Gluten sensitivity is becoming increasingly more prevalent than it ever used to be.  It’s only after that they have been diagnosed as being intolerant to glucose that sufferers realise they that knew very little about glucose in the first place. Some carbohydrates and grains such as barley, triticale, rye and wheat contain a protein called gluten. This is not usually a problem for the majority of people, as they can easily digest foods containing gluten without any reaction or ill effect. For a small percentage of the population, however, gluten can be a digestive issue and so they have to watch what they eat and avoid those foods containing any gluten.

To help you determine what foods should be avoided, you should try to understand how gluten affects your body. First, gluten isn’t in all grains and cereals but only some of them.  Gluten is in barley, rye, triticale and wheat.  Therefore, people suffering from gluten intolerance should stay away from any foods containing these grains.

The symptoms of gluten intolerance can vary from individual to individual and so are not the same for everybody.  Symptoms can include pains in the stomach or having a headache, a feeling of becoming irritable, tired or even depressed, and oedema or swelling of the tissues. The more common symptom that people suffer from is skin rashes. Occasionally, some sufferers have steatorrhea or severe diarrhoea characterized by smelly, loose, pale, and greasy stools and as a result can suffer from weight loss.  This suggests that they have a more severe gluten allergic condition known as coeliac disease. It is therefore extremely important for coeliac disease sufferers to have no gluten at all. However, there are also some patients with coeliac disease who have few or even no symptoms at all.

The obvious answer for people, who suffer from gluten sensitivity in the form of gluten intolerance, or especially coeliac disease, is for complete avoidance of any food containing gluten. Once foods containing gluten are no longer part of their diet, their symptoms usually disappear quickly and they find that their health improves dramatically.  Many processed foods can contain hidden gluten, so if you suffer from gluten intolerance and have any ill effects after consuming a particular food, which may be the reason for their symptoms. In fact, it is unwise to regularly consume a lot of processed foods as they are not necessarily good for you.

Humans are omnivores and can eat a variety of different types of food.  It is important to eat a balanced diet from the five main food groups to keep your body healthy.  These food groups are grains; fruit and vegetables; dairy; meat and protein; and finally, oils, fats and sugars. The food group grains contain foods such as pasta, rice and cereal.   There are gluten free cereals that you can eat safely if you suffer from gluten intolerance.  Foods containing amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, corn, rice, millet, sorghum, soy and tapioca are all gluten free. Again, it is important to read labels carefully, as some products which you think are safe, may contain cereals containing gluten.