He gluten is a protein found in the seed of many cerealss such as wheat, barley, rye, spelt, some varieties of oats, as well as their hybrids and derivatives.
He Gluten has several components; Two of them are gliadin and glutenins.. They are essential components of wheat flour, responsible for the elasticity of the flour dough and confer the consistency and sponginess of breads and baked doughs. For this reason it is appreciated in food, for its thickening power.
The grain of these cereals is made up of other parts such as the starchhe germ or the savedwhat if they are extracted by a technological process and with exhaustive control could be used as ingredients in gluten-free foods.
Traditionally, medical science has described celiac disease as a condition present in about 1% of the populationconsidered an autoimmune enteropathy due to exposure to gluten that can only occur in genetically predisposed subjects.
gluten sensitivity
The celiac It can present in childhood or in adulthood.
Some of the digestive symptoms are abdominal pain, diarrhea or constipation, bloating or gases. Within the extradigestive symptoms we can mention, anemia and other nutritional deficiencies, miscarriages, depression, irritabilitylow attention, migraines, chronic fatigue, arthritis, cramps, bone or muscle pain.
Also the association of celiac disease with other autoimmune pathologies has been widely demonstrated.
The non-celiac gluten sensitivityis an emerging entity characterized by gluten-dependent digestive and extradigestive symptoms in patients with negative celiac disease tests.
The symptoms are the same as those of the celiac patient, although positive data are not usually found when carrying out the diagnostic studies.
It is increasingly common to find people with digestive and extra-digestive symptoms associated with gluten, which frankly improve when removing it from the diet. This comment is classic today in the doctor’s office: “Flour inflames me.” There may be many causes of this phenomenon that deserves study and attention.
The symptoms of non-celiac gluten sensitivity they are the same as those of the celiac patient, although positive data are not usually found when carrying out diagnostic studies
The latest research suggests an alarming increase in the prevalence of gluten sensitivity in the population, being around 6% or even higher. It is possible that both celiac disease and gluten sensitivity are conditions that constitute a biological continuum or spectrum, within which the most serious expressions occur in celiac patients.
We must also mention that many studies carried out in the last 20 years within the field of Immunonutrition are referring to the gluten as an anti nutrient. Antinutrients are substances, which can interfere with digestion, absorption, assimilation of nutrients or damage the intestinal barrier. In this way, they prevent the use of nutrients present in food.
Los Anti nutrients can be present in many foods, such as legumes, seeds, and grains.
In the case of gluten, there is already conclusive scientific evidence that the gliadin present in it damages the intestinal wall by breaking the tight junctions between enterocytes and increasing intestinal permeability.
A relevant aspect to take into account are the genetic modifications that the wheat seed has undergone in recent years, for which it currently contains 80% more gluten than the ancestral seed. Another fact is the massive and indiscriminate consumption of wheat-based foods in Western society, such as baked goods and processed foods. Many data also point to the affectation in the intestinal microbiota, called dysbiosis, very common in Westerners.
The current wheat seeds underwent so many genetic modifications that they contain 80% more gluten than the ancestral
In summary, due to various mechanisms described in the medical literature, mainly damage to the wall and increased intestinal permeability, gluten would activate the immune system, generating inflammation phenomena at a systemic level, which would be responsible for the associated extradigestive symptoms.
The strong association with autoimmune diseases or conditions such as fibromyalgia, depression, migraines, chronic fatigue, allergies or chronic pain, suggest that this component so present at the base of the western diet, would not be so innocent and healthy as we always think.
The phenomenon of gluten awareness is becoming widespread at an alarming rate
The reality is that many people are currently benefiting from introducing an anti-inflammatory diet, within which an essential aspect is eliminate gluten from the diet. Many conditions are reversed or silenced and the patient shows a clear improvement in his general state and in the evolution of the pathology that afflicted him.
Although it is widely demonstrated that genetics plays a key role in this type of condition, there are clearly predisposed individuals, the phenomenon of gluten awareness is becoming alarmingly widespreadin addition to being underdiagnosed, which forces us to deepen the diagnostic suspicion and expand future research on the subject.
*Médica MN 88956, Health Coach
@dra.anahitimo
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