If Food is Information – Gluten Brings “Bad News”

[This is an edited version of the first article by this name that I posted. In the first edition I made an error – yes, I’m human too. An astute reader pointed it out and I thank her for it. Sometimes in our passion to bring news about a certain subject we can rush to interpretation too quickly. The accurate account now stands. –Dr.Vikki]

As clinicians we like to talk to our patients about food being fuel. Whether or not you love what you’re eating foods’ ultimate purpose is to fuel your body. An intact small intestine breaks down the food into fuel, and that fuel is delivered to all your cells via your bloodstream. The cells, now well fed, can do their respective jobs.

But food is more than just “fuel” it is “information”. On a gross level we could divide foods into two categories: pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory. Pro-inflammatory foods give information to the body that causes it to break down and develop disease states. Support for this statement is found in the 2009 article published in Cancer Research, [69(11):4827-4834] titled “Intestinal mucosal inflammation leads to systemic genotoxicity in mice”. In this study it was found that mucosal (cells lining the gut) inflammation contributes early on to genetic instability necessary for progression and development of colorectal cancer.

Anti-inflammatory foods protect the body and allow it to heal and maintain health. In this category we find the foods that are high in anti-oxidants such as fruits and vegetables.

Gluten is a pro-inflammatory food in affected individuals. The information it brings to the body is that of damage and destruction and a forwarding of disease. But when we remove gluten from our diet should we remove all grains? Must we be cautious of getting our complex carbohydrates in sufficient quantity from fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans and perhaps whole gluten-free grains? While the article I’m about to cite only examined 10 people, the results were interesting.

In 2009 (May 18)the British Medical Journal published an article titled “Effects of a Gluten-Free Diet on Gut Microbiota and Immune Function in Healthy Adult Human Subjects.”. [As you may recall, “microbiota” refers to the population of indigenous microorganisms found in our intestines.] In this article the authors state that
most celiac patients treated and untreated with a gluten-free diet have unbalanced microbiota that can play a pathogenic [disease-causing] role that may constitute a risk factor for celiac.

The objective of the study was to analyze the impact of a gluten-free diet on the composition and immune function in healthy subjects to gain insights into the interactions between diet and gut microbes.

The results suggest that a gluten-free diet may influence not only the composition but also the immune function of the gut microbiota in healthy individuals, without the influence of any underlying disease, parallel with reductions in polysaccharide intake. When these 10 “normal”, non-gluten sensitive individuals were put on a gluten-free diet for 30 days their gut microbiota was found to be less healthy after the gluten-free diet than it was prior.

Now the authors state that while the diet of the subjects was not much changed, their polysaccharide content (complex carbohydrates) was reduced. We all know the importance of getting enough fiber in the diet to maintain a balanced and healthy microbiota. And even in my obvious gluten-sensitive patients, the initial few weeks of removing gluten often results in increased constipation due to a loss of fiber from the previous gluten-containing diet. So you understand my healthy skepticism after seeing this article. I think the ultimate conclusion of this article is flawed based on the fact that the studied subjects did not replace the gluten in their diet with adequate healthy fiber.

So the takeaway is this: if you’re gluten-free, please don’t negate the importance of the healthy fiber found in fruits, vegetables and other forms of complex carbohydrates. I also think that everyone should consume about 20 billion CFU (colony forming units) of a variety of probiotics each day. This is easily accomplished via 1 or 2 capsules and is quite important in those who have suffered from a leaky or damaged small intestine. It may very well help you to keep a healthy balanced microbiota that is anti-inflammatory in nature.

Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen
Founder of HealthNOW Medical CenterCo-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Gluten Intolerance and Thyroid

I would like to introduce a new definition, though while not my own, embraces two issues we discuss frequently – celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. Dr Alessio Fasano has suggested that these conditions could be put under an umbrella named “gluten intolerance”. I don’t tend to get hung up on semantics but I do like this. Certainly those who have celiac and gluten sensitivity are indisputably “intolerant” to gluten - no argument there. Plus it’s shorter to say and write! So for now I’m going to adopt that expression to include both issues.

While I’m passionate about alerting people to the dangers associated with gluten, sometimes a “back door” approach is also warranted. Let me explain: We know that gluten is associated with some many other diseases. From depression to migraines, from fatigue to infertility, from IBS to obesity, from diabetes to thyroid disease. So while we’re alerting the population, in general, to gluten, what about also targeting specific diseases/syndromes and alerting them of the importance of screening.

