Why a gluten-free diet is more harmful than beneficial

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

If you believe that a gluten-free diet is good for your health, and therefore deliberately not buy foods containing wheat, barley and rye, then you are doing more harm to the body than it is beneficial.

What is gluten and what foods does it contain?

The head physician of the medical center Sona Kocharova told what gluten is and why a person needs it: “It is a complex vegetable protein, its task is to combine other proteins. Gluten is found in many grains, such as wheat, oats, barley. Without it, the body does not receive a sufficient amount of iron, magnesium and vitamins of groups B and D. It also contains 18 amino acids, some of which the human body cannot synthesize itself. Gluten helps to easily absorb calcium and phosphorus, which is especially important for babies."

Kocharova Sona Chief Physician of the IconLab Center for Aesthetic Medicine

The exclusion of gluten-containing foods from the diet lowers immunity, increases the risk of allergies and the development of bronchial asthma.

Buckwheat, rice, corn flour does not contain gluten, but when making dough from these varieties of flour, you have to add special thickeners and fats, which is harmful to the body.

Why is gluten dangerous?

In people with celiac disease, which is only about 1%, gluten triggers a reaction that prevents the absorption of nutrients. Because of this, painful symptoms occur: bloating, diarrhea and nausea.

Signs of celiac disease can be mild or severe, including bowel damage, hair loss, and anemia. These people need a gluten-free diet throughout their lives.

Dmitry Petrov, Candidate of Medical Sciences, Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Fundamental Medicine, Moscow State University

There are many causes of celiac disease, the most important of which is genetic predisposition.

Dmitry Yuryevich cites data from epidemiological studies. The prevalence of celiac disease when using immunological diagnostic techniques reaches from 1: 200 to 1: 100 patients. Thus, celiac disease should be classified as a fairly common disease of the small intestine. Celiac disease with severe malabsorption is much less common - from 1: 6,000 to 1: 1,000 of the population. On average - 1: 3,000.

However, there is a tendency for gluten-free foods to be increasingly chosen by people who do not suffer from celiac disease, but simply consider such food to be healthier.

Growth in sales of gluten-free products as a result of marketing

Sales of gluten-free products have grown by 12% worldwide over the past year. In comparison, total product sales grew 4%.

In the UK, about 30% of adults have knowingly cut down on or actively avoid gluten-containing foods.

Khovanskaya Veronika Alexandrovna nutritionist

Global trends in nutrition have been coming to Russia for a long time, so we can observe both positive and negative aspects. A gluten-free diet is no exception.

Nutritionist Veronika Khovanskaya notes that a special diet for gluten allergy (celiac disease) is not suitable for those who do not have such problems. On the contrary, thoughtless adherence to it can cause disorder in the functioning of organs and even weaken cognitive functions.

Slow carbohydrates are essential in the diet of a healthy person. Reasonable carbohydrate intake combined with adequate exercise can help maintain and enhance your health.

Dmitry Yuryevich Petrov, Candidate of Medical Sciences, believes that people's enthusiasm for gluten-free products is a matter of exclusively fashion: “Its popularity is associated with the difficulty for a person without medical education to understand the reasons for the development of celiac disease and thus trying to protect themselves. Many restaurants have gluten-free options that will have special marks on the menu along with vegetarian options. But in this case, it would also be correct to mark dishes for diabetics and people suffering from milk protein intolerance in the menu."

Research on the link between gluten-free foods and heart disease

A team of 13 scientists from Harvard and Columbia University in New York said a gluten-free diet to prevent heart disease cannot be recommended for people without celiac disease.

“In the medical community and among non-professionals, it is believed that gluten can cause obesity, metabolic syndrome and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy people,” wrote Long term gluten consumption in adults without celiac disease and risk of coronary heart disease: prospective cohort study. they are in the British Medical Journal. "As a result, gluten-restricting diets have become popular."

Researchers analyzed data from more than 100,000 people with coronary artery disease and conducted detailed surveys regularly from 1989 to 2010.

The dietary habits of health care workers (64,714 women and 45,303 men) were studied in two similar studies of the relationship between diet and health. It found that those who consumed more gluten were more likely to buy foods with whole grains.

After adjusting the results for confounding factors, the researchers concluded that there was no association between gluten intake and the risk of heart failure.

A gluten-free diet does not reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. There were no evidence-based controlled studies on this topic.

Dmitry Petrov

Also, researchers analyzing a sample of 100,000 respondents found that eating whole grains helps prevent the risk of heart failure and death from cardiovascular disease.

The conclusion of scientists from Harvard and Columbia University is similar to the recommendations of domestic experts. Gluten-free foods do not prevent cardiovascular disease. People who have severely limited their gluten intake can also significantly reduce their intake of whole grains, which can further adversely affect heart health.

Are you on any special diet?