UK Edition
Gluten-free con: ‘Clean’ foods are not as healthy as real thing, warn nutrition experts
Gluten-free foods should not be considered a healthy substitute to regular food because they usually contain high levels of fat and sugar, and low levels of protein, experts have said.
Researchers from the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition, have called for the widespread reformulation of gluten-free products so they match the products they replace.
The warning about the low nutritional value of gluten-free food comes after an assessment of 654 products from 25 brands which were compared to similar items containing gluten.
It found that gluten-free food has a significantly higher fat content and a poor nutritional composition in comparison to regular products.
Many of the gluten-containing products – especially breads, pastas, pizzas and flours - also contained up to three times more protein than their gluten-free substitutes.
The researchers warn that the imbalance is so severe it could impact children's growth and increase the risk of childhood obesity and have called on the products to be reformulated so they match the nutritional values of the foods they are replacing.
The society's researcher, Dr Joaquim Calvo Lerma, said "As more and more people are following a gluten-free diet to effectively manage Coeliac disease, it is imperative that foods marketed as substitutes are reformulated to ensure that they truly do have similar nutritional values.
“This is especially important for children, as a well-balanced diet is essential to healthy growth and development."
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley and gives food a chewy texture and elasticity during the baking process.
Around one per cent of Britons have Coeliac disease, meaning they are genuinely gluten-intolerant and face a string of debilitating symptoms including vomiting, nerve problems, anaemia, inflammation and an increased risk of coronary heart disease.
However some estimates put the proportion of adults adhering to gluten-free diets in the UK at more than 12 per cent.
Experts also warned that consumers are often unaware how unhealthy gluten-free products are because of poor labelling. Many gluten-free products are not pre-packed, or are bought from farmers markets, where they do not have to adhere to nutritional traffic-light systems.
Dr Sandra Martínez -Barona, joint lead researcher, said: "Where nutritional values of gluten-free products do vary significantly from their gluten-containing counterparts, such as having higher levels of saturated fat, labelling needs to clearly indicate this so that patients, parents and carers can make informed decisions.”
Dr Naveed Sattar, a professor of metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow, said people should be aware that gluten-free does not mean it is healthy.
“Because a food product is labelled gluten-free does not necessarily make it healthier and consumers need to be made aware of the relative content of saturated fats, sugars and protein and fibre,” he said.
“If saturated fats and sugar levels are high then clearly adverse effects on health could play out from these gluten-free products and consumers should be advised to avoid such products which hopefully leads food companies to make better quality gluten-free products.
“A final point is that people who do not need to take gluten-free products as they don’t have a bowel condition that is improved by their consumption should not gravitate to gluten-free diets simply because they think they will be healthier. This may not be the case it seems.”
Sarah Sleet, the chief executive of Coeliac UK, said high fat levels in gluten-free breads was ‘concerning’ and called on manufacturers to find healthier alternatives.
“These findings confirm our own research showing that gluten-free fresh breads are on average higher in fat and that gluten-free products can be lower in protein,” she said.
“Lower protein levels are unsurprising, given the ingredients used to replace wheat flour. Higher fat levels in gluten- free breads is more concerning.
“The use of fats enabled the development of fresh gluten-free breads less than 10 years ago. Previously, gluten-free breads were ‘long life’ and could only be used once ‘refreshed’ in a toaster or microwave severely limiting their practicality.
“Higher fat levels have been seen as a trade-off to gain a product more acceptable to the consumer.”
Daciana Sarbu MEP, the vice-chairman of the committee on the environment, public health and food safety, said: "EU law provides for mandatory nutritional labelling of pre-packed foods. However, food products that are not pre-packed, which could include gluten-free bread or pizzas, are not subject to the same labelling requirements.
“In this case, consumers could be less aware of important nutritional differences with potentially significant health impacts.”
The findings were presented at the 50th Annual Congress of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition.