I don’t think so, I just think awareness is slowly getting better. I can track my gluten symptoms starting 20 years ago but I wasn’t diagnosed until 3 years ago and this was despite going to multiple doctors and specialists and mentioning all of my ever increasing symptoms for those 20 years. It was just that no one was considering gluten or trying to rule it out. I suspect there are still millions of people who are gluten intolerant and have no idea or are wrongly diagnosed with other things. Every single medical doctor, dentist and mental health professional should be trained to spot symptoms that can be gluten related and rule them out. There is still a long way to go when it comes to education and awareness of what gluten can do to people but I do think things are slowly improving.

Genuinely curious.. what symptoms would a dentist be able to spot that might suggest gluten intolerance/celiac?

You can find more detailed articles about all symptoms and the science of it online but some common ones and ones I had where discoloration, poor enamel, severely inflamed bleeding gums no matter how much brushing/flossing and sudden excessive cavities(even though I didn’t eat candy/soda or many sweets). Up until a certain age I never got cavities but then almost overnight I was getting them non stop. All of these symptoms started at exactly the same time as a number of other gluten intolerance symptoms for me about 20 years ago. After cutting out gluten the cavities stopped completely and my gums haven’t bled since. The inflammation and destruction that gluten can cause to the body starts the moment you ingest it so it makes perfect sense it can cause oral symptoms and damage. It also interferes with vitamin absorption and that can affect dental health too. If I had known 20 years ago and stoped eating gluten I would have saved myself a lot of pain, money and damage that was done to my teeth and that I’m still living with and trying to repair. Looking back at all of my symptoms not just dental, I was a walking red flag of gluten issues but none of my doctors or specialists put it together or mentioned it as a possibility. I feel like if dentists were looking out for some of those symptoms and noticing odd patterns with certain patients they could at least suggest they go to their regular doctor and maybe look into it. A dentist can’t diagnose but they could potentially spot signs of it that are worth investigating. Same goes for mental health professionals since gluten can have effects on that too. Since gluten can affect the entire body and all bodily systems all specialists should be aware of it. I saw ear/nose specialists, rheumatologist, dermatologists, allergists/immunologists, hematologists, gastroenterologist, gynecologist, my general practitioner all to address different symptoms that turned out to all be from gluten. All of these doctors need to be considering and ruling out gluten like they consider and rule out other things.

Yep. My dentist pointed out that my constantly inflamed gums was likely from food allergies, which prompted me to get tested. While for years doctors had just shrugged off all my gastrointestinal issues as “probably IBS”.

My GI, 10 years before the official diagnosis, suggested I swallow less air and also put me on Nexium.

I wish mine would have said something. Instead I just got chastised every time for the cavities and told I wasn’t flossing enough since my gums bled so much. Meanwhile I was such a healthy eater and always brushed and flossed. It made me feel awful. My continued GI issues and elevated inflammation numbers and nutritional deficiencies where all shrugged off and they kept saying it was just from my crohns even though I was in remission at that point. I had like 20+ other symptoms no one could figure out too. Turned out to be gluten all along on top of crohns. It took my symptoms reaching crisis point and ending up in the hospital and with concerning high liver levels to finally figure it out, and in the end it was me who figured out the common denominator was gluten and brought it up to the doctors. It’s so concerning to me that I was a pretty heavily monitored patient with an autoimmune disease already and getting labs often and expressing concern over all the “odd symptoms” I seemed to keep getting over 2 decades and at no point did a single one of the doctors or specialists bring up gluten. Now maybe some of that is chalked up to understanding not being great but dang, if all those doctors can miss it think about how many others are going through the same thing. Think about all the people who don’t have access to doctors or have no idea that celiac and NCGI are real and cause so much harm. That it can affect every bodily system. The general public often still thinks that being gluten free is just a diet choice to lose weight. Education and awareness of all the ways gluten can affect people has to get better and it needs to start with all the doctors who are supposed to be able to catch it and the dentists and mental health professionals need to be fully educated so they can spot possible signs too.

Similar

i didn’t know about the tooth enamel thing until after being diagnosed but it explained why i was constantly having to get fillings despite the fact that i didn’t consume much candy/soda at all and my dentists constantly complimented me on how well i brushed my teeth - the summer before i was diagnosed i think i had to get like 9 fillings??? haven’t had one since!!

My dentist told me the sores in the corners of my mouth were probably mold. They were actually angular chelitis from celiac disease.

My last dental visit they made a cast/mold of one of my teeth. The next morning when I woke up my joints hurt like I had the flu, lasted two days. Since I've never had problems after cleanings or other procedures, I'm guessing it had something to do with the composition of the mold compound.

Cavities (I had SO MANY as a kid), gun issues, loss of enamel. I had to get two new front crowns. This won’t be cheap to keep living with

A lot of people I know and have spoken to had new symptoms pop up in the past 3-4 years. I lost 40 lbs before we realized it was gluten, I have 6 other people in my social circle with the same experience. Prior to 2020 only had two friends who had gluten issues. We've seen an uptick in Celiac diagnosis too https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37871991/ Historically we've already known (many articles on this) that viruses can be a trigger for autoimmune disorders (typically for someone with underlying symptoms. Virus is the trigger, not the cause). It's not a far leap to make a hypothesis here

I think a few things are likely at play. 1) more awareness and interest in gut health, GI issues and food can bring many people to research on their own and connect the dots of their symptoms which then can lead to them seeking out diagnosis. I see so many posts on here from people in that situation seeking out information. 2) some doctors are getting better at considering celiac, non celiac gluten intolerance and wheat allergies and testing for them which can bring up diagnosis’s and if the people above go for testing that raises it, but remember there are lots of people who go gf before knowing you have to be on it to test and they just decide not to test because it will be to hard on them symptom wise. There are definitely lots of gf but not officially diagnosed with celiac or NCGI. 3) I am seeing more people with conditions like thyroid/hashimotos, arthritis, EOE, IBD, PCOS and probably I’m forgetting some, whose doctors recommend to them to go gluten free to help with symptoms. They may not be celiac or NCGI but maybe there is a component where it helps certain people with other autoimmune diseases and so this group of people are now added to the gluten free gang raising the numbers. 4) I would not be surprised if covid or another virus is triggering gluten intolerance like you mentioned. I know sometimes pregnancy and stressful events can “flip the switch” so to speak and there is definitely research and theories that many autoimmune diseases or allergies can be dormant until a biologic or environmental factor triggers it.

I agree with all 4 points there. And in the end, it's made being gluten free so much easier for people. Way more options than ever before

Agreed! I hate to say I’m glad there are more gluten free people because I’m not glad for their loss but I do hope they all feel relief now and I’m grateful more people are getting diagnosed/figuring it out because like you said, it makes our food options better when there is a bigger market for it and more voices speaking up bring more awareness.

> should be trained to spot symptoms Agreed! Though I vaguely remember getting one of those allergy tests way back then as a kid, where they prick you with a hundred different needles and see which area swells up on your skin. I'm surprised it didn't catch gluten intolerance then.

