A bit about Gluten.

When I was still studying Nutrition, I wrote this blog post about gluten and gut sensitivity. I am re-sharing it here as digestive issues are a common problem for many people and even if not diagnosed with a specific medical condition, many people feel better for reducing wheat (and other associated products) in their diets.

 "Gluten......not a Paleo problem.

Gluten is found almost exclusively in cereal crops-not something that was part of a Paleo diet as early man did not farm.

Before I began to study Nutrition, I was aware of gluten only in relation to people who suffered from Celiac Disease and had to buy gluten-free products. Now it seems you are forever hearing of people with 'gluten sensitivity' and the supermarkets carry an ever expanding range of GF products. It has become the new normal when you go out for a meal to see 'gluten free' options on the menu.

So what exactly is it ?

Gluten is one of several proteins found in cereal crops. Wheat in particular contains gluten, wheat germ agglutinin and amaylase trypsin inhibitors.

Gluten is found in wheat and this finds it way into bread, cereals, baked goods, pasta and sauces. It's in barley so you will find it in beer, Brewers Yeast, malt products including malt vinegar and in rye so it turns up in rye bread (pumpernickle) cereals, Ryvitas etc 

Gluten as the name suggest helps food to hold it's shape and acts as a type of glue.

Although hidden in many foods, most people will think of bread when they think of gluten.

The proteins in wheat are gut irritants. They act rather like a splinter or papercut causing an inflammatory response. 

Gliadin is a component of gluten and this causes molecular mimicry. Gliadin can look like the cells that line the gut and in sensitive individuals the immune system can turn on the bodies own cells and attack them. This in turn leads to Celiac Disease, Inflammatory Bowel Disorder and Ulcerative Colitis.

It can also affect the gut microbiome-you hear a lot about the gut flora these days. If the gut is inflammed and the gut microbiome upset you can have an immune system-inflammatory response which may increase vulnerability to dementia, depression and even Alzheimers.

That list is just a few of the many gluten containing foods. Of course people have been ingesting gluten for thousands of years so why the sudden increase in reported cases of gluten sensitivity ? Is it just trendy ? Gluten seems demonized and indicated in many medical conditions. These are just some that it has been linked to.....Of course those signs and symptoms could be caused by many other conditions too so how would you know if gluten actually disagreed with you ?

I guess if after consuming food  you experienced any of the following, bloating, gas, constipation, fatigue- it shouldn't be 'normal' to feel like this after a meal.

Alongside gluten, wheat also contains Amylase Trypsin Inhibitors or ATIs for short. These produce an inflammatory immune response in the gastrointestinal tract by stimulating the immune cells. This can lead to a condition called intestinal permeability. 

Your gut allows digested food into your bloodstream and keeps anything else out (swallowed viruses, dust particles for example things you wouldn't want entering the bloodstream) Inflammation in the gut messes up this tight control and allows the gaps between the cell walls to become larger-hence other things can pass through-hence the term 'leaky gut'. Gluten also stimulates the release of a protein called zonulin which further loosens the junctions between the cell walls. Intestinal permeability is a big factor in the development of autoimmune disease.

So why the increase in gluten sensitivity ? I think it has something to do with how we have altered our cereal grains over the years. The flour that we use to make our bread and the cereals that we eat have been genetically altered, enhanced and changed over the past 50 or so years. The grain we eat is quite different from that consumed by Neolithic Man when he first began to farm. Bread production is also a very different process. Far more chemicals are sprayed on our fields. All of which could have a bearing on why more people report dietary issues connected with gluten.

One of the symptoms I found unusual which is linked to a gluten sensitivity is Keratosis pilaris-chicken skin on the back of the arms. this is caused by a fatty acid deficiency and lack of Vitamin A caused by gluten damaging the gut lining. Not a connection that I would have made.

When I was a child I loved Ryvitas. I ate loads of them-this was the time when anyone on a diet (my mother) would have turned to Ryvita and cottage cheese as part of a weight loss plan. Every time I ate them they would also give me stomach pains afterwards. My mother explained it away as being a 'windy sort of food' !

Years later I found that they caused even more abdominal pain and diarrhoea. I stopped eating them but then found that if I ate too much bread I felt bloated and uncomfortable. i wasn't studying Nutrition then and didn't make the connection......

So are you a gluten-sensitive individual-would you benefit from reducing it or eliminating it from your diet? If you suffer from any of the symptoms listed above then I can only suggest that you try removing it and see if you improve. When , as a couple, we reduced the sugar from our diet on account of Hubby having T2 diabetes, we naturally consumed a lot less bread, cereal and pasta. I did notice that my eczema cleared up and all my digestive issues vanished. Was it eating less carbs or was it that and consuming less gluten ? Carbs and gluten are often found in the same foods-particularly processed ones.

The good news though is that if blood sugar is not an issue for you there are plenty of yummy gluten-free cakes around. I tried one the other week-accidentally but it was delicious. Altogether lighter in texture.

I might become a GF convert myself."

Aconite

This is a blog post that I wrote a couple of years ago about how the homeopathic remedy aconite can be useful in treating the common cold.

Aconite

I've just shaken off a streaming cold. I don't get very many colds (fortunately) but I am only human and everyone is prone to 'picking things up' when they are over tired.

This time I decided to try homoeopathic remedies as well as my usual herbal support.

Aconite is one of the oldest homoeopathic remedies, first proved by Samuel Hahnemann and described in his Materia Medica Pura. It's a short acting remedy valuable in acute inflammatory conditions and considered a 'go to' remedy for many common colds.

Aconitum napellus is a member of the buttercup family Ranunculaceae and is a very pretty plant. It has dark blue flowers with purple sepals and there are over 100 different species. Aconitum lycotonum is known as 'wolfsbane' and was once used to kill wolves by poisoning baited meat. It has also passed into folklore with it's association with werewolves.

Some of it's common names include 'Monkshood' and .Mourning Bride' and it is one of Britain's most poisonous plants.

Why they would you consume such a toxic plant ?

Back in the 1880s Rudolf Arndt and Hugo Shultz discovered the therapeutic benefits of small doses of poisons. Where weak doses of a stimuli would stimulate healthy living systems, moderate amounts would interfere with them and large amounts destroy them. This hypothesis is recognised in pharmacology as 'hormesis' and is a dose-response phenomenon. A toxin showing hormesis has the opposite effect in small doses than in large.

Which is pretty much the same principal that homoeopathy also espouses. Doses in homoeopathic remedies are very, very dilute and therefore perfectly safe to use.

In homoeopathy aconite is described as an excellent remedy for 'sudden illness, aches, colds, coughs, sore throat, flu, chills and fever. It aids a quick recovery from colds especially if they have developed following exposure to changes in the weather. Very cold or very hot, windy or inclement weather which may results in sudden onset of sneezing, ear pain or a dry cough. The person may feel thirsty for cold drinks or present a flushed face.'

On Tuesday I felt the first inkling that I was starting a cold, by the night I was running a fever with sudden ear pain so I reached for my homoeopathic first aid kit to see what I could take. As with all homoeopathic remedies you should try to match the remedy to the symptoms but aconite seemed to fit the bill.

It is most effective if taken for the first 24-48 hours-to stop a cold in its tracks.

So of course I used all my other tried and tested cold remedies. Up the Vitamin C in take, the Zinc supplements and Echinacea to boost the immune system. I also take oregano oil capsules for the first day or so of a cold.

Oregano contains phenolic acids and flavonoids which increase resistance to bacteria and are anti-inflammatory.

Rest and drink plenty of fluids-I'm not re-inventing the wheel here. Lemon juice and honey, homemade chicken soup with lots of cayenne pepper. Homemade chicken soup contains an amino acid called cysteine which helps to thin mucous and the pepper will help raise the internal body temperature.
 Garlic is well known for colds as is cinnamon (a natural antibiotic) and turmeric for it's anti-inflammatory properties.

Some or all of the above may be helpful the next time you are fighting a cold but I'm convinced by using aconitum napellus. I felt better within three days and the cold didn't settle on my chest.

I'll be ordering in some more supplies !

New Blog !

Over the years I have kept many blogs and written many posts. My introduction to blogging began with the years I spent home educating my son. It was a useful way of recording what we had done.

 As the years passed what I wrote about morphed as I returned to the world of work and then back into education and retraining. These days my interest lie mostly in the area of complementary medicine. I spent six years studying towards qualifications in herbalism and nutrition. In recent years I have not blogged on a regular basis but I have decided to try and get back in the habit.

I have decided that Holistic Way Group could be the best place to share my blog with people who have similar interests.

Feel free to share any blog post that you feel might be of interest to others or indeed share your own blog here-if you write one !