What Are Gluten-Free Diets?

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. A person who is intolerant to gluten or suffers from celiac disease should be placed on a gluten-free diet. Because so many foods are made with gluten, cutting it out of a diet is difficult, but not impossible.

Symptoms and Afflictions

The symptoms of gluten intolerance are gas, abdominal pain and diarrhea and are fleeting and so not immediately diagnosed. Celiac disease is more serious because, as stated on WebMD by Dr. Elizabeth Ward, it causes the immune system to damage the vili in the small intestine, which is the part that absorbs nutrients. It's the gluten that causes this reaction, and so people with celiac disease must be on a gluten-free diet.

Foods Without Gluten

Corn, potato, rice, soybeans, tapioca, arrowroot, carob, buckwheat, millet, amaranth and quinoa are all listed as gluten-free by Dr. Frank Jackson on GICare.com. Many food products are now sold under the "gluten-free" label as awareness of gluten intolerance increases.

Foods With Gluten

The Mayo Clinic lists Barley, Bulgar, Durham, Farina, Graham flour, kamut, Matzo Meal, rye, Semolina, spelt wheat, triticale and wheat as foods that will always need to be avoided. Things like candies, cakes, cookies, beer, pasta, oats, imitation seafood or meat, gravies and soups can be eaten only if they say "gluten-free" on the packaging. Even if there is no gluten in a food it can be made in a factory on the same machinery as foods with gluten and therefore still cause a problem.

Gluten-Free as a Weight Loss Strategy

It has been proposed that a gluten-free diet can help you lose weight. Any diet that creates more regimented and mindful eating habits can cause weight loss, but the lack of gluten itself probably isn't the cause. As Health.com points out, some gluten-free foods have less fiber than those with gluten. Fiber is vital to good health and weight loss, as it gives a feeling of fullness and moves food along through the body. Dee Sandquist asserts on Health.com that there is no science that suggests food without gluten will cause weight loss when replacing food with gluten.