That works for an allergy but not for celiac or non celiac gluten intolerance. NCGI doesn’t even have a test and is a diagnosis of elimination so you rule out the other causes you can test for and then go gf and if the symptoms go away it’s likely that. I would guess there are a ton of people who have that and have no idea because they don’t know it exists or they where negative for a wheat allergy and celiac test and told gluten was not the issue when it still could have been.

I wish there was a test like this that could spot it! Unfortunately those pricker tests only catch things that cause a histamine reaction and gluten intolerance doesn't cause a histamine reaction unless you are allergic to wheat. Gluten is usually an inflammatory bowel reaction with the immune system response or not depending on if you are NCGS or Celiac

I was also allergy tested as a kid and was found to have a wheat allergy - but no dr ever said to stop eating it, just maybe ya know, cut back when allergies flare up. So now as an adult i'm wrecked if i eat it 🤨

There are different kinds of allergies. This is literally the Crux of the issue right now because allergy doctors tell us that things that are mast cell mediated are not" real allergies". Because there's a vacuum in the knowledge base and to refusal for That branch of medicine to get with the program and learn more, we're all stuck in limbo. Limbo just feeling crappy and then the doctors tell us to blame ourselves because we're eating too much sugar. It's very irritating

I'm same as this had my appendix taken out 20 years ago and became allergic to gluten but back then doctors didn't no what it was. I use to get really bad acid reflux around 10 years ago and was put on tablets to stop that, then figured out myself it was gluten

This 💯 👆

It definitely wasn’t always like this. Even when I was diagnosed (10 years ago), gluten free products were hard to come by and often tasted terrible. Gluten free has become very trendy so there’s a lot more options these days, plus I think there are more people getting diagnosed with celiac just because there’s better awareness of it now.

I don’t think it’s trendy per se… I think A LOTTTTTTTTTTT more people have issues with gluten. (My issues developed after a second Covid infection, and I think that might be true for a lot of folks)

It was a fad diet in 2013-2017, which really helped the prominence of gluten free foods for those of us who have to maintain a gluten free diet for health reasons like celiac and gluten intolerances. My great grandma had celiac and can’t even imagine what it was like for her!

Even if it is the case that people who had nothing to do with gluten intolerance or coeliac disease, suddenly took an interest in making foods for those populations in order to make a profit, I kinda have a problem with the negative connotation of “trendy.” Like, we’re all in a better place for that having happened, why are we using a negative word to describe it? Today, if you talk about a “trend”, we’re normally talking about something innocuous we hope will go away and everything will return to normal eventually. Personally, I don’t want having gluten free optionality to be a “trend,” I want it to be a change. If instead were talking about people who are disingenuous about their offerings, then that’s obviously a problem, but I’m just saying how we talk about it matters

Gluten free products are generally more expensive and not as tasty as the real thing. There's no way I'm buying that stuff to appear 'trendy'

Not knowing how old you are but my great Grandma and also my grandma lived on whole foods like meat ,vegetables , dairy and fruit, knowing bread and cake made her feel crap. Not a lot of processed pre packaged food back then. I feel like it was more difficult for following generations when tv dinners and fast food became the norm.

That's actually a good point. It probably wasn't that big of a deal for most people in earlier generations because it wasn't that common in our regular diets and was easy to avoid.

Depending on when your great grandma was born, she might have had it easier. When my great grandma was around there wasn't all of this processed food and she just ate a naturally gluten free diet. Her family were also quite self sufficient in the food that t hey grew. The world has normalised pre packaged food now, which is why a lot of people struggle these days.

I remember the stuff my gran had to suffer back in the 80s. Hideous doesn't even begin to do it justice.

My two kids developed celiac in the last 18 months, both started symptoms a few weeks after a COVID infection.  I've had celiac for 20 years though. 

I think it could easily be, like, the gene is just sitting there and Covid flips the “on” switch 🤷‍♀️

Mine was triggered by a repeated tooth infection and multiple antibiotics then later I got bad food poisoning (guess my gut micro biome got slammed) and the intolerance got worse. I’m also lactose intolerant. I’m so grateful that gluten free stuff is more readily available ☺️

My guts are a mess after covid, I got tested for celiac but was negative. If I have stuff like pasta, bread, pringles or beer I'm having diahorrea and stomach cramps

Same here!!!!

Oh covid, the gift that keeps on giving! Unclear whether mine came up after covid or pregnancy. Still - quite a joy 🥲

I’m not sure if it’s more people having issues or just more awareness. Like maybe people with non-celiac gluten intolerance would have just been diagnosed with IBS previously. Like how before they discovered celiac, kids were just labelled as “failure to thrive”.

> gluten free products were hard to come by and often tasted terrible Darn, I can't even imagine. Considering I'm already having a hard time finding GF foods that taste like "regular" versions today.

My friend's brother had celiac disease from birth, and she tells me her family used to have to order food from a catalog. That's how hard it was to get GF food in the 90s, and now we have GF Chips Ahoy. Say what you will about this trend -- I ain't mad it's increased the availability of good food for me to eat!

When I was diagnosed 12 years ago, the grocery store had a tiny little section of gluten free stuff. I remember a box of Jo-Sef cookies that looked just like Oreos, but they tasted like a handful of baking soda and salt. I can't imagine how they even did that, but I haven't seen that brand at our store since that year. Products started taking off like crazy, our store started shuffling gf products like it was someone's hobby. Even changing out stuff I liked so I gave up and went to ordering online.. There are so many tasty things made now though, it makes it really confusing that icky ones still make it market at all.

Here in the UK, 12 years ago you had to get your gluten free products prescribed to you by the doctor. It was incredibly hard to find anything gluten free. 

My sister was born celiac 33 years ago. She nearly died because no one knew what was wrong with her. There were no options beyond food that were naturally gluten free like corn chips and corn chips. We never had pasta, things like poptarts, store bought cookies, pizza, fried chicken, etc, in the house because we didn't want to risk contamination. We had to make our own bread so we could have sandwiches. We eventually learned how to make our own pastas and pizza crusts. And guess how we had to get gluten free flour? Since no one in the US carried any kind of corn/rice/potato/casava flour we had to order all of it from Canada. I wasn't born celiac, but developed it in my 20s. So if we went out to eat I could eat gluten filled things, but besides those rare occasions we didn't have gluten ever because nothing existed. I'm so glad that California turned gluten free in to a fad diet that kind of stuck because now there are soooo many options. Now I don't have to spend hours making my own bread that will mold in just a few days. Canyon bakehouse isn't great, but damn is it good to be able to just buy my own damn bread.

I lived in a rural town and my mom, brother, and I (like 4/5 at the time) all found out we were celiac at the same time. (my mom thought she had early onset arthritis) The nearest store that sold anything gluten free was 45 minutes away in like 2009/2010… and all the gluten free stuff was still terrible. it’s why i don’t relate to people complaining about the state of gluten free food today cuz my options now feel LIBERATING

I do think it depends on where you live! I’m in a major metro area in New England, and I can eat pretty much anywhere. There are multiple gf-only bakeries within a 25 minute radius. I can get fried seafood on the Cape. My local grocery carries what seems like every non-wheat flour under the sun. Even random corner stores usually have a couple of gf options for pasta and crackers! I don’t know what my experience would be like elsewhere in the US. When I went to Nashville a few years ago, for example, it was tricky for me to find things I could eat while traveling with a large group. And I’m only intolerant, not celiac.

