New report warns going wheat-free could be worse for your health

The craze for avoiding bread, pizza, pastry and pasta seems to be taking over the world.

Stick-thin celebrities including Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Victoria Beckham, and Gwyneth Paltrow rave about their healthy 'wheat-free' lifestyles.

Devotees claim going gluten-free can alleviate everything from tiredness and bloating to spotty skin and hair loss.

But wheat-free diets 'lighten the wallet and not the waistline', according to a scientific report due to be published later this month, the Daily Mail reports.

The report comes as a poll by Weetabix found 32 per cent of British people avoid wheat because fad diets like the Paleo Diets and Wheat Belly diet warn against gluten.

But they also admitted they don't really know what gluten - the protein that is present in wheat and grains like barley and rye - actually is.

Two fifths (42 per cent) of people polled said they think it is a man-made substance, and said they didn't understand the science behind wheat-free diets.

In a report due to be published by Warwick University, experts will argue that there is little evidence behind the claims made by popular wheat-free diets.

Dr Robert Lillywhite, senior research fellow at Warwick Crop Centre, said: 'The scientific evidence behind many of the most popular wheat free diets is surprisingly thin. It may perhaps be the case that most will only lighten your wallet, rather than provide longer-tern health benefits, by encouraging you to switch from low cost cupboard staples to specialist foods intended for those who genuinely need to avoid gluten.

'We are delighted that Weetabix are investing in a review of the science in this area but of course we won’t be able to comment further on this work until the research is complete.'

A quarter of people under 34 said they buy less cereal and bread because of the latest diet craze.

This could be why 90 per cent of British people eat less than half of the recommended 30g of fibre a day.

Eating the recommended amount of fibre can help prevent heart disease, diabetes, weight gain and some cancers, and can also improve digestive health, doctors advise.

Claire Canty, Senior Brand Manager at Weetabix said: 'The research highlights the misconceptions about whole wheat and how people might be mistakenly avoiding it.

'Whole wheat has been shown to be important gastrointestinal health, thanks to its high fibre content and range of micronutrients.'