The Gluten-Free Movement
By Joseph Brasco, M.D.
A Question of Digestion
 As a Medical Advisor to
Garden of Life, the leading
provider of digestive health nutritional supplements, I am no stranger
to gluten and its role in digestion. The recent widespread mass media
attention speaks to the growing number of people who are fighting for
“freedom” from gluten.
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley.
For some people, gluten presents absolutely no issues. An increasing
number of us, however, experience less-than-optimal digestion when we
consume foods that contain gluten.
Gluten sensitivity has its roots in the immune system.
To those of us who know the digestive system inside and out, this comes
as no surprise. Approximately 75% of the immune system is housed within
the digestive tract in what is called GALT (gut associated lymphatic
tissue).
Basically, with someone who has gluten sensitivities,
the immune system mistakes the gluten for a foreign invader, and
releases antibodies to fight the “invader.” Since the digestive and
immune systems are linked, this can lead to digestive imbalance.
Thankfully, there is an alternative out there for
people who struggle with this “sticky” protein found in everything from
your breakfast cereal, your sub at lunch and your roll at dinner. And
that alternative can be found in this article, thanks to
Garden of
Life’s Immune Balance Gluten FREEze.
Living Gluten Free
A decade ago, when you walked through a health food
store, you would be lucky to find any product labeled gluten-free. Now,
almost every store has an entire section devoted to gluten-free foods.
The Gluten Free movement has arrived and is here to stay.
Living gluten-free is easier said than done. While
some of the foods that contain gluten are obvious—conventional breads
and pasta—many non-grain foods have “hidden” gluten. Salad dressings,
ice cream, sour cream, root beer, canned soups and dozens —if not
hundreds—of products you would never think of may contain hidden gluten.
To make matters more difficult, it differs from brand to brand. One
brand of chocolate milk may contain gluten while another doesn’t. The
aisles of a supermarket are a potential minefield for someone wanting to
live gluten-free.
That is the primary reason that Jordan Rubin and
Garden of Life decided to formulate a supplement called
Immune Balance
Gluten FREEze designed to help those living gluten-free.
Immune Balance Gluten FREEze
Garden of Life’s Immune Balance Gluten FREEze is
broad-spectrum enzyme, probiotic and targeted nutrient formula that
provides multidimensional immune and digestive support for the gluten-
and dairy-free lifestyles, in the following ways:
- Helps Digest Hidden Gluten and Dairy
- Supports Gut-Related Immune Function
- Supports Digestion of Gluten-and Dairy-Containing
Foods
- Provides Essential Nutrients Typically Deficient in
those on a Gluten-Free Diet
- Supports Healthy Red Blood Cells
- Supports Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Lifestyles
- Supports Gut-Related Immune System Function
Probiotics for Life
Jordan’s second goal was to support the digestive
system. You will remember that 75% of the immune system is contained in
the digestive tract. A healthy digestive system goes hand-in-hand with a
healthy immune system. You can’t have one without the other.
In my opinion, probiotics are the most important
digestive health supplements available. Jordan has been taking them for
years, and I have recommended them for years. They are that important.
For the uninitiated, probiotics are beneficial
microorganisms that are found in a healthy digestive tract. When
present, they assist in breaking down food and passing nutrients into
the bloodstream. Having a healthy amount of probiotics in your digestive
system can also crowd out less desirable germs that inhabit the
intestines, effectively denying them a place to live.
Gluten FREEze contains two of the most powerful
probiotics I have ever encountered, Saccharomyces boulardii and
Bacillus coagulans. They are both well-studied and have been shown
to support a healthy immune system and efficient digestion. Both have
the ability to re-colonize the digestive tract and bring balance to your
gut—and by extension the immune system.
Gluten Exposure
When Jordan formulated
Immune Balance Gluten FREEze,
he had three goals in mind. The first goal was to aid in the digestion
of hidden gluten and dairy in the diet. Starting with gluten, Gluten
FREEze includes digestive enzymes that specifically target the protein
found in wheat. Known as proteases, these enzymes help break down the
known and hidden gluten in the diet. The most powerful is a protease
called dipeptidyl peptidase, or DPP-IV. It is a high-activity enzyme,
and Immune Balance Gluten FREEze contains a significant amount.
Additionally, many people who are on a gluten-free
diet are also on casein free diet. Casein is the primary protein found
in dairy products, and it has a molecular structure similar to gluten.
Gluten FREEze contains enzymes that can help break down the hidden
casein found in the diet.
Enzymes are also vital to healthy digestion. Jordan
believes in the power of enzymes and their benefits to the digestion of
all components of food, so he also included enzymes that break down
starches, sugars and hard-to-digest plant fiber.
Jordan and Garden of Life could have stopped there.
After all, hidden gluten is one of the most difficult issues for someone
on a gluten-free diet to work around, and
Immune Balance Gluten FREEze helps digest hidden gluten and a host of other things. But we both
believe that there are other nutritional needs that someone living a
gluten-free life encounters—and they must be addressed.
Filling the Nutritional Gaps of a Gluten-Free Diet
Finally, while most people on a gluten-free diet are
concerned with what they don’t want in their diet (gluten and casein),
people also need to focus on nutrients that they should be getting—but
may not be.
There are several vitamins and minerals that are often
found in lower-than-optimal amounts in people living the gluten-free
lifestyle. Many people have a difficult time absorbing iron, vitamin B12
and folic acid. This is primarily due to less-than-optimal digestive
function.
Immune Balance Gluten FREEze contains Vitamin Code RAW Iron,
RAW B12 and RAW Folic Acid. Vitamin Code nutrients are the raw,
whole-food alternative to chemically isolated and manufactured vitamins
and minerals.
Bone health is another important goal. People living a
gluten-free lifestyle often also need to support their bone density.
Once again, the culprit is due in part to the less-efficient absorption
of nutrients. To aid bone health,
Garden of Life’s Gluten FREEze
includes two vital nutrients, RAW D3 and RAW Calcium.
Beyond Gluten
Gluten may be the most notable digestive offender
found in grains; however, two physician/researcher brothers, the Drs.
Haas, believed that disaccharide sugars found in starches and complex
sugars such as sucrose and lactose combine with protein components of
grains such as gluten to cause less-than optimal digestion. The fact is
many who undertake a gluten-free diet do not feel the benefits of that
diet until they also address disaccharide sugars.
Gluten FREEze combines
gluten-digesting enzymes with specialized enzymes to break down
disaccharide sugars such as sucrose, maltose and lactose to provide
multidimensional support for healthy digestion.
Note: Immune Balance Gluten Freeze does not replace a
Gluten-Free diet.
Free Yourself
The Gluten-Free movement is here to stay, and for good
reason. People living a gluten-free lifestyle are very likely to
understand their digestion and work to achieve better health. I believe
that
Immune Balance Gluten FREEze —along with a Gluten-Free diet—gives
you the ability to address hidden gluten in the diet, support healthy
digestion, and add back powerful probiotics, vitamins and minerals you
need to experience extraordinary health.
For more information on a gluten-free diet, see the
article “The Gluten-Free Survival Guide” by Dawn Jarvis, MS, RD, LDN.
For more information on the Immune Balance Gluten
FREEze
by Garden of Life, click here.
The statements contained in this article have not been
evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The information contained
here is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Suggestions and ideas presented in this document are for information
only and should not be interpreted as medical advice, meant for
diagnosing illness, or for prescriptive purposes. Readers are encouraged
to consult their health care provider before beginning any cleanse,
diet, detoxification program, or any supplement regimen. The information
in this document is not to be used to replace the services or
instructions of a physician or qualified health care practitioner. |
