There are several reasons why people eat gluten-free. The biggest reason is celiac disease, an autoimmune disease that makes the body hypersensitive to gluten. About 1% of people have this condition and have a severe reaction after eating gluten. But does spelt pasta actually contain gluten?
Is spelt pasta gluten free?
Spelt pasta is not gluten free. Spelt pasta contains less gluten than normal pasta, but is not gluten free. Gluten-free pasta is often made from corn or rice, not spelt.
Because it can be best to confuse whether spelt pats is gluten free, we tell you a little more about it.
What is spelt?
To answer the question, we first need to find out what spelt actually is. You’ve been hearing a lot about it lately, so we’ll explain what this grain is all about.
Spelt is related to wheat, but is not a wheat variety. Spelt is less processed than wheat, which is why many people label it as pure food.
You can recognize spelt by the husk. These are several sheaths that surround the grain. The husk makes the grain less susceptible to disease. Spelt has a different gluten structure than durum wheat, for example, which makes it easily digestible for several people.
It may sound like a complicated story, so we will summarize it for you. Because of its gluten structure, spelt is often more tolerable for people with sensitive intestines. Because of its nutritional value, it also ensures that you are satiated a little longer.
These nutrients are proteins and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Spelt is rich in vitamin B3 and contains more minerals such as copper, phosphorus, magnesium, iron and zinc. All of these nutritional values are more present in spelt than in wheat.
Spelt was substituted for wheat years ago because of its greater economic returns. Wheat has evolved a lot over the years, changing its properties. As a result, some people react sensitively to it.
Spelt pasta has plenty of advantages. But beware: although spelt is easier to digest, it is not suitable for people with a wheat or gluten allergy. In that case, choose a gluten-free pasta.
What is gluten?
Now that you know what spelt is, let’s answer the next question: what is gluten? It can be a somewhat complicated story, but we’ve tried to explain it as simply as possible.
Some grains contain gluten. Gluten is a protein found in grains. Many products are made from grains and therefore contain gluten. Foods that are naturally gluten-free are sometimes contaminated with gluten during processing.
Gluten is made up of gliadin and glutendin. These two determine the properties of the final dough. Using only gliadin creates a stiff structure that produces weak dough. Glutendin is elastic and makes the dough strong. Kneading these two proteins creates the gluten network.
Spelt dough is kneaded slowly and is more fragile than wheat dough. Wheat dough is less prone to over-kneading. There is a clear difference between these two gluton networks. There is a strong suspicion that this difference causes the body to react differently. This is probably why some people can’t stand wheat bread but can stand spelt.
Sciences will investigate this further and have to find out if this difference really causes this reaction. If you have celiac disease you should eliminate gluten completely. If you have occasional stomach or intestinal problems, try spelt to see if you notice a difference.
Gluten is found in all kinds of products: bread, cakes, cookies, crackers and rusks. It may make sense that it is in these products because these products contain grains. But gluten is often present in other products as well, due to the binder.
Is spelt pasta gluten free?
Because spelt is also a grain, it also contains gluten.
There are several reasons why people eat gluten free. The biggest reason is celiac disease, an autoimmune disease that makes the body hypersensitive to gluten. About 1% of the Dutch get a severe reaction after eating gluten.
Not only people with celiac disease eat little gluten. There are also people who have glutensitivity. They too can have symptoms after eating gluten. Research is still being done into how gluten can cause these symptoms. It is also not known how much gluten these people can eat before they experience symptoms.
A gluten-free diet is one of the most difficult diets to adhere to. This is because gluten is found in many products. Spelt pasta is therefore unfortunately not gluten free. Fortunately, we have all kinds of gluten-free alternatives in our webshop.
Nutrition Hype
Avoiding gluten is a food hype that has been created mainly by media. Told by various people on social media etc that gluten free food is healthier. Here food products have cleverly responded by gluten-free products on the market.
Always pay attention to the packaging and see if, for example, much sugar is added. This makes the product less healthy.