Posted on 07/16/2006 3:33:18 PM PDT by sully777
A new report by Packaged Facts reveals that the market for gluten-free foods and beverages in the U.S. currently stands at almost $700 million, and is due to reach around $1.7 billion by 2010, according to an article seen on foodnavigator-usa.com. Most gluten-free products are alternatives to traditional grain-based goods, including bakery products, pasta and cereals. These are made with alternative grains and flours, such as rice, corn, amaranth and quinoa.
In recent years, demand for gluten-free products has surged on the back of an increased diagnosis of celiac disease, which is characterized by intolerance to gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley that contributes to the viscosity of baked products.
According to the latest figures, around three million Americans, a little less than 1 percent of the population, currently suffer from gluten intolerance, although estimates suggest that 97 percent of celiac sufferers remain undiagnosed and go untreated. Indeed, it is estimated that the number of known sufferers of celiac disease will increase worldwide by a factor of 10 during the next few years, findings that present an opportunity for the development and marketing of gluten-free foods, said Packaged Facts.
But despite this sector's strong performance and the opportunities it entails, major food marketers have largely not entered the market as yet. According to Packaged Facts, this is because they are reluctant to invest in research and product development until fixed regulations for gluten-free products are in place.
"It is these mega-marketers that have in recent years become the target of consumer activist groups and FDA policy informers, and, for the most part, these companies have learned to proceed more cautiously in such areas," said the market researcher.
"Once the FDA establishes regulations for use of the term gluten free, it is very likely that the mega food marketers of the world will jump on the gluten-free bandwagon," it added.
The FDA is required to propose a regulation by August 2006, and to issue a final regulation by August 2008 to define the term 'gluten free' for voluntary use in food labeling.
For the time being, the majority of gluten-free products -- around 40 percent -- are sold in health and natural food stores, such as GNC, Whole Foods and Wild Oats. Some 20 percent of 2006 sales occurred through specialty food website or catalog purchases, with mainstream supermarkets coming in third with a 14 percent share of sales.
And although these products are largely bought by celiac sufferers, frequently a celiac's entire family will switch to gluten-free products primarily to avoid buying different versions of the same goods, but also as a preventative step, as celiac disease is hereditary.
Also, some consumers avoid gluten due to a perceived belief of intolerance, and others who are migrating to the market from organic and natural foods and other segments. This shift consisting mostly of white, middle- to upper-class consumers is being driven by the belief that certain major allergens and food components also play a role in exacerbating a wide range of other health conditions, from migraine to menstruation.
Some consumers also opt for gluten-free in the hope of preventing their young or unborn children from developing food allergies. But this remains a luxury of choice available only to those able to afford it, said Packaged Facts.
Indeed, the high cost of gluten-free foods prevents many celiac sufferers from adhering precisely to their restricted diet though most diagnosed celiacs are largely white, educated and at least middle class, the group most likely to have access to decent healthcare and to be able to afford the higher cost of these products.
When ones rides the wings of the wind, one sings; when one faces the wind, the music dies.
That may be, but when I went on Atkins and cut out bread, I discovered that my acid reflux went away. I always thought it was the evil greasy bacon, but no, it was the toast.
My wife and I had a successful run with Atkins. Lost lots of weight and both of us eliminated the acid reflux problems. We ceased sticking to Atkins. The acid reflux and spare tires have returned. We were on Atkins through flu season. Everyone in my wife's office was coming with flu. She didn't catch it and neither did I.
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I've had a similar experience with going lo-carb/Atkins. I had chronic, painful heartburn, even water would bring it on, I was at my wit's end - within a week of going lo-carb, it went away. I had a host of health problems and issues, which i will spare you all, and they all went away.
The biggest change was I no longer was depressed. I was about convinced there was something seriously wrong with me, and was about to give myself up to the mental healthcare professionals, but lo-carb cleared all that up - I'm now positive, rarely depressed, stable, no longer prone to a quick anger. I'm happy. I gladly give up cake and bread and pizza and mashed potates for the happiness and general feeling of health I have - which quickly goes away if I eat carbs. I can tell when I have too many carbs, I get grouchy and moody and I feel like crap. One Burger King meal can knock me out of sorts for 3 days, and I can feel my blood pressure skyrocket.
Having said all that - Lo-carb is not for everyone. We're all complex chemical factories, and we all need to find out what works and what doesnt. Lo-carb for me was a change that effected almost every facet of my life, for others it was a struggle and did'nt work. I don't know if I have a condition similar to Celiac's, but I know that my body and mind do not do well with grains, legumes and sugars. I'm no victim, I just found out the lack of them made me healthier, and I stick with it, because I prefer lower weight, no high blood pressure, cholesteral in the normal ranges, getting ill is rare, and all my assorted maladies went away.
