Why you should stay away from wheat
Gluten is the wheat protein that, in recent years, has become better known for the problems associated with consuming wheat — especially genetically modified wheat — than for its own name.
Wheat contains about 30 different types of protein, but only two of them (glutenin and gliadin) form the elastic substance known as gluten when mixed with water. On its own, gluten is a gum-like substance. When wheat flour is mixed with water and kneaded, these two proteins retain the water and bind together to form elastic gluten chains. Gluten is responsible for the strong, web-like structure of dough. Without gluten, the desired dough structure cannot form and bread cannot rise. Gluten, the substance that gives baked goods their structure, is also found in other grains such as rye, barley, and oats.
Gluten is a mixture of a series of different proteins, one of which is gliadin. Gliadin is the main culprit in both celiac disease and gluten sensitivity.
Today, celiac disease and gluten sensitivity are very often confused with one another. In fact, these two conditions are completely different from each other. Let's take a closer look at what these two clinical pictures actually are:
1. CELIAC DISEASE
In this disease, antibodies (defense substances the body produces against substances it considers foreign) are produced against the gliadin protein found in gluten. Because the body's own immune system causes the damage, it is considered an autoimmune disorder. It is a disease in which the inflammation caused by antibodies formed against gliadin damages the small intestine by disrupting the structures called villi, which are responsible for absorption in the intestines. When these patients eat foods containing gluten, the villi — especially in the small intestine — disappear, flatten out, and become unable to perform their function. The main role of the villi is to absorb the nutrients that are consumed. However, because the villi are damaged by contact with gluten, no matter how much the person eats, absorption does not occur properly and they cannot be well nourished. The persistence of this damages the intestinal lining. As a result, the small intestine becomes unable to carry out its digestive and absorptive functions, and many nutrients — particularly dietary fats and fat-soluble vitamins — are only partially absorbed and digested. This results in increased fatty stools and fatty diarrhea.
Celiac disease is a genetic disease. Sometimes it can be triggered by surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, a viral infection, or severe emotional stress, and can emerge at any point in life. Although the mechanism of the disease has not yet been fully explained, it is known that following a consistent diet and neural therapy can be beneficial.
The duration of breastfeeding and the age at which gluten-containing foods are first introduced are the two main factors affecting when gluten enteropathy appears. In those who were breastfed for a long time and who encountered gluten later, the disease tends to appear at a later age.
Symptoms may or may not be present in the digestive system. For example, one person may have diarrhea and abdominal pain, while another may experience excessive irritability, anger, or depression. There is no single typical celiac patient with all the symptoms. Patients can range from periods with no complaints at all, to severe gas, bloating, diarrhea, or weight loss due to malabsorption in severe cases. Common symptoms of the disease, falling somewhere between these two extremes, are as follows (one or more of the following symptoms may occur together):
- Pale, foul-smelling stools, fatty stools, chronic diarrhea
- Sores in the mouth (canker sores), dental problems, or enamel loss
- Painful skin condition (dermatitis herpetiformis), tingling, numbness, and discoloration of the skin, itching
- Numbness and tingling in the legs (due to nerve damage)
- Headache, joint pain, bone pain, frequently recurring abdominal pain
- Growth and developmental delays and behavioral changes
- Gas, bloating, edema, weakness, fatigue, muscle cramps
- Weight loss, vitamin deficiencies, iron-deficiency anemia
Diagnosing this disease is not very easy, because its symptoms closely resemble those of other intestinal diseases (Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, intestinal infections, chronic fatigue syndrome, etc.). In celiac disease, detecting in the blood the specific antibodies our immune system produces against gliadin is very significant for diagnosis. These are: anti-gliadin, anti-endomysial, and anti-reticulin antibodies.
If test results and clinical symptoms point to celiac disease, an intestinal biopsy can be performed for a definitive diagnosis. If a person recognizes several of these findings in themselves, a significant reduction in complaints after avoiding gluten-containing foods for 2 weeks can give an indication of whether the disease is present.
A gluten-free diet means avoiding and not consuming any foods containing gluten. With a gluten-free diet, disease symptoms will stop in many people, the damaged parts of the intestines will heal, and further damage will be prevented. Improvements begin within days of starting the diet, and the small intestine usually heals completely. This means that within three to six months, the villi function as if they had never been damaged at all. For adults, this period can extend up to two years. If a person responds to a gluten-free diet, the doctor will know that the diagnosis of celiac disease is confirmed. In very rare cases, if villus damage is too advanced, a person may not respond to a gluten-free diet.
In treating celiac disease, the results we achieve with a gluten-free diet combined with regulation of the intestinal flora and neural therapy are much faster and more effective than those achieved with diet alone.
2. GLUTEN SENSITIVITY
In cases where the intestinal flora is severely disrupted, sensitivity to gluten can occur due to damaged permeability of the intestinal mucosa, without any villus damage or antibodies against gliadin (anti-gliadin, anti-endomysial, anti-reticulin).
The intestines struggle to digest products containing gluten. This is a temporary food sensitivity that is often clinically confused with celiac disease. It is a condition that is treated by supporting the intestinal flora, adjusting the diet, and following a controlled diet. As a treatment method that also improves the nourishment of the intestines, neural therapy is an effective method for treating gluten sensitivity, just as it is for celiac disease.
While it is sufficient to follow a gluten-free diet in gluten sensitivity only until symptoms improve, in celiac disease, even without flare-ups and even after the villi have healed, a person must continue eating gluten-free for life.
We believe that the reason gluten sensitivity is seen so frequently today is due to the genetic modification of the wheat we use. For this reason, while wheat was held in high regard until quite recently, today those of us who are physicians able to take a holistic view of health tell all our patients, "Stay away from wheat."
"The less grain, the more health."
You can find more information on this and similar topics in my book "Beautiful, Happy, and Healthy."