In a new study, mercury levels were compared in three groups of people:
- Celiac patients who have been on a gluten-free diet
- Celiac patients who have not yet started a gluten-free diet
- Non-celiac patients
The group of celiac patients that had been on a gluten-free diet had 4 TIMES the amount of toxic mercury in their blood compared to the other two groups. (5)
All patients in this study were evaluated for fish consumption and number of amalgam fillings – so the increase in mercury in the gluten-free group was not environmental. Somehow, this group was not detoxifying the mercury like the other groups. Let’s investigate how…
Enter the Hygiene Hypothesis
In 1989, the hygiene hypothesis suggested that a sterile environment, a clean house with less kids and no pets would severely compromise the immunity of the family living in these homes. (3) When the microbiome was discovered a few years back, the researchers basically said that we are in pre-school when it comes to understanding the impact of the trillions of microbes that live inside our guts. They all agreed that kids should be allowed to play in the dirt and get dirty, and we should stop the anti-microbial attack on all bacteria.
More and more evidence is suggesting that our immune system works much better when it is stimulated and is, in fact, inhibited by a sterile environment. Amish children, who have cows as their pets and run barefoot in barns, have the lowest rates of asthma on the planet. To compare, Hutterite farmers, who originated in the same areas of the Alps, have traded their Mennonite roots for industrial (more sterile) farming techniques. Their kids have some of the highest rates of asthma in America. (2)
Certain anti-microbial ingredients, specifically triclosan and triclocarban, have been banned by the FDA, for use in commercially available hand soaps. (4) While the research is still ongoing, preliminary studies have shown that these chemicals have the potential to disrupt reproductive hormones (6), inhibit a healthy immune response (7), rapidly alter the structure of the microbiome (8), and may even be contributing to antibiotic resistant superbugs. (9) Finally, we are getting the message that killing all the bugs on the planet – antibacterial everything – is a bad idea.
The Potential Risk of a Gluten-Free Diet
The theory behind why celiac patients on a gluten-free diet would have 4 times the mercury levels as non-gluten, celiac-free patients, is that once you start taking harder-to-digest foods out of the diet – such as gluten, nuts, seeds, all grains and beans, as many of the gluten-free experts are suggesting – the digestive and immune systems will be negatively impacted. Remember, we have been eating hard-to-digest foods and breathing dust from animals for millions of years. Once we stop that, a diverse microbiome that is responsible for robust immunity is put at risk.
To take this theory to its logical conclusion, with as much as 80 percent of the immunity of the body residing in the intestines (10), we must also provide stimulation to the gut by feeding it a diverse food supply. Replacing a whole food diet with a more sterile, gluten-free diet appears to compromise the body’s ability to detox mercury efficiently. Could gluten and whole grains, which we have been eating for some 4 million years, also be the pearl to a robust immune system?
If we continue to solely treat the symptoms of our digestive woes and do not address the underlying breakdown in our digestive systems, and thus our immunity, we may be setting ourselves up for major problems down the road. If eating a so-called “healthier” gluten-free diet can raise your mercury levels four-fold, perhaps we should re-think our global attack on wheat and look more closely at why we cannot digest it anymore. Could it be that our digestive microbiome is under attack as well?
Stay tuned for more on this topic in my upcoming article, “The Dangers of Gluten-Free Diet.”
Shannon says
It’s very possible that overconsumption of rice products could cause the increase in mercury. Rice is often contaminated by mercury containing pesticides. Even organic rice can contain mercury if it is grown on a former cotton field.
Lorraine says
Curious why “All patients in this study were evaluated for fish consumption and number of amalgam fillings” but not evaluated for immunization history goes? Immunizations are injected right into the blood and would be a much greater cause of mercury than something like fish consumption.
Judy says
I have celiac disease, and I strongly believe that my celiac was triggered by my exposure to mercury. I developed celiac after receiving immunizations when I went to Argentina when I was 21. Many immunizations contained mercury.
In addition to that mercury exposure, I had mercury dental amalgams, I used contact lens solution that contained mercury and I grew up on a farm where we burned coal to heat our home (as well as our neighbors). We burned coal until natural gas came to our town.
I believe that my immunizations when I went overseas were the straw that broke the camel’s back. But I do also wonder about mercury in the blood. Mercury very quickly goes to the brain.
