Why is Wheat Gluten Disorder on the Rise?
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/23/Why-is-Wheat-Glute
n-Disorder-on-the-Rise.aspx

A study using frozen blood samples taken from Air Force recruits 50
years ago has found that intolerance of wheat gluten, a debilitating
digestive condition, is four times more common today than it was in
the 1950’s.

The findings contradict the conventional wisdom that the sharp
increase in diagnoses of wheat gluten intolerance has come about
because of greater awareness and detection. It now seems likely that
dramatic changes in the American diet have played a role.

The disease occurs in people whose bodies cannot digest gluten, a
protein found in wheat, rye and barley. The undigested protein
triggers the immune system to attack the lining of the small
intestine, causing diarrhea, nausea and abdominal pain.

The researchers who conducted the study also found that the recruits
who had the undiagnosed digestive disorder, called celiac disease, had
a four-fold increase in their risk of death.

Sources:

 Minneapolis Star Tribune July 1, 2009

 Gastroenterology July 2009; 137(1):88-93

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 Dr. Mercola's Comments:

According to statistics from the University of Chicago Celiac Disease
Center, an average of one out of every 133 otherwise healthy people in
the United States suffers from the digestive disease known as celiac
disease (CD).

Previous studies have found that this number may be as high as 1 in 33
in at-risk populations.

Unfortunately, despite its rapidly increasing prevalence, it still
takes an average of four years to reach a diagnosis if you’re
symptomatic. This delay in proper diagnosis can dramatically increase
your risk of developing other diseases such as autoimmune disorders,
neurological problems, osteoporosis, and even cancer.

For example, if you’re diagnosed with celiac disease after the age of
20, your chances of developing an autoimmune condition skyrocket from
the average 3.5 percent to 34 percent.

Additionally, according to this latest study, undiagnosed CD was
associated with a nearly four-fold increased risk of premature death.

What Causes Celiac Disease?

Celiac disease, also more casually referred to as wheat- or gluten
intolerance, occurs when your body cannot digest gluten, a protein
most commonly found in wheat, rye and barley. However, it’s very
important to realize that these are not the only culprits that can
cause severe problems. Other grains such as oats and spelt also
contain gluten, and gluten can be found in countless processed foods
without being labeled as such.

"Gluten" comes from the Greek word for glue, and its adhesive
properties hold bread and cake together. But those same properties
interfere with the breakdown and absorption of nutrients, including
the nutrients from other foods in the same meal.

The result is a glued-together constipating lump in your gut rather
than a nutritious, easily digested meal.

The undigested gluten then triggers your immune system to attack the
lining of your small intestine, which can cause symptoms like diarrhea
or constipation, nausea, and abdominal pain.

In more recent years it’s been shown that the condition can also cause
a much wider array of symptoms that are not gastrointestinal in
nature, further complicating proper diagnosis.

Over time, your small intestine becomes increasingly damaged and less
able to absorb nutrients such as iron and calcium. This in turn can
lead to anemia, osteoporosis and other health problems.

The rapid increase in celiac disease and milder forms of gluten
intolerance is no surprise considering the modern Western diet, which
consists in large part of grain carbohydrates.

Additionally, modern wheat is very different from the wheat your
ancestors ate. The proportion of gluten protein in wheat has increased
enormously as a result of hybridization.

Until the 19th century, wheat was also usually mixed with other
grains, beans and nuts; pure wheat flour has been milled into refined
white flour only during the last 200 years.

The resulting high-gluten, refined grain diet most of you have eaten
since infancy was simply not part of the diet of previous generations.

