The more we learn about leaky gut syndrome and gluten sensitivity, the more we question which came first, the gluten sensitivity or an overgrowth of Candida?
Gluten free diets may be all the craze right now, but there is a good reason for this. Many people are finding they feel better and their health improves when they remove gluten from their diets.
What Is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein that is made up of gliadin and glutenin. It acts as an emulsifier and it helps to bind food together. Wheat is the most commonly eaten grain that contains gluten, but the list of gluten grains is actually pretty long. It includes:
- Wheat
- Barley
- Bulgur
- Einkorn
- Emmer
- Farina
- Farro
- Kamut
- Mir
- Rye
- Seitan
- Semolina
- Spelt
- Triticale
Many people who react to gluten are also sensitive to oats. Although oats do not contain gluten, the protein in oats is similar. Also, to avoid gluten with oats it is necessary to purchase gluten free oats and most oats are processed in the same plants as wheat and other gluten containing grains. Cross contamination is pretty much guaranteed if the oats are not gluten free.
In addition to oats, many gluten sensitive individuals react to cow dairy. Some are sensitive to other gluten free grains.
Note that couscous is made of wheat and malts are made of gluten grains. Learn the various names of wheat to avoid it. (See link below.)
What Is Candida?
Candida albicans is a yeast that is found in most humans. A healthy gut contains an abundance of good (beneficial) bacteria that keeps Candida in check, not allowing it to overgrow. If this balance is disturbed (generally through antibiotic use or ingesting too much sugar) Candida overgrows.
Through its metabolic process, Candida releases harmful toxins. As it grows it changes forms from a one-celled yeast to a form with filaments or threads that can cut right through tissues and single cells. It destroys the biofilm lining the intestines and can drill right through the gut wall. Proteins and food particles that never would pass through the villi now enter the bloodstream.
The body reacts to these invading, unnatural substances as if they were pathogens. This release of gluten proteins into the blood may well explain the rise in numbers of gluten sensitive people. Candida is ravaging the health of Americans and is rampant due to our overuse of antibiotics and the outrageously high sugar content in the typical American diet.
To learn more about Candida and how to heal the gut read How to Kill Candida and Balance Your Inner Ecosystem.
For a full list of grains and whether or not they contain gluten, check out this list from the Celiac Support Organization.
Recommended Supplements:
- Floramend-Prime by Thorne
- Shillington’s Intestinal Cleanse
- Formula SF722
- MicroDefense – Pure Encapsulations
Further Reading:
- Is Wheat Poison? What’s Behind the Rise of Celiac Disease and Gluten Intolerance
- How to Kill Candida and Balance Your Inner Ecosystem
- The Fascinating Bacteria in our Gut, and How it Affects Our Whole Lives
- The Reasons Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Disease Are On the Rise
- How to Cure Candida
- Fermented Foods Optimize Your Health
- No More Gluten – How I Found Health After MS
- How Gluten can Affect Your Brain, Gut, and Skin
Sources:
- Gluten Intolerance – GBhealthWatch
- Professor Anne Ferguson (Anne Collee) 1941-1998 – Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology & Nutrition
- Gene-Environment Interaction – National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
- Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases II: Celiac sprue and gluten intolerance – National Center for Biotechnology Information
- Celiac Disease Genes Identified In Immune System – Medical News Today
- The Biology of . . . Sourdough – Discover Magazine
- Sources Of Gluten – Celiac Disease Foundation
- Celiac Disease – Food Allergy Research and Resource Program
Latest posts by Joel Edwards (see all)
- Nurses Against Circumcision - February 13, 2019
- Nurses Against Vaccines - May 24, 2016
- Vaccine Propaganda Vs Vaccine Truth - April 16, 2016