|
Yes. Gluten does affect the brain. I have written a whole book about this (“Full Of It! the shocking truth about gluten”). This book summarises the world medical literature on the “gluten affect” on the brain: the “brain – grain connection”. Gluten causes small children irritability and they get really moody and cranky. As they get older this can present as hyperactivity because gluten upsets their brain function. They are hyperactive because their brain is not happy. These children cannot concentrate well on things. They have a short fuse, they have tantrums, and they fight with their siblings and parents.
This can later give way to headaches and migraines. Gluten often makes you feel lethargic, moody and depressed. This is in addition to your weakness from the nutritional deficiency. Neuro-psychiatric symptoms of anxiety, mood swings and depression are also a feature of gluten sensitivity. Neurological dysfunction may not only precede Coeliac Disease, but it can also be its only manifestation. A high prevalence of circulating antigliadin antibodies (IgG, and/or IgA) has been found in patients with neurological dysfunction of obscure aetiology. In one study, (57% compared to 12% in normal controls), but only 35% of these patients had histological evidence of Coeliac Disease. The remaining 65% have what is called “gluten sensitivity” where the target organ is the brain. This has been likened to that of the skin in dermatitis herpetiformis. IgG antigliadin antibodies appear to have a high sensitivity not only for patients with Coeliac Disease but also for those with minimal or no bowel damage. The principal target organ can be the cerebellum or peripheral nervous system. In support of this, these neurological patients had an HLA genotype in keeping with Coeliac Disease. |
