Is sourdough bread acceptable on a gluten-free diet?


Many of us are trying to avoid gluten for a variety of reasons.  Some have negative physical or mental reactions to it while others avoid it to help them lose weight or just feel better.  Whatever the reason, avoiding gluten is usually worth it, but never easy.  How can you not miss that bread!  That's why I wanted to share this article from Whole Living Magazine discussing how and why sourdough bread may be tolerable for people with Celiac disease and gluten sensitivities.  I won't try to explain it as well as Todd Oppenheimer does in this article (because I'll fail) but basically the fermentation process, unique to the sourdough bread-making process, is thought to break down the gluten into easily digestible products that won't irritate the sensitive.  There's a few studies (although small) suggesting that Celiacs may even tolerate it.

The article also presents interesting insight into what's happening to our wheat these days: it's basically pumped up on steroids changing the nature of the grain and possibly causing the increase in sensitivities and allergies.  Maybe it's not just the gluten, maybe there's more to the story.  I find this topic very interesting and look forward to more research and answers, hopefully in the near future.  For now, whether or not sourdough is the answer for you, it's intriguing food for thought.

photo from bungalowc


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