Dubai: With more and more gluten-free products hitting supermarket shelves and new specialty stores catering to those in search of a gluten-free diet, experts believe supply is finally matching demand in the UAE.
More residents are discovering that they suffer from coeliac disease, a common digestive condition in which a person has an adverse reaction to gluten, found in wheat, barley and rye.
“The increase in coeliac disease in the UAE is reflected in the supply of gluten-free products,” said Dr Sanjida Ahmad, director of research at Eastern Biotech and Life Sciences that conducts food intolerance tests in Dubai.
Dr Sanjida explained that the lack of national data makes it difficult to establish the exact prevalence rates of the condition or percentage of people who suffer from food allergies in general.
Eating foods that contain gluten like bread, pasta, cereals and biscuits can trigger a range of symptoms from mild to severe among people who are intolerant to it. These include indigestion, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, bloating, tiredness, stomach cramps and muscle spasms. If untreated, a person with the condition may be unable to digest food and could suffer from malnutrition and a lack of energy.
Lily Mueller, nutritionist and therapist in Colon Hydrotherapy and Manual Abdominal Treatments at The Dubai Herbal and Treatment Centre, said that 80 per cent of the human body’s immunity can be attributed to the gut.
She said, “Food intolerances often come about from having an overload: be it gluten, sugar, dairy, stress, etc, often built up over a number of years. A blood test can ascertain whether you are gluten intolerant, suffer from coeliac disease or have other food intolerances.”
By way of caution, Stephanie Karl, nutritionist at XY Clinics in Dubai, said there is a lack of understanding regarding food intolerance and allergies. “People opt for food intolerance and allergy tests instead of finding out the actual reason for the intolerance,” she said.
She advised residents not to “over test”, but to move away from processed, unhealthy diets and seek medical help to restore gut integrity.
Coeliac sufferer Rabia Bekhazi, who was diagnosed in 1985, inspired her sister Areej Jomaa to launch Sweet Connection, Dubai’s first 100 per cent gluten-free kitchen.
“I lived with the condition for 28 years before I was diagnosed. My mother and sister, Areej, started to experiment with gluten-free dishes,” Rabia said. “The experimentation led to recipes for coeliac disease sufferers and anyone who needs to follow a gluten-free diet,” Areej added.
