How going gluten-free could help your health

Christmas is a time for overindulging on all those festive treats and then sitting back on the sofa and letting it all slowly digest.

But do you frequently experience bloating, headaches, mood swings, difficulty concentrating, constipation, diarrhea, short temper, joint pain, skin disorders, gas or stomach cramps?

Suffering

All for unknown reasons after you’ve eaten? 

The chances are that you are one of the many people suffering from a gluten intolerance or even celiac disease. 

Celiac disease is an autoimmune digestive disease that damages the villi of the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food.

An estimated 1 in 133 Americans, or about one per cent of the population has celiac disease. It can affect men and women across all ages and races. 

It is estimated that 83 per cent of Americans who have celiac disease are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed with other conditions. 

The average person has to wait 6-10 years to be correctly diagnosed!

The trigger for celiac disease and gluten intolerance is grains such as wheat, rye and barley. These all contain the protein gluten and are found in many of the popular treats eaten over the holiday season.

When we look at what people ate 2.6 million years ago, until about 10,000 years ago, you won’t find grains anywhere on the menu. 

We evolved as humans eating predominately wild game, seafood, worms and insects, seasonal fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. The typical hunter-gatherer diet!

It wasn’t until about 5,000-10,000 years ago when the farming revolution began that humans began introducing grains into their diet. 

Since that time, there has been a significant increase in the consumption of grains and grain-based products, mainly due to the low production cost.

However, based on how our human digestion systems developed, it could be argued that we are not designed to eat grains at all. 

Not only is eating grains a problem, but also we are now eating highly processed grains and foods that are also sweetened. An increase in degenerative diseases is often the result when traditional diets are replaced with diets high in processed foods, usually grain based. 

However, if you suffer from any of the mentioned symptoms after you’ve eaten it may be worth eliminated gluten-containing foods for up to three months to see how your body feels. Bagels, beer, bread, cookies, cakes, crackers, pasta, pizza, pretzels and most baked are common gluten laden items.

But make sure you are checking those food labels as items such as cereals and even flavourings are found to also contain gluten.

Good news

The good news is that there are more and more gluten-free options available in stores and restaurants worldwide and the Internet is now an abundance of information on gluten-free alternatives.

People are slowly realising that eating like our ancestors is the way to go and maybe going gluten-free is the best New Year’s resolution you will ever make. 

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