By Peter Osborne, DC

Many of us believe that simply swapping regular bread, cookies, crackers, and pasta for “gluten-free” alternatives means we’re following a truly gluten-free diet—but that’s not the whole story.

Let’s debunk the top five most common myths about gluten-free foods and take a closer look at how ingredients such as corn, oats, and rice can trigger symptoms in sensitive individuals, much like a traditional English muffin.

Myth 1: If you are gluten-sensitive, you can safely eat whole grain substitutes.

Did you know that most grains, including corn (and corn oil), can contribute to a range of intestinal and health problems for those who are gluten-sensitive?

It turns out this isn’t the only protein in grains that can trigger complications. Recent research has uncovered a new mechanism by which grains affect those with sensitivity. Certain proteins, called amylase trypsin inhibitors (ATIs), can actually suppress your pancreas’ function right when it needs to be working at full capacity.

So, what exactly are these ATIs? They are natural pesticides that plants produce to protect their seeds from being eaten by predators—including us. Wheat is just one of many grains that produces these chemicals.

When your immune system detects an ATI, it treats it as an invader, launching an immune response that increases inflammation. This can lead to symptoms such as diarrhea, constipation, bloating, and flatulence.

Interestingly, ATIs might also help explain why some people who test negative for celiac disease still experience sensitivities to grains.

Myth 2: Sensitivity largely affects the gut.

Many patients and health professionals alike think gluten affects just the gut. They don’t realize that this sensitivity is a chameleon condition that can present as a host of different symptoms, from headaches to muscle pain, arthritis, and hypothyroidism. One of the most common side effects I see in my patients with sensitivity is muscle and joint inflammation, with accompanying pain.

Because gluten is a known neurotoxin, it can also stimulate neuronal antibodies. As such, if you’re sensitive to grain but continue to consume it, your body makes antibodies against its own nerve tissue, which leads to inflammation and autoimmune nerve conditions.

When the brain’s nerves are targeted, it can result in migraine headaches. If the nerves in the extremities are involved, it may lead to painful neuropathy. (Inflammation in the nerves of the wrist, for example, can contribute to conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome.)

The location and type of nerve damage determine the specific symptoms, but the underlying cause is often the same: inflammation disrupting normal nerve function.

Myth 3: Lab testing for gluten sensitivity is accurate.

There is no lab test for all of the different forms of gluten. And keep in mind, a recent study identified four hundred new forms, forty of which were more damaging than the original form for which doctors most commonly test.

The blood test that doctors use to detect reactions measures only one type of gluten found in wheat, rye, and barley—creating a potential false sense of security. Even the more progressive labs only look at a dozen distinct proteins.

The gold standard for determining sensitivity is the trial by diet—eliminate gluten completely for six months. However, if this seems too challenging, I recommend starting with a grain-free diet for at least thirty days. This shorter trial can give you a clearer sense of how your body responds and can help identify any related sensitivities.

Myth 4: Doctors are trained to test for dietary intolerances.

Why do so few doctors look for dietary intolerances as a source of chronic pain and dysfunction? Most of them simply have had little or no training in nutrition. A recent study that polled medical schools about their nutritional curriculum found:

• Only twenty-five percent of schools require a dedicated nutrition class.

• Medical students receive less than twenty hours of nutrition instruction during their whole education.

• A mere twenty-seven percent of medical schools meet the minimum twenty-five hours in nutrition required by the National Academy of Sciences. The average number is only seven hours.

This gap in nutrition education means that many doctors are ill-prepared to recognize the critical link between diet and chronic health issues.

In fact, according to mounting research, a significant proportion of people with gluten intolerance or sensitivity remain undiagnosed, with estimates suggesting that up to eighty percent of individuals with celiac disease—a severe form of gluten intolerance—may not have a confirmed diagnosis.

Myth 5: Grains are perfectly safe to eat for non-sensitive individuals.

Even absent any genetic predisposition to gluten intolerance, anyone can experience a bad reaction to the inherent qualities of grains, plus, the proteins can be a challenge to digest.

Whether or not you have an immune system reaction to grains, they can create a digestive overload, which burdens the gut. Remember, there are several reasons that grains may be problematic for most people:

• Mycotoxins—chemicals created by mold on foods such as grains and peanuts.

• Genetic hybridization and manipulation of the genes in grains.

• Glyphosate and other common pesticides used in cereal production.

• Glo-3A, serpins, purinins, globulins, and other proteins in grains that have been shown to trigger inflammation.

• Many grains contain lectins, which can irritate the gut and disrupt the function of the small intestine, where most nutrients are absorbed.

• Grains such as wheat, rice, and oats are high in compounds called phytates (or phytic acid), which can bind to minerals like calcium, iron, zinc, and magnesium if not properly prepared.

• Grains contain far more omega-6s than omega-3s, so overconsuming grains can disrupt the fatty acid ratio.

A Brief History of Bread Madness

From the 1500s to the 1700s in Europe, madness was often associated with witchcraft and referred to as bread madness. Such unfortunates may well have eaten rye bread contaminated with a fungus called ergot, which is akin to LSD.

Fifty years ago, schizophrenia was sometimes referred to as bread madness because symptoms might disappear when schizophrenics stopped eating foods made with wheat. At that time, several researchers speculated that wheat triggered or promoted schizophrenia.

Although it’s not generally accepted in the mental health field, there is evidence that people with celiac disease who also have psychiatric and neurological disorders, such as schizophrenia, ADHD, depression, and bipolar syndrome, tend to produce more antibodies to components in wheat than most people.

Several studies on people with schizophrenia have found that removing grain and dairy products (the casein molecule “looks” like gluten and can cause the same kind of reaction) from the diet improves their condition, but they relapse after reintroducing the grain and dairy products.

People with conditions such as schizophrenia and even autism seem to improve or even recover on a truly gluten-free diet, even if they don’t have celiac disease.

Although schizophrenics don’t make the antibodies that define celiac disease, they do have an inflammatory reaction to gluten. Some more provocative findings:

• There is roughly the same prevalence of celiac disease and schizophrenia in the population, but there is more celiac disease among schizophrenia patients.

• Schizophrenia patients who have a higher level of antibodies to wheat gluten may share some immunologic features of celiac disease.

• A wheat protein other than gliadin may prompt an autoimmune reaction in most people with schizophrenia.

Clearly, bread madness may not be a thing of the past.

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Video on gluten sensitivity: What Is It? Visit https://www.glutenfreesociety.org/video-tutorials/gluten-
sensitivity-what-is-it/

Peter Osborne, PScD, DACBN, is the clinical director of Origins Health Care in Sugar Land, Texas. He is the founder of Gluten Free Society and the author of Glutenology, a series of videos and ebooks designed to help educate the world about gluten. Learn more at DrPeterOsborne.com

Well Being Journal adapted the above excerpt from No Grain, No Pain by Peter Osborne, PScD, DACBN. Copyright © 2019 Atria Paperback, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. Reprinted with permission from author.