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As physician I treat lots of women and diabetics. Many of them are concerned abt what they eat and how to work out. While I advise them how to eat right, I have to undo the media propagated fad diets that they are drawn to for weight loss. As it is commonly said by trainers, you cannot outtrain a bad diet. So here is the lowdown on the gluten free craze that has gripped the masses and why it's a fad.



My take on gluten

As our food is being deconstructed and dissected for a second and third look, the last decade saw a new villain called Gluten. It was blamed to cause bloating, gas, diarrhea, cramps and obesity. Healthy people who had been eating rotis for breakfast, lunch and dinner were suddenly scampering to the gluten free section of the supermarket aisles and youtubing gluten free recipes. Just like the low carb high fat prepackaged meal business, now gluten-free prepackaged meals were flourishing and still are. But what the hell is gluten and why is it suddenly taking center stage in the health foods department?
If you have ever kneaded dough or seen your mom knead it you know how elastic it is. When dough is kneaded for our rotis and puris, it is mixed with water and allowed to rest before the actual kneading. Why is that done? The gluten is released during the period of rest and we get the elastic goodness on kneading the dough. The elasticity and chewiness that is seen in breads, rotis and pizzas is because of the gluten.
Gluten is nothing but the wheat protein. It has two components glutenin and gliadin. It is seen in wheat, barley and rye. So, gluten is basically everywhere. It is in your staple food, in your baked goods, in the dal in the form of heeng (asafetida) ka tadka, your vodka (some varieties) and beer. It is hard to go gluten free that’s why the entire health food industry is bending over backwards trying to create tasty gluten free recipes. Cookies and cakes without gluten are basically yuck and they know it.
Why is everyone suddenly opposing gluten?
No reason. Just like everyone opposed carbs and fats, in the same way gluten is next big thing you need to avoid. Before I dive into my case against gluten free, here’s a spoiler. Gluten is not bad. It is an innocent little protein doing its job. And just like any food can have people allergic or intolerant to it, gluten has a little more than its fair share. Gluten is of importance in patients with coeliac disease. It is an autoimmune disease chiefly affecting your intestines with effects on the skin, brain and general feeling of wellness. In this disease, the patient’s immune system mounts a drastic response to the gluten in the food and in the process, harms the inner lining of the intestine. This attack on the intestine by one’s own immune system causes it to become leaky. So, for a patient of coeliac disease as little as two morsels of roti can cause cramping, bloating and diarrhea. The patient can have skin rashes and many cases of depression have been reported because of coeliac disease. For this subset of people, the gluten free aisle in the market is heaven sent.
Why are so many people suddenly gluten sensitive?
Maybe the diagnosis is better these days as we understand more about our foods. Earlier days gluten sensitivity may have been ignored as tummy upset or acidity and patients might have just popped antacids. Some people who have eaten wheat daily for a decade or two suddenly are wheat intolerant. Some of the speculated reasons are that wheat isn’t a staple in our diets anymore. It is the entire diet! Lesser consumption of fruits, vegetables, other grains such as millets, dals and rice and rising consumption of different varieties of baked goods could be a cause. The standard western and Indian bachelor diet has more bread, pasta, sandwiches and pastries. People have overloaded their gut with wheat and their bodies probably can’t handle all that overload.; Another theory put forth for rising gluten sensitivity is that the wheat crop is genetically modified giving rise to mega super extra jumbo yield wala wheat. Which is basically an obese wheat crop loaded with gluten. The wheat is harvested earlier than it should and not allowed to sprout or ferment before being sold in the market. Sprouting wheat basically allows the natural enzymes present in the wheat digesting the wheat for us. The way we consume wheat is not the way our grandparents used to eat it but our bodies are still the ones inherited from our grandparents. And our guts cannot handle all the tampering that has been done with the crop.
Fine these people have a real or perceived problem with gluten. But what about gluten free diet plans for weight loss? Does gluten make you fat?
No food is pure fat or pure carbohydrate or pure protein. If your food hasn’t come in a bottle or plastic packaging then it must have been alive once upon a time. And a living thing is made of protein for growth and fat and carbohydrate for sustenance. Eat food. Don’t eat nutrients and calories. Once upon a time everyone was rushing to eat only egg white because it was the protein. Now everyone wants to get rid of wheat protein (gluten) to lose weight! How did protein get a bad reputation!!
The gluten free craze is so much that even acrylic paint is labelled as gluten free! Who the hell is eating paint!!!
Ok it must have been a fad. I have been gluten free for a year now. Can I continue the same?
In my opinion, please don’t. Unless there is a medical problem please don’t skip entire groups of foods. In the name of eating healthier you are missing out on so many micronutrients that come along. You are not only reducing gluten from your diet but also vitamins and minerals. Having coeliac disease is a terrible ordeal. The patient has to be vigilant about each thing he eats and if he gets affected by an attack on mistakenly eating gluten he would suffer with cramping and bloody diarrhea for days. The patient also suffers multiple nutritional deficiencies because the damaged intestines does not absorb nutrients well. Many patients get anemic due to this issue. When God has blessed you with a healthy working gut, savour all the food he has blessed you with and thank him for both.
The side effects of cutting out gluten from your diet are constipation, anemia, poor skin and hair health. The fibre intake reduces as you cut out fibre rich grains from your diet. Long standing constipation can cause hemorrhoids. Iron and folate are also cut out from the diet. So anemia is next to follow. Folate is important for the constantly renewing cells of your skin, nails and hair. The anemia and folate deficiency give rise to brittle nails and hair and dull skin.
But I lost a ton of weight by going gluten free.
You probably lost all that weight because you skipped maida (processed wheat flour). Maida is in the cakes, doughnuts, pizzas and cookies that you must have loved to indulge in. And trying to go gluten free does make you conscious of what you are eating. The calorie restriction made you lose weight and not gluten restriction. If you wanna lose weight go maida free, not gluten free.
And if you are pregnant and are trying your hand at gluten free then you deserve a whack on the head by your dadi. Eat right.
The Quinoa craze
As wheat and gluten got a bad reputation, a new savior came to the forefront. Quinoa is a cereal like grain which has found a favourite spot in the health foods industry. It is gluten free, easy to cook and oh so fashionable. It is locally grown and consumed in South American countries. Now with the rising demand for this crop globally in the name of gluten-free foods, the local population is finding itself short of their staple crop. And because of the global demand and high volume of export, the prices of quinoa in those countries have gone through the roof. The junk foods available for cheap have now earned the status of the staple diet in the Latina countries thanks to the quinoa fashion.
In addition, what the farms which used to grow quinoa along with other crops are now dedicated to only quinoa. The variety of crops needed for sustaining soil fertility is being compromised and crop rotation is on the back burner. To satisfy the lust of the diet industry, the local south American population and soils worldwide are paying the price. It is nothing short of criminal to crave Quinoa
The ethical concerns aside, quinoa is a great food. It is rich in proteins, omega 3 fatty acids and close to being a complete food. But it is not in our genes to digest quinoa the way south Americans do. We grew up eating roti chawal for centuries and we should stick to our roots. We cannot eat what they eat and expect the same benefits. Food is not eat, fart, repeat. There is love, sustenance of the environment, genetic nature of the person that goes into making food what it truly is, divine. Quinoa is just a deity we borrowed from the west because it is in vogue and nothing else. And if you are so crazy about proteins then go back to the protein you were eating even before you could talk. Back to the gluten in your doodh roti.
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