The Trouble with Gluten.

By Camilla Watson – Accredited ‘Heal Your Life’ Coach.      

I believe the problem with gluten/starch sensitivity is that it’s not just a ‘food’ or digestion problem as is usually thought, but an auto-immune disease that will continue to have serious and maybe life-threatening consequences if not treated. Everything from Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Coeliac Disease, bowel cancer, Endometriosis, Asthma, Upper Respiratory Infections, Diabetes, Graves Disease, Glue Ear,  hormone and menstrual problems such as heavy or irregular periods, fibroids or issues of pregnancy like Toxaemia, Arthritis, bone deformity, Ankylosing Spondylitis, excema, Psoriasis, migraines,  depression, anxiety and addictions, as well as a tendency towards alcoholism and other substance abuse 'disorders' (grain based 'fix'), and recently psychiatric disorders, to name a few, have been linked to gluten sensitivity. Many 'non-specific illnesses' (those that don't seem to have a 'cause' but are debilitating none-the-less) such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome are being linked to gluten sensitivity and improve on a gluten-free diet. The general western medical thinking is that unless there is a diagnosis of Coeliac Disease in the gut then gluten is not a problem. However there is growing scientific awareness that gluten can lead to damage in many other parts of the body not previously linked to the effects of gluten. There is even some debate that gluten sensitivity may be a trigger for all the auto-immune diseases - it just depends where an individual has a particular area of weakness where that auto-immune response is going to 'show up'.  Along with holistic health workers there are several medical specialists around the world that have been working with these ideas for many years to assist their patients in the healing process and many individuals have achieved complete remission of their auto-immune disease.

Because a large part of the immune system is within the gut, gluten sensitivity will also severely impair all immune function such as the ability to fight a cold. Those individuals with gluten sensitivity will not be able to get 'just a cold' and be better in a week. They will always end up with a secondary infection in the respiratory system and often require anti-biotics to clear this up. It has been known since the late 19th century that auto-immune disease also has an infectious bacterial trigger like Streptococcus or Mycoplasma. Basically, it now appears that because the body is compromised due to gluten sensitivity a bacterial 'trigger' is able to get inside the cells of a particular part of the body where there is an inherent weakness. The immune system then begins to attack that part of the body to try to kill off the bacteria, thereby forming what is commonly called an 'Auto-immune Disease'. Health issues this complex require managing on several levels; removing the offending food out of the diet so the immune system is able to get back to full strength, anti-biotic or alternative treatments to fight the bacteria, as well as medication and/or alternative treatments to work with any symptoms that may be occurring. Treatment must be tailored to the individual and remission will usually take at least eighteen months - two years although improving health is usually achieved within a couple of months.

 Food sensitivity is hereditary and is linked to a particular gene but shows up in different people in different ways. It is common for several members within a family to be challenged with different health issues that they may not realise are all linked to gluten. The really nasty aspects of gluten/starch sensitivity are the links to all the Auto-immune Diseases but also include bowel/colon issues and the attached digestion problems of low mineral absorption leading to nutritional deficiencies or even malnutrition, growth problems etc. It is usually necessary to implement a long term regime of mineral and vitamin supplementation to combat many years of subtle or serious deficiency.  If the issues are caused or triggered by gluten/starch sensitivity then while there is gluten/starch going into the system the body will continue to degenerate and the only treatments available under the standard medical system are to treat the symptoms with strong pain relief, steroids, and eventually  removal of damaged parts. However the good news is that if gluten/starch is the cause and it is removed from the diet the body degeneration will often halt and recover – maybe fully, depending on the damage already done.
 
Unfortunately, if food sensitivity reactions are auto-immune in origin you won’t get 90% improvement when you get 90% of the offender out of the diet. You need to get almost 100% out, or the body still registers the ‘invader’ and attacks. Food ‘sensitivities’ don’t register very easily in medical testing (until it reaches the level of an ‘allergy’ when you will begin to have serious instant reactions like rashes or even anaphylactic shock) so it is a case of ‘going alternative’ and using more subtle methods like kinesiology for muscle testing or iridology etc. A diet free of gluten may be the answer but all starch can actually be an issue for some people. It must be noted that once an individual sensitive to gluten has been 'gluten-free' for any length of time, their reaction to the reintroduction of gluten-containing products can be severe. A gluten-free diet needs to be well researched, carefully considered and well planned. For those people with the gene for gluten sensitivity a life-long commitment  to a gluten-free diet seems to be the only answer at this point. If these are concerns for you I urge you to take control of your health and healing; take support from any area you can find it whether that be the standard medical system or alternative holistic healers, learn everything you can and find out how you can best work to Heal Your Life.