Gluten?

Gluten, that poor little nutritious protein found in wheat, barley and rye is the biggest victim of mistaken identity since someone confused Belle Gibson and Pete Evans as credible sources. Yes, I know gluten can induce serious gut damage in those with coeliac disease, but for the rest of the population gluten is not the culprit it is made out to be.

If you believe the hype, by going gluten free, all our ills will disappear, the budget will be in surplus, carbon emissions will plummet and Abba will tour again. (What’s next? Diluted water with magical memory powers sold in little expensive bottles ? (Mmm that gives me an idea. ))

“But” – I hear many intestines cry…”I feel better being gluten free”. Yep. This is true for some who go gluten free. But studies have shown it is not gluten but the associated carbohydrates found in foods with gluten that cause these symptoms. These carbs in some people will ferment leading to all sorts of lovely symptoms. Cutting out gluten simply eliminates fermentable sugars found in these foods. This is the basis behind the Fodmaps diet. This stands for ‘fermentable oligosaccharides disaccharides, monsaccharides, and polyols’! http://shepherdworks.com.au/disease-information/low-fodmap-diet. This is actually based on science, and research.

Gluten free has its own marketing momentum now. Cannot be stopped. So feel sorry for the genuinely coeliac who cannot believe their expensive highly restrictive diet has somehow become trendy. So instead of going gluten free – send me your credit card details and I will send you some diluted memory water in little expensive bottles.