We all have heard of the fad of using a gluten free diet for weight loss, but let's analyze in this article exactly what it is and how it affects your body. Gluten is derived from the seeds of grain plants related to the grass family. What we call a gluten is actually a composite of two proteins found in these grains, called glutelin and gliadin. Glutens form around 80% of the protein found in grain plant seeds.
Plants that include true glutens which are used in food include rye, barley and wheat. Occasionally, the stored proteins in other common food grains such as maize and rice are referred to as glutens, but in actual fact these contain only glutelin, rather than the combination of glutelin and gliadin found in the grass family grains. Gluten is used a great deal in food production. One of the most common sources of gluten is in bread and pastry products, where the gluten is used to give the doughs their elasticity.
The more gluten is present and the longer the strands of gluten proteins present are, the chewier the resulting bread will be. Products like bagels and pizza bases have a lot of gluten, whereas short or flaky pastries have less. The gluten plays are large part in determining the texture of these types of baked foods. Gluten is also used as an additive. It can be used to add protein to low protein foods, and can be used as a stabilizer in foods you wouldn't expect to contain wheat derivatives, such as ice cream and tomato ketchup.
It is also often used as a meat substitute, either in "fake meat" products designed for vegetarians, or to bulk out meat products like sausages. It is desirable to eat gluten based products as a meat replacement if you live on a meat free diet, because of their protein content. For most people, gluten is a harmless protein and present in many of our staple foods. However, some people, between 0.5 and 1% of Americans, have an intolerance to gluten which is generally known as celiac disease, gluten sensitive enteropathy or gluten intolerance (gluten intolerance and wheat intolerance are different conditions, however wheat does contain gluten).
The gluten protein that causes an adverse response in celiac disease sufferers is gliadin, so celiac disease is only affected by true glutens containing both gliadin and glutelin. The disease occurs in genetically predisposed subjects, and can appear at any time in the sufferer's life. The only treatment for celiac disease is for the patient to maintain a gluten free diet for the rest of their lives. Due to the rise in diagnosis of celiac disease, many food brands now label their products as "gluten free."
The FDA limits the use of this labeling to products containing less than 20 parts per million of gluten, so in actual fact these products can still contain very small amounts of gluten, which are often the result not of the ingredients but of a tiny amount of gluten being introduced in manufacturing, for example where flour is used to stop products sticking to the production lines. Now that you know what it is, you'll be able to understand the real reason why people go on a gluten free diet, and how it can be beneficial towards your weight loss goals.
Cassie Getty is a 20 year expert at living gluten free. A painful trip to the emergency room revealed that I wasn't having a heart attack, I was having esophageal spasms due to wheat intolerance! Now I've learned how to control my symptoms through diet. I feel healthier, have my weight under control and don't miss eating wheat products at all. Click Gluten Free Diet and find out how tasty and satisfying being gluten free can be. Recipes. products, reviews, tips and more.
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