Is gluten intolerance on the rise?

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
A

apac

Diamond Member
Apr 12, 2003
6,212
0
71
A decade ago I'd never even heard of someone being intolerant/allergic to gluten. Now it seems almost common place. I personally know 3 people who get really sick when they eat gluten.

Has it always been like this or is this a 21st century problem?
 
busydude

busydude

Diamond Member
Feb 5, 2010
8,793
5
76
apac said:
A decade ago I'd never even heard of someone being intolerant/allergic to gluten. Now it seems almost common place. I personally know 3 people who get really sick when they eat gluten.

Has it always been like this or is this a 21st century problem?
Click to expand...

Unlike lactose intolerance... Gluten intolerance is not readily apparent for a lot of people... And each person may react in a different manner.

Even today.. Diagnosing a person with gluten allergy takes a lot of time. I can only see the number of cases going up as we learn more about this.
 
C

CycloWizard

Lifer
Sep 10, 2001
12,348
1
81
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks the cilia of the small intestine while it is digesting gluten. It is still difficult to definitively diagnose since it requires an endoscopy while the person is still consuming gluten. While it has been known to exist since at least 1924, its symptoms coincide with quite a few other conditions so many people don't know they have it. Recently, some blood tests can indicate the presence of the antibodies but this is considered to be an indication rather than actual proof of the disease. My wife was diagnosed about 4.5 years ago now and has felt much better since taking gluten out of her diet. There are restaurants, stores, and food brands catering to the gluten-free crowd since a little less than 1% of the population has the disease, even if they are not yet diagnosed.
 
M

Matthiasa

Diamond Member
May 4, 2009
5,755
23
81
Hmm I am not sure what I would have done if i had that... Everything I like is high in gluten normally or is better when it is. :(
 
X

xSauronx

Lifer
Jul 14, 2000
19,582
4
81
a friend of mine realized she had a problem with gluten 3 or 4 years ago...poor thing, can't have a good beer for her life now. some of the gluten free stuff is ok, but nothing spectacular.
 
destrekor

destrekor

Lifer
Nov 18, 2005
28,799
359
126
CycloWizard said:
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks the cilia of the small intestine while it is digesting gluten. It is still difficult to definitively diagnose since it requires an endoscopy while the person is still consuming gluten. While it has been known to exist since at least 1924, its symptoms coincide with quite a few other conditions so many people don't know they have it. Recently, some blood tests can indicate the presence of the antibodies but this is considered to be an indication rather than actual proof of the disease. My wife was diagnosed about 4.5 years ago now and has felt much better since taking gluten out of her diet. There are restaurants, stores, and food brands catering to the gluten-free crowd since a little less than 1% of the population has the disease, even if they are not yet diagnosed.
Click to expand...

Also, do consider the fact that one can have gluten intolerance and NOT have Celiac disease or even a food allergy to gluten.
 
M

Minjin

Platinum Member
Jan 18, 2003
2,208
1
81
I believe that I have developed it in the past 10 years. After eating pizza, a sub, or a sandwich, I get a scratchy feeling in the back of my throat that is annoying and I end up clearing my throat for the next 30 minutes. However, it isn't annoying enough that I have changed my eating habits (though I do get complaints from people around me...).
 
Zebo

Zebo

Elite Member
Jul 29, 2001
39,398
19
81
xSauronx said:
a friend of mine realized she had a problem with gluten 3 or 4 years ago...poor thing, can't have a good beer for her life now. some of the gluten free stuff is ok, but nothing spectacular.
Click to expand...

That aint shit. Just drink whiskey. I'm lactose intolerant and have been forever. Yeah big fun when whole family went for ice cream and I got a banana or a plum.
 
D

DCal430

Diamond Member
Feb 12, 2011
6,020
9
81
Gluten Intolerance != Gluten Allergy

Also Gluten Intolerance != Celiac Disease, although if you have Celiac Disease then you are Gluten Intolerant. But being Gluten Intolerant doesn't mean you have Celiac Disease.


Also on a related thing, they did a study on allergies once, and they found the percent of people who test positive for allergies, and they percent of people who report they have allergies are very different numbers. Far more people think they have allergies to things then actually have it. So a lot of this could be psychosomatic.
 
