Gluten is a protein derivative usually found in foods groups that are processed from wheat and grain species like rye and barley. They are responsible for giving elasticity to dough, aiding it to rise and be able to keep its shape and give food the chewy texture. It is basically extracted from flour by the process of kneading it and agglomeration of gluten into an inelastic state.
Cutting gluten in a person’s diet can prove very beneficial to a person’s overall health status. Being gluten intolerant can give a lot of discomforts to a person’s day to day choice of food. It comes in many terms such as sprue, non-tropical sprue, gluten sensitive enteropathy and Celiac disease to name a few. It is a coined term for a hereditary autoimmune disorder that is manifested by the natural mucosal lining of the small intestine is deteriorating from too much consumption of gluten and other protein derivatives such as wheat, rye and oats. This disease chooses no age bracket as it can develop in all stages of life.
Research have pointed out that celiac seems to run in the family. If someone in your relatives has Celiac disease, then you are predisposed into developing it. This disease is more common among white women.
This sensitivity is characterized by a person not being able to tolerate gluten proteins. The micro villi in the intestines are flattened and are not able to function well. The villi are those small microscopic hairs in the mucosal wall of the small intestine. They facilitate consumption of our nutrients. When they are disrupted and compromised, they are not able to do their functions well thus causing malnutrition among people. Celiac disease is one tough disease to diagnose since its symptoms also echo the symptoms of other diseases. And to make things a little bit harder, many ailments are connected with Celiac disease. These include anemia, arthritis, intestinal cancers, Down’s syndrome, lactose intolerance, neurological problems, osteoporosis and many more. Just imagine cutting down gluten from your diet can go a very long way in preventing the development of Celiac disease in your body.
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