Eating Gluten in Europe Explained for People with Celiac Disease Ep. 175

Can European gluten really be safe for those with celiac disease? Get ready to uncover the truth behind this widespread myth in our latest episode. I’ll explain why indulging in European wheat without consequences is dangerously misleading, even if you think you aren't experiencing immediate side effects. Delve into the scientific realities and hear why gluten is harmful no matter where it's grown. I’ll also address why some people may believe they're tolerating it better abroad and explain the hidden damage that's still happening inside your body.
 
 Join me as I explain the differences between European and American wheat, including differing gluten levels and farming practices. 

Discover the importance of prioritizing your health and leveraging the many gluten free options available when traveling. 

This episode is a must-listen for anyone with celiac disease who wants to stay safe and make informed choices while enjoying their travels. Tune in and empower yourself with the knowledge to dispel misconceptions and safeguard your health.
 
 

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Music Credit bensound.com 

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:24

Now, a little while back, I recorded an episode where I talked about five lies you might have been told about celiac disease. One of those lies was that you could eat European wheat or the gluten over in Europe, and I tried to debunk that lie and share that. It's a myth and unfortunately, after I released that episode, I had multiple people reach out to me and tell me that they'd been to Europe and had eaten gluten and they were fine. So clearly there is a massive misconception about this and there is not enough information about it. So in today's episode, I want to really nut down on the reasons why some people have consumed gluten in Europe and haven't noticed any side effects. So, as simple as it is, gluten is gluten, no matter where it is grown. It doesn't matter whether the wheat was grown in US, it doesn't matter if the wheat was grown somewhere in Europe. It doesn't matter where it was grown it is still containing gluten of some level. Grown, it is still containing gluten of some level.

Speaker 1: 1:33

Now there's a number of factors that could be causing you to think that you were fine when you ate gluten in Europe, but it's not actually true. So there was damage still happening if you have celiac disease. If you have a gluten sensitivity, you could very well go to Europe and probably eat gluten over there and be fine because you don't have an autoimmune disease. But when you have celiac disease, which is an autoimmune disease, you may not get the side effects that you would normally get eating the gluten products that you would eat in your home country, as to what you would have in Europe, to what you would have in Europe, but you are still doing damage to your villi. Okay, so you may not have felt the damaging effects of it, but you were still getting damaged on the inside of your body. So I want people to understand that just because you've heard that you know your friend or your best mate's sister's cousin went to Europe and they ate gluten and they were fine, it doesn't mean that you should be going over there and doing the same thing, because the last thing you want to be doing if you go to Europe, any country over in Europe, and you want to test that theory and you get sick it's not worth it. It's not worth running that risk and, having said that, there are so many amazing restaurants, bakeries, foods over there, products that you can purchase that are gluten free, so it is not worth the risk. It's not worth risking your health. So when we look at people that don't get the the major side effects when they go to Europe and they eat gluten over there, and they may have a different level of reaction to what you do. So you may be someone that gets severe diarrhea, you get vomiting, you get the joints pains and all the aches and all of the you know, the migraines and all those types of things. The people that you may have heard have gone over there and eaten gluten and they were fine. They may not have the severity of symptoms that you would get initially anyway when you consume products in your home country. So there's so much to look at and so much to compare.

Speaker 1: 3:45

So let's talk about the wheat. So the wheat that is grown in Europe is different to the wheat that is grown in the USA. Okay, so you may not have heard this, but it has a lower level of gluten. So the European wheat is grown differently. It is a different type of wheat. The soil affects it as well, but the wheat that is grown there is classed as a soft wheat, whereas the wheat that is grown in the USA is classed as a hard wheat and it has a higher protein level and therefore a higher level of gluten.

Speaker 1: 4:23

Now, when you go to the European countries that you may be traveling to, you know there's so many different amazing countries in Europe and you are traveling, so you are relaxed, you are not as stressed out as your normal life, you're enjoying yourself, you're traveling, you may be eating better because you're finding delicious, healthy foods. You're not eating as much processed crap that you may have normally been devouring before you went on your holiday, so that helps for feeling better as well, and you tend to walk around more when you're on holidays, especially in Europe. If you've never been to Europe, you do a lot of walking. It's easier just to walk around from place to place than jump in a taxi or jump on transport. It's just so easy to get around in most countries within the cities just walking. So what happens when you walk after a meal is your body is able to digest the food easier. So you may have a heavy meal at home and you feel bloated and you feel heavy. But then you're on a holiday in Europe and you feel amazing because you've eaten and you've gone walking, and so what happens is that digestion kicks in quicker and you feel better quicker. So the people that are going over there and consuming gluten this may be a reason that they're feeling better as well is because they are actually moving their body and they're not being sluggish, so that can contribute to them feeling better as well.

Speaker 1: 5:59

When we look at products in the USA, they are heavily, heavily processed. They contain a lot, a lot of additives. So things like chemicals, herbicides, additives, preservatives, and these affect your gut and your level of inflammation. So if you're not eating as many of these foods when you're over in Europe again, you can feel better. So it's like your brain is telling you wow, the gluten over here is fine, when in fact it's not. That. It's a whole host of things that contribute to you feeling better. So you are eating less processed food, you're walking more, you're less stressed and it all adds up to this mindset of wow, I can eat the gluten here, when in fact you definitely 100% should not be eating any gluten on holidays in Europe, never, ever. It's still doing damage to your small intestine. So I hope that explains.

Speaker 1: 7:02

I hope that helps you understand why it's not a good idea.

Speaker 1: 7:06

Perhaps you were planning a trip to go to Europe and you were like, wow, I'm going to be able to eat anything. Please don't do that to yourself. It's not worth it and, like I said, there are so many amazing, amazing choices that you can choose. Healthy gluten-free options or treats doesn't have to be healthy. There's a load of different patisseries and bakeries to choose from. There's lots of gluten-free options in packaged foods as well, so you can definitely travel to Europe safely without consuming gluten and enjoy yourself and, you know, not do damage to your body.

Speaker 1: 7:41

So I truly hope that that helps people understand why the gluten is different in Europe, how it's still gluten. It is still a level of gluten. It's just a lower level of gluten. So if you do have a gluten sensitivity heck, you may be able to go over there and enjoy yourself and eat whatever you want, but if you've got celiac disease, no, definitely not. I'm going to have to put my foot down on this one and say it's a hard no from me that it's still gluten and, like I said, you can still enjoy your holiday without consuming gluten. So I hope that clears it up for you today. Thanks so much for tuning in and I'll talk to you again very, very soon.