Often people confuse coeliac condition, a wheat intollerance with wheat allergy and they are really talking of two separate things as we will describe below.
People with coeliac condition need to maintain a gluten free diet, gluten is commonly found in wheat and hence they have an intollerance to gluten which is perceived as a wheat intollerance.
The intollerance relates to gluten, a component of wheat and also included in rye, oats and barley. Whilst diagnosis rates vary from country to country and even region to region they are typically in the region of 15% of the population. Sometimes wheat intollerance displays itself as an immediate reaction to gluten in the diet with vomiting and nausia coming on a matter of hours after ingesting gluten. At other times the wheat intollerance can be less dramatic and the coeliac will feel drowsy and have an upset stomach perhaps for 48 hours after ingesting gluten.
Wheat allergy is a different reaction entirely. An allergy to wheat is quite rare and produces a more immediate and a more dramatic reaction. This is typical of all immune system reactions and you would tend to see difficulty in breathing, coughing and violent vomiting.
Whilst therefore a wheat intollerance has a less dramatic impact on the person with coeliac condition they must maintain a gluten free diet if they are to thrive and lead a normal life. That is to say that their intollerance extends beyond wheat as it is caused by gluten.
People with a wheat allergy, having an auto-immune response must take great care in avoiding wheat in their diet. They should also ensure that they explain their condition to colleagues and have any medical treatment they require, which must be administered immediately, to hand. They should also carry a medical bracelet which would explain their condition should an attack be suddenly experienced.
The reaction to wheat often leads to a question of is it a wheat allergy or wheat intolerance, but as you can read the underlying causes and the medical reaction are different.
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