Should you be gluten-free?
That is the big question of the day: should you be gluten-free? It seems like the latest “fad” and that everyone is avoiding gluten. But are there actual health reasons that you should avoid this substance?
In today’s blog post and video, we explore that question! Unfortunately, I can’t make the determination for you if YOU should be gluten-free. However, I will present you some information that can help you make an informed decision. It could even be something of an experiment: go gluten-free for a month or two, and then see how you feel.
My personal gluten story
First of all, I’d like to tell my own personal gluten story. (Is that super lame or what?) Six and a half years ago, I was having a lot of unexplained health issues that 25 year old’s should not be experiencing. These included joint pain in my hands, chronic bloating and gas, and adult acne. Funnily enough, the issue that I most readily wanted to resolve was the acne. (While acne can indicate GI issues, it was really the most superficial of all my problems.)
I found a book called The Dietary Cure for Acne by Dr. Loren Cordain (not an endorsement) and devoured it (pun intended). This was going to fix my acne! The basis of the diet was going gluten-free, which entails cutting out all sources of wheat, barley, rye, and oats (unless the latter is certified gluten-free). After a weekend of avoiding the substance, my joint pain was greatly reduced and so was my stomach bloating and gas. I didn’t realize how bad I had been feeling until I started feeling better.
Who should consider avoiding gluten?
Since then, avoiding gluten has been at the core of my nutritional journey. It just causes too many problems for me! (Want to learn what gluten is? Check out the video!) Not everyone will have a problem with gluten, and not everyone will have such drastic results even if it’s an irritating food for them. But there are several types of people for whom considering a gluten-free diet would be a good idea. In my opinion these include:
- Anyone with an autoimmune disease or autoimmune-like condition. The most obvious would be celiac disease, which necessitates a lifelong GF diet. But other autoimmune diseases and conditions like them can be exacerbated by gluten. Watch the video for more in-depth discussion!
- People with allergies, because wheat is one of the most allergenic foods – and wheat is the grain most widely consumed by Americans that contains gluten.
- If you have chronic bloating, gas, constipation, or diarrhea.
- To encourage weight loss and lower inflammation.
- To enhance fertility, or if you have infertility or other reproductive system disorders.
- If you have any negative reaction after eating gluten-containing foods (a pretty obvious point!).
What do you eat if you can’t have wheat?
So if you can’t eat gluten then what are some alternatives? There are plenty of gluten-free grains and flours out there, including:
- Rice (all varieties)
- Quinoa
- Millet
- Teff
- Buckwheat
- Sorghum
- Certified gluten-free oats
If you want to go even more hardcore and avoid all grains (good reasons for doing so), some grain-free flours are:
- Coconut
- Almond
- Cassava
- Tapioca
- Arrowroot
- Tigernut
Eating healing, nutritious food is most important
With all that being said, keeping GF grains and even grain-free flours to a minimum is important. This is because there are many other foods that are much more nutritious, like fresh, organic vegetables and fruit, responsibly-raised protein such as grassfed beef, free-range chicken, and sustainable seafood, nuts and seeds, and healthy fats. Baked and processed goods should be a very small portion of a person’s dietary plan, whether or not you are gluten-free.
Contrary to what some people might believe, not every single person on the planet needs to be gluten-free for life. However, no human should be eating modern, especially non-organic, wheat on a regular basis. The best choice if you can tolerate wheat is to seek out ancient grains. The gold standard among these is einkorn. It can be tough to source but is worth it from a nutritional and longevity perspective. If you have the occasional baked good made with modern wheat and you can tolerate it, you’re going to be fine. But it should not be an every day or even every week indulgence.
Many people might benefit from a “gluten experiment”
With that being said, many people with health issues or chronic issues that “run in the family” (but haven’t developed them yet) would be smart to do a gluten experiment: avoid it for one or two months, and then eat it again to see how one feels. It could reveal a lot! Like me, you might find out that you didn’t realize how badly you felt until you started feeling better.
If you want more guidance on your nutritional journey, you might be a good candidate for my upcoming Group Health Coaching program. If you’re interested in this, sign up for the waiting list! Just click below on the image.
Audio in video courtesy of http://audionautix.com – “Acoustic Guitar 1”
Disclaimer: Any information put forth on this blog is for educational and/or informational purposes only and does not constitute professional nursing advice.