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Celiac.com 04/21/2023 - If you're trying to lose weight, you might want to think about the amount of gluten in your diet. A study from 2015 found that wheat gluten intake can contribute to weight gain and fat accumulation, at least in mice. The study sheds some light on the relationship between gluten and weight gain by investigating the effects of gluten intake on weight gain, fat metabolism, and energy expenditure in mice. The Study For the study, researchers fed mice different diets for eight weeks. The diets included a control-standard diet, a standard diet with added wheat gluten, a high-fat diet, and a high-fat diet with added wheat gluten. Mice that had wheat gluten added to their diets gained more weight, and had more fat deposits, despite having the same energy intake as mice in the control group. The Findings Tests also found gluten in the blood, liver, and visceral adipose tissue, suggesting that it can reach organs beyond the intestinal tract. The study found that gluten intake reduced thermogenesis-related protein expression in subcutaneous and brown adipose tissues and lowered oxygen volume consumption, which points to reduced energy expenditure. Mice on a high-fat diet with added gluten also had lower levels of adiponectin, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-α and PPARγ, and hormone-sensitive lipase in cultures of isolated adipocytes. By contrast, in mice on a standard diet, added gluten intake increased interleukin-6 expression, and tended to increase tumor necrosis factor expression. This suggests that gluten may have different effects on fat metabolism and inflammation, depending on the diet. Conclusions: Wheat Gluten Intake Can Lead to Increased Weight Gain and Fat Deposits Overall, the study suggests that wheat gluten intake can lead to increased weight gain and fat deposits, along with reduced thermogenesis and energy expenditure, especially in mice on a high-fat diet. The study also highlights the potential systemic effects of gluten, which can reach organs beyond the intestine. While the study was conducted in mice, the findings suggest that gluten may play a role in human weight gain as well. While more research is needed to better assess any connection between these findings and gluten consumption in humans, the study does offer some interesting food for thought. Stay tune for more on this and related stories. Read more at Int J Obes (Lond)

Celiac.com 04/12/2022 - Fresh off the catwalk at Lakme Fashion Week, where she wowed audiences with the work of designer duo Shivan and Narresh, Miss Universe 2021, Harnaaz Sandhu, took a minute to call out those who trolled her for gaining weight. “Many people do not know I am allergic to gluten. I’m one of those individuals who was first bullied that ‘she’s too skinny’ and now they bully me by saying ‘she’s fat’. Nobody knows about my celiac disease. That I can’t eat wheat flour and many other things,” she told the Press Trust of India (PTI). Further, she explained how one’s body undergoes a host of changes due to geographic changes. “When you go to a village, you see changes in your body. And I went to New York for the very first time, it’s is a whole other world altogether.” As a Smile Train Ambassador, Miss Sandhu has worked to use her celebrity to turn the spotlight to the needs and struggles of others. She recently traveled to Smile Train partner hospital National Heart Institute in Delhi where she met with surgeons, cleft patients and their families, and witnessed a life-changing cleft surgery. While being underweight has been a classic symptom of celiac disease, being overweight is also common, especially among those diagnosed as adults. Miss Sandhu's experience with weight bullies is nothing new, and hopefully her public announcement of her celiac disease can help to inform and encourage others, and to shine a light on the ongoing struggle against body critics and shame of all kinds. With or without celiac disease, you don't have to be thin to take care of yourself, stay healthy, and, as Miss Sandhu shows, be beautiful. That's certainly a message to celebrate. ALSO READ: Miss Universe 2021 flashback: Harnaaz Sandhu shares her ‘favorite looks from the incredible journey’ Celiac Disease Symptoms While some symptoms such as weight loss, diarrhea and constipation among others are common in both adults and children, symptoms can vary by age and individual, and include: Common Celiac Disease Symptoms In Adults Abdominal pain Anemia Bone or joint pain Heartburn Dermatitis, herpetiformis Headaches or fatigue Mouth ulcers Nausea Nervous system injury Numbness or tingling hands or feet Common Celiac Disease Symptoms In Children Bloating or belly swelling Constipation Diarrhea Pale, foul-smelling poop Upset stomach or vomiting Weight loss How does celiac disease impact a person's weight? Celiac.com has done a number of articles on celiac disease, overweight, and obesity. One key takeaway is that, while many people with celiac disease are underweight, normal and overweight people can also have celiac disease. In fact, one study found that nearly half of new celiacs are overweight at the time of diagnosis. Read more in the Indian Express

