Is There a Difference Between Gluten and Wheat Intolerance?

Many people across the UK struggle to understand the difference between gluten and wheat intolerance. Let’s have a look at the difference.

What is Gluten?

Gluten is a protein found in a number of grains such as wheat, rye and barley. Gluten is mostly found in foods like bread, pasta, cereal, biscuits, beer, and can also be used in meat products as a thickener.

Gluten and Wheat

There is a difference between gluten and wheat intolerance, they are different conditions but do cross over each other, which is why it’s easy to mix up the two intolerances. Both conditions have similar symptoms, like bloating, abdominal pain, fatigue, constipation and headaches. Having a gluten intolerance means that you’re sensitive to all grains containing gluten, wheat, as well as wheat varieties. Whereas, when you have a wheat intolerance, you’re just sensitive to wheat and wheat varieties.

There are two types of gluten intolerance: coeliac and non-coeliac.

Coeliac Disease

This is a disease where the body attacks its own cells after gluten is consumed, which causes damage to the small intestine. Symptoms of this disease include indigestion, bloating, nausea, abdominal pain and constipation.

Non-Coeliac Disease

Gluten and wheat intolerances aren’t life-threatening but still can cause discomfort in the body. Non-coeliac disease just means that your digestive system struggles to break down the trigger food. Some symptoms of this include bloating, fatigue, migraines, nausea and constipation.

Wheat and gluten-free alternatives

Avoiding wheat is much simpler than avoiding gluten. However, the list of foods that include wheat is still quite extensive and it can be difficult to avoid it. A few examples of alternatives are gluten-free bread, potatoes, rice, and fresh produce. It’s easier to avoid trigger foods by making the majority of your meals from scratch, as most pre-packaged foods have wheat in them.

Summary

It’s much easier these days to avoid wheat and gluten as there are so many gluten and wheat-free food products available. Remember to check the labels on foods and be careful what you put into your body.