Walk down the aisles of almost any supermarket and you're sure to come across an extensive gluten-free range.
Sainsbury's, Asda and Tesco all have own-brand products aimed at those avoiding the protein, which is found in wheat, barley and rye.
While it's known to cause stomach reactions in those who have coeliac disease - a painful auto-immune condition that an estimated 1 per cent of people suffer from - many have given up gluten for health reasons thanks to a slew of reports that it could cause bloating, skin problems and weight gain.
Price gap: Chippa Gluten Free tomato ketcup, £1.50 for 315g (left); Sainsbury's Ketchup, £1 for 460g (right)
But a Daily Mail investigation has discovered these people are, in fact, at real risk of losing pounds of a different kind.
For not only do these 'free-from' foods cost a huge amount more than their non-gluten-free equivalents (sometimes up to 400 per cent as much), many are foods that don't usually contain gluten anyway. No wonder the gluten-free industry is worth £210 million a year.
Take Sainsbury's Freefrom Juicy Tomato and Basil soup.
It's correctly labelled - after all, it doesn't contain gluten. But then nor does Sainsbury's regular Tomato and Basil Soup - which costs 50p for 400g, compared to the £1.50 for just 300g of the officially 'gluten-free' variety and features very similar ingredients.
As gluten is only found in carbohydrates, the ethos also fits into current fashionable thinking that we should be eating a high-protein, low-carb diet. Currently around 13 per cent of Britons avoid foods that contain gluten
It's the same at Tesco with their Free From White Lasagne Sauce at £2 for 480g. Go to their normal sauces aisle and you'll find their own brand White Lasagne Sauce, which also contains no gluten - although legally it's not allowed to be labelled as such - but is sold for far less (85p for 430g).
So shoppers are being conned into parting with their hard earned cash for food stuffs they don't actually need to buy.
But, then again, do they need them at all? Ever since the likes of super-slim Victoria Beckham, Gwyneth Paltrow and Miley Cyrus announced their trim figures were a result of a gluten-free lifestyle a few years ago, millions of women have leapt on the bandwagon in a bid to lose weight.
As gluten is only found in carbohydrates, the ethos also fits into current fashionable thinking that we should be eating a high-protein, low-carb diet.
Currently around 13 per cent of Britons avoid foods that contain gluten. Yet only one in a hundred people are thought to have coeliac disease, a reaction to the protein that leads to diarrhoea, anaemia, tiredness, hair loss and a host of other symptoms.
'There's been an influx of people following a gluten-free diet for the past two or three years,' says consultant dietitian Abigail Wilson, CEO of Isos Health. 'Some celebrities have said it works and people follow celebrities.
'They're desperate to lose weight and grasping at things they don't fully understand. By taking gluten out of your diet, you're removing a large group of foods and may become nutritionally deficient in certain vitamins.'
SAINSBURY'S
SAINSBURY'S
Korma sauce
Sainsbury's Freefrom Korma Sauce, £1.50 for 300g
Sainsbury's Korma, 95p for 500g
Bolognese
Left: Sacla Free From Bolognese Pasta Sauce, £2 for 350g. Right Dolmio Bolognese Original, £1.50 for 750g
Sacla Free From Bolognese Pasta Sauce, £2 for 350g
Dolmio Bolognese Original, £1.50 for 750g
Basil Pesto
Sacla Gluten Free, £2.50 for 190g
Sainsbury's Pesto, £1 for 190g
Lasagne Sauce
Sacla Bescianella Gluten Free,
£2.50 for 350g
Dolmio sauce, £1.50 for 710g
In Britain, wheat products are often fortified with B vitamins, which carry out important functions within the body such as keeping skin and the nervous system healthy. Wheat, barley and rye are also good sources of fibre - and a lack of fibre has now been linked to bowel cancer. 'Gluten isn't seen as the healthiest option by the public,' says Abigail.
'People may think they have the symptoms of a gluten-sensitivity, so they self-diagnose and give it all up instead of going to the doctor to ask for a blood test.
'They might feel better, but it may be because they were eating too much gluten and reducing the portion size had the same effect.
'We shouldn't be cutting things out of our diet unless we really have to. And if you do have coeliac disease, you need expert support.'
It's even questionable as to whether going gluten-free will help you lose weight. That's because manufacturers often add extra fat and sugar to goods to replace some of the taste lost when ingredients such as wheat can't be used.
That pushes the calorie count up - the Genius Gluten Free Soft White Loaf (£3) sold in Sainsbury's contains 272 calories per 100g. Hovis's soft white loaf (95p) has 233 calories for the same weight.
ASDA
Bolognese Sauce
Asda Free From, £1.50 for 500g
Asda Bolognese, 82p for 500g
Sweet & Sour sauce
Asda Free From, £1.50 for 500g
Asda Sweet And Sour, 84p for 500g
Mayonnaise
Left: Tiger Tiger Gluten Free, £1.25 for 280g. Rent: Asda Real Mayo, 80p for 425g
Tiger Tiger Gluten Free, £1.25 for 280g
Asda Real Mayo, 80p for 425g
Sweet Chilli Stir Fry Sauce
Ilumi Gluten Free, £1.50 for 200g
Sharwoods Stir Fry, £1 for 195g
But why is gluten-free so much more expensive? Ever since 2012, 'gluten-free' has been a legal term that's strictly controlled. In order to say on a product that it's gluten-free, companies have to be able to prove the food contains less than 20 parts per million of gluten.
This requires specialist ingredients and equipment often in a separate part of the factory, which pushes up the price of the product. Consequently, while a normal loaf of bread may cost around 13p per 100g to make, a gluten-free loaf costs around 56p per 100g.
Coeliacs are sometimes entitled to some staples such as bread and pasta on the NHS, but have to meet the price of other goods themselves. Yet, as we found, those products may be far cheaper elsewhere in the store.
The trick is to scour the labels carefully. The new food labelling regulations, which call for 14 allergens including barley, rye and wheat to be written in bold type on packaging, mean it's easy to spot gluten in a product.
TESCO
Peanut butter
Wowbutter Gluten Free, £4.50 for 500g
Tesco smooth, £1.30 for 340g
Red Thai Curry Sauce
Left: Tesco Free From, £1.65 for 320g. Right: Tesco Red Thai Curry, £1 for 320g
Tesco Free From, £1.65 for 320g
Tesco Red Thai Curry, £1 for 320g
Sweet and Sour Sauce
Tesco Free From, £2 for 500g
Tesco Everyday Value, 30p for 440g
Tomato and Chilli Pasta/Meatballs Sauce
Tesco Free From, £2 for 340g
Tesco Meatball Sauce, 85p for 500g
It's not always as obvious as you'd think - many coeliacs are caught out by sausages and fishfingers, which contain breadcrumbs, and gravy and sauces that are frequently thickened by flour.
But if you go to buy a product in the 'free from' aisle, it's worth checking out its equivalent in the normal aisle. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Tesco said the higher prices for gluten-free goods was because of 'complex production processes, alternative ingredients and rigorous testing'.
Sainsbury's agreed, adding there was no higher mark up on gluten- free goods than others.
A spokesman for Asda added: 'Our gluten-free products are displayed together in the free from aisle to help customers make quick, easy and informed choices. The slightly higher cost of these items reflects the different production processes involved.'
For more information about a gluten-free diet, see coeliac.org.uk
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