So I was thinking about what to post about this week. The same stuff has been going on around our farm so nothing new to report there, Matt's sister Moe didn't have any suggestions (shame on her!) and I wasn't coming up with anything to post about. We were on the way home from my parents this morning. I was driving and Matt was reading a farm magazine and I glanced over and saw the title, "The Truth about Gluten". The lightbulb came on for me. What a very common buzzword. A lot of people are affected by it and several more are on gluten-free diets. I know very little about gluten. Therefore, this blog will be about the information that I have learned about gluten. I hope you learn as much as I have. Most of my information is coming out of the Southwest Farm Press, Thursday, June 5, 2014 edition. Their website is www.southwestfarmpress.com. However, the information is also backed up with scientific research I've found on the internet.
So what is gluten, first of all? Gluten is a protein found in cereal grains like wheat, rye and barley. It is responsible for the elasticity of dough. Gluten isn't bad! A lot of people think this, but it's not! Some people are gluten intolerant. What most have probably heard about is celiac disease. This disease affects 1 out of 141 people in the U.S. This is less than 1% of the population. Gluten makes these people have an immune response that harms their intestines. This makes them unable to absorb the vital nutrients and can cause very serious health problems. Celiac disease if 4 times more common than just 60 years ago. Research into out gut bacteria is occurring to see if this might be the reason more people are gluten intolerant.
There are normally two types of people that don't like gluten. The first, of course, being the celiac disease patients. The other being non-celiac gluten sensitivity group. This is the the condition that people promoting a wheat-free lifestyle say affects everyone. However, research show that it is actually quite rare. According to this article, Dr. Guandalini states, "Around 0.5 percent of people react to gluten in a way that is not a food allergy but is also not celiac."
Another doctor, "Dr. Alessio Fasano, one of the world's top scientists in celiac disease and director of the Center for Celiac Research at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, explained, 'Some people simply don't react well to gluten and feel better when it's removed from the diet. Unfortunately, there is no test for NCGS and this is part of why going gluten-free has become the answer to all that ails us digestively and otherwise. It's unfortunate because there are a lot of causes besides gluten for digestive issues.'"
So why do people push a gluten-free diet? One of the biggest trends is because of weight loss. People wanting to incorporate a gluten-free diet into their lives need to be exceptionally careful. According to Pam Cureton with Boston's Center for Celiac Research, "Eliminating wheat products (bread, rolls, cereals, pasta, tortillas, cakes, cookies, crackers) will result in fewer calories, but important nutrients like B-vitamins (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and folic acid), iron and fiber will also be lost. Grains provide 43 percent of the fiber in the U.S. diet and wheat is approximately three-quarters of the grains eaten in the U.S. Nutritionally, many gluten-free products are not equal replacements for their wheat-containg counterparts." She goes on to advise gluten-free dieters to consult a skilled dietician to be sure that there is a way for them to get their nutritional needs taken care of with such a difficult diet plan.
Gluten-free lifestyle promoters turn to the farmer to place blame. The "recent wheat breeding practices have led to higher, more 'toxic' types of wheat. They believe that such practices are increasing the rates of celiac and gluten sensitivity, even though you must have a gene to develop celiac disease." "Wheat like all food plants we eat, has undergone farmer selection and traditional breeding over the years. The hybridization that led to bread wheat occurred 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. All cultivated wheat varieties, both modern and heirloom varieties, have these hybridization events in common, so the kinds of protein (and gluten) present in today's varieties reflect the proteins present throughout the domestication process of wheat." This if from Brett Carver, PhD, wheat genetics chair in Agriculture at Oklahoma State University.
Many doctors and celiac specialists are very frustrated with the promotion of a gluten-free diet and the link back to farmers for being the reason for celiac disease. You must have a gene in order to have celiac disease. "Genetically modified wheat is not commercially available anywhere in the world. Wheat has been, and continues to be, a life-saving grain for most people," says Dr. Guandalini.
In conclusion, this article reiterates the fact that "most consumers can eat and enjoy the many varieties of wheat foods available without any negative impacts. And, luckily, for the few who can't, there are gluten-free options. For the vast majority of consumers, going gluten-free can be expensive, less nutritious and just plain unnecessary. The bottom line: gluten is a complex plant protein found in some of the most popular foods, and for most, it is an essential component of a balanced, healthy diet."
Be sure to look up the article. I did a lot of paraphrasing and direct quoting from the article. As with any food decision you make, take the time to do thorough research on what you are contemplating changing. Don't read one article, website or blog and believe it. Go to several sources and compare information. If at that point you decide that you want to change you and your families diet based upon that research, be sure that you consult a dietician to make sure you aren't going to be harming your families by leaving out essential nutrients. There's enough room in this world for everyone to make your own choices. I don't have to like what you choose and you don't have to like what I choose. I just ask that you don't try to force your decisions on me and mine. I don't have a problem with education or a conversation about why it is that we chose what we chose, but don't try to make laws saying I can't do something just because you decide it's the best way for your life.
Wheat harvest is approaching. Stay tuned for an upcoming blog with lots of pictures detailing our wheat harvest. My sister and brother-in-law and family live in Abilene, Kansas, so wheat harvest is a lot bigger deal for them then it is for us here in NE Kansas. Unfortunately, weather took a lot of their wheat crop this year. As farmers that live on an income that comes from the land and can't be protected from the weather conditions, every rain storm, every hail stone, every tornado, every bit of wind can be the weather event that loses our crop for the year. There's nothing we can do except try again next year and hope and pray for better weather conditions.
My recipe for the week, in honor of the wheat and gluten blog comes from one of my best friends (she's getting married in a couple weeks! So excited for her and her next journey in life), is Country Biscuits.
Country Biscuits
2 cups flour
1 T. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup softened butter of crisco
1 egg
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees Farenheit. In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. With a pastry blender cut in butter until mixture is course/crummy. In a small bowl whisk egg and milk. Add to the large bowl and mix together. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead. Roll it out and cut. Bake on a greased baking sheet for 10-14 minutes or until golden brown. Then enjoy.
I'm not a very good cook and not great with dough, but these are fantastic and fairly simple to make for even an inexperienced dough handler. I couldn't live without bread. It's one of my absolute favorite foods. Doesn't matter what kind of bread. It's all great.
I hope you have learned something from this blog. I certainly did! It's so important for us to know the reasons we're making the decisions we do. Know the background and facts about your choices so when someone asks you, you can give detailed and concise information. (I'm often flawed in this category.) Writing this blog gives me the excuse to sit down and do thorough research on the topics I'm not familiar with. I so often take for granted the fact that I know a lot about how animals and crops are raised, but too often don't follow through with knowing about the different types of beef (like my Beef Month blog) or details about gluten. Thank you for reading the blog and giving me a reason to become more knowledgeable!
Hope you all have a great week and enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment