Today TriangleJr, will take a look at a seemingly growing allergy found amongst little ones in the United States.  In fact a recent study from the Penn State showed that Gluten/Celiac Disease was on the rise.

Gluten is a type of a special protein, which is commonly found in barley, rye, wheat and low level oats. In some foods, the dough is very sticky and it binds together well because of the presence of gluten. The handmade breads that have a chewy texture when chewed are created by the presence of gluten in the wheat. The development of gluten gives you a variety of foods. Gluten that has less development helps make the soft textured confectioneries. If you develop it further you get foods, which are crusty like pizzas and bagels etc. Gluten is also responsible for the breads becoming stale.

While a variety of food items are made with wheat, many people are allergic to gluten. These people usually have to eliminate particular foods from their diet.  The symptoms of gluten allergy are not similar in all cases; they often tend to differ from person to person. Some of the most common symptoms of gluten are swelling, abdominal pain, asthma, vomiting, nausea, and hives. For some people who are highly sensitive to this protein, the symptoms can be life threatening.

However, gluten allergies unlike a lot of other diseases is much easier to diagnose. With gluten allergy testing , the early diagnosis of the problem is vital in order to aid the treatment of the allergy successfully.  In order to determine whether you have gluten allergy or not, the doctors will suggest you go for some skin prick test or a blood test.  The main problem that hinders the elimination of gluten allergies is the fact that there are a large number of foods that are made with wheat and it is subsequently difficult to establish which one is causing the main bulk of the problem.

If the allergic reaction is a minor one, then reducing the amount of wheat from your diet will help; but if you have a severe problem, then the doctor may ask you to eliminate all wheat food products and by products from your diet list. If gluten allergies are diagnosed in an infant or child, there is a good chance that they will outgrow the problem as they age. In children, gluten allergies are fraught with symptoms like abdominal distention, abnormal stools, poor muscle tone, irritability and impaired growth.

Although people who are allergic to gluten might have to restrict certain food items, their deficiency of protein is made up by thiamin, iron, niacin, magnesium, selenium, riboflavin, chromium, folacin, molybdenum etc. With proper care and a restricted diet, a person who suffers from gluten allergies can live a healthy life that is free of any allergic reactions.  The next time your little one has a sweet tooth, consider a cool gluten free ice cream sandwich.

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You may have heard of the term ‘gluten’ but yet you may still be unaware of what it actually means. If you wish to find out– what is gluten, then read on to find out further information about it. What is Gluten? – ‘gluten’ is a type of protein – a special protein which is a combination of two kinds of proteins: gliadin and glutenin. This is usually found in wheat, rye and barley. Thus gluten is also found in a lot of cereals and it is also found in different types of breads. However, you should not think that all grains contain gluten, as they do not. Grains like rice, millet, buckwheat, corn etc do not have gluten in them. There are diverse types of foods that are prepared by wheat and thus have gluten in them.

What is Gluten?

Although all the gluten contained in wheat flour cannot be removed, producing wheat starch can help to eliminate a part of it. According to the FDA or the Food and Drug Administration, even if a part of gluten is removed from the product, the product is labeled as “gluten free”.  Gluten is the substance that gives the bread an elastic texture and it also gives it a chewy feel in the mouth. It also makes the dough sticky before the bread is prepared. Gluten is also an absorbent, which makes the breads capable of soaking up the broth.  It is also the same gluten in breads that is responsible for making breads stale.

It is believed that Buddhist monks in China, in the 7th century AD, discovered gluten. They used to consume wheat as a substitute for a non-vegetarian diet, which helped to keep them well nourished. Development of gluten affects the texture of many baked foods. The attainable elasticity of gluten is proportional to the amount of low molecular weight glutenins. More development of the protein gives you food like pizza, and bagels, which have a crusty taste to them. Lesser development of the gluten helps prepare tender confectioneries. The gluten strands are formed as a result of the kneading action. Gluten development takes place when the wetness of the dough increases.

Gluten is extracted from flour by thoroughly washing the starch out. If saline water is used instead of plain water, a purer blend of protein can be obtained, with few impurities going into the solution, along with the starch. Some people have an allergy towards gluten. It is suggested that they go for a gluten free diet in order to control their allergy. A gluten free diet is not a weight loss diet, but it actively helps keep the allergy away for certain people. So, that finally answers your initial question, what is gluten.

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