How to Be a Conscious Eater

52

IS GLUTEN REALLY

THAT BAD?

T

he cultural explosion of self-diagnosed gluten sensitiv-

ity—when it started becoming something your friend

would show up at a restaurant telling you about—can be

tied to the runaway success of two books. Both deemed glu-

ten a toxin to be eradicated. First, in 2011, Dr. William Davis,

with Wheat Belly. Then, Dr. David Perlmutter, in 2013, with

Grain Brain. Who wouldn’t shudder in the face of statements

like this (from the latter): “Gluten isn’t just an issue for those

with bona fide celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that

strikes a small minority. As many as 40 percent of us can’t

properly process gluten, and the remaining 60 percent could be

in harm’s way. The question we need to be asking ourselves is:

What if we’re all sensitive to gluten from the perspective of the brain?”

Davis and Perlmutter were suggesting that going gluten-free

had the potential to cure nearly all our woes, from skin dis-

coloration and obesity to depression, schizophrenia, arthritis,

and beyond. Hordes of people suddenly

went gluten-free. No more pastries, cook-

ies, cereal, beer. Maybe the authors were

right, but, then again, who wouldn’t be

feeling like a million bucks after that kind

of purge? Word spread like wildfire, likely

fueled by that deeply ingrained element of

the American food psyche—exceptional-

ism. The underlying message that rang

out was, “Hey, friend/colleague/cousin/

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