More people are adopting a gluten-free diet -- and feeling better for it The Record.Com, May 18, 2007 (Kitchener, Ontario) Brandi Walzer, a 29-year-old cartographer in Savannah, Ga., loves bread, not to mention pizza and beer. But she tries to avoid them because they contain gluten-- a substance she says upsets her stomach, aggravates her arthritis and touches off depression. She is among a growing number of Americans who believe that gluten-- a protein found in wheat, barley and rye -- is responsible for a variety of ills, from skin eruptions to infertility to anxiety to gas. There is no question that eating gluten aggravates celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that damages the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients. But doctors say it is unclear whether gluten can be blamed for other problems. Nevertheless, it has become a popular dietary villain. Gluten-free foods are popping up on grocery-store shelves and restaurant menus. Warnings of gluten's evils are common on alternative medicine websites and message boards. Several alternative practitioners have picked up on it and are telling people they have gluten intolerance, according to Don W. Powell, a gastroenterologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.