Products gluten-free

Gluten (fibrin) is a main protein of grains which is toxic for people suffering from celiac disease and is a principal factor damaging mucous membrane (villi) of the small intestine.

Gluten is contained in many grains like wheat, rye, oats, and barley. At the same time many food products contain so called masked gluten, i.e. added due to its ability to condense and glue together. For example, wheat powder is used for thick and homogenous consistency of yoghurts and ice cream; chocolate may contain gluten (especially milk chocolate); fibrin becomes a basis for industrial syrups and sauces (mayonnaise, ketchup, soy sauce), sausage products and so called crab sticks.

Celiac disease (gluten enteropathy) is a multifactorial disease, a digestive disorder caused by damaging of villi of the small intestine by some food products containing gluten (and its similar proteins of such grains as wheat, rye, oats, and barley). In the first century AD Aretaeus of Cappadocia and Caelias Aurelianus described chronic diarrhea and steatorrhoea of children and women and called such disease morbus coeliacus, “digestive disease”. The regular symptoms of children’s celiac disease — diarrhea, inanition, anemia and developmental multiplication — were published in 1888 by Samuel Gee, the doctor of the Bartolommeo Hospital in London. In 1950 the Dutch pediatrician Willem Dicke was the first who named gluten – the alcohol-soluble protein fraction contained in wheat - as reason for celiac disease of children. In 1952 G. McIver and J. French were the first to use gluten-free diet for treatment of this disease.

Earlier people believed that the celiac disease is very rear – with frequency 1:3000. The modern examination of population proved that the gene which is responsible for liability to celiac disease is wide-spread and almost 0.5-1% of population suffers from this disease. The typical celiac disease with severe malabsorption is really rare. Most of diseased have extraenteric manifestations like iron deficiency anemia, canker sore, Duhring's disease (Dermatitis herpetiformis), osteoporosis, small body height, delayed puberty, sterility, Type I Diabetes Mellitus, etc. Similar hidden and subclinical forms are more widespread than the typical classical celiac disease.

Celiac disease is characterized by intestinal malabsorption, subatrophy or atrophy of the small intestine mucous membrane, positive reaction to gluten-free diet (avoiding of grains-based products containing gluten). Among clinical variants one should distinguish real celiac disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) which may be caused by any enteropathy (abnormal development, infection, long-term antibiotics intake, etc.). Very often the appearance of the celiac disease coincides with introduction of complementary feeding containing starchy foods into the dietary intake of child aged 6-12 months. During this period there is the highest risk for provocation of celiac disease.