At this point, everyone knows someone who is following a gluten-free diet who has either has been diagnosed with celiac disease or thinks he has some form of gluten intolerance.
Many people wonder why celiac disease has been on the rise in recent years. Many theories exist for the rise in celiac disease - many of them are false and the answer might be a combination of factors.
Alession Fasano, MD, a celiac disease expert at the University of Maryland School of Medicine cites several possible explanations for the rise:
- more gluten in the grains that we eat
- earlier exposure to gluten in childrens' diets
- variations in breast-feeding practices
- and the most popular theories involve: improvements in sanitation and sanitation in modern society (also known as the "hygiene theory" or "clean theory")
Check out a good article on the topic: http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=651247
Experts estimate that approximately 1 out of 133 people in the United States has celiac disease. That sounds like a lot when you hear it that way - however, put another way, that's 0.7% of the population. Certainly the numbers are on the rise but there are many people making assumptions that gluten-free is the diet for them and they are not necessarily making a good choice. Make sure to consult a physician before putting yourself on a gluten-free diet. If you don't need to follow the diet for medical reasons, don't! There are a lot of delicious gluten-containing items that you would miss dearly over the long run. And there is no medical justification at this time to follow a gluten-free diet unless you have some sort of intolerance to it.
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