In this issue I will focus on thyroid:

Thyroid autoimmune diseases are the most frequent autoimmune diseases in the population being present on average in 8% of the general population – this translates to 24 million in the US alone! [Ref: ACTA Bio Medica. "Update on autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes (APS)". 2003;74;9-33.]

Note: This blog has a professional as well as lay public following so another new feature is that I will cite my references specifically, as seen above, so that clinicians will have an easier time searching for the complete study.

We know that autoimmune diseases “cluster” together. In other words, where you find one in a patient, you often find more. Witness the strong association between celiac, type I diabetes, autoimmune thyroid and rheumatoid arthritis.

52% of patients with thyroid autoimmune disease can be considered affected by APS-3 (autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes) – in other words they’ll be found to have other autoimmune diseases. [Same ref as above.]

Abnormal thyroid function is often noted in infants born to mothers with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or Graves’ Disease, caused by placental transfer of maternal anti-thyroid antibodies. [Ref: Neurotoxicology. 2008 March; 29(2):226-231.] This means that the mother “bathes” the fetus and when the mother is suffering from an autoimmune thyroid disorder that can affect the infant.

And this is the point that I’m trying to make. We could dramatically improve the health of our population, especially our younger people, by screening them for the autoimmune diseases present in the family tree. The sooner we screen, the more able we will be to PREVENT these diseases.

Why is this true? Because antibodies appear in the blood years before presentation of symptoms in various disorders. [Ref: Expert Opinion Med. Diagnosis. “Antibodies as predictors of autoimmune diseases and cancer”. 2008 2 (6): 1-13.]

And there’s the kicker of autoimmune disease. It’s difficult to reverse once much damage has occurred. You’ve set off the machine of self destruction and reversal can be close to impossible. BUT – screen for it and identify it early when the immune system “knows” about it but the damage has not yet begun and you’ve opened up a whole world of possibility.

Thyroid disease, as mentioned above, is extremely common in this country. We know there’s an autoimmune component for many and we know that gluten is associated. Why don’t we start early screening for autoantibodies in those whom have thyroid disease in their family? And why don’t we screen those with ANY autoimmune disease in their family for gluten intolerance?

I am convinced this will make a huge difference in our health status.

As always, please contact me should you need any assistance.

Join me by spreading the word! Early diagnosis is critical.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Gluten Sensitivity and Genes

If you’ve been reading much about celiac you’ve probably already heard of the genes HLA DQ2 and DQ8. I thought it would be helpful to give a simplified primer on the genes in order to understand why we see some of the disease relationships we do, such as an increased incidence of diabetes in celiacs.

HLA stands for human leukocyte antigen and these specific genes tells our immune system what is considered normal and what is considered a foreign invader, worthy of attacking.

Antibodies are what our immune system makes to attack foreign invaders, be it a bacterium, virus or parasite. And of course one thing we take for granted is that our immune system CAN tell friend (or self) from foe.

For those with HLA DQ2 or DQ8 genes, a confusion occurs where the antibodies produced are unable to discern normal parts of the body from invaders and an attack on self ensues.

In celiac disease the small intestine is attacked and in diabetes the cells of the pancreas that produce insulin are the site of attack.

HLA DQ2 and DQ8 genes not only involved in celiac disease and type 1 diabetes, but also other autoimmune diseases.

While this may sound very fatalistic – meaning that if you have these genes you’re “doomed to suffer”, that is not the case. Many people who have these genes never go on to develop these diseases.

And that opens the door to an area that I am currently fascinated by: gene expression and epigenetics (epi- means above and this field delves into how and why genes get turned on and off). Simply because you have a gene is no guarantee that gene will “turn on” and express its negative tendencies.

While it’s a work in progress, many researchers believe that the integrity or health of the small intestine and a healthy population of probiotics therein could very well be at the root of genetic expression, especially as it relates to celiac and gluten sensitivity.

Stay tuned on that point. I am busily researching and doing some testing of my own, but I can tell you that the research that has been done is quite exciting.

Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Gluten Sensitivity Diagnosis is Accepted

It is December 31st so a little reflection is in order. 2009 was a big year for us personally as it was the year that the dream of publishing our book reached fruition.

“The Gluten Effect” was a combined labor of love and passionate mission. As clinicians we literally stumbled upon gluten 15 years ago as we analyzed patients for food reactions. As more and more patients were discovered to be sensitive we were literally amazed at the panoply of reactions associated with these supposed “innocent” and “healthy” grains.

