Gluten is a buzzy protein. Here’s when you need to cut it from your diet.

Gluten has become somewhat of a buzzword in our culture.

It’s not uncommon to follow a gluten-free diet even if you aren’t medically required to do so. But what even is gluten? And why has it earned such a bad reputation?

In a world of trending diets like the ketogenic diet or the paleo diet, it’s good to determine if eating gluten-free is helpful or just another fad. We talked to experts at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to find out if gluten is really something you need to axe from your diet.

What is gluten?

Gluten is a protein naturally found in grains like wheat, barley and rye. The protein is also found in triticale, which is a newer grain that is a cross between wheat and rye. Breads, baked goods, pasta and cereals are just a few common foods that contain gluten.

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Gluten is an important agent for the structure and texture of foods. “It makes such good cakes, cookies and breads because it helps to stick all the ingredients together and trap in water molecules to give the foods that light and airy texture,” says Abi Lepolt, a registered dietitian at Cincinnati Children’s, via email.

What does gluten do to your body?

Despite gluten’s bad reputation, the protein doesn’t harm your body unless you have celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity, says Amy Reed, who is also a registered dietician at Cincinnati Children’s and a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

For people with celiac disease, gluten triggers an autoimmune response that damages the small intestine. Symptoms of celiac disease include various digestive issues and growth and development problems. The disease can also impact other parts of the body to cause a wide range of symptoms like headaches, fatigue and reproductive problems in women.

Gluten intolerance, or non-celiac gluten sensitivity, is considered less serious than celiac disease because it doesn’t cause damage to the body. Gluten-intolerant people get sick after eating gluten and may experience digestive issues.

If you don’t have one of these medical issues, then you don’t need to consider excluding gluten from your diet. Cutting out gluten can actually be harmful for people who don’t need to. “If you’re not going to have gluten, then you are excluding some foods that have health benefits,” Reed explains. Whole grains are one example. “Whole grains have some good B vitamins, they have fiber,” Reed adds.  

Why is gluten controversial?

So, if gluten isn’t bad for most people, why have gluten-free diets gone mainstream? Reed theorizes that this is related to the increase in gluten-free products for people with celiac disease. As non-celiac people started to see these products at the supermarket, they may have jumped to conclusions about the healthiness of gluten.

“I think, sometimes what happens is, when we see something is free of something, the assumption is, ‘well then it must be bad if we’re having to make foods that are free of it,’” she says. “Whereas, really, making those gluten-free foods, we’re making those products more accessible to the people who medically couldn’t have gluten.”

“It’s not that it’s bad,” she explains “It’s just bad for people who have celiac disease.”

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