Dear Gwyneth…please shut up
Honestly. I know your intentions are good. But you and your Hollywood friends are really doing those with celiac disease a huge disservice. Going gluten-free is not a “diet choice” for us. It is not “key to losing weight” as you say. It’s not the South Beach Diet or any of those other ridiculous fad diets out there that promise a shortcut to a healthy body and soul.
You want to be healthy? Eat smart, eat less and exercise a lot. It’s been this way since the beginning of time and it will never, ever change.
Five years ago when I was diagnosed with celiac disease, most had not heard of the disease and had no idea what gluten was (me included). So if I was eating out, I needed to be very specific in my ordering because it was such an unknown to the general public. And because of that, I was taken very seriously. Chefs came out to speak with me. Waitresses asked a thousand questions to make sure I wouldn’t get sick. And while it was, and continues to be, a huge pain in the ass, it was treated as it should be…a dangerous auto-immune disease.
Now…things have changed. Gluten has gone mainstream. Some feel that’s a good thing. More publicity means more products, more education, etc, etc. But now, when I try to explain celiac disease, this is what I get: “Oh…that’s that gluten diet thing, right?” I almost feel the need to defend myself.
What you have done Gwyneth is you have minimized the seriousness of gluten to those who simply cannot have it. Spend a virtual day with me. Is this what you go through on a daily basis? Probably not.
I’m glad you’re healthy and happy being gluten free. I really am. Please just keep it to yourself.
KP
214 days ago
Amen.
Ahmad
213 days ago
I couldn’t have said it better myself. Although I don’t think she does it maliciously.
The Gluten Dude
209 days ago
I’m sure she does not. And listen, if you want to go gluten-free, by all means go for it. Just don’t call it a diet.
Rachel
174 days ago
you hit the nail on the head! I hate it when Celiac Disease and the gluten free diet are trivialized. I mean, it’s nice that there is more awareness, but it’s annoying that it seems to have become a fad like the low carb diet. It’s a double edged sword.
The Gluten Dude
174 days ago
I am hopeful the “fad” part of it will fade in time and the “seriousness” of it will remain.
Laura Pieper
116 days ago
It is very simple. When I eat bread, I get a horrible stomach ache and feel like I was hit by a bus soon after. This happened to me late in my adulthood. I ended up in the emergency room with what they thought was a bowel obstruction. So now I avoid gluten but I don’t go around announcing this in restaurants to the staff. I find I can tolerate a tiny bit of flour, such as found in a sauce but give me the bread basket, and I can turn into a basket case, literally. Who knows why this happened to me. I don’t talk about it with many people except my family and those who I may go out to dinner with. I don’t terrorize the waitstaff like I have seen some people do in restaurants. And mostly these are people who have adopted the gluten free lifestyle like a religion. If I could eat bread, I certainly would. I adore all bread!
The Gluten Dude
116 days ago
Laura…why don’t you get tested for Celiac? If your stomach pain is that intense, you’ve got some serious stuff going on in there.
Melissa Booth
88 days ago
Amen. One of the things that gets me about these stars is 1. If they get accidentally glutened they do not have to worry about diarrhea, bloating, pain, gas, neuro symptoms, brain fog, itchy skin, and fatigue. lol
There seems to be this disconnect between a GF diet and actual Celiac disease. I don’t think they have even considered that having celiac and not actually going GF can kill you from neuro damage and malnutrition.
The only good thing that has come of it is that product labels seem to be getting much better.
The Gluten Dude
88 days ago
That is the ONLY good thing to come out of it. But the tide is starting to turn on gluten (yay!). That will be my blog post tomorrow.
Adrienne
82 days ago
Great post, and especially relevant given the latest news that docs think celebrity endorsers and food marketers might actually be playing a role in people developing (or at least thinking that they’re developing) non-celiac gluten sensitivity. A complex issue, to be sure, and one I recently tackled in my own blog, Celebranded, which focuses on celebrity endorsements. I was happy to include a link to your post in my content, which can be found here:
http://www.celebranded.com/2012/02/25/is-gwyneth-paltrow-giving-you-gas/
enid
47 days ago
proud mom of glutendude:)
Greta
45 days ago
Today, I walked into a cafe and saw a platter of muffins labeled GLUTEN-FREE cranberry oat muffins, amongst the gluten baked goods. I asked the lady behind the counter if certified gluten-free oats were used and she didn’t know, but said lots of gluten-free people had eaten them, so they must be okay.
I kindly explained why that did not mean they were okay, and that it was necessary to only label it gluten-fee if they were sure to use gluten-free ingredients.
Marketing tactics can hurt people. Beware of sellers jumping on the GF bandwagon.
The Gluten Dude
45 days ago
That is exactly right Greta. It’s the point I’m really trying to hammer home. Thanks.
kate
37 days ago
Awesome post. I spend quite a bit of time making sure me and my kids (even more important) don’t get glutened. I applaud you for bringing this up. How about we all pretend it’s as serious as a peanut allergy? After the past 2 years with the school staff, I wish when they asked what would happen to my kids if they got glutened I had answered, “Whoever gives them the food with gluten will get puked on.”
The Gluten Dude
37 days ago
Good luck on your new blog Kate. You’re off to a good start.
Lori
11 days ago
I couldn’t agree with all of you more. My three year old daughter was diagnosed in March and when I speak with people about this I always get the same reaction… I know plenty of gluten free people. She’ll be fine! I can’t stop myself from getting so angry, but I know it is ignorance and Hollywood is only making it harder. Thank you for your blog. I look forward to reading it and sharing our experiences.
The Gluten Dude
11 days ago
Thanks Lori. My aim is to get the focus off gluten free and onto our disease. But dang, Hollywood is making it tough.