Wheat is one of the most important cereals consumed in the world and is used as the main raw material in the production of many floury foods, especially bread. What distinguishes wheat from other grains and the reason why it is used so frequently is the gluten protein in its structure.
As the main component of wheat; It contains 60-75% starch and 9-18% grain proteins. Cereal proteins consist of 80% gluten proteins and 20% non-gluten proteins.
Gluten proteins contain glutenin gliadin proteins in their structure. These two substances combine with different chemical bonds during the making of wheat flour and kneading the dough and form the elastic structure of the dough. This elastic structure formed by glutenin and gliadin; It forms the main skeleton of the dough, it makes the dough porous by keeping the carbon dioxide gas created by the air and yeast mixed into the dough during kneading, making the dough porous. It stabilizes the structure of the dough. Therefore, gluten directly affects many properties of dough such as elasticity, softness, resistance, consistency, volume, pore structure.
After this introduction, which is more interesting for bakery product manufacturers, to take a look at the relationship between gluten and health; Celiac Disease (Gluten Enteropathy) comes to mind first about gluten.
Celiac Disease; It is a disease that develops as a result of hypersensitivity to gluten, is characterized by inflammation in the small intestine mucosa and submucosa, and is often accompanied by malnutrition. With the elimination of gluten from the diet, the findings improve significantly. The disease is common in Western Europe, where wheat consumption is intense, and is less common in eastern countries such as India and China, where rice consumption is more common.
Even though the disease is related to nutrition and genetic factors, there is an important role in the formation of the disease. Although there is a genetic predisposition, the disease does not occur as long as wheat, therefore gluten, is not included in the diet. Individuals with Celiac Disease have an innate genetic
Another disease we call gluten sensitivity is a disease that shows symptoms similar to Celiac disease and is more common in society than Celiac disease. In this disease, especially stomach and intestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloating, muscle-joint pain, forgetfulness called brain fog, confusion, concentration difficulties, depression-like findings and some skin diseases may occur.
If you have these findings, you should think of gluten sensitivity, which is a really common and important problem in society. However, these findings alone are not enough for you to say "I have gluten sensitivity". First of all, it is necessary to make a definitive diagnosis of whether you have gluten sensitivity by applying to your doctor.
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