowly, but it happens. Recently, a friend of my grandmother's died because he starved to death, because he'd immediately have to go to the washroom after eating gluten, it had destroyed his guts, his digestive system. Sad thing is, he was diagnosed as celiac a week before he died.
Going off gluten shouldn't be a 'diet'. It's a massive pain and takes serious commitment.
You need food knowledge, an ability to cook, even just simple things, and a willingness to try different things. And a lot of research.
I want to be a chef, which sounds impossible to most people, especially since I want to do pastries too. I'll admit that it's going to be difficult, but after three years of this, I'm damn good at what I do. I have a ton of recipes that work for me, some of which I adapted from regular recipes, and I'm constantly trying new things. I've gotten to the point, with certain things, that if you didn't know it was gluten free, you wouldn't be able to guess. In fact, it's often preferred, which is awesome :)
There are a few good tasting gluten free brands for different things out there, but they are ridiculously priced. Making your own stuff is far cheaper, and it usually turns out better too :)
I have several friends with Celiac disease who must be on a Gluten free diet. It's definitely not a trend, some people are sensitive to gluten, even if they don't have celiac. I know some people with Hashimotos Thyrodotis? (spelling?) who have a sensitivity to gluten as well but are not celiac. Cutting out gluten has helped them lose weight and feel better.
The thing about gluten is that back in the day, people didn't eat it. It wasn't in our bread, and so it's one of those things that might bother some people. It's almost like lactose intolerance, some people are more sensitive than others. I know I have sensitivities to lactose, but I am not fully lactose intolerant. I just have to be careful.
Most people, however, are okay to eat gluten. Some people just notice differences after going without gluten for a few weeks. That's really the only way to tell.
People with celiac disease will get ill if they have gluten, so it's more obvious for those who have it. But some people with a more mild sensitivity are not as likely to notice unless they take themselves off gluten for a while. They may experience gas, bloating and maybe puffiness/redness of their face.
Definitely not for everyone. But it can't hurt to try it. I am considering trying it. I have thyroid disease, but not the autoimmune kind. So for me I don't think going gluten free is going to make a difference. But for some people who have autoimmune diseases, it may be helpful. It all depends on the person.
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Well I have coeliac disease which means eating gluten (I have to be super careful because when I have even a crumb I start to feel ill) not only makes me violently ill it also effects my small intestine making it harder for my body to absorb nutrients,I am also lactose intolerant. Gluten free being a trend is great for me because there are so many actually good girlfriend products out there now 5- 10 years ago there was nothing you had to make pretty much it all your self these days you can buy breads, cakes, flour mixes that can just replace normal flour, there are girlfriend restaurants (a fast food place included), rice/corn/soy bean/mung bean pasta and heaps more. My aunty has been on the girlfriend diet for over 10 years so I know plenty about it. I have been on the diet for about 8 months for me it is really easy the hard part is the lactose free. I think going on the diet for any other reason than you are allergic to gluten is dumb all it will do will lower your carb consumption (not by much), you won't be able to eat out easily and the type of junk food you can eat will be limited.
I don't think it's a trend. I work in a shop and one of my most common questions is where is the gluten-free stuff, or something along those lines.
There isn't much out there for people who are intolerant, and when you do find something, it's usually a bit more expensive because a. sometimes more work goes into making the food and b. they can afford to be!
I think if you transferred you would find how difficult it was. Think about it. You can't go up to a vending machine. You probably can't eat any fast food. Cutlery cannot come into contact with anything that does contain gluten.
Also, for the record, gluten-free bread isn't very nice... if you're curious try it.
The most difficult customer I had was a gluten and dairy free vegan. Now that's a limited diet!
Yea, I don't think of it as a diet. It's more of a life-style. I have done away with mostly all refined sugars and wheats and everything gluten free.
To be honest, I feel a lot better. I use to have arthritis in my hands (and I am only 24 and I had to give up practicing drawing and writing). I started taking whole food supplements (under the care of a trained whole food practitioner) and I have just gotten so much healthier. I no longer have pains in my hand. I don't even need to wear my prescription eyeglasses anymore (which I had four surgeries on).
There are some people who have allergies to gluten, which is one major reason for the lifestyle.
To give you an idea, I have an allergy to birch tree pollen. This turned in to food allergies at a young age, so I get reactions if I eat most raw fruits and veggies, all tree nuts, and all seafood. Why? Because of one stupid allergy.
Is what happens in the case of gluten, the consumption of gluten doesn't really cause much of a reaction itself. However, it makes you hypersensitive to other foods. For some people with tons of food allergies, if they cut gluten from their diet, their other allergies die off.