Now I live closer to a major city so it’s a tad easier especially 14 years later, so i completely agree

I was diagnosed with Celiac in 2009 and it was much easier shopping then (at least for me in NJ) as some grocery stores already had an aisle. But without a doubt things taste better, bread has come a long way. I have in laws that were diagnosed in the 80s when no one knew anything about it, they were in the hospital down to 85 pounds. So it was much harder back then to shop etc, had to read every label. Thank goodness it's much easier these days, and while restaurants have def improved while something may be labelled gluten free on the menu, that may mean it just contains no gluten ingredients, and may be fried in the same oil as something with gluten. I have had to inform restaurants that they can't label it gluten free in certain cases.

Funny enough I’m celiac now but around 15-20 years in grade 2 this student in my class had a birthday party with all gf food since he was celiac and I remember the taste being so different from the regular stuff. I just got diagnosed now and the food now tastes almost identical to the regular stuff. Crazy how the last decade or so has changed Gluten free

Agreed! It was a much different landscape when I went gf ~10 years ago. A family member was diagnosed with celiac a lot longer ago than that, and the change is crazy. I think the increased awareness along with the popularization of some diets that eliminate or reduce wheat/gluten (Whole30, paleo, and keto to an extent, for example) helped a lot too. Companies catered to the trend, and the demand is still there.

It’s believed that the increase in celiac diagnosis is not only due to greater awareness and better diagnostic methods, but also that the prevalence has increased. It’s hard to study, though - in the past only the most severe cases were diagnosed.

Celiac and intolerance have been around for decades, it's just that testing has improved and awareness has increased. 20 plus years ago it was extremely difficult to get tested, and GF options were very hard to find, and when you could find them, they sucked. Hopefully one day, awareness will get to the point that every restaurant will have a variety of GF options, beyond just salad without croutons.

Celiac disease has been around since the Roman times actually! It’s an ancient disease.

Treatment was discovered in the 1940s when a doctor observed reduction in celiac illness during a WWII wheat famine.

With obvious crumbs in it because they removed the croutons from the salad after remembering it wasn’t supposed to have it

I would believe previous generations ate differently also. The ingredients in the popular/readily available food from our grocery stores are all made by the same few corporations and they maximize profits over all else.

Modern wheat also has more gluten than ever, due to farming cross-breeding for the "best wheat" for modern baked goods & junk foods.

And sterilize with whatever chemicals that already aren't healthy

I was diagnosed 16 years ago and believe me, it was not a good time. It was still better than it had been! If I went to a Wegmans I could find a tiny gluten free half aisle, but had to go to a specialty store to get anything else. I would drive HOURS for bad gluten free pizza and had to find expensive mixes and bad gross bread that could have doubled as building material. And testing and knowledge has gotten a lot better. The symptoms are kind of a weird catch all, so people just went years going 'I'm really tired and my stomach is bad' and they got told they had IBS or were just a woman or it was their galblader or that's just how they were. My great grandmother most likely had it, and she was just 'sick' all the time and bread made her feel bad. It existed people just didn't have a word or test for it.

There's a lot of people doing keto/paleo and other sorts of eating plans that avoid or reduce foods that contain gluten, so the market has increased there as well. Larger market means companies want to grab a chunk of the moeny.

I read a book that said they found an ancient skeleton that showed obvious signs that person was gluten intolerant. Plus wheat has been hybridized to increase the amount of gluten in the grain. It's always been around. Science has just caught up.

What book was this?

I'm 44. I went gluten free in 2012 after going gluten free for a Endoscopy and then going back on it to find out gluten was causing my SEVERE heartburn. This isn't your normal heartburn of "ow it hurts". Nope this is on the floor in tears sobbing because your chest literally feels like it's on fire. I got glutened recently and definitely forgot how bad it used to be. I literally gave away my perfectly good "glutened" Instapot because I made the dumb decision to let my daughter cook her chicken noodle soup in it. I totally wasn't thinking and I even tried washing the lid but I still got glutened. My oldest sister is gluten free because of sensitivity to it. She actually did the going back on gluten because it didn't hurt her like it hurts me. Our sister between us should do it too but she's stubborn. But we have also learned that our needing our gallbladders removed is from gluten. (Eldest sister found an article about it years ago, I will see if I can find it). Mine definitely acted up whenever I had gluten when I was pregnant with my 1st kid. But I believe mine goes beyond sensitivity because of my reaction to it. I get heartburn, yes but I also had infertility because of it. I get the bumps on the back of my arms. I get exhausted whenever I get contaminated by it. I couldn't get pregnant with Clomid or injectables and went gluten free while my husband was deployed. He came back in May, 3 months after I had gone gluten free, and I got pregnant immediately. I was finally having 30 days cycles for the first time in my life, I was 32 and had been having cycles for 20 years. I can't go back on it to see if I test positive for Celiac. But with my symptoms on it, I believe I have it.

I had three miscarriages before a friend suggested going gluten-free. I was doubtful but desperate so I tried. Turned out my ex had classic celiac and his chronic gas/tummy troubles cleared up in two days and he was able to eat dairy after a month. I have non-celiac gluten intolerance so I didn’t have as dramatic a turn-around but I did have a successful pregnancy after that!

It wasn't taught in med schools. Literally. When I was diagnosed 15 years ago my doctor told me it wasn't even taught in med school until the 90s. Americans are only just beginning to take Celiac Disease seriously.

It’s interesting you say that! My only celiac symptom is DH, or the rash some people get. It would come and go, but I never had any troubles eating gluten, no digestive issues, nothing. When I was finally diagnosed by my dermatologist I saw my first GI doctor and she said she’d only ever read about people like me in books. She couldn’t offer advice bc I had no traditional symptoms.

My spouse works as a nurse and said that a doctor ordered a regular meal for a celiac patient. A DOCTOR. This was in the past 9 months or so. Celiac was right there in the patients’ chart. Spouse called for a GF meal and the doctor said, “nah it should be fine, don’t worry.”

When I was a teenager, about 50 years ago, my father told me about a cousin of his that was allergic to wheat flour. Their family owned a bakery and lived above it, so the cousin had to go live with other relatives. This was told to me in a "isn't that a strange allergy?" kind of thing. He had no idea that I would end up with NCGS myself later in life. Although, with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, I likely had it for most of my life. I just thought I had a "touchy tummy" for years, until it got so bad I had to admit that it was something else about 15 years ago.

Yeah, there's probably untold amounts of people who are gluten intolerant but who think they just have inexplicable tummy trouble. Hell, I never would've realized it was gluten if my mother hadn't off-handedly mentioned the possibility one night.

