Gluten Free is not healthy? Blasphemy –you must think someone has hijacked my blog, but it’s true. Just because a food is gluten free does not mean it is healthy.
Sadly, the recent popularity of “gluten free” has many thinking that if they eliminate gluten, they are on a healthy diet. As Michael Pollan wrote last year in the New York Times Magazine, “Gluten has become the bad nutrient of the moment.”
I think it’s time for those of us in the gluten free blogoshpere to admit that villainizing one ingredient is not enough when it comes to eating well.
With all of the hype surrounding gluten free, no one mentions the dirty little secret of the Standard Gluten Free Diet. Few realize that when it comes to gluten free baked goods such as bread, snacks, and desserts, gluten free food is not as nutritious as “regular” food. That’s because gluten free goods are generally made with ingredients such as rice, corn, potatoes, sorghum, tapioca and millet, which are higher in carbohydrates and lower in protein and other nutrients than wheat flour. Sad, but true. The typical gluten free ingredients that are used in place of wheat are less nutritious than wheat itself.
The Gluten Free diet is a very specific requirement for very specific people –those with celiac, gluten intolerance or gluten sensitivity. People with these conditions have to eliminate gluten from their diets to make sure their body doesn’t deteriorate. Let’s remember though, that doing so doesn’t actually speak to eating the diet and consuming the foods that allow your body to thrive. Those are two separate things. Therefore, the millions of Americans jumping on the gluten free bandwagon, who believe that eliminating one ingredient is a quick fix are short changing themselves.
If you have any of the above conditions (and it’s a good idea to go to a doctor and get tested if you think you might) remove gluten from your diet. For that matter, if something makes you feel sick, get it out of your diet! However, if you think eliminating one food gives you a free pass to eat processed gluten free goods made from rice, corn, etc., and that this will make you healthy, guess again.
The best path to wellness is a well rounded diet which includes many foods –it is far more work than simply bastardizing one ingredient, such as gluten.
What does eating healthy entail? Consuming a diverse array of nutrient dense foods every day; day after day. When I was a little girl, my Dad told me to eat the rainbow. So I’m staying away from fad diets and sticking with Dad’s advice. I have to agree with him, eating close to the earth is, and always has been, the way to go.
Robin says
I had blood allergy tests done a couple of years ago, which indicated no allergy to gluten at all. I was surprised to see that maybe my gluten issue just didn’t show up in the type of test my doctor ordered! I think eliminating SUGAR is the secret, along with a gluten free diet and I am also lactose intolerant, so no dairy. I am eating quinoa, which is a seed, with black beans, etc. Thanks for ideas on other foods to eat. My issue now is variety and what to do at parties. I have no will power, so avoiding the pain is what motivates me to eat properly.
Emma-Jane says
If I had the choice I would chose to eat gluten and not emit it from my diet completely! I am one of those Coeliac disease sufferers (spelled with an ‘o’ in the UK) that can’t eat wheat, barley, rye or spelt, I don’t eat it because I’d rather feel well in myself than feel ill by eating something I shouldn’t.
It seems that it’s become a fad with people who don’t have an intolerance not to eat gluten, this to me is madness!! Eating a reduced amount for slimming purposes I can understand but not cutting it out completely, why would you purposely cut something out of your diet that you can eat if it’s going to make you ill doing so?!
Danielle @ Against All Grain says
Well said as usual Elana! I think for a lot of people, myself included, the initial shock of going gluten-free (and even more with grain-free!) is so much to handle that all of the processed foods look like a God-send. Once you start to re-learn how to cook and recognize what those ingredients actually are though, it is bad news! Thanks for putting this out there. I have family and friends asking me all the time if they should go “off gluten” to lose weight or if they should order the gluten-free pizza to be “healthier”. :)
mary says
Well siad
mary says
Well said….and sooo true…also the fact they stuff gf with sugar!
Jenny says
Thank you for this helpful post!
Amy says
Thanks for posting this. I work in the supplement department of a large health food store, and something that we see over and over and over again is the person who was told 6 months ago to avoid gluten and is now experiencing digestive difficulties, vaginal yeast infections, and/or immune problems such as increased allergies. All of these symptoms can be traced to an increase in sugar/starch and a decrease in protein and fiber, which is what results from switching to gluten free flours and processed foods.
Stop eating sugar and grains! Focus on leaves and stems. Use spinach and zucchini instead of gluten free pasta under your marinara sauce. Wrap your sandwiches in iceberg or romaine lettuce instead of bread.
Ann says
I use the cyrex labs test to test my clients for gluten. It is a great test and everyone should do it. Interestingly, 90% of my clients test for GS. I recommend to every client to take out gluten. If they can prove to me that they are fine with it … then eat it. If you are sensitive to gluten you may not have symptoms now but you will hit a wall at some point. There is good evidence that gluten causes autoimmunity. Gluten is really not a safe food for anyone to eat. However, gluten is just the start of things to remove from the diet and the number one thing that people should be looking at is PUFA.
sara says
Agreed! PUFA’s seem to cause more inflammation (which leads to all diseases) than gluten. I don’t think there’s much benefit to eating any grain – veggies, fruits, meats, even dairy contain more nutrition. But PUFA’s (and too much sugar) cause a lot of problems.
CJ says
Thank you to all who have admitted to eating crappy processed GF foods. I am currently in that horrible self-sabatoge rut with Diet Coke, Snickers, and Lays potato chips….all GF but sooo bad for you. This is the result of the intolerance diagnosis and the anger phase of loss; sad but true. I had no idea that I had food on such a pedestal until something like bread was taken away. I know that this phase is not permanent but am grateful to know that I am not the only one. I look forward to being GF AND healthy.
Kate@ eatrecyclerepeat says
Healthy to me means whole foods – nothing from a box, overpackaged, refined, or processed. No separating vitamins and minerals into extra supplements – merely eating food as it was meant to be consumed. Pasture-raised meats and eggs, pesticide, GMO, and chemical free fruits and vegetables, sustainable seafood, coconut, tubers like sweet potatoes, and the occasional refined-sugar-free treat. I’m not sure if stevia can be counted as a whole food, but right now it is a lifesaver in my diet.