Gluten-Free by Choice or Necessity? What Changed My Mind About Gluten

I will admit it — I used to roll my eyes whenever someone told me they were going gluten-free. It felt like just another food trend, a part of the growing list of dietary labels that included dairy-free, sugar-free, soy-free, and everything else-free. My quiet reaction was always the same: do we really need to cut out so many things just to be healthy?

Then something changed.

I began to notice people close to me who were not following trends but living with real symptoms. A friend who was always tired, bloated, and sluggish — until she stopped eating gluten. A child who could not focus, could not sleep, and felt constantly unwell — until a diagnosis of celiac disease explained everything.

That is when I started paying attention. What I saw shifted my thinking completely.

Gluten intolerance, and especially celiac disease, is not about preference or trying to follow the latest health craze. For some people, even trace amounts of gluten can cause severe digestive distress, brain fog, chronic fatigue, and long-term inflammation. And in the case of celiac disease, it is an autoimmune condition — not a choice, and certainly not a diet.

What surprised me most was how difficult it is to live gluten-free. Reading every food label, asking difficult questions at restaurants, avoiding shared kitchen utensils, and dealing with cross-contamination — it is anything but easy. It is not glamorous. It is not convenient. And it is definitely not something people do for fun.

I am not saying that everyone needs to avoid gluten. Most people can eat wheat, bread, and pasta without issues. But I now believe that people who genuinely need to avoid gluten deserve more understanding — not skepticism or judgment.

Sometimes awareness does not come from studies or headlines. It comes from watching someone you care about struggle — and then watching them slowly recover.

I may never need to follow a gluten-free lifestyle myself. But I now understand what it means for those who do. And the least I can do is offer respect — and maybe skip the eye-rolls the next time someone mentions their dietary needs.