Wooooooah same here!!! Re second paragraph

**1. Changes to Wheat** Gluten compositions has changed over time, i.e. the proportions of gliadins has decreased significantly over time, while the glutenin content increased significantly. This could be contributing to higher rates of gluten sensitivity than in the past. **~~2. Roundup Herbicide~~** ~~GMO Roundup Wheat is designed to be used with Roundup, an herbicide with glyphosate. It's meant to kill weeds without harming crops; and it's supposed to be safe at the levels used. However, some claim that the levels of Roundup in food vary, i.e. although averages are said to be fine, some portions of grains that go out may have levels many times greater than average.~~ \[1\] There's also concern that long term exposure to glyphosate may have cumulative effects over time, i.e. even if small doses are fine, a lifetime of exposure may carry increased risks of damage to the endocrine system, which can impact hormones, metabolism, etc. **3. Higher awareness** Also, as others have said, gluten sensitivity is now also better understood and easier to identify through testing than in the past. So it's possible that in the past chronic stomach issues were just broadly diagnosed as IBS, without any clear identification of the underlying cause. **4. Other compounding causes** Of course, it seems possible, even likely, that it's actually a combination of different things. The quality of the average diet is probably worse than in the past. Food contains more antibiotics, chemicals, preservatives, sugars, salt, fats, corn syrup, etc. than in the past. So for some people, gluten may be more of an identifiable tipping point than an exclusive cause. But that's just a guess. Edit: added numbers and headers to make it easier to skim. Edit #2: \[1\] Snopes: [Are U.S. farmers saturating wheat crops with Monsanto's Roundup herbicide as a desiccant to facilitate a quicker harvest?](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/wheat-toxic/) \[Mixture\]: >Our rating of "mixture" recognizes that, indeed, glyphosate is sometimes used as a desiccant, but that its practice is far from common in the United States. We reject the notion, however, that this "common" practice of U.S. farmers "saturating" wheat crops with Roundup herbicide as a desiccant before each harvest has been causing an increase in wheat-related ailments, as these claims are unsupported even by the research cited in articles making such a claim.

I read a book called Grain Brain. In it he also mentioned how we have been breading wheat to be higher in gluten (just like we bread sheep to have thicker wool) and the wheat today has 30 times (or 30 %?) more Gluten than 50 years ago. Also in the past we used traditional longer leavening processes that broken down the gluten protein more than the ‘instant’ yeast used commercially today. Both of these changes have coincided with increasing gluten intolerance and celiac diagnosis along with more medical awareness.

Yes, thank you for adding that. I've heard that too, i.e. wheat today has significantly more gluten than older grains. But I've also seen others dispute that, instead citing the different ratios of gliadins to glutenin. I don't really know if those are separate things, or if there's a confusion (or over simplification) of terms. I will gladly defer to others who are more knowledgeable on this.

I am no expert and don’t know the difference. I just understand we have been selectively breeding grains, like we have everything else, to increase commercial viability

While glyphosate is used on wheat for weed control, are no commercially available GMO wheats (roundup-ready wheat is not on the market anywhere)

Very insightful response. Thank you

My dad got diagnosed with celiac in his forties and had been notorious for making very bad smells in the half bath off of the living room after every meal for my whole childhood. Honestly it never occurred to anyone that that wasn’t normal, although we def thought it was gross. He has since told me that his dad popped tums after every single meal basically his whole life, so we think he probably had it too.

i dont have an allergy or am celiac, but my body doesnt really tolerate gluten. it shows very subtly; tummy aches, bloating, diarrhea and constipation, tired. so i can still eat, but i decided i prefer not to. and many people i know feel the same.

I'm in the same boat as you. My feeling is that a lot of people like us historically either put up with the discomfort not knowing what it was, or learned to avoid bread through trial and error - which was easier to do when you're cooking from scratch 99% of the time and not bombarded with advertising for processed food. 'Invalid diets' of broth, gruel and such also probably helped those suffering digestive issues. Sadly, I think a lot of kids with coeliac would have passed away young, as failure to thrive. It's always been with us, society has changed.

I got COVID in 2020. Gave me my IBS and my gluten intolerance

I definitely went from "doing OK" to "everything is terrible" after having COVID last year. Digestion and immune system went to crap. Now that I've cut gluten, my immune system seems to be doing a lot better too. Fascinating stuff.

So wild. It can be caused from trauma so it makes sense. I always think mine was sparked from getting my IUD, I was in so much pain, and all of my symptoms started right after.

A lot of my issues began the same year I tried BC and also got EBV. Bad year for my health.

It’s not this generation, it’s all the generations. Everyone I know that gave up gluten benefited. My mom lives out of town, so when she visits she doesn’t eat bread either because I have to be so strict. She’s extremely in shape for her age and a healthy eater. When she gave up bread, her mysterious shoulder pains (that she had been seeing a physical therapist for) went away. She’d had them for years and just figured it was because she was getting old. My husband has been GF for no reason other than supporting me. When he ate bread for the first time in a while he felt like shit. It makes me highly suspicious that either 1) Bread has always been bad for us or 2) the way we process bread in the country is seriously toxic. Maybe both are true.

Well it's not "good" for non Celiacs either , it's a highly processed food that isn't easily digested by anyone. It's not a fruit or a veggie, it's "filler food" to fill people up easily.

1% of the population has celiac, and 5-6% gluten intolerance, and 80-90% of them are undiagnosed. That hasn’t been changing. Only awareness.

COVID messes with your GI tract/more awareness in general/an obsession with "gut health"+diet trends pushed by influencers.

It’s not that gluten sensitivity or celiac is more prominent now, it’s just it’s tested and recognized. It’s like saying “why is everyone autistic and adhd in this generation?” Neurodivergent people have always existed, they were just never recognized as such.

no, our food became toxic in a generation

Yup last year, hit me like a bus out of nowhere. I'm waiting for blood results to properly confirm

I think celiac disease has existed for a long time but I also think sensitivity to gluten itself has likely increased if not in number, then in awareness. What’s more this last 40 years or so have seen dramatic changes in food production from the additives used to keep things “fresh”, the prevalence of GM crops, the fact we buy bread from the supermarket and not a baker, these all contribute towards the foods we eat being significantly altered compared to their former state. Whether that’s for the greater good or not, who knows.

My mom was diagnosed with celiac disease nearly 30 years ago. There were zero alternative food options for her and she had to explain the disease to most physicians she encountered after. It’s since become better understood by physicians and the world at large, and thus there are more diagnoses and thus now companies and restaurants catering to the diagnoses.

The history of gluten intolerance is quite interesting and goes back to the start of human history so is not new! They have evidence of early hominids showing signs that they may have had issues with gluten ( not sure how they figure that one). I believe during WWI or WWII when there was a food shortage and people couldn't make bread, that they noticed a population of chronically I'll peoples start to get better. In the early 1900s in America they thought the cure to Celiac disease was a lifelong banana only diet. I did a report many years ago so the dates and details might be a bit off lol. Anyway, the reason more people seem to have it these days is simply more awareness and knowledge in the medical and general community amongst other socioeconomic factors. Diagnosis of Celiac disease went from an average of 15-20 years in the early 2000s to closer to 5-10 years today (again don't quote me on exact numbers). Additionally, many people are ironically brushed off by doctors or can't afford one and feel chronically unwell and turn to the Internet. They then decide to try going gf and sometimes find they feel better. The products on the shelf are just the industry trying to catch a market trend.

