By John Mattingly
In places that sell and serve food these days, we see lots of GLUTEN-FREE signs. As an old wheat farmer, I want to make a sign that says FREE GLUTEN, like FREE TIBET, to encourage people to think a little differently about this. Many people have told me that they didn’t realize how much they liked gluten until it went missing from their favorite baked goods.
That said, celiac disease is a real and potentially dangerous intolerance for gluten, and it’s inarguable that many people have allergies to the particular protein complex comprising gluten. It’s also true that gluten tends to make you fat: “Once across the lips, forever on the hips,” is the saying now associated with eating bread. Many diets recommend eliminating bread from your diet as a first step to losing weight, essentially bypassing the real first step: self-control.