What is Gluten Intolerance?

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What is Gluten Intolerance

Gluten is a protein found in barley, wheat, pasta, bread, and rye. The people who suffer from gluten intolerance will have undesirable effects like bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc. It is often confused with Celiac disease or food allergy, as the symptoms resemble a lot. The treatment strategies may be the same for all three of them, but they are not identical.

The main goal is to learn the difference between the three and do not confuse them with each other.

Food intolerances like gluten involve the digestive system. In contrast, in food allergies, the body’s immune system overreacts to certain foods, and the symptoms are potentially severe and can be life-threatening. Celiac disease, on the other hand, is an auto-immune disorder that damages the small intestine and is more dangerous.

It is one of the reasons why it is also known as non-celiac gluten sensitivity so that the people won’t confuse it with the Celiac disease. Moreover, gluten-intolerance won’t do any permanent damage to your stomach or intestinal linings, unlike Celiac disease that damages your small intestine permanently.

The onset of symptoms begins after the person has eaten wheat, barley, or rye. The common symptoms include abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, etc. Anxiety, headache, confusion, and numbness may also occur, but these are the less commonly occurring symptoms.

The symptoms are not specific and can be confused with multiple diseases. Tests are performed to rule out all other conditions, and a conclusion is made about the diagnosis.

One point that is very important to remember that the intensity of belly pain is not severe in gluten intolerance. Severe belly (stomach) pain is more of a medical emergency. Same as that, the symptoms appearing in food allergies are more severe and life-threatening. The symptoms of gluten intolerance are mild and not dangerous.

Diagnostic techniques work on the rule out mechanism in which the doctors will test you for other serious problems and make sure that you do not have any other underlying disease. The diet of the patient going through diagnostic tests must include gluten; otherwise, no reaction will appear.

It can only be managed by altering your menu. Gluten-intolerance means you should have a gluten-free diet. It is difficult as most of the foods contain wheat. But now, as we can synthesize foods, it is easier to avoid foods with gluten than it was ever before. You can visit your nearest grocery stores and can find foods labeled as gluten-free.

If you can tolerate a certain amount of gluten and only react when it exceeds that amount, foods with mentioned gluten content are also available easily. Your nutritionist/dietician may help you in deciding this stuff.

It is a long-term condition and has no cure; if you do not follow the specific diet pattern, the symptoms will not disappear and may worsen.

The exact cause of gluten intolerance is still not known as the disease is not understood enough by the medical professionals until now. Researches are still going on this topic, and we may find a clue or a specific biomarker in upcoming times that will mark person gluten intolerant.

The bottom line is, gluten intolerance is not as dangerous as you thought it is. And you can manage easily by making and following a simple diet plan, and you are safe with the undesirable side effects. The good news is that even the disease has no cure; it does no permanent damage to you or your body.

Until Next time,

Team Doctor ASKY!

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