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Celiac Disease & The Gluten-Free Paradox: Is Your Diet Exposing You to Heavy Metals?


What is Celiac Disease?


Celiac disease is a severe hereditary autoimmune condition where the consumption of gluten promotes damage of the small intestine. Gluten is a protein that is found naturally in foods such as wheat, rye, and barley.


When people with celiac disease eat gluten, their immune system attacks the lining of the small intestine. As a result, the immune system damages the villi of the small intestine, which are tiny, finger-like projections that line the small intestine and help absorb nutrients.


The damage to the villi leads to the malabsorption of important nutrients, which leads to malnutrition. Malnutrition promotes many short-term and long-term health consequences, such as anemia, osteoporosis, neurological issues, and growth failure in children.


A diagram of the lining of the small intestine, comparing normal, tall villi to villi flattened by celiac disease.
Lining of the small intestine. Source: beyondceliac.org

The Gluten Free Diet


Currently, there is no medical treatment or procedure that can cure or treat celiac disease. The only currently available treatment is a strict, lifelong, gluten free diet.


A gluten free diet entails the complete elimination of wheat, rye, and barley products. Some foods that are excluded in a GF diet include bread, pasta, baked goods, and beer.


These foods can be substituted with natural gluten-free grains and starches. To replicate the texture and convenience of gluten-containing foods, the gluten-free food producers rely heavily on alternative grains.


Rice and corn serve as the primary foundational ingredients for a majority of manufactured gluten-free processed foods, such as gluten-free breads, crackers, cereals, and pastas.




A diagram comparing the structure of wheat (a food with gluten), and a rice (non gluten) alternative. Starch granules are embedded in the gluten matrix, holding gas bubbles in place in wheat dough. In rice batter, starch granules hold gas bubbles in place, foregoing a gluten matrix.
A diagram comparing the structure of wheat dough (a food with gluten), and a rice (non gluten) batter alternative. Source: Hiroyuki Yano

How the Gluten Free Diet Promotes Heavy Metal Accumulation


The paradox lies in how a gluten free diet affects the body. While a gluten-free diet heals intestinal lining and virtually eliminates symptoms of celiac disease, a great reliance on gluten-free food also exposes a person to chronic, low-level dietary exposure to environmental toxins.


Some substitute crops, such as rice, are greatly efficient at absorbing and accumulating toxic metals and metalloids from the soil and water where they are grown.


Rice is usually grown in flooded paddies, a condition that makes rice uniquely susceptible for absorbing inorganic arsenic and other heavy metals from the environment. 


Deep water rice growing in a flood. Source: science.org
Deep water rice growing in a flood. Source: science.org

Scientific evaluations have analyzed blood and urine samples from study participants to analyze toxic metal accumulation. Research shows that people following a gluten-free diet have a much higher concentration of arsenic in their urine than people on a standard diet. Studies have also found elevated levels of other toxic metals in the blood, such as mercury, lead, and cadmium, in people with a gluten-free diet.


Arsenic and cadmium are carcinogens that contribute to cardiovascular disease and kidney damage over time. In addition, lead and mercury are neurotoxins that negatively impact neurological health and cognitive function. While the levels of toxic metals in gluten-free foods are not immediately toxic, chronic long-term exposure is the main concern.


Environmental toxins that can be consumed and have negative effects on health. Sources of organ toxicity include water, environment, drugs, employment, and diet. Mercury causes hepatic, renal, gastrointestinal, and central nervous system disorders. Cadmium causes bone, liver, gastrointestinal, kidney, lung disorders, and cancer. Arsenic leads to hepatic, gastrointestinal, central nervous system, cardiovascular, skin, and hair disorders. Lead promotes hepatic, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, renal, pulmonary, hematological, and central nervous system diorders.
Environmental toxins that can be consumed and have negative effects on health. Source: Bascuñán et. al.

Conclusion


The findings from scientific studies show a need for greater awareness about the diversity of foods in a gluten-free diet.


Instead of over-relying on rice-based processed substitutes, people can benefit from diversifying their diet with other naturally gluten-free grains. These include quinoa, millet, buckwheat, and amaranth. Whole foods can also minimize heavy metal exposure.


Sources



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