Carolie will be doing a Winning Ways Without Wheat & Gluten cooking demonstration on the 19th of March. This event is not to be missed if anyone in your family is wheat or gluten intolerant! See Events for more details.
What is wheat allergies?
Most people eat wheat so often their bodies adapt and cope and so they experience mild forms of the symptoms (known as wheat intolerance) without ever really being aware of where the problem lies. Withdrawing wheat from the diet and therefore ridding the body of wheat can lead to immense improvements in health and wellbeing. A few of the symptoms of wheat allergies are:
- Headaches
- Bloated stomach
- Diarrhoea
- Tiredness
- Skin rash
What is gluten?
Gluten is a protein occurring naturally in wheat, barley, rye and oats (although some debate is held on the gluten levels of oats). When these grains are milled the gluten is released and it’s this that gives grain flours their strength and elasticity, something that is noticeably missing from gluten free breads.
What is gluten intolerance?
Also called celiac disease. People with healthy digestive systems can eat gluten without any problems. The food is broken down in the stomach and passes through the small intestine where projections called villi absorb nutrients. These villi provide a large surface area (20-40 metres squared), which is used for the absorption of the nutrients from the food. When a celiac eats gluten in foods their intestine thinks it’s under attack from a foreign body and creates an immune response to the invader. The lining of the intestine becomes inflamed and the villi flatten. The flattening of the villi means that their surface area is reduced and the nutrients vital to health therefore aren’t absorbed, which over time leads to weight loss, wasting and malnutrition. Symptoms of celiac disease are:
- Anaemia
- Bloating
- Chronic tiredness
- Constipation
- Dermatitis herpetiformis
- Diarrhea (aka diarrhoea)
- Irritable bowel
- Migraines
- Mouth ulcers
- Psychological issues (stress, nerves, depression etc)
- Severe weight loss
- Vomiting
The above lists of symptoms associated with wheat allergies, celiac disease or gluten intolerance is by no means exhaustive, other symptoms may present themselves in different people. (source: www.wheat-free-org).
