the gluten-free hoax

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Published on Sunday, 29 May 2011 04:04

Written by Doug

Less than one tenth of 1% of the US population has been diagnosed as a celiac - someone with a serious issue with gluten - the protein found in most grains. And yet, a vast and growing number of misinformed Americans are claiming gluten sensitivity. In Europe the issue is all but non-existent. Here, the sudden fear of gluten is being driven by, principally, the American rice industry, an industry who not only stands the most to gain by converting Americans from a wheat based diet to a rise based diet, but what many Americans don't know is that this same industry has been moving rapidly to Genetically Modified rice grains - and by so doing, have found it difficult to market their GMO rice to overseas markets. But not here in the U.S. where they have unduly frightened the U.S. population into not only eating GMO rice products in the guise of "Gluten Free" but doing so happily and ignorantly.

Interestingly too, most people who avoid breads because of the fear of gluten intolerance are consuming a multitude of wheat based products as an additive to all kinds of processed foods and non-food substances.

Hidden Sources of Gluten as compiled by the Weston A Price Foundation at www.westonaprice.org

• Flavored prepackaged rice or pasta
• Tomato and spaghetti sauces
• Condensed canned soups
• Vegetable cooking sprays
• Flavored instant coffees and teas
• Some veined cheeses such as Roquefort and blue
• Chow mein noodles
• Artificial coffee creamer (all kinds)
• Bouillon cubes or powder, gravy and sauce mixes
• Imitation seafood products
• Ground spices
• Chewing gum can be dusted with wheat starch
• Communion wafers

These label ingredients can indicate the presence of gluten:

• Hydrolyzed plant protein (HPP)
• Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP)
• Modified food starch (source is either corn or wheat)
• Mustard powder (some contain gluten)
• Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)
• Gelatinized starch
• Natural flavoring, fillers
• Whey protein concentrate
• Whey sodium caseinate
• White vinegar or white grain vinegar
• Rice malt (contains barley or Koji)
• Rice syrup (contains barley enzymes)
• Dextrin, malt, maltodextrin

These non-food items may also be gluten sources:

• Lip stick and lip balm
• Sunscreen
• Glue on stamps and envelopes
• Soaps and shampoos
• Toothpaste and mouthwash
• Cosmetics, lotions, creams
• Prescription drugs
• Health supplements (vitamin pills, etc.)

Again, people who aren't diagnosed as celiac don't have an issue with gluten which is why they can easily tolerate all the above products in their lives while avoiding bread. The fact is, most people with "gluten sensitivity" actually have an issue with wheat starch or what is more commonly known as "flour". Flour, or again, wheat starch, just as with "corn starch", is a sugar - that's how the body has to deal with it and it's very hard to digest and it's why diabetics can't eat "flour" based breads. It's also why after eating pasta or most commercially baked breads we feel tired. The body has to shut down to try to digest and basically store as fat all that sugar.

The simple solution, if you want to eat bread, you can. Just look for sprouted, whole-grain breads. Whole grain is important but the key is to make sure it's a sprouted whole grain bread.

And this is why the only bread we will ever bake is made with sprouted whole grain wheats, ryes and spelt berries. Sprouting converts grain to a vegetable - a living plant -  and thereby converts the difficult to digest starches into easy to digest simple sugars. It's more nutritious too because all the nutrients that are locked in the seed grain waiting to sustain plant growth are unleashed.

Want to know more...

Check out this greenpeace article on GMO rice...

http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/content/international/press/reports/rice-industry-in-crisis.pdf

And read more about sprouted grains and other traditional whole-foods based diets at www.WestonAPrice.org