Diet guru Tim Spector reveals the ‘healthy’ favorite foods that are actually loaded with harmful chemicals

It’s an ingredient in thousands of our favorite dishes, but in the eyes of wellness influencers, it’s become a bad guy.

Gluten, the protein in wheat products such as bread and pasta, is avoided by around eight per cent of Britons for ‘health reasons’, polls show.

But one of the UK’s biggest diet gurus has issued a stark warning against popular gluten-free products because of the potential health risks.

According to Professor Tim Spector, nutritionist and founder of the popular ZOE diet app, some of the most popular gluten-free foods are seriously lacking in essential nutrients such as fibre and filling protein. These nutrients should help suppress hunger pangs and curb the urge to snack.

And unlike the gluten alternative, they’re loaded with chemicals, like emulsifiers, that have been linked to an increase in colon cancer in people under 50.

In a video clip posted to the scientists’ TikTok channel, Professor Spector analyzed four different types of pasta and concluded that the gluten-free option is the worst for your health.

“Don’t be fooled into thinking that a gluten-free product is also healthier…whole grain alternatives are often less processed,” he said in the TikTok video which has been viewed 40,000 times so far.

About one in every 100 people in the UK has coeliac disease, a condition in which the immune system overreacts to gluten.

This condition means that patients who eat gluten experience a number of debilitating symptoms, including abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhea.

Over time, damage occurs in the intestines, often leading to serious nutritional deficiencies and nerve damage.

However, it is thought that another 13 percent of people suffer from what is known as nonspecific gluten sensitivity (NCGS).

In that case, eating proteins causes unpleasant symptoms, such as a bloated feeling and irregular bowel movements.

Scientists aren’t sure why some people experience this. Some think it may be a nocebo effect: the expectation of having symptoms actually brings them on.

Professor Spector conducted an analysis of four popular types of pasta on supermarket shelves to compare their nutritional value with that of gluten-free alternatives.

“There’s a huge craze at the moment to buy gluten-free pasta, thinking it’s good for you,” Professor Spector said in the clip.

“But there are some problems.”

Grabbing a package of gluten-free spaghetti, he says, “This is made with rice, corn, and emulsifiers and actually has very little protein or fiber.

‘It consists of about seven percent fiber and about three percent protein.

‘Compared to regular wheat, which contains almost six percent protein and about two percent fiber.

“If you want extra fiber, go for whole wheat spaghetti. It has eight percent fiber and similar amounts of protein.”

For those wanting a gluten-free option, Prof. Spector recommends red lentil pasta.

Research shows that around eight percent of Britons choose not to eat gluten because they think it is a healthier choice.

‘I started using them in cooking and they are getting tastier and tastier.

“These guys contain about as much fiber as whole wheat spaghetti and about 12 percent protein.”

“Look at the labels and make a healthy choice.”

Previous research has shown that gluten-free options may not be any better for our waistlines either.

Researchers from the University of Hertfordshire analysed the nutritional profiles of more than 1,700 supermarket products and found that gluten-free products, with the exception of crackers, were higher in fat, salt and sugar, and also lower in fibre and protein than comparable products.

Costs were also significantly higher across all food categories, with the median cost of gluten-free brown and white bread and white and wholemeal flour more than four times the price of regular equivalents.

Of the findings, published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics in 2018, study author Dr. Rosalind Fallaize concluded that a gluten-free diet “offers no nutritional advantages over a regular diet.”

“(They) do not represent a healthier alternative for people who do not require a gluten-free diet,” she concluded.