Gluten is protein composed of the mixture of proteins gliadinand glutenin, which are found naturally in the seed of many cereals, such as wheat, barley, rye and oat. For some people, ingestion of gluten causes damage to the wall of the small intestine, causing damage to health.
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Any recipe or food product that has any of these foods in its composition will contain gluten, even if in small amounts.
The phrase: "Contains gluten" is very common on certain food packaging. It is a warning for gluten intolerant people not to consume that product.
Gluten is found in the embryo of some grains or seeds. Its water absorption capacity and its viscosity give the dough the properties that make it suitable for baking. As a by-product in obtaining starch, it is used in the manufacture of feed and foods rich in proteins and for the production of glutamine.
When ingested in excess, gluten can cause a decrease in the production of serotonin, which leads to a depression even in individuals who do not have any hypersensitivity problem to this protein.
Excess gluten also causes the appearance of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
The word gluten comes from Latin, and gluten means glue, which can be explained because gluten is a sticky substance.
Gluten Intolerance
As it is a protein that is difficult to digest, it is common to have some type of gluten intolerance, similar to that which occurs with lactose in milk, although in this case it is a sugar.
already the celiac disease it is an autoimmune reaction of the body caused by the ingestion of gluten. The defense cells attack gluten but at the same time they also attack the walls of the intestine, causing an atrophy in the intestinal mucosa that prevents the absorption of nutrients. It is a chronic disease that requires the complete elimination of gluten from the diet for life.
Celiac disease is thought to be developed by genetically susceptible people, being more common in women and generally appearing in childhood, although it can appear at any age.
Many people are gluten intolerant and for that reason, the market for food products without gluten has grown a lot, to meet the need of people who cannot eat foods with gluten.
Gluten and Obesity
There are diets that completely exclude gluten from the diet, because some people claim that gluten is directly related to obesity. There is a book by Regina Racco entitled Gluten and Obesity: The Truth That Weight Loss, where that connection is made. Despite this, experts say that the total elimination of gluten is only advised for people who are intolerant to this protein.
Nutritionists also claim that as gluten is present in many carbohydrates, reducing gluten in the diet implies a reduction in calories and consequently in weight, something that happens in any type of diet, with or without gluten restriction.
know more about proteins and see what does it mean to be vegan and what does a vegan eat.