I can only hope everyone finds what works for them. I hope some people find relief in gluten-free food. The food companies will over-market it, as they did with fat-free and lo-carb, but whatever - buy fresh, unprocessed meats, diary, and veggies, and let the rest of the suckers buy the overpriced 'miracle" food - the celiac trend too shall pass.
(One humorous thing may come out of it...many overweight people cling to the maladie-de-jour, and will rush to the celiac bandwagon to rationalize their weight...but wait...celiacs tend to be undernurished and skinny...oops...)
How many times a week do you do this?
The shoulder has recovered and I'm doing a good 4 pullups against 198 lbs vs 9 with 174 lbs before. I have a couple kettlebells (12 kg & 16 kg) that are doing a fine job of strengthing the shoulders again. Beer is off my menu now. I would rather avoid it to be able to go shooting when I please.
You might compare notes with SamAdams76. He has been on Atkins for an extended period and adds fairly long walks to his daily regimen. I'm probably going to resume Atkins again with some regular exercise. My current job assignments require that I fit into the provided flight suit and maintain adequate fitness for underwater egress if my aircraft drops in the drink. That's adequate motivation to drive toward my objective.
It sounds like the low carb approach is working well for you. The "Atkins fad" is dying at the grocery store. All the fancy foods to support it are slowly disappearing. Sticking with it will require some extra effort, but all the basics are still right there in the store.
Until I discovered the problem with wheat and milk, my insides were constantly churning. Now it only happens when I unintentionally consume something at a restaurant. It's no big surprise if I leave the restaurant with a stuffy nose and a siege of clearing my throat. I do make a point of never ordering the offending item again. Most restaurant menus boil down to two or three choices that are acceptable. Grilled chicken, broiled beef, salad without croutons, the whole range of vegetables and iced tea.
Know a young man that was diagnosed with Celiac while serving in the Navy. He was medically discharged because the Navy could not provide him with the glutton free diet aboard ship. He continues to struggle with the disease due to living in a small town and not having access to glutton free foods.
The minister, during his sermon stated,"There is a passage in the good book for everything that occurs under the sun."
The older lady, waiting at the door afterwards, asked of him, "What about PMS?"
He thought for a while, then told her he would research and get back to her the following sunday.
The following sunday, he approached her, opened the book, and read,"And Mary rode Joseph's ass all the way to Jerusalem."
You'd be amazed at how much of that cornbread is about 1/2 wheat flour....
If we would stop over processing our products we would not need all these bandaid solutions.
It seems the Creater had the right forumula for majority of the people.
If we as a people have trouble with the natural design, could it not be because there is a disturbance in the genetic and not the original DNA?
Knitting A Conundrum wrote:
> You'd be amazed at how much of that cornbread is about 1/2 wheat flour.... <
You're obviously talkin'bout what the Yankees THINK is cornbread.
But us southerners, we're too smart for 'em, because we always make our cornbread from scratch -- with only pure cornmeal. We don't never use none of that Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines pre-mixed stuff that's got wheat flour in it.
[We even gotta keep an eye on old Martha White, 'cause she sometimes sneaks wheat into her products -- even though she pretends to be a good ole southern girl!]
Being a southern girl with a family recipe that has been passed down mother to daughter for well over 100 years, I know about cornbread.
I also know that cornbread in most of the south at restaurants and friends' homes that I have been in uses flour, as do all the mixes, because it's lighter and fluffier. (If you see a light and fluffy cornbread be assured it has flour in it)
But my recipe sure doesn't.
I don't put sugar in mine either.
I did finally get my hubby, who learned to make cornbread from his South Carolinian mother, to stop putting sugar in his cornbread. But he has to have the flour.
My family recipe goes like this:
For every cup of meal, 1 egg and 1 cup of soured milk, 1 ts baking soda and 1/2 ts salt.
Don't know where the recipe came from. My grandma who was born in 1895 learned it from her mother in Texas. And I suspect her mother learned it from her mother in Mississippi.
I sure know those folks in New Orleans never saw a piece of cornbread they didn't sweeten though.
Thanks for the advice, mariabush. I will pass it along.
Most doctors are quite honest and will admit when they aren't sure what's wrong; a simple switch in diet, if not thought harmful, would seem prudent in those cases. But, to leap to a coclusion that there are orders of magnitude misdiagnoses from a small sample flies in the face of etiology.
What would be your ideal menu within your set limits; do you find it tasty and desirable?
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