For many people who suffer from celiac disease or wheat allergies, eating a sandwich or drinking a beer can be uncomfortable at best and nearly fatal at worst. Products that contain gluten, a thickening additive that is also present in wheat, barley, rye and oats, can pose problems such as abdominal pain and improper nutrient absorption for sufferers. But many people who don’t have problems with gluten are eliminating it from their diets. Why and how do you eliminate a substance that’s ubiquitous in the foods we eat? Many stars like Oprah Winfrey and Jennifer Aniston are going gluten-free as part of the trend of cleansing diets, those that allegedly eliminate toxins from the system. Does it work? Sure – anytime calories are severely restricted, you will lose weight. But it would work regardless, even if those stars kept gluten in their diets. It’s difficult and expensive to replace gluten-containing products with gluten-free products because substitutes generally cost more. A loaf of regular bread might cost $2, but a loaf of gluten-free bread costs upward of $5 and more. Gluten-free products may actually cause consumers to gain weight because of their generally low fiber content and high glycemic index. Plus, foods like cereals and whole grains contain vitamins and minerals that celiac disease sufferers often lack, like B vitamins, calcium, iron and magnesium, and they must supplement their diets to compensate for this deficiency. At best, the diet is a good solution for those who have celiac disease or wheat allergies, but for everyone else, good old calorie restriction is the way to go.