We are all creatures of habit, but when it comes to our food selections we can make "CRAZY" decisions. Gluten can be very difficult to give up because of a little talked about compound it contains. Often this compound can lead to addiction to wheat. Similar compounds can lead to addiction to dairy and soy as well. If the proper testing is not done - dire health consequences can be yours due to irrational decisions.
Several years ago a patient presented with migraine headaches and irritable bowel syndrome. Testing revealed she had gluten and dairy sensitivity and that she had gluten intolerance. This patient complied with the necessary dietary restrictions of removing gluten from her diet. She lost a great deal of weight and even ended up weighing what she did in high school! She felt great, looked great and was very happy.
This patient stayed with her treatment program and I thought she fully was on board with being gluten free for life.
Little by little she cheated on her diet. She regained weight, developed headaches again and her irritable bowel syndrome reappeared with a vengeance! In fact, she developed full blown colitis. She was hospitalized and put on powerful drugs.
For some unexplained reason she would not stop eating gluten containing foods. I reinforced my health restoring instructions many times and explained that if she did not make the necessary dietary changes, she would end up with a colostomy and have to wear a bag for her excrement outside her body the rest of her life. My directives, I'm sad to say, were not heeded and she ended up just as I said - with a colostomy and a colostomy bag...and the medication she was on gave her terrible headaches she exclaimed were worse than the migraines she suffered with.
Unfortunately I've seen this scenario play out with young patients too.
Why?
One little known fact is that a gluten epitope named gluteomorphin attaches to the same opiate receptor sites in the brain as does morphine, thus mimicking the effects of opiate drugs like heroin and morphine (NO - the picture above is unsifted wheat flour in a bowl). You can get addicted to wheat due to this and just like being addicted to a drug - it's hard to give it up.
Now because of Dr. Aristo Vojdani, Cyrex Labs has a test (Array #3), that can measure different components of wheat (gluten epitopes) one may be sensitive to. It is important to know, there are some people that may not show a food allergy to milk or wheat, but have an immune reaction to several peptides including gluteomorphin and vice versa so it is a good idea to have both the peptides and food allergy testing done. This is accomplished with Cyrex Array #3.
Since you can become addicted to compounds found in wheat and dairy (casomorphin) and soy (soymorphin) this explains why some have a seemingly irrational attachment to wheat, dairy and soy, even to their own health detriment. If only this test had been available several years ago - perhaps steps could have been taken to avoid this woman's tragedy.
So MANY health challenges besides intestinal related issues occur with gluten and dairy allergy/intolerance/sensitivities that it is wise to be checked for these sensitivities for just about any unresolved health challenges you can think of. The key is having the correct testing done or you may still end up with no answers.
If you found value in this article, please use the social sharing icons at the top of this post and please share with those you know who are still suffering with chronic health challenges despite having medical managment. Thank you, help me reach more people so they may regain their zest for living!