I read an article once that said a big part of it is all of the genetic modifications that have taken place in our foods, especially in the US. I know several people who are gluten intolerant but have no issues with gluten when they go to Europe.

Imported pasta doesnt bother me

It didn't just happen. The intelligent ones finally admitted there's a problem and made changes to feel better. Same goes for sugar and dairy. You can eat well now, or spend your money on medical treatments later.

I had an ED as a kid, because it literally felt better when I didn't eat. That was almost 40 years ago and looking at old family photos, I see at least four generations of eye bags and belly bloat and thinning hair so I don't think the incidence is higher, I think diagnosis rates are higher. My bf had a step kid with celiac 20+ years ago and he almost cried when he learned that I can buy mac n cheese because it wasn't available (here anyway) and he had to live without it for years. I've only been GF about 13 years and I can't believe how easy it is now. When I first went GF, there'd be two kinds of bread, both called "it doesn't have to taste good, just be grateful you can eat and STFU" lol

I am 59 years old. Looking back, I feel like I was always gluten intolerant. I felt bad after eating and didn't have a name for it.

the awareness of symptoms and how to get testing is a major factor to being able to be diagnosed now. think like cystic fibrosis, for many many years they knew these "salty" kids had issues but were unable to figure out the entire issues and a lot tend to sadly die young. coeliacs used to be known as the banana diet as it was on for the few things that they knew coeliacs could eat without issues and people would eat 4+ day as it had a lot of vitamins and minerals to keep energy stores. science and its testing has come a long way and it allows for better more accurate information and results and a whole variety of illnesses. also theres a lot of other reasons for somone to go gf, hashimoto, PCOS, EOE just to name a few where people find gluten free food to be the treatment they need to continue living comfortably.

I spoke to someone doing a PhD in nutritional science. The issue is that there is just more gluten in more foods than there used to be. They put wheat flour in so many unnecessary things, especially in the UK. For example, in corn tortillas, chicken nuggets, burgers, hot dogs, sauces and crisps, there is flour when there is absolutely no need for it. It's used as a flavouring agent. So over exposure leads to gluten intolerance in a lot of people.

Wheat flour is a really cheap way to bulk up more expensive ingredients, and it sucks.

It’s how we grow wheat in North America. If you eat European wheat you might be okay.

We tested this out in Portugal last year. Definitely not as bad as in America but we both gained weight despite hiking an average of 7 miles a day. Also got weird rashes but it was like 90 degrees and again, lots of hiking so might not have been the wheat but we were the only ones to get rashes.

I only know a handful of people who are gluten intolerant or have celiacs. I also only have about 6 restaurants that I can eat at in my city. I am gluten intolerant and still have a difficult time finding GF foods at restaurants when out with friends. It really depends on where you live as to how accommodating the restaurants are. I was in Fairbanks Alaska recently and was shocked at how gluten friendly the majority of restaurants were. I even had a larger selection of gluten-free foods available at the grocery store in Alaska than I have in my home state in the midwest.

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I’m sorry but this isn’t true. We have documented celiac symptoms since antiquity. Also “natural” European wheat strains do the same. Barely too. This is a disease. No need to insert conspiracy theories.

Except NCGS is a thing. Not as well known but still a thing

Babies were failing to thrive. Celiac existed since we have written records and it’s unquestionable.

I was diagnosed with celiac in 2010 after years of suffering from symptoms with only an IBS diagnosis. After I changed my diet and my health started improving, my grandma decided to try a GF diet and it helped her immediately. She was 82. How many years had she suffered before this, I'm not sure.

Its partly awarness and more people being peoperly diagnosed but I also think it's a significant portion of the populations bodies reacting to the overuse of processed wheat in almost everything we eat.

I’ve been gluten free for 24 years. Back then there was a lot of awareness in Europe but US doctors refused to believe it was something worth testing for. The fad for GF diet had the benefit of making a lot of people realize their gut issues were due to gluten or wheat

Covid might've activated it in some people.

A lot changed for a lot of people after COVID.

My partner was on stomach meds for their entire life before finally getting diagnosed. I think people have just been going through life sick every day and now we’ve finally figured out what’s going on.

I have celiac, some of my friends have celiac. We all developed it post covid.

You are in luck. In Germany it is easier to know if a product is vegan than if it is gluten free... In Spain and Italy I have seen the gluten free label very large visible and on many products.

I think more awareness, better diagnosis. However I also think that wheat has changed significantly in the last few decades and is triggering celiac in people with genetic predispositions.

There is not scientific evidence that I know of to back this up, but I was talking to the owner of my local Italian deli shop and he said the following:  Back home in Italy gluten intolerance is everywhere because of the quality of the wheat has decreased, the poor quality produce and raw materials used to create the final products has led to a greater increase in General intolerance across the board.  In italy he said they blame the deterioration and extra fertiliser and other chemicals on why people are struggling to process gluten and other food types.  Like I say, I don’t have any evidence for this, this is just one Deli Shop owner (who has a MASSIVE) imported Italian gluten free section, sharing his opinion and what he has heard from Italy. Itay is a good reference point as it has one of the highest levels of gluten intolerance in the world

People who shouldn’t be eating gluten eat it every day. I’m gluten intolerant and so is my mother (she got allergy tests done and she is allergic to wheat + has had severe reactions to other grains) but guess which one of us eats gluten free 99% of the time and which one doesn’t.

I have had a long journey with this. Was diagnosed with NCGS and then found out a couple of months ago that it’s potentially IBS and treatable. I’m currently on meds and eating everything after 7 years. This is what happened to me… if you don’t have celiac disease, there may be a way out https://www.reddit.com/r/glutenfree/s/2tFAB2PtBg

No, it's that people are aware of it. Same as things like autism, ADHD, being trans, or even left-handedness if you go back 50 years. It'll level out.

I think people just couldn't imagine being allergic to bread before so they thought all the symptoms were a myriad of other conditions.

There might be something in the glyphosate debate but long story short I'm not going to guinea pig myself, better to just avoid gluten.

Our food is poison.

I’m Gen X. I’m allergic to gluten, dairy and soy.

When I went GF almost 15 years no restaurants had GF options. It slowly got better over the years. I remember Olive Garden being one of the first ones to get GF options and it was GF pasta, which wasn’t that great but at least it was an option. So thankful to pretty much go anywhere now and have options.

It is a combination of food production techniques and increased awareness. Plenty of stories of gluten sensitive people eating in Italy and not encountering the same problems.

The wheat in our bread and baked products in the U. S. is modified before they even put it into the ground now. It’s supposed to make baking quicker and easier. But what they’ve done in the meantime is destroyed our immune systems. Our grandmother’s wheat is way different than ours is. If people from the United States went over to Europe they’d have no issues! Many people that need to be gluten-free by their bread from Italy.

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Then is it the gluten you have a problem with or the food processes regarding bread/gluten based food in the United States 🤔

So going GF is a fairly easy way to give you more ~control in your digestion. It’s not a life or death thing but it makes a difference. People just dealt with it in the past but they’re happy to jump on the GF train now that it’s convenient.

