Celiac Disease and Other Gluten Related Health Conditions

Celiac disease is a serious disease; it is an autoimmune disorder which causes serious damage to the lining of the small intestine upon gluten consumption. Though only a very small percentage of people have this disorder, a still smaller number actually get diagnosed. In many people suffering from celiac disease the condition remains undetected.

Patients with celiac disease often experience skin rashes, anemia severe diarrhea and bone pain.However, many patients are asymptomatic, which is the prime reason why most cases of celiac disease remains undiagnosed.

There are other forms of gluten sensitivity. These people don’t have celiac disease but they are sensitive to gluten in one form or another. There are also those people who are diagnosed with wheat allergy. Gluten free food is the perfect solution for all three categories of people. Now that gluten free ingredients like gluten free flour is readily available, they don’t have to sacrifice their favorite foods to keep themselves healthy.
There are many companies like cup4cup who make exclusively gluten free products. Most grocery stores and food stores now have a section for gluten free food. Earlier it was very hard for someone with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity to eat out at restaurants but thanks to the emerging trend of gluten free many restaurants now have a selection for clients who eat only gluten free food. There are even restaurants who serve only gluten free food.

Is gluten free good for everyone:

Whether gluten free food is good for people without gluten sensitivity or celiac disease is a matter of much controversy. Many people consider gluten free foods to be a much healthier option and some even vouch that gluten free food can help in weight loss. On the other hand there are people who claim that this is actually a fad and others claim that eating gluten free food may create deficiency of necessary nutrients in the body.

Whether or not gluten free food causes nutrient deficiency in the body is yet to be proven however it can be said with some confidence that gluten free food cannot really help in weight loss. It might have caused weight loss once when there were only a few gluten free products available in the market. Since most junk food contains gluten, opting for gluten free food would have essentially meant giving up high carbohydrate containing unhealthy food. However, now everything from gluten free pizzas to gluten free bread are easily available, as such weight loss by eating gluten free food may no longer be viable.

How gluten free trend has proven helpful:

Large selections of gluten free food are now available. Cup4cup and other such companies are trying their best to come up with more and more food products that have no gluten in them. This will be helpful for people with gluten sensitivity as they can now eat their favorite food without any side effects.

Already gluten free flour and other such ingredients have made it possible to make breads, cakes, pasta etc. for those who can’t consume gluten. If the current trend persists then soon gluten free versions of almost all ingredients will be available in the market.