On nearly every grocery store aisle, a plethora of gluten-free food is available. Shoppers are offered gluten-free pasta, gluten-free bread and gluten-free muffins. The checkout line has gluten-free cookbooks and gluten-free news articles.

Since the public has had so much exposure to gluten allergies, it would be easy to assume that the problem is very common. However, allergists insist that gluten allergies don’t exist.

Dr. Alan DeJarnatt at the Asthma and Allergy Care Clinic helped to clear the muddy waters of this debate by pointing out that a person who is “allergic to gluten” actually has a disease called celiac.

This disease invokes an improper immune response to gluten. The body produces antibodies to fight the gluten and there is usually intestinal damage, which can lead to anemia, osteoporosis and cancer, according to celiac.org.

A gastroenterologist performs celiac testing on a sample of tissue in the small intestine to confirm the diagnosis.

However, Dr. DeJarnatt said that there are some people who do not test positive for celiac disease and yet they have symptoms when they eat gluten. These people have sensitivity to gluten.

When a body is sensitive to gluten, it does not produce the same type of antibodies as it would when it fights allergens, such as pollen or peanuts, said Dr. DeJarnatt.
Gluten sensitivity is not easy to diagnose, unlike other problems such as respiratory conditions caused by allergies. Food sensitivity testing must be carefully performed.

“The process for identifying an allergy must be driven by history,” said Dr. DeJarnatt. “If a patient has a history of stomach cramping after they eat, then it is logical to be suspicious of a food allergy, however sometimes patients will ask me to test them for gluten allergy because they have a headache or joint problems.”

“If a person has headaches once a month and wants to be tested for a gluten allergy, I don’t assume that they have an allergy problem,” said Dr. DeJarnatt. “There are many reasons for having headaches, irritable bowels or fogginess.”

People who overeat gluten and are also sensitive to gluten will have some damage in the lining in the gastrointestinal tract. This type of intestinal damage isn’t the same type of intestinal damage found in individuals with celiac disease, said Dr. DeJarnatt.

Dr. DeJarnatt said that sometimes people have celiac-like symptoms that go away after implementing a gluten-free diet. “Many of these people were eating too many carbohydrates and that can cause you to not feel well,” said Dr. DeJarnatt.

“Gluten allergies don’t exist,” said Dr. David Stukus at Nationwide Children’s Hospital who recently presented the topic at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. “Wheat is a recognized allergy — but a lot of people misinterpret that as gluten.”

“Gluten has been blamed for all that ails humanity,” said Dr. Stukus. “But there are only three disorders that you can attribute to gluten on a scientific basis: celiac disease, wheat allergies and non-celiac gluten sensitivity.”

“Talking to your doctor about your suspicions for celiac disease or gluten sensitivity is the best thing to do,” said Dr. DeJarnatt.

Featured Doctor

Alan DeJarnatt, M.D. Allergy and Asthma

Dr. DeJarnatt received his medical degree from the University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences in Memphis. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Texas A&M University and Scott & White Hospital in Temple, Texas, before completing a fellowship in allergy and immunology at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

He has been practicing medicine in Jackson since 1992.
He is board certified in internal medicine and in allergy and immunology. He is a member of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; the West Tennessee Consolidated Medical Assembly; and the Tennessee Medical Association.