Today I went home to eat dinner with my family. As I have already gushed about in previous blogs, my dad is an amazing cook, and tonight was so exception. He made one of the prettiest pizzas that you could ever imagine, but while I was halfway through my first slice, he informed us all that it was gluten free. Gluten free? I had no idea what gluten was (other than the fact that it was an ingredient in my bread recipe), but I did know that some people were allergic to it. Well for all those who are as naive as I am, gluten is a protein found in wheat. It is used to bind substances together, and people with a wheat-gluten allergy react to one of the proteins found in the wheat. Sounds fun right? My dad told me that a gluten allergy wasn't discovered until around WWII. A doctor realized that while most people who were not receiving enough nutrients felt worse, as they should, many felt better. This was because they were not ingesting the gluten. Once these people began eating what they thought were healthier food, they felt ill again. The doctor narrowed the issue down to wheat, and then from wheat to the gluten in wheat. Interesting! Now symptoms of a gluten allergy may include; Abdominal pain, cramps, bloating, headache, and hives, just to name a few. So be careful, and if you believe you may have a wheat-gluten allergy then follow a gluten free diet.
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