Hi, I'm Dr. Jean Layton. In diverse jobs from chef to doctor, I've used my analytical skills to address the ongoing goal, "There has to be a better way." When not seeing patients, I'm in the social media world, teaching people to thrive gluten-free.
October Unprocessed is in full swing over at Eating Rules.
Over the course of time, I’ll go into more depth about the reasons for the explosive increase in Gluten Intolerance since the 1950′s
Like the proverbial canary in a coal mine, Gluten Reactive people are showing us the problems with highly processed foods, especially wheat, rye and barley.
We’ll be starting from the beginning with definitions of the many terms used when talking about gluten related damage.
Currently, Auto-immune inflammatory damage called villous atrophy of the small intestine, is considered the diagnostic criteria for celiac disease.
What are villi? The tiny absorptive fingers of our gastrointestinal (GI) tract damaged and broken off without regrowth. This is the diagnostic criteria for celiac disease. Autoimmune damage has been escalating in people since the 1950s.
I do not have celiac disease, but have a sensitivity to Gluten. Is there a difference between gluten intolerance, sensitivity and allergy?
Thanks.
There is no difference between gluten sensitivity and gluten intolerance. Just folks using a comfortable for them term. Neither one is recognized as a medical diagnosis. The only way to show a “true” gluten reaction is to be biopsy tested for celiac disease, showing the villous atrophy.
If you don’t have villous atrophy, then you are considered intolerant or sensitive to gluten.
Allergy is a completely different situation. Since Gluten is a protein, yes you can have an allergy but most doctors would step back to the food that provoked your reaction, wheat, rye barley or spelt, instead of saying your gluten allergic.
All of these situations mean you would be better by avoiding gluten