Sparkpeople Article

[jgal]

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I read an interesting article that talked about (largely) the cons of going gluten free if it is not a necessity. The article mentioned that people who go gluten- free, especially without supervision or instruction (from a registered dietitian or doctor) can end up with vitamin and minteral deficiencies. As well, most gluten- free foods are not actually healthier (think gluten free cookies and cakes). Also, the article mentioned how gluten free foods are often two to three times more expensive vs the non gluten free versions. This article also advises against self diagnosis as well, which I believe is extremely wise. It said how self diagnising, and then avoiding gluten (as per self choice/ self diagnosis), could cause someone who has celiac/ gluten sensitivity to end up with a false negative when tested. My advice is that if you think you have celiac or a gluten sensitivity, speak to your doctor before doing anything.

[psawyer]

There is a lot of stuff in there; most of it is debatable.

I do fully agree with this part:

But it is going to cost you more than standard products, especially if you're buying processed foods that are gluten-free. You may expect to pay two to three times as much for gluten-free breads or crackers, for example.

Yes, but you can be totally gluten-free without ever buying a substitute gluten-free product. Most gluten-free foods, like fresh meat and produce, do not cost any more just because you are no longer eating gluten.

[IrishHeart]

There are many comments in this article that I could poke holes in, but in particular, this passage that states a gluten free diet will cause:

"Nutritional deficiencies. People who follow gluten-free diets, especially without instruction or supervision from a registered dietitian or doctor, may develop vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Because so many healthful and nutritious foods contain gluten, it can be difficult to get those same nutrients when eliminating these foods from your diet. You may also fall short of meeting your body's needs for carbohydrates, the preferred fuel source for exercise, brain activity and so much more."

Totally false.

Read The Gluten Free Edge by Peter Bronski and Melissa McLean Jory, MNT

I do not fall short of carbohydrates nor do I have nutritional deficiencies in my gluten-free diet.

What this person considers "healthful & nutritious foods containing gluten" are easily substituted with other food proteins.

And of course, I am not talking about the various packaged gluten-free sugar and empty calorie-laden products on the market. I am talking about fresh whole foods and non-gluten grains.

[Takala]

The "SparkPeople" website is a weight loss website.

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The woman who wrote that article linked above, Nicole Nichols, is a personal exercise trainer and workout video creator.

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My advice to these normal, thinner people (apparently with wheat addictions, as I can't figure out otherwise why they would CARE what other people eat,) is that we don't want to take your wheat away, but you need to stop quoting registered dietitians at us, who are parroting the wheat lobby talking points, to people who are struggling with allergies, intolerances, and auto immune diseases. The advertisement header on the article I am looking at is for "Pillsbury Frozen Grands Honey Butter Biscuits," so don't tell me about how "your food" is lower in calories and fat than "my food."

Oprah did her show in 2008, which was 4 years ago. She has a thyroid condition. She experimented. Get over it.

Particularly obnoxious was whining about a large health food chain store offering gluten free shopping lists and placing markers on their shelves next to the gluten free items. This is because we gluten free shoppers must read EACH and EVERY label carefully when we shop, for hidden proteins that will sicken us, that mere weight loss motivated dieters don't. If this offends you, I suggest shopping at a regular grocery store, so we have less of your pet junk foods loaded with chemicals and low-fat substitutes like modified food starch to wade around.

There are more than 1% of the American population with gluten intolerance and celiac disease, not the 1% you quoted. About 1% are likely celiac and 5 to 7% are non celiac gluten intolerant, which would make it up to 8% of the U.S. population would benefit from a gluten free diet, or nearly 24 to 25 million people. Let us know when the number becomes big enough to make an impression on you re: "NEED FOR." This is not counting the family members who select gluten free foods, to consume at home, because it keeps their family members who need to be gluten free for medical reasons, safer from the risk of cross contamination.

You quoted "personal experience is not the same as a well designed research study," I counter with just because your source hasn't observed something, nor gotten paid to "study it," does not invalidate my observations. You're not the only one who took science courses.

You further stated that a reason to not give up gluten was that it was ...... not easy to do. Neither is debunking this media garbage every day, but somebody has to do it. You then quoted Earline Griffith, RD. This is about as stupid a thing as I have ever seen a writer do for a quote, because until recently, she worked for a large grocery chain that millions of Californians shop at, Raley's/Belair, that DOES carry a health food aisle and a decent gluten free selection in many of its stores, unlike its competition. Most Raleys/Belair stores are an excellent source of gluten free foods at the present time of Sept. 2012. Here is an Oriental Rice Salad recipe from her website, notice how it is gluten free as long as one used a gluten free tamari style soy sauce or coconut aminos as a sub for the dressing. Open Original Shared Link Notice, also, that this recipe is not in any way, 3 times as expensive as a regular salad, nor is it lacking in nutrition. Duh !

Then there is the ol' "nutritional deficiencies" fake talking point, which assumes that a gluten free diet is as grain heavy as the high carb, low fat food pyramid type diet pushed by the dieting and exercising crowd. Wheat products are not magical, they are heavily enriched and if they were not, the average person avoiding real foods and gorging on breads and cereals would still be malnourished. Celiacs have nutritional deficiencies caused by..... intestinal damage. Eating gluten free allows healing and use of the vitamins and minerals they get from their alternate diet. Duh !

The only saving grace are some of the links to other gluten free topic websites at the end of the article.

[kittty]

This article also advises against self diagnosis as well, which I believe is extremely wise. It said how self diagnising, and then avoiding gluten (as per self choice/ self diagnosis), could cause someone who has celiac/ gluten sensitivity to end up with a false negative when tested. My advice is that if you think you have celiac or a gluten sensitivity, speak to your doctor before doing anything.

But if your doctor isn't proactive in suggesting celiac as a potential diagnosis (which includes every doctor I've ever seen), how can you tell if you have celiac or gluten sensitivity until you cut out the gluten?

I'd never even heard of celiac before. I was so desperate for a solution that I was willing to try anything. On the advice of a coworker I started cutting out different foods to see if there was a link, and when I cut out wheat I felt better. That was my self-diagnosis. Knowledge of celiac came later after Googling wheat-related illnesses. So there was no way I could think celiac was the cause, and then go to the doctor about it. Going gluten free was the only clue.

If it wasn't for self-diagnosis, and going gluten free on my own, I would still be lying in bed feeling miserable.