Archive for the ‘Research’ Category
August 26th, 2011 by Peter Bronski
In Part 1 of this article about nutrient deficiencies in the gluten-free population, I posed four critiques and questions that I promised to answer in today’s part 2. Without further ado, here we go…
Critique #1 questioned the small sample size of the research. I can’t do anything about that, and there’s not much to be said about it, so let’s move on.
Next, I think it’s easiest to address critique #3: How did nutrient deficiencies in the gluten-free population compare to Americans as a whole? To answer that question, I pulled data regarding nationwide averages from the USDA’s Community Nutrition Mapping Project. If I amend yesterday’s table that showed the percent of the gluten-free population who are deficient in given nutrients, and add to it a column for the national averages, this is what you find:
| Nutrient |
GF Deficiency |
Nationwide Deficiency |
| fiber |
74% |
92% |
| calcium |
82% |
69% |
| thiamin |
59% |
19% |
| riboflavin |
25% |
11% |
| B6 |
35% |
26% |
| folate |
85% |
40% |
| B12 |
29% |
20% |
| iron |
41% |
11% |
These numbers change the perspective a bit, I think. It’s not simply that the gluten-free population is nutrient deficient. When you compare us to the national averages, it gets slightly more complex. In some cases, such as folate, riboflavin, thiamin, and iron, we’re two or more times as deficient (as a group) than the nation. However, in other cases, such as B12, B6, and calcium, we still have greater rates (more…)
Tags: Diet, Gluten Sensitivity, Health, Lifestyle, Nutrition, Research, Vitamins
Category: Diet, Gluten free, Gluten Sensitivity, Nutrient deficiencies, Research, Uncategorized, Vitamins
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August 25th, 2011 by Peter Bronski
I was recently reading a press release from Nature’s Path Organic about two of their new cereals. The press release made a familiar argument: the cereals “provide gluten avoiders with whole grains… unlike many gluten-free cereals which forfeit nutritional benefits…” The implication is that many gluten-free cereals (and other gluten-free processed foods, by extension) are more highly processed in order to improve taste and texture. But they do so by sacrificing nutritional quality.
There is some truth to this logic. Foods made from whole grains are inherently healthier than heavily processed foods, and I’ll use our good old enemy – wheat – to demonstrate. I compared whole grain wheat flour (less processed) with white, unenriched wheat flour (more processed) across a range of nutrient measures. Not surprisingly, the wheat underwent a profound loss in (more…)
Tags: Diet, Gluten Sensitivity, Health, Lifestyle, Nutrition, Research, Vitamins
Category: Gluten Sensitivity, Health, Lifestyle, Research, Vitamins
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August 7th, 2011 by Jennifer Slack
Mary Klinnert, PhD at National Jewish Health
I recently had the pleasure of meeting Mary Klinnert, PhD at National Jewish Health. Mary is an expert in child psychology and has numerous previous research studies on the effects of asthma on mental health. She started her career mostly focusing on asthma, but in recent years, has turned much of her attention to the psychological aspects of living with life threatening food allergies.
While meeting with Mary, she briefed me on a study she is conducting on the psychological aspects of food allergies and how this study differs from the majority of previous studies that mostly focus on quality of life issues related to living with food allergies. The hope of Mary and the rest of the team is to get to the root of what is happening to families that sometimes contributes to deeper (more…)
Tags: Anxiety, Families, Gluten free, Health, Lifestyle, Research
Category: Anxiety, Children, Gluten free, Health, Lifestyle, Research, Symptoms, Treatment
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June 20th, 2011 by Cleo Libonati, RN, BSN
The suitability of oats as part of the gluten-free diet has been a source of controversy, with some groups pointing to research suggesting oats are safe and others pointing to other research demonstrating oats are dangerous to those with celiac disease. Close inspection of available medical research clearly shows that oats, even “gluten-free” oats, should not be included in the gluten-free diet at this time.
Until the early 1990’s, oats were excluded from the gluten-free diet, along with wheat, barley and rye. Then, a few pilot studies suggested oats may not cause the harm previously thought. The idea was proposed that people with celiac disease would find their diet more palatable, and would benefit nutritionally, if they were allowed to eat oats.
