Colin
Late posting #1
Topic: health
Publication:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/11/gluten-schizophrenia-sensitivity-celiac-antibodies_n_1509531.html?ref=health-news&ir=Health%20News
According to the article, pregnant
women that are gluten-intolerant or gluten-sensitive may be putting their
children at risk for neurological disorders such as schizophrenia. Though the
exact cause of schizophrenia is unknown, scientists observed a correlation
between fetal gluten-antibody levels and schizophrenia development. Since a
mother’s antibodies cross the placenta into the fetus’s bloodstream, the fetus
develops the same gluten sensitivity as the mother. This also may put the fetus
at risk for schizophrenia, the study showed. The study included 764 prenatal
blood samples, 211 of which came from people who later developed schizophrenia.
When testing the samples, no correlation was found with levels of milk
antibodies (lactose intolerance), but a strong correlation was found with
gluten antibodies. This is corroborated by earlier studies suggesting a similar
relationship, such as the grain shortage in WWII coinciding with a drop in
admissions to hospitals for schizophrenia. This study also factored in other
risk factors for schizophrenia, and found that the conclusion regarding gluten
sensitivity still stood. The scientist responsible said in a statement that
this “suggests one potential cheap and easy way to reduce risk if we were to
find further proof that gluten sensitivity exacerbates or drives up
schizophrenia risk”. This suggests that pregnant women ought to have some
gluten in their diet to lower their sensitivity to it, thus reducing risk for
their child to later develop schizophrenia.
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