Is Your Gluten-free Diet Killing You?

There is a major fact missing from this article. When I first looked through the article quickly, I concluded that it is impossible for a gluten-free diet to be high in metal. Then, I read a bit more carefully, and realized that it is gluten-free foods that are being discussed. That sounds to me like foods that normally contain gluten, but were formulated differently to avoid gluten. I don't eat much of that junk, partly due to the high cost and partly because I prefer more natural foods. If you take a normal diet, and then remove the glutenous items from it, it is absurd to think that you could be getting higher levels of metal. I suppose, it is possible that you get about the same amount of metal, but your body does not eliminate as much of it, but that is not what is being said here.

I would like to see a list of which foods contain toxic metals. I know rice was listed, I don't eat it because it's too high in carbs.

There is a major fact missing from this article. When I first looked through the article quickly, I concluded that it is impossible for a gluten-free diet to be high in metal. Then, I read a bit more carefully, and realized that it is gluten-free foods that are being discussed. That sounds to me like foods that normally contain gluten, but were formulated differently to avoid gluten. I don't eat much of that junk, partly due to the high cost and partly because I prefer more natural foods. If you take a normal diet, and then remove the glutenous items from it, it is absurd to think that you could be getting higher levels of metal. I suppose, it is possible that you get about the same amount of metal, but your body does not eliminate as much of it, but that is not what is being said here.

What the article is saying is that gluten-free ´staple´ foods are often composed of rice and other grain substitutes to produce a flour, (btw, that doesn't make them junk food). The article states rice grown in China is higher in toxic metals - makes a lot of sense to me, it's a highly industrial nation. When crops are grown, any toxicity in the soil is absorbed into the crops. Rice, is different from other crops, because it´s grown under flooded conditions. This makes the arsenic locked in the soil more readily available, meaning that more can be absorbed into the rice grains. Consequently rice contains about 10-20 times more arsenic than other cereal crops.

They should be looking at how many of these people have also taken fluoroquinolone antibiotics (Cipro, Levaquin, etc.) since these drugs wipe out key bacteria that contribute to the body's ability to detoxify itself. If the mechanisms for detox are compromised then you have a build up of heavy metals.

There is a major fact missing from this article. When I first looked through the article quickly, I concluded that it is impossible for a gluten-free diet to be high in metal. Then, I read a bit more carefully, and realized that it is gluten-free foods that are being discussed. That sounds to me like foods that normally contain gluten, but were formulated differently to avoid gluten. I don't eat much of that junk, partly due to the high cost and partly because I prefer more natural foods. If you take a normal diet, and then remove the glutenous items from it, it is absurd to think that you could be getting higher levels of metal. I suppose, it is possible that you get about the same amount of metal, but your body does not eliminate as much of it, but that is not what is being said here.

It seems you have misread or misunderstood this article. The article is discussing elevated levels of heavy metals in the blood of people who eat gluten-free diet. One known culprit is rice, which can have high arsenic levels, depending on the source of the rice. Also, numerous other non-wheat grains can carry elevated levels of heavy metals. The data is clear about that. The actual cause may require a bit of digging, but your comment that "If you take a normal diet, and then remove the glutenous items from it, it is absurd to think that you could be getting higher levels of metal," is simply not accurate. Rice is part of a "normal" diet, as are numerous other grains that may contain elevated levels of toxic metals. The problem is likely not solely due to processed foods, but is likely due to their raw ingredients. Stay tuned for more research on this topic.

Although I agree herbicides/pesticides/heavy metals are dangerous for human consumption, people are oblivious to some of the "most toxic" chemicals currently on grocery shelves. Seed & plant oils (not labeled as extra virgin) contain: hexane [a gasoline byproduct], deodorizers, bleach, defoaming agents & much more. The FDA does not require manufactures to test for chemical residues! With the rise in gastric cancer in our youth, one must ponder whether or not processed foods containing: canola (from a poisonous plant), safflower, sunflower, grape seed, cottonseed (highest in pesticide levels) and other "heat & chemical processed" oils are a contributing factor. Forewarned is forearmed.