Results of a new paper in Mayo Clinic Proceedings show that between 2009 and 2014, more people went gluten-free, even though the rate of celiac disease remained stable.
In addition, the rate of undiagnosed celiac disease dropped significantly.
Here are the highlights:
- In the five years of the study, the number of Americans with celiac disease remained stable at about 0.7% of the population, or roughly 2 million people.
- At the same time, the percentage of people with undiagnosed celiac disease dropped from 0.9% to 0.3%.
- However, the number of people without celiac disease who adopted a gluten-free diet increased threefold to over 3 million people.
Overall about 1 in 5 people report including gluten-free foods in their diets.
The authors note that the benefits of a gluten-free diet on people without celiac disease haven’t been tested or proven effective. Other studies suggest a gluten-free diet may promote high fat and sugar consumption, as well as micronutrient deficiency. Therefore, more research should be done on the long-term results of eating gluten-free.
Read the full study.
