Cutting gluten won't help you drop pounds - and could even cause weight GAIN: Experts' backlash over Miley Cyrus's endorsement of restrictive diet

By Kristie Lau


Then and now: Miley Cyrus, 19, has claimed that a gluten-free diet is the cause of her thin new frame


After proclaiming on Twitter that the reason behind her skinny new frame is a gluten and lactose-free eating plan, Miley Cyrus has come under criticism for her endorsement of the heavily restrictive diet.

The 19-year-old pop star tweeted to her 5.4million followers yesterday: 'Everyone should try no gluten for a week! The change in your skin, physical and mental health is amazing. You won’t go back!'

But dietitians and nutritionists have warned that a gluten-free diet, which omits grains such as wheat, rye, barley and triticale is said to be detrimental to a person’s health if they are not genuinely allergic to gluten.


Karen Ansel, a registered dietician and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told Today.com: 'A gluten-free diet can result in a diet that's low in iron, zinc and B vitamins such as folate and niacin.'

And Dr David Katz, director of the Yale University Prevention Research Center, told ABC: 'Cutting gluten… it is advisable only for those with genuine sensitivities.'

Rachel Begun, a food industry consultant who has Coeliac disease which is an extreme intolerance to gluten, explained that gluten-free products can even make a person put on weight.

She told Today.com: 'People who go gluten-free may gain weight if they rely mostly on highly-processed gluten free foods, many of which tend to be higher in fat, calories and sugar than their gluten-containing counterparts.

Twit: The singer tweeted earlier in the week about how she had ditched gluten

'Gluten-free foods also tend to lack fiber that fills us up and can help us manage our weight.'

Gluten and lactose-free diets have been glamourised in recent times by the endorsement of celebrities like Zooey Deschanel, who is sensitive to dairy products, eggs and wheat and Elisabeth Hasselbeck, a host on The View who has Celiac disease.

Dr Peter Green, director of Columbia University's Celiac Disease Center in New York, told ABC that 'the trendiest thing in the food industry right now is gluten-free.'

He added that almost 90per cent of dieters omit gluten products as a food fad, or a 'weight reduction thing.'




source:dailymail