Gluten Intolerance Symptoms (A Background View)
Gluten intolerance symptoms, correctly recognized and understood, may save you from illnesses which destroy the quality of your life, because then you will know what to do to obtain relief.
Gluten comprises of the proteins glutenin and gliadin, and they are present in rye, barley and wheat. Make no mistake about this. Gluten is a protein. This means that gluten will also appear in products which contain these grains.
Gluten intolerance, which is a broad term which covers different kinds of intolerance to gluten, is that condition where your body has difficulty digesting foods containing gluten. That is why you will notice persons using the terms gluten allergy, gluten intolerance and celiac disease interchangeably. But there are differences involved.
Gluten allergy symptoms will resemble other allergy responses and will include sneezing, watery eyes, sniffing etc.
Gluten intolerance symptoms however, are entirely different. Gluten sensitivity symptoms will manifest after a prolonged use of gluten and appear like nutritional deficiency.
Celiac disease also triggers immune system reactions similar to gluten intolerance. In fact, you may test negative for celiac disease and still be gluten intolerant. This is called Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NGGS). Of the totalnumber of persons who exhibit gluten intolerance,a small percent will eventually display symptoms of celiac disease.
To make matters worse, gluten intolerance is very much under diagnosed and many doctors do not even consider looking for it since the symptoms can be associated with many other conditions. It make take years before your doctor may stumble on the fact that is gluten which is the problem.
The immune response to gluten damages the inner wall of the small intestine by flattening the finger-like villi which actually absorb nutrients from food. When these villi are destroyed the ability to absorb any food is impaired and you will suffer signs of malnutrition. There will be problems for the entire body, and this is what makes gluten intolerance or celiac disease so damaging to the quality of life.
When the damage to the small intestines are visible in a biopsy it is called Celiac disease or celiac sprue or gluten sensitive enteropathy.
It is recommended that you consult your doctor to undergo tests to determine whether you have celiac disease or are gluten intolerant.
What Are Gluten Intolerance Symptoms?
Don't let all this confuse you for we are now going to look specifically at what are gluten intolerance signs. The improper digestion of nutrients, due to the impaired intestine walls will produce symptoms such as:
•Bloating
•Flatulence
•Abdominal pain
•Diarrhea or
•Constipation
•Itchy rashes
•Pain in the joints
•Nausea (sometimes with vomiting)
•Frequent infections like colds, flu, sinus infections, eye infections such as conjunctivitis, vaginal infections and urinary tract infections. All because the immune system function is impaired when there is damage to the tissue in the small intestine which also houses much of the body's immune system.
•Excessive fatigue
•Weight loss
•Depression
There will also be nutritional deficiencies. For instance you will experience:
1.Anemia without any apparent reason
2.B12 deficiency
3.Low blood calcium levels
4.Vitiamin D deficiency
5. Magnesium deficiency
The great danger is that the conditions listed may each be treated in isolation and therefore the big and true picture may not be seen.
Gluten sensitivity may be present in babies and older children and may be overlooked or you may think that the children will eventually outgrow them. This is dangerous as there are severe consequences to the mal absorption especially in children.
Gluten intolerance signs in babies include:
a)Muscle wasting
b)Poor feeding
c)Distended or bloated abdomen
d)Unusually slow weight gain
In older children you may notice:
a.Vomiting
b.Irritability
c.Lack of proper feeding
d.Constant constipation of diarrhea
As was stated earlier for adults, the misdiagnosis of gluten intolerance will exacerbate the problem when the solution is so fantastically simple. The complete elimination of all gluten products forms your diet.
This may be easier said than done but there is a growing gluten-free industry which makes this step less harrowing.
Apart form the well-known gluten products such as bagels, biscuits, bread,breaded fish, meats and poultry, cereal, cake, etc, you will be surprised to know that gluten can also be found in the following products:
• Potato chips
• Beverage mixes
• Canned baked beans
• Cold cuts
• Ice cream
• Fruit fillings
• Beer
• Packaged cereals, even corn cereals
• Commercially prepared broth
• Commercially prepared chocolate milk
• Commercially prepared soup
• Pudding
• Gravy
• Gum
• Hot dogs
• Custard
• Root beer
• Bologna
• Syrups
• Salad dressing
To avoid damage to your health and no further attacks of these symptoms, you must now pay close attention to everything you eat.
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