Celiac.com 01/29/2021 - The U.S. has taken the lead of the industrialized world when it comes to weight-gain, especially obesity, and many other industrialized nations are in close pursuit. Since Ancel Keys' flawed assertion linking dietary cholesterol with heart disease in 1951, the industrialized world has sought to reduce its consumption of fats—especially saturated fats(1). Consequently, the last fifty years has seen a steady shift away from dietary fats. Our carbohydrate consumption, particularly in the form of grains and sugars, increased at the same time—and the obesity epidemic was begun. A recent issue of People magazine reported on a 17 year old young woman who struggled extensively with obesity and could not halt a steady and dangerous trend of weight gain(2). The only answer she and her parents could find was to have an adjustable band surgically placed around her stomach. This band makes it painful to eat more than very small portions. The band was loosened somewhat as she approached her target weight, but it still severely limits the quantity of food she can eat. Although she is much happier and healthier at her current size, I could not help but wonder if the surgery was a mistake. No mention was made of ruling out celiac disease. It is doubtful that celiac disease was even considered. Yet Dickey and Kearney reported on an examination of data gathered on 371 newly diagnosed celiac patients. These two researchers found that 39% of these patients were overweight, one third of whom were obese, while only 5% of these celiac patients were underweight at diagnosis(3). Further, Dr. Joseph Murray has repeatedly discussed two case histories of morbidly obese patients with occult celiac disease(4). Tragically, the diagnosis came too late for one of these patients. She died before the gluten-free diet could reverse her obesity and the health hazards that go with it. The information, that gluten can and does cause obesity and that a gluten-free diet can reverse it, does not seem to have reached physicians involved in general practice or those working in the field of obesity. The young woman featured in the People article might have been spared considerable pain and expense had she first been investigated for celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. This article also mentioned that the number of children between ages 10 and 19 who are undergoing the same gastric surgery tripled between 2000 and 2003 yet it is doubtful that celiac disease was ever considered among these children. How many of these children could be spared the pain and risks associated with gastric weight-loss surgery? Such experimentation with their nutrition is also suspect because their bodies are still developing and such artificial alterations may be depriving these children of important nutrients. (I have previously speculated that celiac associated obesity results from food cravings driven by specific nutrient deficiencies.) Given the recent discovery that celiac disease afflicts more than 1% of the U.S. Population(5) and gluten sensitivity has been found in 11% of those tested at a Texas shopping mall(6) and given the rates of overweight and obese individuals found among newly diagnosed celiac patients, it seems likely that much of the weight-gain epidemic that is sweeping the industrialized world is being fueled by undiagnosed gluten sensitivity and celiac disease (gluten syndrome). I suspect that if our civilization is ever to escape this adipose prison, we must return to getting more of our calories from fats, and fewer from grains and sugars. References: Taubes G, Good Calories. Bad Calories. Alfred A. Knopf. New York, 2007. 16-17 Williams A, One Teen's Gastric Surgery. People. Dec. 17, 2007. 107-110 Dickey W, Kearney N.Overweight in celiac disease: prevalence, clinical characteristics, and effect of a gluten-free diet. Am J Gastroenterol. 2006 Oct;101(10):2356-9. Murray, J. American Celiac Society conference, Mt. Sinai Hospital, NYC, 1997 and Canadian Celiac Association National Conference, Calgary, 1999. Celiac Disease Foundation 2001 Fine K, personal communication.