Do you think you are gluten intolerant? You may not be, Study suggests

Not all patients with irritable bowel syndrome can be sensitive to gluten, despite countless studies that identify it as a potential trigger.

According to new research, patients with IBS who have been led to believe that gluten – the protein in wheat products such as bread and pasta – can be misled their symptoms.

According to Canadian researchers, too many IBS patients limit themselves to different diets to prevent observed food triggers – even though they have not clearly identified which foods actually deteriorate their symptoms.

In the study, researchers analyzed 28 participants with IBS from the McMaster University Digestive Disease Clinic, who believed they had a gluten intolerance and as such followed a strict gluten -free diet.

Participants received grain bars to eat for a week every day-made of purified gluten, whole-grain or gluten-free flower-without know what which was.

After completing a week, eating one type of grain bar participants had a two-week break before they started at the next bar, until all three had been tested.

Researchers discovered that there was no significant difference in the deterioration of the symptoms between the three groups, including the gluten -free placebo.

They noted that even after eating the gluten-free control grain bar, almost 30 percent of patients experienced a 50-point deterioration of the symptoms according to the IBS symptom Severity Scale.

Professor Premysl Bercik, senior author of the study, concluded: “Some patients really have a sensitivity to this food protein, but for many others it is the belief that drives their symptoms and subsequent choices to prevent gluten -containing foods.”

Nevertheless, even when participants were informed of the results, most of them continued to believe that gluten and wheat cause their symptoms and continued to eat a gluten -free diet.

This in turn could perpetuate the symptoms of IBS, which leads to malnutrition and lower quality of life, Profit Berick.

This is because gluten -free food usually contains more fat, salt and sugar and less intestinal -friendly fibers and proteins than their equivalents.

Writing in the diary Lancet Gastroenterology and HepatologyResearchers have advised that psychological counseling must be taken into account for patients suffering from IBS.

‘What we need to improve our clinical management of these patients is to continue working with them, not only to tell that Gluten is not the trigger and continues.

“Many of them can take advantage of psychological support and guidance to digmatize gluten and wheat and to safely reintroduce them in their diet,” said Prof Bercik.

The researchers added that social media could sit behind the trend, where many influencers share how eating gluten deteriorated their symptoms.

The exact cause of IBS in unknown, but it is linked to things like passing food, although the intestine too fast or slow, hypersensitivity in the intestine and even stress

About one in 100 people in the UK suffer celiac disease, where the immune system reacts exaggerated to gluten.

But for others, Prof Berick said that avoiding gluten could be a coping mechanism.

“Continue with the gluten -free diet, patients may have given a usable method to try to control their symptoms, despite the risk of unnecessary dietary restrictions.”

Professor Sigrid Elsenbruch, an expert in neurological and behavioral sciences that was not involved in the study, added: ‘Changing health -related behavior is notorously challenging.

“Persistent food choices can reflect the complexity of IBS symptom management instead of an unwillingness to adjust beliefs.”

The researchers of the current study concluded that their findings support the role of psychological factors in symptom reactions and nutritional behavior in IBS.

But common limitations of diet studies were observed with laboratory tests that indicate that only a third of the participants followed the gluten -free diet as instructed, and some may have skipped bars to prevent symptoms.

IBS is a common debilitating condition that influences the digestive symptom, causing cramping the stomach, bloating a bloating, diarrhea and constipation – available with few effective treatments.

Over time, damage gathered in the intestine, which often leads to serious shortages of nutrients and nerve damage.

It is thought that the long -term disease affects about 1 in 5 adults in the UK, but experts say that this figure can be much higher.

About one in 100 people in the UK suffer celiac disease, where the immune system reacts exaggerated to gluten.

It is thought that another 13 percent of people suffer from what is known as non-specific gluten sensitivity (NCGS).

This is when eating the protein causes unpleasant symptoms such as bloating and irregular intestinal habits.

Scientists do not yet know for the reason why some people are affected by this, and some believe that this can be due to a Sotebo effect – when expecting symptoms to bring them.