KIMBALL – Gluten-free diets are a booming fad across America and much of the developed world. It seems as if everywhere you look, people are touting the benefits of eliminating gluten from their diet.
Gluten is a complex protein which comes from wheat, barley and rye grains. These grains are used to make flour which is used to make bread. Gluten provides bread dough with elasticity which allows it to trap the yeast-produced bubbles of carbon dioxide that make bread rise. Risen bread is ubiquitous in the western diet, and has been for centuries. Most westerners have grown up eating a lot of bread and it features prominently in nearly everyone’s diet. Gluten-containing grains are also part of the recipe for many other foods, particularly pre-packaged foods.
So why the push to eliminate gluten, and what should wheat producers know about the present dietary fad?
There are several things to consider. First of all, some people suffer from an autoimmune disorder called Celiac disease. This is a condition where the body produces anti-gluten antibodies, which for some reason attack the lining of the intestinal tract. This very real disease is quite severe. It can cause malnutrition as the cells attacked by anti-gluten antibodies are the very cells responsible for absorbing nutrients from the gut. Symptoms of the disease include cramps, constipation and diarrhea. It’s a very severe disease in children who will often suffer from stunted growth due to malnutrition.
Celiac disease is diagnosed by blood tests and biopsies which prove that the autoimmune disease is present. One of the keys to treatment is the elimination of gluten from the diet of those who suffer from the malady. With no gluten in the gut, there is no antibody activity.
It is important to understand that Celiac disease is rather rare, though. affecting about one percent of the population. For those folks, gluten free is the only way to go. But the recent gluten-free mania is clearly being embraced by more than one percent of the population. What gives?
First of all, there is the fad effect. We’ve all seen this happen time and again, and most of us have experimented with fad diets. Paleo, Mediterranean, low-carb, you name it and it’s been a thing.

Secondly, many people who try the gluten-free diet report good results, particularly a reduction in gastric upset, increased energy, and an overall feeling of better health. These are people who do not suffer from Celiac disease. So what should we make of this? Is there something else going on?
Over the last few years, and perhaps mostly because of the popularity of the gluten-free diet, clinicians came up with a new diagnosis for people who feel better after eliminating gluten from their diet. The new diagnosis is called “non-celiac gluten sensitivity,” or NCGS. That said, many physicians and nutritionists are skeptical about the diagnosis. There’s simply no solid evidence to prove that gluten sensitivity is a real thing. In addition, there is mounting evidence that such sensitivity may be more in the mind than in the body. The mind is powerful, and just as the placebo effect can produce real relief in some cases, the “nocebo effect,” can also cause people to feel a change. Unlike a placebo, where a fake pill makes someone feel better, a nocebo makes people feel better when they stop taking it, even though there is no real or measurable effect.
In a recent study conducted at the University and Spedali Civili of Brescia, Italy, 35 patients diagnosed with NCGS, free of real Celiac disease, and on gluten-free diets were tested to see if they actually had a demonstrable sensitivity to gluten.
The results of the randomized, double blind study showed that only 12 of those who ate gluten reported symptoms consistent with NCGS, and these were the patients who consistently reported the highest levels of symptoms overall. Also, 17 people who ate gluten-free flour reported symptoms of gluten sensitivity.
The results of the study tend to show that fewer people are sensitive to gluten than is commonly believed, and that there is some reason to believe that at least some of the reported sensitivity is the result of the
nocebo effect.
In another recent study, published by the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, more than 230 patients who did not suffer from Celiac disease but who did have a diagnosis of NCGS participated in a double-blind study.
About 16 percent showed GI symptoms when consuming gluten. More than 40 percent reported GI symptoms when consuming the non-gluten food. Forty-four percent showed no symptoms at all, whether they had gluten or not.
In this study more than 80 percent of those with a NCGS diagnosis did not develop symptoms consistent with the NCGS diagnosis when challenged with gluten. There appears to be something else going on.
There’s a good chance that people who feel better after cutting out gluten may actually be benefiting from a reduction of overeating and better attention to diet. This hypothesis is perhaps more likely to be true than the idea of non Celiac
gluten sensitivity.
So what should wheat producers think and do in the age of gluten-free?
In general, producers should try to educate themselves on the topic and gain a solid, scientific understanding of the issue. When the opportunity presents itself, producers can then knowledgeably answer consumer questions. Other than that, producers should continue to grow high quality grain. This fad will likely ebb over time. Stay the course.