Some people have suggested that genetically modified wheat—also known as GMO wheat—might be to blame for these increases. However, the truth is that GMO wheat can't possibly be blamed for the hikes in celiac disease and gluten sensitivity, simply because GMO wheat isn't being grown commercially.
Must-Know Facts About GMO Wheat
To be considered genetically modified, a plant such as wheat needs to have its genome altered through gene splicing in the laboratory. Scientists who genetically engineer crops are looking to introduce a desirable trait into that crop, and they do so by inserting a new gene sequence from another species into the target crop's genome.
For example, biotechnology giant Monsanto Co. created its GMO soybeans by introducing a gene sequence from a specific bacterium, Agrobacterium sp. strain CP4, into soy's genome. This bacterium gene allows the soybeans to resist repeated applications of the herbicide Roundup (also produced by Monsanto).
Monsanto abandoned its efforts to develop Roundup Ready wheat in 2004. However, Monsanto has experimented with genetic engineering in wheat to produce drought-resistant and higher-yielding wheat strains. Competitors—notably, Syngenta AG and BASF Global—also are pursuing GMO wheat. However, none of these products are market-ready, and they're only being grown currently as experiments.
There have been a few isolated cases of GMO wheat (Roundup Ready wheat) being detected on farms but there has been no evidence that the wheat has entered the food supply.4 That means (contrary to popular belief) that GMO wheat cannot be blamed for increased celiac and gluten sensitivity cases.
GMOs and gene editing: What’s the difference?
Hybridized Wheat May Be to Blame
That doesn't mean wheat hasn't changed over the last half-dozen decades, though—it has, as the result of a process called hybridization (which is different from genetic engineering). And some scientists have speculated that those changes could be one cause of an increase in the number of people who have an inability to tolerate gluten.5
In hybridization, scientists don't tinker directly with the plant's genome. Instead, they choose particular strains of a plant with desirable characteristics and breed them to reinforce those characteristics. When this is done repeatedly, successive generations of a particular plant can look very different from the plant's ancestors.
That's what's happened with modern wheat, which is shorter, browner, and far higher-yielding than wheat crops were 100 years ago. Dwarf wheat and semi-dwarf wheat crops have replaced their taller cousins, and these wheat strains require less time and less fertilizer to produce a robust crop of wheat berries.
However, a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reported that there's not really any more gluten in modern wheat than there was in 1920s-era wheat.6
A Word From Verywell
Studies do show a significant increase in the incidence of celiac disease over the last several decades.1 Anecdotally, gluten sensitivity also appears to be rising, although there haven't been any studies to confirm that (and some blame the current trendiness of the gluten-free diet for reported increases).
However, it's not at all clear why the number of people affected by these two conditions might be rising.
Donald D. Kasarda, the U.S. Department of Agriculture scientist who authored the 2013 study on 1920s wheat, wonders whether it's possible that increased consumption of wheat in recent years—rather than increased gluten in the wheat actually consumed—might be in part to blame for increased incidence of celiac disease. He also says the use of wheat gluten as an ingredient in processed foods might contribute. However, he says that much more research must be made to evaluate these other possible contributors.6
However, no one really knows why celiac disease (and possibly gluten sensitivity) might be affecting more people.
There's one thing that's certain, though: Genetically modified wheat can't be to blame.
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