KAREN says
OOPS! Horrible. How could a reputable article claim we’ve been eating grain for 4 million years when modern man has only existed about 170,000 years and of that only been agricultural about 10,000 years. Come on!
Zoltan says
You got the point LOL!!!
Laura says
“these recent studies show that grasses and grains have been part of the human diet for millions of years.”
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/crux/2013/06/03/even-our-ancestors-never-really-ate-the-paleo-diet/#.XFerLLPsZPY
Jessica Jenness says
I was wondering that very same thing. If the gluten free group was really detoxing and pulling metals out of other parts of the body and that was why they were in the bloodstream. As I have heard the only true way to test mercury and other heavy metals is through hair. It would be interesting to see more tests done on gluten free vs non.
johngilnitz says
This is nuts. Had Someone done their homework they would have known that blood DOES NOT reflect tissue levels. IF anything it can show that hg is being mobilized from tissues for excretion in gluten free control group which woukd make it a good fact rather than bad.
Get your facts straight , and then speculate over conclusions.
Zoltan says
I Absolutely agree!!!:)
Lucy says
When you say “that once you start taking harder-to-digest foods out of the diet – such as gluten, nuts, seeds, all grains and beans, as many of the gluten-free experts are suggesting – the digestive and immune systems will be negatively impacted.”
I have never heard anyone say to remove nuts, seeds and beans for those avoiding gluten. So what happens when you ONLY AVOID GLUTEN and continue to eat other “hard-to-digest” foods such as nuts, seeds and beans? Are mercury levels still higher? If so, you can’t really make the argument that you have eliminated all hard-to-digest foods, so maybe there is another reason for the higher mercury levels.
Please help me understand how only gluten helps lower mercury levels.
Thank you.
John Douillard says
Hi Lucy,
The study compared 3 groups.
1. Celiacs who have been on a GF diet
2. Cleiacs who have not yet started a GF diet
3. non celiacs
Group 1 have 4x mercury levels than the other two. Celiacs are known to have nutritional deficiency issues so yes you could make that case but there are more studies coming out in an upcoming article which compare killer T cells, good and bad microbes with gluten-free and gluten diets – finding that gluten free diets (not celiacs) were compromised.
Lots of food for thought.
Thanks for the note.
Be well
John
Moni says
While I agree with much that Dr. John has written and that these foods have been in our diet for millennia, I wonder if the issue with the excess mercury may be tied to the highly processed and poorly grown gluten free foods rather than th immune system. I also agree that one should eliminate them until their body and digestion is healed. That can take YEARS for some of us and we should always be cautious that we don’t go overboard when we begin eating them again. Dr. John essentially says this when he reminds us to eat “the seasons”.
Gluten Free and happy about it says
when gluten gives you brain fog and aching joints, it is hard to accept that eating gluten is good for you. It’s easy to recognize over processed bread products and stay away from them, but not so much with pasta.
John Douillard says
Thanks for the comment. These symptoms can be linked to a congested lymphatic system. Yes, stop consuming the foods that trigger these symptoms, but remember to treat and heal the root cause of the pain. You may enjoy this article: https://lifespa.com/6-steps-to-decongest-your-lymph/
Soundjourney says
When true, high quality whole wheat products made with integrity become the norm and are widely available, then perhaps getting on this bus should be widely considered. However, there’s so much junk ‘whole grain’ etc products out there and with abysmal labeling practices in this country, people could read something like this and assume the ‘whole grain’ Sara Lee bread they are eating is serving them well, when in fact, it could be doing the opposite. The gut/microbiome issue is incredibly nuanced, and to extrapolate this hypothesis from this study makes me realize the narrow focus of this information. Every gut is its own unique system and you could be avoiding gluten for good reason, and be regularly consuming foods that help remove heavy metals beautifully, such as cilantro, wild blueberries, spirulina, dulse, and bananas, and be detoxifying really well. If a person is avoiding gluten in mindful ways because they are reparing/rebuilding their health, eating clean and is incorporating a diverse range of nutrient dense food, they are making solid choices. The gluten factor depends on the individual, their unique system, their daily practices, and if the health information they are receiving/incorporating is truly serving them.