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Abstract
Background: The amount of healthy subjects adopting a gluten-free diet (GFD) for nonmedical reasons actually surpasses the numbers of those who are dealing with a permanent gluten-related disorder.
Objective: The study aimed to better clarify the interactions between a GFD and physical and psychological well-being.
Methods: Sixty healthy subjects with normal weight were enrolled. Thirty subjects (15 female) were submitted to a normocaloric GFD and considered as the experimental group (EG), and 30 subjects (15 female) were submitted to a normocaloric diet (CG) for 6 months. The hematochemical and psychological parameters before and after the diet were recorded.
Results: Significant improvement was demonstrated in red blood count, hemoglobin, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein parameters in the EG after the gluten-free diet. However, a significant increase of α-amylase pancreatic activity and reduction of vitamin B12 and magnesium levels in the EG were observed. Regarding the psychological parameters, the GFD significantly improved scores assessing body satisfaction, but increased social insecurity.
Conclusions: The study is the first to consider significant modulation in hematochemical parameters as well as psychological ones by gluten avoidance in healthy individuals. Although these subjects were not characterized by intestinal mucosa damage, some of the effects were similar to those observed in celiac disease patients who began to adhere to a GFD.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Dr. Filomena Natarelli for her support in the editing of the article.
Disclosure statement
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.