Unless you have Celiac Disease, your sensitivity to “gluten” probably has nothing to do with gluten at all.
Your gluten sensitivity may not be caused by gluten. A recent study shows that the real culprit could be fructan. Fructan is a type of carbohydrate. You can find it in grains like wheat, rye, and barley. But it’s also in gluten-free foods like agave, artichokes, asparagus, garlic, leeks, and onion.
Researchers put fructan and gluten to the test with 59 people. The people weren’t allergic to gluten but they ate gluten-free due to digestion sensitivity.
Over 6 weeks, all participants tried 3 different muesli bars: Bar 1: Contained gluten, bar 2: Contained fructan, and bar 3: No gluten or fructan.
Participants rated how each bar affected their digestion. Here’s how the bars stacked up: 24 people experienced the most discomfort from the fructan bar. 22 people experience the most discomfort from the placebo. 13 people experienced the most discomfort from the gluten bar.
This was a small study, but it’s the latest in a growing body of research. The take-home message? We may have been wrong about gluten all along.
