Gluten

Question 1

What is gluten?

Answer 1

• Protein component of wheat, and other cereal grains, rye, barley

Question 2

Which grain has more protein?

Answer 2

• Wheat has more protein than other cereal grains

Question 3

How much of wold food calories does wheat account for?

Answer 3

• 20%

- One of the most consumed proteins

Question 4

What are the storage proteins in wheat? What does it do?

Answer 4

• Glutenin and gliadin
• Bond to make gluten, kneading makes bonding
• Gives elasticity and structure to dough

Question 5

How does bread rise?

Answer 5

• Dough rises when scaffold of gluten traps CO2 from yeast fermentation

Question 6

How long have humans been eating gluten?

Answer 6

• Since domestication of wheat approx. 10,000 BP

Question 7

What is celiac disease?

Answer 7

• Immune reaction to gluten leading to damage of intestinal wall
• Causes pain and poor nutrient absorption
• Occurs in 1% of population
• Increased since 1950 from 0.2% of population

Question 8

How many people claim gluten sensitivity?

Answer 8

• 20 million

- High percentage, not explained by celiac disease

Question 9

Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS), study in 2011

Answer 9

• Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Peter Gibson
• 34 subjects with IBS, not Celia but history of discomfort eating gluten
• Double-blind trial of putative gluten-free diet, half were actually gluten, those reported return of pain
• Solid scientific evidence of NCGS

Question 10

Fear of gluten

Answer 10

• Gained cultural momentum in recent times
• Sale of gluten-free products were expected to double from 2011-2016
• But there are other carbohydrates besides glucose and simple starch

Question 11

FODMAP

Answer 11

• Fermentable Oligo-Di-Monosaccharides and Polyols
• Pull water osmotically into the intestinal tract when not digested well, can be fermented by bacteria causing gas and discomfort

Question 12

What are some FODMAPS and where are they found

Answer 12

• Fructose (fruits, honey, high-frutose corn syrup)
• Lactose (dairy)
• Fructans (wheat, garlic, onion, inulin)
• Galactans (legumes, beans, lentils, soybeans)
• Polyols (sweeteners containing, mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, stone fruits such as avocado, apricots, cherries, peaches, plums)

Question 13

2013 study follow up to NCGS found what?

Answer 13

• 37 NCGS subjects diet w/o gluten and continued on diet low on FODMAP
• Then given placebo-controlled, cross-over gluten challenge
• Did not find specific or dose-dependent effects of gluten
• Raised more questions than answered
• Control of FODMAPS more complicated than one culprit: gluten

Question 14

Addition of gluten to baked goods

Answer 14

• Vital wheat gluten is powdered concentrated gluten
• added to bread to strengthen dough and help rise and increase elasticity and shelf-life
• Helps in transport of bread to places far from manufacture
• Ubiquitous in industrial commercial baking process, and as binder to soups, sauces, dressings
• Exacerbate gluten sensitivity?

Question 15

Gluten-free replacements. Are gluten free products necessarily healthy?

Answer 15

• Other flours used include rice, tapioca, corn starch, potato starch
• Often highly refined, starch mostly linear polymer of sugar
• To enhance taste more sugar, salt and fat
• So healthier???

Question 16

Other food culture phenomenon: Juicing

Answer 16

• Consume only fresh fruit and veg juice for period of time
• Advertise weight loss, detoxify, prevent illnesses
• Probably a good way to consume more veg than normal but eating is better than drinking
• juicing does not maximize nutritional benefit
• No medical basis that bodies need detox, physiology already takes care of this