Buckwheat and the gluten-free diet

The interest in and need for gluten-free foods has caused a resurgence of interest in buckwheat. This food fell out of favor around 1900 when new methods of milling wheat flour were invented. Now, buckwheat has become more widely available, often in gluten-free foods.

For people dealing with celiac disease, there's an issue with the GI tract.  The natural 'glue" in traditional bread dough sets off an immune reaction in the small intestine. This part of the gastrointestinal system is where nutrients are normally absorbed through the intestine lining. But those with celiac disease have bodies which respond to gluten as though it is an infection or a foreign substance.  The Mayo Clinic website website has details on this. 

Traditional grains are an issue for people who don't have a diagnosis of celiac disease. Food which is gluten-free is going to be free of wheat. Both wheat and corn are foods to which many people are sensitive to various degrees. 

Though doctors and alternative practitioners can see evidence of food sensitivities, some people find that paying attention to their own physical responses to what they eat is the best measuring tool. One bit of anecdotal evidence: a friend was advised by a holistic chiropractor to give up wheat and so she quit making sandwiches for lunch for a couple of weeks, substituting hardboiled eggs, salad, and so on. Then my friend tired of these alternative lunches, and she also felt that she wasn't seeing great improvements in her health. She decided to pack herself a normal sandwich on whole-wheat bread. And this was her self-reportage: "I was never so sick in my life. I had to take a half-day and go home."

Buckwheat's not optimal for all digestive issues. For people with IBS or Crohn's Disease, buckwheat's high-fiber content can be an irritant which makes symptoms worse. But for people who choose to avoid gluten, products made with buckwheat means the opportunity to enjoy pancakes, waffles, bread, cereals, and pasta again. 

Gluten is found in grain, and buckwheat is a pseudo-grain which is really more of a seed. That's why gluten is not present in buckwheat flour; it's not in any grain family.

Even for healthy folks, buckwheat by itself has more fiber than some people can digest, and not everyone enjoys its unique flavor (which I personally find delicious) full-on. So buckwheat flour is sometimes mixed with other wheat-free flours. The dark soft flour has a consistency which is a little more like wheat or spelt flour than more powdery "flours" made from rice or sorghum.