Heavy contamination of many oat products with wheat, rye, and particularly barley, was a concern. Companies began to produce so-called “gluten-free oats.” These oats were tested for the presence of wheat, barley and rye. They are vigorously marketed as “safe” for celiacs. However, studies show that even “uncontaminated oats” (oats not containing wheat, barley or rye) are toxic to an unknown number of people with celiac disease.
Early studies proclaimed oats to be safe, but they have since been judged faulty with poor validity. Nevertheless, they opened the floodgates to (more…)
Tags: Diet, Gluen free diet, Gluten, Gluten free, Oats, Research
Category: Celiac disease, Diet, Gluten, Gluten free, Research
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April 12th, 2011 by Jennifer Harris
The Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University invites you to participate in a research study looking at individuals’ knowledge of genetic testing of celiac disease and their potential concerns with such testing. The goal of this study is to increase understanding of the factors associated with making an informed decision regarding such testing and to better provide the necessary information to make such a decision.
A brief
survey has been developed to address some of these factors. The survey only takes five minutes to complete, it is anonymous, and no identifying information is collected.
Tags: Celiac disease, Columbia University, Peter Green, Research
Category: Celiac disease, Research
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April 8th, 2011 by John Libonati
The following article was written by Erika Gebel and reprinted by permision from Chemical and Engineering News.
Celiac Disease and Gluten Sensitivity Often Go Undiagnosed
Judging by their symptoms, people with celiac disease could have food poisoning, depression, or iron deficiency. As a result, doctors often have trouble diagnosing the serious immune disorder. To develop a better test for the disease, researchers have made a device that can detect nanograms of gluten antibodies, the hallmarks of celiac disease, in human (more…)
Tags: Celiac disease, Celiac disease tests, Celiac research, Diagnosis, Gluten sensitivity tests, News, Research, Testing
Category: Celiac disease, News, Research, Testing
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April 5th, 2011 by Cleo Libonati, RN, BSN
Sores from acid reflux
Researchers in Switzerland have made the welcome discovery that the essential nutrient zinc effectively inhibits gastric acid secretion in humans.
The researchers were investigating whether zinc could lead to a rapid and sustained increase of stomach pH (more alkaline) in both animals and humans and provide a rapid acid suppression therapy. They demonstrated that zinc offers a new and prolonged therapy for (more…)
Category: Acid Reflux, Remedies, Research, Vitamin B3 (Niacin) Deficiency, Zinc Deficiency
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March 24th, 2011 by Dr. Scot Lewey
In the first double blind randomized placebo-controlled study of gluten and symptoms in people without celiac disease, researchers from Australia have confirmed that gluten is a trigger of digestive symptoms and fatigue. They concede that “non-celiac gluten intolerance” may exist.
The researchers challenged and re-challenged people with IBS in whom celiac disease had been excluded whose symptoms were controlled on a gluten-free diet. These individuals were randomized to gluten-free diet with daily supplements of muffins and bread with a standard amount of gluten added or not added. Both the patients and the (more…)
Tags: Chronic fatigue, Gluten, Gluten free, IBS, Research, Symptoms
Category: Gluten free, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Research, Symptoms
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February 22nd, 2011 by Jennifer Harris
Adults that have been diagnosed with Celiac Disease are being sought to participate in a study to identify factors associated with the development of Celiac Disease. The goal of the study is to find the genes that may predispose individuals to develop this autoimmune disease. Adults eligible to participate in this study must have been diagnosed with Celiac Disease through a small intestinal biopsy. Spouses may also be eligible to participate.
Participants will be asked to provide a blood sample, complete a questionnaire, and provide medical records regarding their diagnosis. There is no cost to (more…)
Tags: Celiac disease, Research
Category: Celiac disease, Research
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October 28th, 2010 by Cleo Libonati, RN, BSN
Editor’s note:
In the following medical research study, healthy participants were enrolled to examine the effects of vitamin D on insulin production and use in the body. This research shows that:
1) Vitamin D plays an important role in insulin sensitivity in the body, and deficiency of vitamin D hampers production of insulin hormone by beta cells in the pancreas.
2) People with vitamin D deficiency are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes mellitus. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is characterized by lack of insulin sensitivity in body tissues and inadequate production of insulin hormone in the pancreas. (more…)
Tags: Diabetes, Research, Symptoms, Vitamin D, Vitamin D deficiency
Category: Diabetes, Research, Vitamin D, Vitamin D Deficiency
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