Its a terrible thing for someone without a gluten intolerance. Pretty much the only thing going gluten-free will do for you is make you gluten intolerant if you do it for long enough.
You are much better off just eating healthy and avoiding processed foods.
If you are gluten intolerant, the gluten free diet is a godsend but its difficult to go out to eat. My aunt is gluten intolerant and she always has a hard time finding things to eat at restaurants when she travels. Fortunately for her, this trend has made it easier to find food she can eat at many places.
The idea of the gluten-free diet is that certain people cannot digest gluten and some even have an allergy to it and physically cannot eat it.
Processed foods have gluten but virtually anything with wheat or barley has gluten in it.
The risk with gluten free diet is that because they cut out such a large portion of their diet- whole grains especially, they run a risk of vitamin and mineral deficiency and they have to really do their homework to find foods that contain those vitamins they are missing or they need to take supplements.
The gluten free thing is becoming a craze and there are fabulous options for gluten allergy people to eat baked goods without gluten in them, but to replace the taste, fat or sugar is added. So some people who are doing it for a fad diet think they are doing well when really they arent.
Basically, if you don't HAVE to go gluten free there is no reason to.
I have, because for a little while I thought I may have been allergic to gluten, turns out I wasn't though. Long story short, it sucked, and I definitely would not recommend it. It was so limiting, and it made me unhappy. I think trying to stick to food that have a low glycemic index is much more reasonable and healthy.
I'm gluten intolerant (my body can't process it) so I ate gluten free for awhile. The only difference I felt was not being sick after eating bread, pasta, or other grains. I didn't like the gluten free substitutes, though, so I went back to eating gluten and just getting sick every time.
Well for people with Celiac disease they have to eat gluten free, because it ruins there small intestine, and can lead to major health issues that can end in death. For the average person well... you can try it and see if you feel better on the diet, some people do. I would say try it for 2 weeks and see how you feel after.
Some people are allergic to gluten. But since they aren't numerous enough to make it a largely profitable business, I suppose the agro-industry has come out with a new marketing concept.
If you have a little time to waste, look at the use of Radium in the 1920s. Everything was Radium enhanced. Water, underwear, baby diapers, everything. Why ? Just because there was some money to be made out of it.
High protein, high vegetable/fruit diets is ideal. Pair it up with 30 minutes up and down the stairs once every couple days, drink caffeine drinks such as tea, little to non complex carb intake, and it is amazing!
I've lost over 50 pounds doing the diet change alone.
I knew someone with Celiac disease that ate on a gluten-free diet. She had to... She made all her own breads and cakes from a variety of exotic grains. When I was a kid she use to give my family a Christmas basket filled with all sorts of baked goods made this way. Things like zucchini bread. =P The food she made tasted good... I've never been on a gluten free diet though.
my diet is very close to being gluten free at the moment but thats because I wanted to remove carbs during the shredding phase of my diet. My only source is 2 slices of bread each day and so far it makes me feel really sleepy but thats probably because of calorie restrictions
I have reactive hypoglycemia due to gluten intolerance. The gluten-free diet sucks. I actually don't follow the gluten free diet like I should, so I get sick real bad all of the time.
If you're not gluten sensitive or don't have celiac disease, then you don't need to be looking into a gluten free diet. Gluten free is for people who are sick with some type of gluten intolerance.
I would say for the average person there would not be much benefit. Me and my son eat gluten free because we have an intolerance to it so we feel much better eating that way. But my husband decided to do it too since both of us have too and he saw no benefits for himself.
It's a trend now some people might be allergic to it, but the majority of people aren't and we have been eating gluten for years and years, until some celebrity or whoever decided they needed to get recognized, started this trend. Think about before all this you never knew what gluten was, and you were eating it this whole time, it's a trend only a trend.
My friend Abby but she has celiac . And some glutton free products can actually make you fatter like glutton free muffins and stuff . She put on a little bit of weight this summer but she looks good since she was a twig
I know a couple gluten-intolerant people who've had to switch to this.
On the one hand she lost a lot of weight. But I know its also difficult and expensive for her to find a variety of foods. (especially while in college)
It's a good diet for gluten intolerant people but is without one need the gluton to keep us going, a diabetic also needs gluten foods because they have lack of it too, it's really not everyone.
I know somebody that has a gluten allergy, and she eats gluten anyway, even though it gives her bad stomach cramps. Personally, I couldn't imagine having a gluten allergy, and also couldn't go on a gluten-free diet.
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