Non-Celiac Wheat Sensitivity

This is an interesting post by Melissa at HuntGatherLove on a new study.

A really well controlled study (as well as it can be controlled) on non-celiac wheat sensitivity. The study starts with people who have already been segregated from the general population by a number of categories, so they have already been tested for and scored as far as--- IBS-like symptoms; both of the common tests for celiac; negative biopsy from an intestinal test; negative skin prick tests for wheat sensitivity; 4 weeks of gluten free diet, with (as far as I can tell) all food supplied for the time period.

Let's face it, as far as food testing goes, this is as good as it gets!

So the results were interesting, and Melissa has a much better take down than I can give, but from what it looks like, even with all those markers for celiac testing coming up negative, you can still have an intestinal reaction to wheat or gluten.

This, is what they call in science, a big deal.

Think of that... you can come up totally non-responsive to medical test after medical test (the common celiac tests, the anti-tTG and the EmA tests are considered the "gold standard" of celiac tests. Most doctors do not go further than that (from what I have read... I don't 'know' most doctors.)

Wheat can be a much bigger problem for many more people than we thought. The fact that our major food companies put it in damn near everything might help explain some of the health issues we are facing. 

So, even if you don't have celiac disease, wheat can cause you problems.

Here is some more reading on this, courtesy of Stephan Guyenet.

I like his section where he lists his takes on the study, so I will quote them here:

Wheat gluten can cause symptoms in susceptible people who do not have celiac disease.

A lack of circulating antibodies against gluten does not necessarily indicate a lack of gluten sensitivity.

People with mysterious digestive problems may want to try avoiding gluten for a while to see if it improves their symptoms**.

People with mysterious fatigue may want to try avoiding gluten.

The second point is a great one--- Just because you don't have a classical celiac reaction to gluten (your body releases antibodies, since it sees it as an intruder,) that does not necessarily indicate a lack of sensitivity.

I would do a variation of Robb Wolf's 30 day Paleo Solution. Just simply cut wheat and gluten from your diet for 2 weeks, and see how you fare. Reportedly, most people actually notice differences almost immediately, from reduced gas pains after eating to losing their GERD completely.

Cheers!

Scott