We were initially taken aback that no one else seemed to be discussing this. Our gluten sensitive patients, for the most part, were not celiac sufferers. But they were certainly reacting to gluten and it was affecting them from their digestive tract to their nervous system to their hormonal balance to their joints. Were we hallucinating these reactions? Was there some placebo affect occurring?

I still remember so clearly discussing gluten with a mentor of mine about 8 years ago. He is a highly respected individual in the field of functional medicine and positively brilliant. I somewhat shyly proposed that he investigate gluten and gave a brief overview what I and my team were experiencing clinically. Ever the gracious gentleman, he was polite and attentive but I could tell from his reaction that he didn’t consider gluten to be a legitimate health issue.

Yet barely three years after that meeting he spoke for the first time about gluten at a national conference. Not that I needed his blessing, but if felt good to have someone I so respected begin to see what I was seeing.

About 2 ½ years ago while in the throes of writing “The Gluten Effect” with my co-author, we began to feel like renegades as we came to the realization that despite all the scientific research that we had to hand that supported our work, most of our fellow clinicians were completely unaware of it.

We braced ourselves for some disbelief and opposition.

About that same time I spoke to a leader of a national celiac group. This individual is absolutely passionate about educating Americans about celiac disease and decreasing the amount of time that it takes to receive a diagnosis. But when I discussed gluten sensitivity with her, she really had absolutely no information about it.

A mere year later she was completely on board due to some personal experiences she had with people close to her. They were ill, not celiac, but removing gluten from their diet completely resolved their health issues. She was convinced but what ensued was some infighting with traditional MDs who worked within her organization. She even had her grant money threatened for a period of time.

The happy ending is that, fortunately, scientific research caught up with the clinical observations we were witnessing in our patients and gluten sensitivity was validated this year from many previously skeptical experts including Dr Peter Green and Dr Alessio Fasano.

So while that “war” is over there are many battles ahead. We still have a traditional medical community that thinks celiac disease is impossible unless a patient has unrelenting diarrhea and is severely underweight. These clinicians believe that an intestinal biopsy is still the gold standard for diagnosis and that without complete obliteration of the intestinal villi, gluten can’t possibly be a problem for a patient.

On the other hand, research just came out in the British Journal of Nutrition whereupon they analyzed a group of non-gluten sensitive individuals who expressed a much healthier balance of microflora (good bugs) in their intestines after a 30 day gluten-free diet than was present prior to going gluten-free.

Does this mean that gluten isn’t good for anyone? Is there something truly pro-inflammatory in these grains such that they spell ill health for all who consume them?

Or, if a truly healthy small intestine could be achieved would tolerance to gluten rise, as some researchers postulate? And is dairy the underlying culprit that causes the initial irritation thus “allowing” gluten to create its inflammatory effects?

And will all these questions be answered in the New Year?

I for one (and my team) are already diligently working on these issues and if the timing continues to occur as it has been, just about the time we feel confident in stating our findings, there will be ample scientific research to corroborate them.

I am very excited for 2010. I am anticipating meeting more of my readers as many have already come to visit our Destination Clinic from around the world this past year. We are expanding our clinic quite dramatically this year to better educate and treat all who seek better health.

As always, please let me know your thoughts and how I may help you.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”

Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup in a Gluten Free Diet

We have spoken before about healthy diets. There has been mention of what to include and what to avoid but there is a substance I neglected to mention in earlier posts and it deserves your attention.

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is not only unhealthy due to its ill effects on blood sugar and insulin resistance, but during its production mercury residues occur within. It’s estimated that the average U.S. person intakes about 50 gm of HFCS per day. This would equal about 28 mcg/day of ingested mercury!

Thimerasol in injections such as vaccinations and flu shots contain about 25 mcg of mercury per injection. Thimerasol has been removed from many injections due to the concern of mercury and its neurotoxicity. To think that the average American is potentially consuming that amount daily through HFCS is frightening.

What new research points to is that the bioaccumulation of toxins is what is creating much of the toxic load from which we are suffering. Many diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, M.S., ADD and autism, to name a few, have an association with heavy metal toxicity. So while 28 mcg in and of itself doesn’t sound like a lot, when you add that to all the other toxins coming from our environment, the accumulation is overwhelming the tissues of our body,in particular our nervous systems.

I will be speaking more on this topic and other sources of avoidable toxins but in the meantime I encourage you to make this easy and healthy choice – avoid all high fructose corn syrup for you, your children and family.

Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I’m here for you! Call 408-733-0400.

I look forward to hearing from you.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP


IFM Certified Practitioner

Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”

Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What You Don’t Know May Be Killing You!”