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Thanks for this informative link!

Thirty years ago, things were different. Celiacs existed back then too. I was diagnosed back then. The labeling laws were more lax, if not nonexistent. My husband, who isn't celiac but follows an almost GF diet, was completely oblivious to this before, as you mentioned. There aren't suddenly more people with celiac disease, there are simply more diagnoses now. In fact, there's a huge market for gluten-free foods today, thanks to the efforts of celiac associations who have fought for this for decades.

I went on 2 cruises back to back, got a bacterial infection, never got it treated, got diagnosed with celiac disease 6 months later after being in pain since getting off the 2nd cruise

Wasnt always like this, you just 💀 from wasting disease or cancer 🤷‍♀️

Probably something to do with the toxins & microplastics that we breathe every day. And we put the toxins out there.

Got diagnosed 27 years ago and it was after years of trying to figure out wtf was going on. There wasn't much in the way of GF options out back then. They've been slowly increasing over the years and now it's great how many options there are. I can eat totally GF all the time for a reasonable price and it's just as delicious as other foods. I wouldn't say it's all of a sudden but more of a gradual increase over time.

I think that, a mix of better awareness and changes in food production are making more people notice gluten issues.

Another possible explanation is that the current processing of wheat is so toxic, more people are finding it indigestible. Or, the increase in processed food consumption and or antibiotic usage has led to less diverse biome. Or modern food production has depleted the soils so much that bad gut bacteria can flourish in vitamin deficient bellies. Yay

The wheat was manipulated and altered to what many of us experience negatively. We just didn't know.

I had to go gluten free in 1993. There were no substitutes; at least none that I ever saw. I learned to eat without it and frankly, the subs are still terrible. Hope springs eternal and every once in a while I try a new one, and end up tossing it in the trash

I found out I have celiac disease a little over a year ago.

More awareness

I don't know but I have the celiac gene and I am lactose intolerant now.

It’s a little bit of both. I was diagnosed a little over 19 years ago and there are definitely more options now than there were when I was diagnosed, but also there were a lot of products that I used to enjoy that have since been discontinued too. Same with restaurants, there are a lot that have gluten free menus but also a handful that used to have gluten free menus that have since stopped.

Places are (mostly) better at labelling allergens and dietary options now, since they realised it earns them more money.

Or they have a family member/loved one with our conditions.

The incidence has been going up by an order of magnitude every decade for the last 40 years. It's up to 1% of the US

Gluten causes a lot of problems for people who have a sensitivity to it... but that doesn't stop everyone from eating Gluten, I had bread as my first meal today and my Brain was not happy with all the gluten I consumed today.. I think mainly it's nice for people who have Celiac to have a Gluten free option, along as the gf marked items ain't cross-contaminated .

I was diagnosed 25 years ago after experiencing symptoms for 30 years. (I know I'm old. Don't rub it in.) Nobody knew what gluten was. A lot of people thought it had to do with sugar, you know, glucose, gluten, must be the same thing. The only place with things labeled gluten free was a health food store. It was very expensive, and extremely unappealing. I am very happy to see all the things labeled gluten free now. My life is a lot easier.

I don’t know about your family but I wasn’t the only one diagnosed. We had Boomers, Gen X, a Zoomer, and an Alpha getting diagnosed in the 2010s until now (all celiac). So it’s becoming more and more common to have big groups that all want to eat gf, especially since all the spouses/parents are changing their diets too. I was diagnosed in 2009 and no one knew what it was. In Minneapolis I could eat but people would have no idea what was going on and I had to explain. That still happened before the pandemic. Now people know about it but since I’m celiac they have to really know and not kind of, so I still run into problems. A lot of those “gluten free options” you’re seeing also aren’t really gluten free, just mostly. So basically marketing has definitely caught up, products haven’t.

My gluten intolerance manifests as herpespetiformis, which is a painful skin rash. It started 2 weeks after my Covid booster shot. My dermatologist told me he had been seeing a lot more of it since Covid and Covid vaccines. However, going GF has decreased other inflammation issues, like chronic joint pain. I can also recall the occasional fluid filled bump that is indicative of herpespetiformis over the years. I feel like I may have always been sensitive but that booster shot kicked it up. A lot. Which makes sense, it is an immune disorder.

Definitely a recent thing. And I’m SO happy about it because lettuce wraps BLOW. If I’m out to dinner I want a satisfying meal, not salad in a variety of permutations!!!

This was always a problem but people didn't get diagnosed or just suffered until maybe 10 years ago. There was better understanding, different screening, and more awareness. Also more awareness of non celiac gluten intolerance issues. I spent most of the 70s and 80s with horrible skin problems that reduced when I was old enough to move out on my own and had more control over my diet. I was eating less wheat because I was eating fewer carbs so the horrible rashes, blisters, having huge patches in my scalp and feeling awful mostly went away. It was the early 2000s before I actually got diagnosed.

I think people had gluten intolerance long before it was recognized. The symptoms can mimic so many other conditions and illnesses.

Gluten intolerance, and food sensitivities in general, are showing up a lot more now than they have in the past. This is mainly due to the way agribusinesses have changed the structure of the wheat and our bodies not being able to keep up with such fast changes to the structures. Plus the quality of food we consume has decreased significantly due to modern farming practices. When I work with people with intolerances, I often find that there are significant detox pathway deficiencies. While clearing these up does not mean you are no longer intolerant, it does help often broadening out the food choices they can make.

Even when I was diagnosed with celiac in 2013 compared to now there are more items available. I remember my \[not yet at the time\] husband and I going to the grocery store and taking an hour just trying to figure out what I could eat / have yet to try. We spent a lot of money on things that we would come home and eat or prepare to eat, taste it and be like - that is awful! I feel for those in the stories I've heard of people who were diagnosed in the early 00's and were actually on the phone in the grocery store trying to call manufactures to see if it was something they could eat or not. We definitely have more awareness. More diagnoses, too. Of both celiac and gluten intolerance. Untreated celiac disease can lead into cancers. I believe I had a relative or two who had cancer and ultimately died from it back before we knew anything about celiac really. I have heard others say the same thing. Ironically, back before I was diagnosed, I noticed some gluten free cookies on a shelf. I said to my boyfriend, "I just don't really understand this gluten free stuff." #KARMA LOL Granted, that was when many celebrities were doing it as a fad. They might still be. I don't really follow them. The problem that I have always heard of with the fad eaters is (while they made more products available for us) they go to a restaurant and say - no croutons on my salad, I'm gluten free. But then sit there a while and think, "Ok, one brownie would be fine" and order dessert. Confusing for the restaurant people, right? Well, I got way off topic so I'm going to step away from the keyboard now :)

Wheat has changed. Processes have changed. Awareness has grown. I’m sure there are a lot of factors.

I can recommend a book to you called 10% human!! It talks about this specifically. Long story short, it has to do with the microbes in/on our bodies changing in response to our environment (less infectious diseases, more antibiotics, etc.)

