Meet the Glutens

Introduction

Some time back, a reader commented on the Cooking with Emmer 101 post and asked how much gluten was contained in one kilogram of emmer.

While I was able to provide a general answer and some links to more research – I felt like I really had only scratched the surface of the question.

In addition, as I have been creating posts for the Whole Grains 101 series, I have come across different names for gluten depending of the cereal grain.

Since gluten allergies have been getting so much attention, I thought it would be useful to list the different names for gluten and how much is found in different cereal grains.

Further, as you will see, there is a lot of research showing that different grains elicit varying degrees of allergic reactions which can be traced backed to specific subcomponents of gluten.

Finally, we will review suggested ways to mitigate gluten reactivity and how that translates to every day applications.

Do keep in mind that I am not a nutritionist or expert on gluten.

Rather, I am a whole grain enthusiast who also happens to be a data geek.

What I am sharing below is my high level translation of a number of scientific articles I sifted through on this topic. (pun half intended 🙂 )

What is Gluten?

Gluten is a type of protein found in certain true cereal grains in the wheat family  (namely einkorn, emmer, spelt, durum, kamut, modern wheat) as well as, to a lesser extent, in barley, rye and oats.

Gluten actually is the label given to the protein found in grains of the wheat family.

When the same gluten protein is found in barley, it is called hordein; in rye it is called secalin and in oats it is called avenin.

Gluten has special elastic and stretching properties that help “glue” together a dough when grain flour is combined with water.

Gluten belongs to a larger family of proteins called prolamins as illustrated in this scientific chart.

Many foods cause allergic reactions in a subset of the population, as can be seen by reviewing the voluminous food allergy document provided by and international diagnostic company.

Gluten is a more well known allergen in large part because wheat is one of the most consumed foods in the world, accounting for about 20% of calories consumed by humans worldwide.

It is estimated that about 8% of the population has some level of gluten intolerance which impact different organs.

Some of the gluten disorders include celiac disease (affecting digestion in the small intestine), baker’s asthma (affecting the lungs) and dermatitis herpetiformis (affecting the skin).

Because celiac disease is considered the most serious type of gluten disorder, much of the research done on gluten is related to that condition.

Some, but not all, research indicates that the greater amount of gluten found in a food, the greater the allergic reaction – therefore it is helpful to know how much gluten is in different grains.

Exactly How Much Gluten is in Different Grains?

While this may look like a simple question, it is not that straightforward to answer.

To start with, protein content in grains varies under different growing conditions including weather, soil and fertilizer used.

What we do know is that gluten typically is only one portion of the protein in grains.

In the wheat family, gluten accounts for about 70% of the wheat protein.

Hordein averages out to 50% of the barley protein.

Secalin is around 40% of the rye protein.

Avenin is about 15% of the oat protein and its allergenic component is so small that oat is generally considered gluten-free and safe for most individuals with celiac disease.

Using those gluten averages and the USDA database for protein content in 100 grams of each raw grain, we get the chart below.

Some of you may be surprised to see einkorn listed as having the highest amount of gluten.

You may have heard that einkorn is less allergenic than other grains in the wheat family and that is absolutely true.

Some Gluten Components are More Allergenic than Others

When it comes to gluten, many people have a range of reactions.

For some, the slightest amount of gluten is an issue while for others, only some gluten components are problematic.

One of the most interesting research documents I read was a 2024 article in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistery which looked at gluten at the peptide level using a newer method of analysis.

In simplest form, multiple peptides come together to form a protein molecule.

Each individual peptide can contain different combinations of amino acids.

Some specific combinations, called epitopes, have been identified as generating a celiac disease autoimmune response.

In the research article, 494 peptides with celiac disease epitopes were investigated in 8 cultivars each of modern wheat, spelt, emmer, durum and einkorn.

In that study einkorn was found to have the least number of celiac disease epitopes while spelt was found to have the most.

Therefore, even if einkorn has more total gluten than other wheat varieties, it’s gluten is less likely to generate an autoimmune response.

Likewise, even though spelt had the highest count of celiac disease epitopes, it seems it does not contain some of the most allergenic ones called ω-gliadins and can be tolerated by many individuals who do not tolerate modern wheat.

Likewise, other ancient grains in the wheat family such as emmer, kamut and durum are often better tolerated by many gluten sensitive individuals.

How to Mitigate Gluten

Mitigating Gluten in Bread

You may have heard that sourdough bread made from lactobacillus bacteria and wild yeast is better tolerated by many individuals with gluten sensitivity than bread made with commercial yeast alone.

But you may not be aware of the benefits of adding sprouted grain flour aka diastatitc malt.

A 2021 research review suggests that a long sourdough fermentation combined with the use of malted flour (germinated grains) makes wheat products more tolerable for many individuals suffering from diverse gluten sensitivity issues and irritable bowel symdrome (IBS).

Essentially, the bacteria, yeast and enzyme each have a different specialty that make them better at breaking down all the gluten components than if they are used alone.

In combination, they work to predigest the wheat dough – reducing the work that our guts need to do.

Keep in mind that when adding diastatic malt, we are often warned that a little goes a long way and Jeffrey Hamelman, in his book Bread, suggests starting with .1% (yes, point one percent) of the flour weight.

Mitigating Gluten in Whole Grains

Whole sprouted grains are going to be more digestible than non sprouted grains.

Mitigating Gluten in Pastry Doughs

For applications such as pie crusts, using a sprouted flour, home made or store bought, will be more digestible.

Make Your Own Sprouted Grains, Malt and Flour

If you are interested in sprouting and/or malting your own grains and sprouted flour, an overview of the process is detailed on this site for the following grains from the gluten family: eikorn, emmer, spelt, durum, kamut, barley, rye, oat.

And if you want to purchase grains in bulk, be sure to check out this post on online sources of whole grains.

Other Useful Resource

A helpful book on sprouted grain bread and pastry baking is Bread Revolution by Peter Reinhart.

Conclusion

This research on the gluten family, prompted by a reader’s question, let me on quite an exploration.

While there is a 100% whole wheat sourdough bread recipe already available on this blog it is made from non malted home milled flour.

Of course, a sourdough baking test with diastatic malt needs to happen.

I am now also wondering what can be done by adding home made Rejuvelac from sprouted grains to my original sourdough recipe and I currently have some Rejuvelac fermenting on my kitchen counter…

Hopefully, you too will have learned something new from this post.

I hope you will be inspired to try out some options that are likely to make grains from the gluten family more digestible for yourself, family and friends.

Wishing you a grainlicious experience!

Disclaimer:  I am not a medical professional or a nutritionist.  This post is provided for general educational purposes. For a full disclaimer, please see here. 

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