Last edited:
M

Mark R

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
8,513
16
81
There are a number of factors to this:

1. Celiac disease - this is quite a serious condition which has vague symptoms, but is a serious form of gluten sensitivity. There is better recognition of this, and better testing available (it can now be tested for in blood with high reliability - whereas even 10 years ago, it could only be diagnosed by endoscopy [actually 2 endoscopies, but many doctors would be prepared to make a diagnosis on just one]).

2. Increasing fad/pseudoscience dietary advice. There is a large market in fad diets, self-help books, web-sites, etc. There is also a growing market for "food intolerance" testing. There has been a big advance in testing technology and labs can now measure all sorts of stuff; the vast majority, however, of what is tested for in these "food intolerance" tests does not seem to correlate to any kind of disorder or intolerance. Similarly, a lot of the advice given in these books is of debatable scientific quality.

There has been a particularly big push in the "gluten intolerance" camp, but the scientific basis for their claims is dubious, at best.

3. Increasing hypochondria in the population generally. In part, heavily promoted by the fad/pseudoscience pedlars in 2.
 
B

bfdd

Lifer
Feb 3, 2007
13,312
1
0
Gluten Intolerance is the new raw food diet etc etc. More bullshit to swindle a couple extra bucks from people. Sure it might have some benefits and the people who pimp it might actually believe it, but Scientoligists believe in Xenu too. Should I give them credit as well? Fuck no. Just like every kid was diagnosed with ADD in the late 90s and early 00s
 
Sixguns

Sixguns

Platinum Member
May 22, 2011
2,258
2
81
SlitheryDee said:
I doubt it. Hypochondria is definitely on the rise though.
Click to expand...


My mother in law right here. Claims to have everything under the sun wrong with her. This past summer she had to have surgery to fix something, dont know dont care. Doctors told her that whatever it was had been the issue all along. She was good for awhile but didnt like people no longer waiting on her hand and foot so now she has every illness in the world again.
 
D

DCal430

Diamond Member
Feb 12, 2011
6,020
9
81
Dermatitis Herpetiformis is also a form of Gluten intolerance. Many people with this also have Celiacs Disease.

Here is a picture of it:

Dermatitis_Herpetiformis_1_030330.jpg
 
M

Mark R

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
8,513
16
81
DCal430 said:
Dermatitis Herpetiformis is also a form of Gluten intolerance. Many people with this also have Celiacs Disease.
Click to expand...

It's perhaps misleading to label it as a separate form of intolerance.

Most docs would regard dermatitis herpetiformis as a symptom of celiac disease, rather than a different condition. (Although, dermatitis herpetiformis can be seen in a number of other diseases).
 
D

DCal430

Diamond Member
Feb 12, 2011
6,020
9
81
Mark R said:
It's perhaps misleading to label it as a separate form of intolerance.

Most docs would regard dermatitis herpetiformis as a symptom of celiac disease, rather than a different condition. (Although, dermatitis herpetiformis can be seen in a number of other diseases).
Click to expand...

All people with DH are intolerant to Gluten. Those other diseases are just also associated with Gluten Intolerance. There are people who have DH who do not have Celiacs disease. They have gluten intolerance without Celiacs disease. You can also have DH without having any other disease.

I know someone who has DH, they do not have another disease. They are Gluten Intolerant and eat a Gluten free diet.
 
Last edited:
P

PsiStar

Golden Member
Dec 21, 2005
1,184
0
76
I like to study allergies versus ancestry ... I am an amateur tho & do let the interest drop for long periods. As an example, lactose intolerance is more common than the tolerance. People's ancestry that were not around cattle are typically lactose intolerant ... thinking about that a half second even makes sense.

I have not investigated gluten sensitivity, but I suspect that better diagnosis is a factor at recognizing the issues. An aging population may also make it more likely to occur. And, I'll bet that having ancestry not in areas where wheat/oats/rye were dominant crops is a strong correlation. Making it even more complicated is that there are different varieties of each grain that can have their own contribution.

A quick search gives "Aspirin sensitivity and wheat allergy" ... so with some people exercising more there might be an increasing number of cases ... maybe that bowl of cereal in the AM and you workout regularly and you have developed some skin issues might be worth investigating.

Medical science is more art than science.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom