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Should you go gluten-free? Is it worth the bother?

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Should you really avoid gluten?

By now we all know there are foods that can be harmful to our health.

For instance, eating certain foods can predictably cause diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

But few people pay attention to how food can affect the brain.

This is important, as the ability to think clearly and quickly can allow us to deal better with so many things.

While some obvious chemicals should only be used in moderation, it’s the same with certain foods.

And one of those is bread.
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Seven years ago, a group of Norwegian researchers published an article which highlights some little-known effects of eating bread.

This study looked at data from 2,027 individuals.

The subjects were given a series of tests designed to measure cognitive function, and they filled out a questionnaire that qualified and quantified the foods they ate.

After collecting the data, Dr. Nurk charted the results.

“In simple linear associations, intakes of carrot, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, and red bell pepper were positively related with all cognitive test scores.” 

All fruits and vegetables (except rutabaga) were positively associated with good scores on all of these tests.

The only item found to be associated with lower scores on all of these tests was white bread. 

 “Medium high-fiber bread was negatively associated with all test scores but one, where it came in barely above neutral on the short form of the Block Design, a visuospatial test.”

“The only negative cognitive association was with increased intake of white bread.”

Ignoring the dubious and barely consequential (–.0002) effects of rutabaga and the nonspecific “other juices” category, wheat bread seems to be the only food worth focusing on.

And for good reason. Bread has some very peculiar properties.

So these results are not really surprising. Wheat can impact the brain in a few unique and well-characterized ways.

You could almost have predicted the results of this study, really.

“Increasing intake of white bread was linearly associated with poorer test scores for episodic memory, perceptual speed, executive function, visuospatial skills and global cognition.”

Of course, the really unique thing about bread is the gluten protein.

Gluten is problematic, and it is specific to wheat. It is found nowhere else.

It is mainly spoken about in relation to celiac disease, but it has unique properties that have nothing to do with that.

Gluten is one of the few proteins that can produce exorphins during digestion.

Exorphins are short peptide fragments which act directly on opioid receptors.

They work by mimicking enkephalins, the natural signaling molecules for these receptors.

They are nearly identical to enkephalins.  

The most powerful is gluten exorphin C because it has a proline amino acid that keeps enzymes from breaking it down.

But gluten exorphin B5 is also powerful.

And both are absorbed.

Peak gluten exorphin B5 has been found in the blood of test subjects at concentrations of 7.9 nM after eating pizza.

Gluten exorphin B4 was found in concentrations as high as 8.4 nM.

These have been detected in cerebrospinal fluid – proof that they enter the brain.

These opiates inhibit acetylcholine release in the brain.

This is important because acetylcholine is basically what allows nerves to transmit signals.

That fact that opiates inhibit acetylcholine was first shown in the early 1980s when it was found that delta-opioid inhibitors did this the most.

“In contrast, Leu-enkephalin, D-Ala enkephalin, and D-Leu-enkephalin selectively inhibit acetylcholine release by activating delta-opioid receptors.”

Activating delta receptors inhibits nerve transmission, but without the pleasant effects of activating the mu-opioid receptor.

(Morphine and codeine both work on the mu-opioid receptor.)

All of the wheat exorphins are selective for the delta receptors.

Delta exorphins from food are rare, and the only other food shown to have them at all is spinach. (The one in spinach is called rubiscolin after the protein it’s found in.)

Here’s how rare this is:

To produce the exorphin C peptide from the 22 common amino acids, it would take 22⁵ random tries to get it right. (That’s 5,153,632).

And even slight variations in the sequences completely alter their effect…

So they’re highly selective and only a few foods have them.

The powerful acetylcholine-inhibiting and numbing effects of the delta-opioids have since been confirmed, many times.

“Thus, as reported previously, in rat striatal slices acetylcholine release is inhibited by activation of delta-opioid receptors.”

It’s the only neurotransmitter that splits apart after it acts.

Its very presence helps create the electrical impulses which drive the nerves.

