THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2012
PAGE 13
FOOD
Gluten-free diets difficult but healthy
ROYA IBRAHIMI
ribrahimi@kansan.com
When you walk into a restaurant today and open its menu, you notice a gluten-free section. When you walk into a grocery store, you see a "gluten-free" aisle. The question for many is, "What is gluten?" Some may know that gluten is a type of wheat, or that there are people who are gluten intolerant. Yet, many people don't understand the term "gluten-free."
Beth Kerling, senior research associate and registered dietitian for the Department of Dietetics and Nutrition's Nutrition Clinic at KU Medical center, said gluten is a protein formed when certain cereal flours are moistened and mixed, and it is a primary element in wheat, rye and barley.
Kerlin said that because of manufacturing and processing, gluten is also found in other grains including oats, malt, bulgur, and spelt.
Although many consumers have added gluten-free products to their diet by choice, others have been restricted because of the genetic disorder known as Celiac disease.
Natalie Bragg, a senior from Shawnee, has this disease, which causes a severe immune reaction to gluten. Kerling says if left untreated, the small intestine loses its ability to absorb nutrients, resulting in gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain and bloating.
"I have been eating gluten-free for three and a half years," Bragg said. "I can't eat anything with wheat, flour, rye, barley or other grains; even things like soy sauce can have wheat flour in it."
Bragg must read each ingredient label carefully before buying food because even a small amount of gluten can cause sickness for days.
Similar to Bragg, Megan Nguyen, a university graduate from Shawnee, is gluten-intolerant, but does not have Celiac disease. Gluten-intolerant people are not at risk for the nutritional deficiencies that people with Celiac disease face.
Nguyen has been gluten-intolerant for most of her life, but didn't know
until her freshman year of college.
"I always had terrible stomach pains and never knew why," Nguyen said.
A doctor's visit five years ago discovered her consumption of gluten caused the stomach pains.
Nguyen said this diagnosis brought a positive and healthy change to her life.
"The benefits of not eating gluten have made me so much healthier," Nguyen said, who is now a certified nutritionist due to this experience. "I feel so much better than I did just a few years ago, and I learned all about how bad gluten is for people."
Both Bragg and Nguyen said finding gluten-free options while eating out is one of the largest downfalls of
their diet.
"It's an expensive and restrictive diet," Bragg said. "I miss eating Red Lobster's cheese biscuits and Big Macs, but eating this way insures that I am not bedridden and nauseous all day."
However, Bragg said many restaurants in Lawrence offer appealing gluten-free choices.
"Lawrence is a surpassingly good place to live if you have to eat gluten free;" Bragg said. "Fuzzy's (Tacos) is perfect for those eating on a glutenfree diet. You can find something for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and never eat the same thing twice. I say this from experience."
HEALTH
Edited by Allison Kohn
Keep clean to avoid this summer's pest problems
VICTORIA PITCHER
vpitcher@kansan.com
Joy Stewart, a senior from Overland Park, talks about how she has had more issues this summer with ants and other pests around the house and near the windows. Stewart had to call her landlord to have maintenance come take care of the pests because "It's really frustrating that there are so many and that it's such a problem this year," Stewart explained.
When Lucas Singleton gets ready in the morning, it's a battle. Instead of his usual morning routine, he is preoccupied with killing every ant he finds. He has had an ant problem since spring. Singleton, a recent graduate from Hutchison, said he has found more than 100 ants in his kitchen at one time.
JESSICA JANASZ/KANSAN
The rise in pests has also affected local farmers this year, and the mild winter may have something to do with it. Stephanie Thomas, owner of Spring Creek Farm in Baldwin City, said pests have been extremely bad because they were able to survive winter and grow into larger numbers.
"We are going to have a lot of problems this summer," Thomas said.
Thomas has lost much of her lettuce crop to caterpillars, which she has had to spray for three times. In a normal growing season, Thomas said she would only have to spray once. She also said people may notice a rise in produce prices because spraying for pests is expensive for farmers.
Nichole Lingenfelter, office manager at Advantage Pest Control in De Soto, also said the winter has had an effect on pests. Lingenfelter said this summer, residents are probably going to see a lot of ants
and spiders.
Lingenfelter said residents should make sure to clean up after themselves around the house and the exterior of the house to keep bugs out. Residents should
also make sure not to leave piles of wood close to the house.
Apartments and houses should be sprayed for pests every three months. Most apartment complexes have terminators come out
to spray.
Although Singleton's apartment is sprayed twice a year, he has yet to find relief from the ants. After cleaning and spraying Raid, the ants still came back.
Lingenfelter said students should call their management and let them know if they are experiencing issues with pests.
—Edited by Megan Hinman