Wheat Rescue Can Help with Gluten Intolerance & Sensitivity

Let’s face it, gluten isn’t always hiding in plain sight. It can lurk in processed foods, sneak in through cross-contamination, or even be listed under deceptive names. And sometimes, despite knowing the potential side effects, we still choose to enjoy gluten for various reasons.

As a Functional Medicine Doctor with a gluten sensitivity, Wheat Rescue by Microbiome Labs is something I use when dining out and unsure if it’s gluten free or when I’m intentionally choosing something with gluten.

I like to remind my people “you don’t have to be perfect, just perfect enough”.  Which means I don’t expect anyone to get every lifestyle change perfect 100% of the time.  Living like that would not be fun and definitely stressful.  

If you’ve been following me for a while you know how important resetting cortisol (the stress hormone) is to reversing autoimmune disease and feeling great. My guess is chasing 100% lifestyle perfection is stressful and would never let you achieve balanced cortisol levels.  If cortisol levels are not in balance, you can never get to 100% well being.  An unpleasant cycle that I don’t recommend.

Microbiome Labs Wheat Rescue Supplement

Instead, my mantra is “you don’t have to be perfect, just perfect enough” and for me Wheat Rescue by Microbiome Labs is something I reach for when I know (or am unsure if) gluten will be part of my meal.  The creator of this product is someone I admire greatly; having had the opportunity to hear him speak, I can attest to the ingenuity behind this innovation.

Wheat Rescue is a product that is specifically designed to digest the wheat proteins in your stomach before they can get out to the intestine and cause damage. The design of Wheat Rescue should also help to alleviate the symptoms of gluten intolerance/sensitivity.

Gluten Intolerance, Gluten Sensitivity and Celiac Disease – What’s the Difference?

It is important to understand the difference between these terms. Gluten intolerance and gluten sensitivity are actually one in the same. Having an intolerance or sensitivity is different than having a wheat/gluten allergy, which is celiac disease.

Where Gluten Intolerance (Gluten Sensitivity) Comes From

Inherently, wheat is composed of many proteins, including gluten which is particularly notable for causing issues for many people. I might go so far as to say modern gluten bugs almost everyone’s gut.

Inherently means that these proteins, including gluten, are naturally present in wheat and not added externally. These inherent components can induce inflammation in the gut.

This reaction is quite common due to our evolutionary history. For a significant part of our existence, humans lived as hunter-gatherers and did not consume grains. It wasn’t until we began forming larger communities and needed sustainable food sources that we started to cultivate grains like wheat. As a result, our bodies, which were not originally adapted to these grains, can sometimes react to their inherent proteins, leading to inflammation in the gut.

Leaky Gut Can Significantly Contribute to Gluten Intolerance

For most of us, our bodies are so good at getting rid of inflammation. A little bit of inflammation here and there, our bodies have it covered. It’s fine, we’ll get rid of it. We stub our toe, our body makes it better. We cut ourselves, it goes away, it closes up. A little bit of inflammation in the gut, we got it covered.

However, in today’s world, several factors can compromise gut health, exacerbating our body’s inflammatory response. Common culprits include:

• Ultra processed foods
• nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like Motrin, Advil, and aspirin
• birth control pills
• acid-blocking medicines
• Metformin, used for blood sugar regulation and metabolic syndrome (check out my blog on its extreme adverse side effects and a science backed supplement regimen (I call the Foundational Triad) that has been called a nuclear weapon against metabolic syndrome.

Beyond fake food and pharmaceuticals, stress plays a significant role in gut health. Excessive stress can disrupt the delicate balance within our digestive system, leading to increased gut permeability, commonly referred to as ‘leaky gut syndrome.’

Leaky gut is a key driver behind the development of food sensitivities. When our gut’s lining becomes compromised, it allows particles that typically wouldn’t pass through to enter our bloodstream, potentially triggering an immune response and resulting in food sensitivities. Understanding and addressing these factors is crucial for maintaining optimal gut health and preventing the escalation of inflammation and sensitivities.

Immediate vs. Delayed Hypersensitivity Reactions to Gluten

You may be wondering what might be the signs and symptoms of gluten sensitivity / gluten intolerance? Before I share with you the most common symptoms, we need to understand how the body may react to gluten.

Identifying gluten-intolerance is not always an easy task; this is due to the two main ways our bodies react to trigger foods, immediate and delayed hypersensitivity reactions.

Immediate Hypersensitivity Reactions

These reactions are quick and noticeable. You eat a certain food and you immediately feel unwell. This immediate response is your body’s direct and rapid reaction to a food allergen, making it relatively easier to identify the food culprit.

Delayed Hypersensitivity Reactions

Contrastingly, delayed hypersensitivity is more subtle and can be tricky to pinpoint. In this type of food reaction, you consume a certain food (chances are you will continue to consume it unknowing of the consequences) and suddenly days or even a month later you experience symptoms of intolerance (bloating, skin rashes, IBS).

This delayed reaction occurs because certain food proteins, such as those in gluten, can linger in your system and trigger an inflammatory response well after consumption. Even if you have not eaten the particular food for weeks,  these proteins can still be active in your body, leading to a delayed inflammatory reaction.

Identifying these delayed sensitivities requires more attention such as keeping a food dairy and in some instances gluten-sensitivity testing, as the link between consumption and symptoms is not as immediate or apparent. In my free 7 Day Email course (Medical Bill Detox), I explain more about the elimination diet as well as the strategic food reintroduction process that can help you pinpoint the foods that are causing you issues.

