Infinity Health & Wellness Magazine October / November 2016 | Page 23

allergic to wheat, consuming it will result in an immune
reaction that can be diagnosed by measuring antibodies
called IgE and/or other immune system markers.
Food intolerances, on the other hand, are typically
related to a lack of a specific enzyme to break down the
food in question. Food intolerances tend to generate
fewer symptoms that are slower in onset, and can
therefore be more difficult to diagnose.
Diarrhea or constipation, bloating, headache, anxiety
and fatigue are common symptoms of a food intolerance,
but may not appear until hours or even days afterward.
Gluten sensitivity IS real though, researchers say, and
may affect up to 6 percent of the population.
Gluten Sensitivity May Affect a Majority of
People
Gluten is a protein made up of glutenin and gliadin
molecules, which in the presence of water form an
elastic bond. Gluten can be found in grains other than
wheat, including rye, barley, oats and spelt.
Gluten can also hide in processed foods under a variety
of names, including but not limited to11 malts, starches,
hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP), texturized
vegetable protein (TVP) and natural flavoring.
If you do a search of the U.S. National Library of
Medicine, you will find that gluten-containing
grains have been linked to dozens of adverse health
effects12 and adverse modes of toxicity. Topping this
list is neurotoxicity, and in his book, “Grain Brain,”
Perlmutter specifically looked at the neurological
impact of gluten (wheat) and casein (dairy) on both
our brain and autoimmune diseases. He also believes
gluten sensitivity may be involved in most chronic
diseases, because of how gluten affects your immune
system.

zonulin in the intestine in response to gluten.
This protein, found in wheat, barley and rye, makes
your gut more permeable, which allows proteins to get
into your bloodstream. This sensitizes your immune
system and promotes inflammation and autoimmunity.
In the press release announcing the publication of his
new book, “Gluten Freedom,” Fasano said:14
“We’ve shown now that gluten sensitivity actually
exists. It’s moved from a nebulous condition that
many physicians dismissed to a distinctly identifiable
condition that’s quite different than celiac disease.
Gluten sensitivity affects six to seven times more
people than celiac disease.”
Mercola, J. “Gluten-Free Diets Are Beneficial for Many
— Not Just Those With Celiac Disease” Retrieved
September 21, 2016, from http://articles.mercola.com/
sites/articles/archive/2016/09/21/gluten-sensitivityceliac-disease.aspx
____________________
1 JAMA Internal Medicine September 6, 2016 [Epub ahead of print]
2 Reuters September 6, 2016
3 WebMD.com September 6, 2016
4 Huffington Post September 8, 2016
5 Huffington Post September 7, 2016
6 Mother Nature Network September 8, 2016
11 Celiac.com, Unsafe Gluten-Free Food List
12 PubMed National Library of Medicine. Adverse Health Effects Gluten.
13 Celiac Disease Foundation February 2014
14 Newswire October 24, 2014

According to Dr. Alessio Fasano, director for Celiac
Research and the chief of pediatric gastroenterology
and nutrition at Massachusetts General Hospital, gluten
sensitivity may be far more prevalent than previously
suspected.13 He estimates virtually all of us are affected
to some degree, because we all create something called

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