50% of Type 1 Diabetics Show Adverse Immune Response to Wheat

Saw this post on Celiac.com about a recent study in Ottawa that found that nearly half of people with Type 1 Diabetes showed an abnormal response to wheat proteins. Here's an excerpt:

Dr. Scott’s results offer the first suggestions that T cells

Small lymph cells created in the thymus which orchestrate the immune system\'s response to infected or malignant cells. Also known as T lymphocytes. T cells in the immune systems of type 1 diabetics are also more likely to have adverse immune reactions to wheat. His results also suggest that such over-reaction is tied to genes associated with type 1 diabetes.

According to Dr. Scott, the research suggests that "people with certain genes may be more likely to develop an over-reaction to wheat and possibly other foods in the gut and this may tip the balance with the immune system and make the body more likely to develop other immune problems, such as type 1 diabetes.”

Dr. Scott adds that the immune system has to find "the perfect balance to defend the body against foreign invaders without hurting itself or over-reacting to the environment and this can be particularly challenging in the gut, where there is an abundance of food and bacteria.”

In side comments that accompany the paper, diabetes expert Dr. Mikael Knip of Finland suggest that the team's results "add to the accumulating concept that the gut is an active player in the diabetes disease process.”

Nothing ultra-new here relative to previous studies that led to the SCD diet, but interesting to see this applied to Type 1 Diabetes.