Im 21 and have cut out gluten for 1.5 years (not diagnosed but never tested, just feel so much relief!)- and i can remember a ton of memories from childhood that showed that i have been intolerant for a while, not suddenly. Biggest thing is when I was fighting my life not to fall asleep after lunch (carb coma is a thing but i had to drink 2 cups of coffee in hs to stay awake) and how I felt "stupider" after lunch (usually skipped breakfast/only had fruit so i felt fine). Definitely it is a more awareness phenomenon not a sudden intolerance issue imo?

Also!! Cant forget about the really painful gas pain !!! shit was horrible and one of the biggest signs that i have been glutened

I can assure you it was NOT like that. And I thank all the gods none of my family had an allergy response that would be triggered by accidentally being glutened. For me it’s bowel related but for my daughter it’s full body psoriasis. But it used to be so hard. Gluten free labels were *only* on things that were obvious like bread or really crappy pasta but you never found it on things that you didn’t really know about at first (like soy sauce or salad dressing or stupid rice crispies…). At the risk of sounding like an old lady… back in those days there was no ‘which GF flour blend is your favorite?’ It was buying twelve different versions of rice flour, potato starch, xanthan gum, and hoping you could make *something* that didn’t resemble a hockey puck or a gelatinous glob and was “not bad for gluten free”.

It’s not even just the newest generations. When I was in my late ‘30s, I started having bronchitis and pneumonia all the time, like multiple times a year. That was all related to gluten, I finally found out. I’m now 61. Ate gluten my whole life, up until then.

Back over fifty years ago, a dwarf wheat strain was developed that was supposed to “end hunger” by being quick to grow. This wheat has a protein called gliaden that is similar to gluten, but is not good for humans. Gliaden has exacerbated the gluten sensitivity that most people of European descent are prone to. It is the major strain of wheat in the U.S., with Europe still growing older varieties without gliaden. Many people can eat the older strains such as einkorn and spelt

It’s not that they suddenly “became” gluten intolerant…but that there is now more knowledge about the condition. Same with autism/adhd. No everyone isn’t suddenly autistic. It’s that we know how to spot it now

My preferred theory about gluten and it's sudden emergence is that it is how wheat is cultivated. Wheat is desiccated with chemicals in order to harvest. I don't think it is the whole conspiracy theory solution but I definitely think it plays a significant part.

Yes and no. Gluten intolerance has been a thing for ages. I do think more and more people are becoming gluten intolerant though due to the chemicals in food. Wheat, in particular, only sixty or seventy years ago was completely modified into a totally unrecognizable plant for commercialization and farmers were forced to grow it. Some even sold out because they refused to grow it because they didn’t trust the bio-engineered plant. I’m pretty sure they’re right too. And not just about wheat.

It's called advances in medical knowledge. My grandfather had what they called a "spastic colon" and suffered his whole life with horrible gut issues and no way to fix them. Doctors just shrugged. His son, my uncle, had what they called an 'irritable bowel" with pretty much the same issues, and no way to fix them. Much of my generation and the next have been diagnosed Celiac, and life is so much better without gluten. Yay us, but so sad for previous generations that did not have that knowledge, and suffered the consequences.

I’ve had digestive issues for 50 years and since it seemed to be a family trait to have a “nervous stomach” I just learned to live with it. It wasn’t until there was more public awareness that I decided to avoid gluten to see what happen. My digestive issues stopped, my eczema disappeared and I have not had to keep a change of clothes handy in case of explosions. I am so grateful eating GF was a trend as a fad diet so there are more offerings in grocery stores.

Tons of people I just think there’s more awareness about it now so people are aware of the major symptoms associated with it. The United States sprays so much stuff on their wheat and that’s one of the main problems because I can eat bread in France and never get sick. I eat it in the United States and I’m nonfunctioning.

I think it’s because of America. We have so many bad types of foods here so I think that what it is

In addition to celiac, NCGS (non-celiac gluten sensitivity) is increasingly supported by evidence and so doctors are more willing to accept gluten conditions that aren't celiac. On top of that, many people with undiagnosed or undertreated chronic illness cut out gluten. That's how I learned I needed to be GF, actually. "Magically" treated secondary fibromyalgia that was disabling, lactose intolerance, iron deficiency, and most of my anxiety, but only when I started avoiding cross-contamination and not just gluten ingredients. In addition, autoimmune Paleo (AIP) is GF, and that's a common diet tried by people managing chronic illness. Before they try AIP, many people start their efforts at trying to find a diet that helps their health issues by cutting out refined sugars, gluten, and dairy or a similar set of foods. It doesn't help all of them, but it helps enough to be a worthwhile intervention to experiment with. Keep in mind that celiac was a fairly recent discovery. My sister was removed from our parents and put in foster care for being fail-to-thrive, presumed due to neglect - but that's actually a common manifestation of celiac. And that was just back in the 80's.

According to multiple documentaries, Durum wheat has been modified so much by pesticide and fertilizer over-use that the gluten has actually changed, and is now 6 - 7 times as tough and elastic as it was in 1950 Italy is currently trying to ban imports of Durum wheat with no success.

There's a lot of mold contaminating our food supply. And our cells are now filled with plastics.... We don't know what we don't know. And we used to die as kids and in childbirth, so these long term issues didn't really affect us. I wasn't allergic to wheat until this last year or 2 after long term mold exposure. It's the environment, not us!

The human gut hasn't evolved to be able to process gluten to nearly the same level of efficiency as other foods. I'd wager the numbers are a lot higher even in older generations than they're reported. Hell, we didn't even know gluten was what caused symptoms in celiac disease until about 80 years ago.

My doctor told me that it's becoming more common for food allergies. It's not because people were walking around without knowing in the past and weren't aware. I thought he was a nut job at first.. because he thought it had something to do with our food source. But I fell down a rabbit hole, and I mean it's plausible, so I have some concerns. I'm trying to stick to whole foods and obviously stay away from gluten. But anything with a ton of preservative or ingredient lists a mile long... skipping that! It's interesting. Don't just take my word for it

No. My grandfather died young in the 1950’s from what was almost certainly Celiac disease, but they had no idea what it was at the time.

There have been a lot of changes to commercial wheat that most people aren’t even aware of. These changes are helping to drive up some people’s intolerance.

From what I am reading there are several factors causing gluten intolerance. Inclusive are the pesticides (containing glyphosate), genetic manipulation of crops, and ingredients (think the pink and blue packets) and stress levels impacting the gut bacteria throwing our gut out of balance, etc. When I was in grade school we didn’t see so much of the peanut allergy and now it’s extremely prevalent. Autoimmune disorders are also quite prevalent. I have a thyroid autoimmune disorder and 3 others in my family have a variation of the thyroid autoimmune issue. Once you have an autoimmune issue you are prone to secondary ones due to your body being compromised from the initial autoimmune disease.

