Why Go Gluten Free?

Why a Gluten Free Diet?

There are many reasons one would choose to begin a gluten free diet. It’s suddenly a trendy Hollywood diet, but for the vast majority of the people that are living gluten free, it is a lifestyle, not a trend.

Since it is the only known treatment for celiac disease, you will find much gluten free lifestyle information focused on solely on celiac disease. However, going gluten free can be a benefit to people with a large variety of symptoms and illnesses in addition to celiac disease – including, but not limited to*:

• Allergies and sensitivities to wheat, barley or rye
• ADD
• All auto-immune diseases
• IBS and Colitis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Multiple sclerosis
• Parkinson’s disease
• Neuromyelitis (inflammation of the nervous system)
• Peripheral neuropathies
• Seizures
• Autism
• Ataxia (loss of balance)
• Late-onset Friedreich ataxia
• Down’s syndrome
• Cognitive problems (brain fog)
• Osteoporosis
• Type 2 and Type 1 diabetes
• Anemia

- and our recent poll showed that many of our readers just feel better without gluten in their diets.

What are some of the symptoms of gluten intolerance or sensitivity?**

You may experience a few or all of these if you are reacting to gluten in the foods you eat:

• Intestinal problems-diarrhea, constipation, gas, acid reflux, cramping, stomach pain, bloating
• Headaches, migraines, brain fog
• Itchy skin, rashes, mouth sores
• Anemia, malabsorption
• Joint and muscle pain
• Osteoporosis, dental enamel problems, stunted growth
• Infertility, miscarriages
• Chronic fatigue and weakness
• Behavioral issues, seizures, depression, psychiatric problems
• Diabetes, thyroid disease, liver disease
• Fibromyalgia
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Helpful: 3 Tips to Transitioning to a Gluten Free Diet

* Suite101.com
**The Gluten Free Answer Book, by Suzanne Bowland, pg.6-8