10 Health Crazes That Will Actually Damage Your Health

What Is It?

Eliminating all gluten-containing foods from the diet, ostensibly to aid weight loss and improve gut health, has seen a huge surge in popularity recently.

So, What's So Bad About It?

Going gluten free is one of the latest in a long line of health trends that has very little scientific backing.

For people with an actual intolerance, gluten can be a matter of life and death (or, at the very least, explosive bowels), but if you don't happen to be part of the 1% of the population that suffers from it, the gluten will do you no harm whatsoever.

Proponents of the gluten free diet claim that it is good for weight loss and, whilst it is true that cutting out gluten can force you to cut out unhealthy junk foods, it is this, not the gluten, that is responsible for the weight loss.

In fact, cutting out gluten can remove healthy sources of fibre, vitamins and minerals and studies show that gluten-free diets can be deficient in iron, folate, niacin, thiamine, calcium, vitamin B12, phosphorus and zinc.

It is possible to eat a healthy gluten-free diet, but most people don't, and many gluten-free alternatives contain higher levels of sugar and fat than their glutenous counterparts to make them palatable (not to mention the fact that they are often two or three times the price).

Apart from anything else, unless you're actually intolerant, the whole thing is a completely pointless exercise that will cost you time, money and effort.