Gluten is a special type of protein commonly found in rye, wheat, and barley. There is a definite link between gluten & type 1 diabetes, but it is uncertain what the link is. Some suspect that early exposure to gluten is one of the environmental triggers for the disease. Being type 1 diabetic gives you a 1 in 10 chance of developing celiac disease, an intolerance of gluten. My sister and a couple of great aunts have celiac. For these reasons, we kept Ben gluten-free for his first year of life. Andrew has been tested twice for celiac antibodies and has tested negative both times. Still, I wish it were easier to eat gluten-free!
Don't give gluten to infants!- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14519706
GF diet doesn't prevent T1D once antibodies start -http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1783529/
Has our consumption of gluten changed in recent years? I would think that bread has been a diet staple for centuries. Or are they putting it in baby food instead of just fruits and veggies?
ReplyDeleteI think so. Gluten acts as a preservative, so it is now added to many foods to extend the shelf life. It is also in lots of convenient beginner foods -wheat, oat, & barley cereals, cheerios, goldfish, etc. Almost all jars of baby food dinners had gluten in them. With the increase in gluten has come an increase in celiac, type 1 diabetes, and autism, which often responds to a gluten-free diet.
ReplyDeleteMy kids went to a home daycare for several years. The lady was a precious grandmother type who loved the kids. She also made homemade biscuits for them every morning. Ryan was already 1 when he started. He has no antibodies. Kaitlyn & Andrew started eating biscuits daily at a very early age. Both are positive for antibodies. Will was a baby there, but he didn't like biscuits. He's negative. Ben didn't go there. He's negative. I'll always wonder.
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