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The following is an article that I wrote for a newsgroup thread with the
same subject name. Did get a question asking how come not everybody that was
eating gluten was fat and why some gluten eaters were thin. Don.

Here is the first draft of my current theory on this:

The reason why we are so fat here in the US is our gluten consumption. Also
note how fat they are in Italy, another place of high gluten consumption
(pasta has the most gluten, bread is second).

The diet newsgroup readers are raving about low carbohydrate diets that
reduce their food cravings. It works whether it is Atkins or the Heller's
CAD one. Atkins is supposed to be ketosis, but they're saying they're
losing weight even when the ketosis urine test strip isn't changing color.
The Hellers' focus more on low-starch, and they do a good job of keeping
the gluten out for 2/3 of the day. Low carb diets work.

Gluten compromises the brush border of the intestinal mucosa, which then is
not absorbing enough *fat soluble* food to operate the body. The small
intestine system knows this and gets the stomach system, which does the
*water soluble* processing, to go into action and produce appropriate food
cravings. Since chocolate, and candy, are the most readily available sugar,
the system then learns to crave these items, as they are the ones it is
most likely to get rewarded with. A gluten-free diet should reduce these
cravings dramatically.

Those that are not fat had another system, possibly the brain system, send
signals to the stomach to tone down these craves. Each system has its own
intelligence and is communicating with the others.

All people may have some degree of starch/carbohydrate intolerance,
especially since heavy consumption of the grasses didn't start until the
agricultural revolution some 10-15,000 years ago. The gliadin fraction of
gluten is just the most toxic. Gliadin antibodies are found in about 20% of
otherwise normal children and up to 40% of normal adults. Dr. Reichelt says
"We all have IgG antibodies to food proteins indicating uptake of
immunologically active proteins in trace quantities. ... The IgA antibodies
formed in the gut are transported to all mucous membranes in the body and
may react with appropriate antigens."

On intestinal permeability Dr. Reichelt says "We do however, all take up
trace amounts of intact protein after a meal (see eg. Husby S et al (1985)
Scand J Immunol 22:83-92) so that a decreased breakdown of fragments of
these proteins could easily lead to accumulation."

Don <[log in to unmask]>