Signs of Gluten Sensitivity – Gluten Intolerance Symptoms

Here are some of the most common signs and symptoms of gluten sensitivity/intolerance:

• Brain Fog and Fatigue
  One of the signature symptoms of gluten sensitivity is feeling mentally foggy, sluggish and generally unwell soon after eating gluten. Many describe it as a noticeable drop in energy and cognition.

• Digestive Issues
  Gluten can trigger bloating, gas, abdominal pain, diarrhea and constipation for those sensitive. The gastrointestinal issues happen because gluten proteins irritate the intestinal lining.

• Joint Pain and Headaches
  Gluten sensitivity often manifests with inflammation and pain issues throughout the body, including migraines, headaches and achy joints and muscles. Inflammatory compounds triggered by gluten cause systemic effects.

• Skin-Related Problems
  Gluten reactions in sensitive people can flare up eczema, acne, itchy rashes like dermatitis herpetiformis. The immune-mediated skin manifestations tend to come and go.  Skin issues are a sign that there is a weakness in that area that is triggered by this gluten sensitivity. I recommend a topical pH Structured Silver gel to strengthen that area, while also fixing your gut.

• Anxiety, Depression and Mood Issues
  For those prone to anxiety, depression or unstable moods, gluten also contributes to inflammation in the brain. Neuroinflammation then exacerbates underlying neurological and psychiatric problems.

• Autoimmune Disorders
  The progression of autoimmune diseases is closely linked to leaky gut and gluten irritation of the intestinal barrier. This drives inappropriate immune responses underlying conditions like Hashimoto’s and rheumatoid arthritis.

These diverse symptoms stem from the body-wide inflammation caused by gluten proteins that those with sensitivity or intolerance have trouble handling properly.  For those of us sensitive to gluten, Wheat Rescue is an excellent option for helping the body digest the wheat proteins in the stomach before they can get out to the intestine and cause damage.

When Gluten Sensitivity Turns into a Wheat Allergy aka Celiac Disease

Now, when you have a true wheat allergy, we’re really talking about celiac disease.  Celiac isn’t just an ordinary food sensitivity – it’s an autoimmune condition that aggressively targets the small intestines. Imagine gluten as not just an irritant but something as harsh as drinking battery acid. That’s how detrimental it can be for your gut.

Alarmingly 80% of people with celiac disease go undiagnosed. This is often because they don’t exhibit typical gut symptoms. It’s a bit of a conundrum. You’d think that with the immune system erroneously attacking the intestines, there’d be clear gut symptoms, right? But it’s not always the case.

Oftentimes the body will start going haywire manifesting various health issues but the gut, despite being the central mechanism, does not always show up as a red flag. This complex nature of celiac disease, where the gut’s struggle is often silent yet profound, is something we need to be acutely aware of.

This is why we always test people for celiac disease, no matter what they have going on, even if they have no gut symptoms. Not only does the right gluten intolerance testing tell people why historically they’re not feeling well, but we can see people’s future.

The right test will help us see where you’re going. Whether it’s heart attack, stroke, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, dementia, osteoporosis, we live in an incredible time where science can tell us what’s coming a mile away, so you have plenty of time to turn around. Same thing with celiac disease. You can see celiac disease coming and prevent it. To start reversing gluten sensitivity so it does not turn into celiac disease, please take my free 7 Day email course (Medical Bill Detox) that will guide you through the foundational steps.

Avoiding Gluten –  Not Just Food but Also in Topicals

For the people that develop celiac disease,  it’s inherent that you should strive to be wheat and gluten-free orally. You have got to avoid that stuff like the plague, but we also ask you to be wheat and gluten-free topically.

We don’t want anything touching your skin that will get in from the skin into the bloodstream. The skin is our largest organ and very porous, whatever you put on your skin gets absorbed.

Well there are things that you don’t want to get in. Toxins will get into the skin very easily. You can find it in shampoos, conditioners, makeup, lip gloss, moisturizing creams… it is in everything including even toilet paper.

So it’s not just that we’re eating it, but we are getting gluten into our system throughout the day because it’s in everything and eventually we reach a toxicity level where our body reacts and says “no more”.  Including a rash on the behind that appears to be a toilet paper allergy but really it’s a gluten allergy.

The Solution – Fixing Your Gut and It’s Gluten Sensitivity

One of the real challenges in fixing the gut is dealing with the foods that keep bugging it, whether in a way that’s right in your face or more of a sneaky, hidden problem. It’s hard to sort out the gut and fix those food sensitivities if you’re constantly consuming what irritates it. This is especially true when it comes to issues with gluten and wheat.

If you have celiac disease, and it’s become a wheat allergy, oh my gosh, you might as well get whacked with a baseball bat or drink battery acid every time you do it. That’s my analogy for saying ingesting gluten when you have an allergy to it, is going to be extremely counterproductive and painful.

I hear from my patients all the time, how they work hard to avoid gluten but still struggle.  I do my best to avoid it myself.  Sometimes it’s very hard, sure you can easily avoid eating bread or cake but because wheat and gluten are hidden in everything nowadays it’s commonly an issue. I want to remind you that there is hope and it is possible to live a gluten and autoimmune free lifestyle.  Learn what it takes to fix your gut as well as how to address all types of food sensitivities (and how to do a food reintroduction process) in my free 7 Day Email Course, Medical Bill Detox.  http://www.DrDavidBilstrom.com/medicalbilldetox