The Many Symptoms of Gluten-Intolerance

In addition to nausea, diarrhea, constipation and abdominal pain,
celiac disease may manifest clinically with an array of non-
gastrointestinal symptoms, such as:

Osteoporosis or osteopenia Tooth enamel defects Vitamin K deficiency
Central and peripheral nervous system disease Dementia, and
impairments in mental functioning that could cause or aggravate
autism, Asperger’s syndrome, ADD or schizophrenia Dermatitis
Herpetiformis (DH), a skin condition that causes intense itching and
blistering
Anemia of various types Infertility, and earlier menopause Organ
disorders
Weight loss or gain Depression Fatigue

How to Treat Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Disease

The treatment for celiac disease or gluten intolerance is a gluten-
free diet, which means abstaining from grains and any food that
contains gluten. A blood test can verify whether or not you actually
have the condition.

Typically, avoiding gluten for a week or two is enough to see
significant improvement.

However, in my experience, about 75-80 percent of ALL people benefit
from avoiding grains, even whole sprouted grains, whether you have a
gluten intolerance or not. This is because, typically, grains rapidly
break down to sugar, which causes rises in insulin that exacerbate
health problems such as:

•Overweight
•High cholesterol
•High blood pressure
•Type 2 diabetes
•Cancer
The only consistent exceptions would be those whose nutritional type
is a carb type and you don’t suffer symptoms of intolerance. However,
it’s still important to realize that there is a major difference
between vegetable carbs and grain carbs, even though they’re both
referenced as "carbs." Unlike vegetables, grains convert to sugar,
which is not something anyone needs in their diet in high amounts.

The rising prevalence of celiac disease is clear evidence that we’re
simply not designed to consume such vast amounts of starch- and sugar-
rich foods so many now indulge in.

In short, most people are consuming far too much bread, cereal, pasta,
corn (a grain, not a vegetable), rice, potatoes and Little Debbie
snack cakes, with very grave health consequences.

Yes, this even includes organic stone ground whole grains. Obviously
these are healthier for you for a large number of reasons, but
ultimately they cause the same problems through two mechanisms.
Reaction to the protein gliadin in the wheat, and adverse impact on
insulin metabolism.

The fact is that two-thirds of the U.S. population is overweight or
obese, and one in four Americans is diabetic or pre-diabetic. These
are clear signs that our diets have strayed too far from the norm of
what your body actually needs.

Fortunately there are communities in the US where overweight people
are the minority. I spent ten days in Aspen, Colorado in early July
and my guess is that less than 5 percent of the population is
overweight.  Of course many European communities have levels this low,
but it is very uncommon in the US.

Hidden Sources of Gluten

In order to combat gluten intolerance, it’s not enough to simply avoid
grains. You must also pay attention to the quality of all the other
foods you eat.

Remember, 90 percent of the money Americans spend on food is for
processed foods. When you choose foods like this, not only are you
bound to experience physical complications in one way or another, but
if you have celiac disease it’s even more imperative you avoid
processed foods due to hidden gluten.

Unfortunately, food manufacturers are not required by law to identify
all possible sources of gluten on their product labels, so reading the
label may not be enough.

Gluten may still be hiding in processed foods like ready-made soups,
soy sauce, candies, cold cuts, and various low- and no-fat products,
just to name a few, under labels such as:

•Malts
•Starches
•Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP)
•Texturized vegetable protein (TVP)
•Natural flavoring
Celiac.com has a long list of label ingredients that typically contain
hidden gluten.

For helpful tips and guidelines on how to approach food companies for
more detailed information about their ingredients, see The Gluten
Solution site. They also offer more detailed information about the
current state of gluten-free labeling legislation.

That said, your best bet is to stick to a diet of fresh, whole foods
(preferably organic whenever possible). Not only will you keep your
celiac disease under control, but you will also experience numerous
other benefits such as increased energy, enhanced mood, and a lower
risk of chronic illness.

If you want more information about celiac disease, the following web
sites are good places to start:

•www.celiaccenter.org
•www.celiac.com
•UK Web site for sufferers of celiac disease: www.coeliac.co.uk

Related Links:

 The Prevalence of Celiac Disease In At-Risk Groups of Children In
the United States

 Is Your Stomach Often Upset? You May Have Subclinical Celiac Disease

 Study Finds Enzyme to Control Celiac Disease