Gluten is a compound found naturally in wheat, barley, and rye that helps dough stretch and bread rise. Many misguided dieters today choose to go gluten-free, even though only about 1% of the population has celiac disease (an autoimmune disorder where gluten must be avoided). In this review, researchers analyzed studies on the nutritional adequacy of gluten-free diets. They found that gluten-free diets tend to have less fiber, calcium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B12, folate, and vitamin D, and tend to have more saturated fat and exposure to arsenic. The researchers note that “the majority of persons adopting a [gluten-free diet] have no medical basis for doing so,” and that “only persons with [celiac disease], [wheat allergy], or [non celiac gluten-sensitivity] should follow a [gluten-free diet], and they should do so under medical supervision.”
Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism. 2019 Jul 1;2019:2438934. doi: 10.1155/2019/2438934. [Diez-Sampedro A et al.]