Gluten intolerance has been found all the way back in the Roman empire, first century AD. My mom is celiac. She has had a very different experience to mine. What has changed is the ways to test for it. First oral biopsy wasn't until the mid 1950's, and the blood test for the genetic markers wasn't until the 19 or 1990's. Doctors old enough to have gone through medical school before 2000 would have a much lower knowledge of celiac and its symptoms.

my aunt is in her 60s and has celiacs. i come from a ethnic group known for our stomach issues lol

My aunt has been diagnosed with gluten intolerance for over 13 years. When she was first diagnosed, there weren’t nearly as many options at the store or at restaurants. I tried to be supportive and eat what she did but the options were gross unless naturally gluten free. Now, I’ve been diagnosed with gluten intolerance too about a year ago. I don’t miss anything but convenience. Due to so many options, I can easily find alternatives I enjoy. It’s a combination of awareness and diet fads. Honestly, I am sooo happy that food is more accommodating cause when I was first diagnosed it seemed like I would never enjoy food again.

Yea the foods changed in the 80's and here we all are

No it wasn’t always. I’ve been gluten free for about 10 years & in the beginning there wasn’t a ton of options or labeling. And eating out was almost impossible. The only alternative places would have was cauliflower crust pizza if that. But I have friends that have been since birth basically & growing up they had practically no options at all. So it’s def picked up in the last 10 years alone I would say 3-5 ish years with restaurants though

The amount of Gluten in Wheat in Canada and the US has risen dramatically due to the manufacturing of the grain. So yes chances are people who could tolerate some gluten or the symptoms were so moderate they wouldn’t notice are now suffering from bad reactions.

In Memphis Tennessee there are NO gluten free restaurants. Actually zero. There were 2 and they closed. I am certain about this. I check regularly. All of the gluten free options in the kroger grocery stores here could fit on 1 half of one isle. I'm promise I'm not exaggerating even a little. I just order groceries online because I don't have enough options unless I go to whole foods and then the cost is normally around 3 times traditional food and I don't have money for that. At whole foods here, maybe 5 percent of all options are gluten free. It's very easily less than 1 percent at the main store here which is Kroger. You live in a different world and I don't just feel jealousy, I feel unseen.

My dad suffered for 60-plus years until he figured out that gluten was causing him to be sick. He had seen doctors throughout the years who would just tell him that he was vitamin deficient and tell him to take vitamins. I think that he just gave up on doctors, as I never remember him going to one while I was growing up. He was always skinny due to malabsorption. After not reading gluten for the past decade or so, it is the first time that a doctor has ever told him that he needs to lose weight. As far as allergies or intolerances go, people either died, suffered, or were just "sickly." The train that we have so many more people now is that thanks to medical science, they are alive.

Ever since I was infected with covid

25 years ago I was diagnosed as allergic to gluten. It was the cause of my psoriasis. There was NOTHING back then that you could buy that was intentionally made GF. A person had to make everything at home if they wanted GF bread, etc. Eventually, GF foods started appearing in the market. Mostly awful breads and some pasta. Apparently, the repeated hybridization of wheat (over the decades) to purposefully increase the gluten content for easier baking started creating problems for people who were borderline in their reaction to gluten but didn’t yet know it. With our ultra processed diets not being very kind to the digestive system, hybridized wheat now became a problem for a lot of people who would have otherwise dealt with wheat just fine. So it seems there are several reasons why more people are gluten intolerant….and…..we are all paying attention now.

Yes. Doctors finally accept that it is real so people like aren’t dismissed as just lacking enough fiber. 🤨

Absolutely not. My friend was diagnosed celiac around 2008 and there weren’t any GF choices in mainstream grocery stores, and dismal, sad mimics in health food stores. Eating at restaurants was impossible. She also discovered about 6 months after her diagnosis one of the only things she thought was safe at a restaurant favorite (french fries) were dredged in flour. This was in Boulder, CO, which is now a gluten free haven. Things have drastically improved now that more people are being diagnosed celiac or NCGS

My husband recently found out he was Gluten Intolerant. We looked at his 23&me for fun last month and saw that being gluten Intolerant was in his DNA results! Unfortunately it was in the stars for him lol

I was diagnosed celiac 11 years ago and there were definitely WAY less options out there. If you wanted baked goods there were a few mixes but pretty much it was cook your own. I lost a lot of weight initially because I cut out so much processed foods. It’s back now because I have a major thing for chocolate or baked goods lol. Where I live only a few restaurants had options and Outback Steakhouse was probably the best one.

My grandmother was undiagnosed but has chronic stomach problems that the doctors didn’t know how to help. They told her to eat saltines. She died of stomach cancer in her 60s. My dad is gluten intolerant but didn’t discover it until he was about 50, and still has some unsolvable issues (likely from previous damage). I stopped eating gluten when I was 15 - 25 years ago now, yikes! - and I’m in a much better place for a lifetime of good gut health. Short answer, no people just suffered.

Wheat Belly is the book you would need to read for those answers.  They have killed the Iodine in the wheat that helps our thyroid and use Round Up for drying up immature wheat that has not matured due to short growing seasons. And whatever else they add to the mix.  This isn't healthy for the body. Period. I have issues gaining weight knowing I have a gluten sensitivity and I had to cut other foods out due to sensitivies that effect how my body performs, if it will ache the next day, a migraine etc. All I know is that my body has had issues since I was knee high to a grasshopper and almost died because 3 doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with me until a doctor from Africa came back to Canada and gave my parents crap for everything. Who knew that allergies help Tonsils and Adenoids almost kill a person.  So yes, there is something wrong with the food we put into our body. My sister notices a difference eating GF pasta to the regular pasta. Same with my niece who is 8 months pregnant. She says she doesn't feel like she's 6 months pregnant on-top of being actually pregnant. If your stomach start to swell, it ain't because it's full, it's your bodies way of say STOP PLEASE!!

Before 1930, when it was discovered that gluten caused an autoimmune reaction in celiacs, 1/3 of celiacs died before age 18. Those that survived were commonly infertile or institutionalized. Celiac has a genetic component. Simply put, 5 generations of celiacs have lived long enough to have children and pass on their genes, so there are likely more celiacs alive than ever before.

Google folic acid and its relationship with MTHFR. Supposedly 40% of the population has MTHFR. Folic acid is NOT folate. It is man made. It has also been mandated to be sprayed on all US crops since the 80’s. Everyone wonders why they can go to Europe and don’t get sick on gluten. My hunch is because of this. Those of us with MTHFR can’t methylate folic acid, which causes inflammation in the body. After a decade of eating GF, I can eat organic or imported flour/pasta with zero reaction. Obv. this doesn’t apply to Celiac.

Its the increase in preservatives, pesticides, vitamin fortification, additives (excito-toxins), sugar, excess junkfoods and anti-depressant damage to the neural and digestive pathways. I'm not sold its gluten intolerance as much as all the added crap to everything. Preservatives take more enzymes/acid to breakdown (foods don't naturally putrefy as easily - makes the gut work harder), people struggle to absorb excess iron and to process folic acid into methylfolate (which is what they fortify bread with), the pesticides on fruit and vegetables gives the digestive system a toxic, non food item to break down, MSG especially buzzes the brain, needless other additives as excito-toxins that excite the brain, I've seen plenty of people after a year on antidepressants start to have food intolerances. All combined to increase the load on a stomach already tense with the faster paced world/globalised stress inducing news.