Written By: Nirmalya Dutta | Updated : February 25, 2015 2:16 AM IST
Singer-turned-fashion designer Victoria Beckham, actress Gwyneth Paltrow and tennis player Novak Djokovic are all followers of a wheat-free diet. A lot of commoners seem to be following suit. Sales of 'free-from' foods are up 33 percent at online shopping grocery store Asda as gluten, wheat and dairy free diets hit the mainstream, doubling the sales growth of 2013, reports femalefirst.co.uk. With 12 million Britishers buying gluten-free products, there is an increase of 120 percent over the past five years. (Read: A shot to cure intolerance to gluten?)
Experts at Asda have witnessed a change in consumerism where shoppers choose gluten-free products over others as a part of their healthy lifestyle, rather than considering it a medical necessity. Britishers have been influenced looking at celebrities such as Victoria and Jennifer Aniston, who follow wheat-free and gluten-free diets. In fact, Paltrow is known to ensure that the whole family avoids gluten. Read Djokovic's gluten-free tale Choker to Djoker
What is gluten?
Gluten is a protein composite found in foods processed from wheat which holds the material together. It is found in bread, pasta, pizza, rotis and a lot of other food items. For people suffering from gluten intolerance or celiac disease (an auto-immune disorder of the small intestine), the only option is to switch to a completely gluten-free diet.
What happens to gluten intolerant people if they eat it?
If a person with celiac disease eats gluten, the lining of their small intestine is damaged which prevents the absorption of nutrients and leads to malnutrition and weight loss. Similar issues can occur with people suffering from gluten intolerance. It can be hard to track the disease because people suffering from these ailments are often misdiagnosed. It's often confused with irritable bowel syndrome. (Is the gluten-free diet just a fad?)
What food has gluten?
Anything made of barley, rye or wheat has gluten. This means rotis, bread, bagels, cakes, candies, some cereals, pasta, pizzas and even certain alcoholic drinks contain gluten.
Gluten-free food
There are many naturally-occurring gluten-free foods like seeds, nuts (unprocessed), beans, eggs, meat, veggies, dairy and corn that are naturally gluten-free. In fact, our Indian diet has many such items. Nutritionist Naini Setalvad told TOI, 'We have many substitutes likebajra, jowar,ragi, rajgira, singhadaatta, white poha, kurmura and sabudana'. Various alternative grains such as soya, quinoa and rice flours are also gluten-free.
So is the gluten-free diet for you?
Only try this diet if your dietician, doctor or nutritionist recommends it and not as a fad diet even if a sportsman of Djokovic's stature endorses it.
Also read more about fad diets:
With inputs from IANS
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