Chemicals that increase acetylcholine activity, such as nicotine, consistently show positive effects on learning clinical tests.

Conversely, chemicals that inhibit this, such as mecamylamine, always lower reaction time and word recall scores.

Acetylcholine is necessary for the consolidation of short-term memory.

This process can be inhibited by delta exorphins from wheat constantly circulating in the blood.

Acetylcholine inhibition might be expected to produce an all-around slowing effect, on all nerves.

Low levels of acetylcholine and/or their receptors is one of the most consistent findings in Alzheimer’s disease.

Delta exorphins also powerfully stimulate prolactin release.

And prolactin itself has been shown to reduce cognitive function.

Jessica F. Henry was the first to show this in 2012:

“To our knowledge, this is the first study to find a relationship between prolactin levels and cognitive functioning…higher levels of prolactin are detrimental to executive function.” 

The theory is that it does this by inhibiting dopamine.

It’s actually been well known for decades that dopamine normally suppresses prolactin release in the pituitary gland.

The reverse also appears to be true: High prolactin is capable of actually lowering dopamine levels.

This isn’t good. Low dopamine levels are also associated with bad test scores.

Acetylcholine and dopamine are the neurotransmitters that you want to increase. (You want to decrease serotonin and the opioids).

So these same gluten exorphins from wheat can affect two entirely different neurotransmitter systems: Acetylcholine (directly), and dopamine (indirectly).

The Norwegian scientist, Dr. Nurk, didn’t mention this.

She seemed mainly concerned about homocysteine.

“Another candidate is dietary folate, which has been related to homocysteine in cognitive decline during aging.” 

Folate lowers homocysteine, and homocysteine is highly-correlated with dementia.

This is another very consistent finding in people with Alzheimer’s. Homocysteine concentrations above 14 μM… that’s entering Alzheimer’s territory.

Homocysteine is unique in that it can form a stable free radical, and gain entry into the brain by mimicking methionine.

Cysteine, though similar, is not harmful. Only homocysteine can cause lipid peroxidation.

Homocysteine donates its free radical electrons directly to fatty acids in the brain, causing a free radical chain reaction.

Lipid peroxidation then causes crosslinking of brain proteins.

But there are other ways to induce lipid peroxidation. Iron can do this too.

Iron is a catalyst for lipid peroxidation.

This is the most classic and well-studied cause.

They even have a name for this reaction, since it’s so important: Fenton reaction.

Iron also can create a free radical, the hydroxyl radical. It does this in its reduced state (Fe²⁺).

Reduced iron is added to bread as well.

And this particularly toxic form of iron can cross the blood-brain barrier.

A protein called transferrin is thought to be responsible for this.

So the statistical effect was probably real.

It was probably due to bread’s ability to lower acetylcholine nerve transmission, raise prolactin, and contribute to lipid peroxidation within the brain.

This is just one more reason not to eat much bread!

—–Important Message—–

Have you thought about going gluten-free?

Here is one of many emails I received from the discussion the other day about gluten-free:

I agree that gluten is part of the problem. I avoid ALL gluten and I’ve never felt better.

Gluten consumption is PART of the problem.

But the gluten-free food fad is not the answer.

What I have found with myself and my students, is that increasing good quality FATS and making some minor lifestyle changes can make a world of difference.

Click here to see which fats you should be INCREASING in your diet for higher testosterone and better erections

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Matt Cook is editor-in-chief of Daily Medical Discoveries. Matt has been a full time health researcher for 26 years. ABC News interviewed Matt on sexual health issues not long ago. Matt is widely quoted on over 1,000,000 websites. He has over 300,000 daily newsletter readers. Daily Medical Discoveries finds hidden, buried or ignored medical studies through the lens of 100 years of proven science. Matt heads up the editorial team of scientists and health researchers. Each discovery is based upon primary studies from peer reviewed science sources following the Daily Medical Discoveries 7 Step Process to ensure accuracy.