As it turns out, many people with rosacea wonder if their rosacea symptoms are caused by a gluten sensitivity. Some have been successful in reducing their rosacea symptoms by following a gluten-free diet. As I and others have written before, there seems to be a digestive component to rosacea.

Gluten is a protein that’s abundant in certain grains, mostly wheat, barley and rye. The gluten itself is a protein made up of two protein parts, gliadin and glutenin. The gliadin part is responsible for the abnormal immune reaction that causes gluten sensitivity and celiac disease. Between 0.5 and 1% of the world’s population suffers from gluten-sensitivity. Gluten sensitivity is not the same as a gluten allergy. The gluten proteins of corn and rice lack the gliadin part and do therefore not cause any sensitivity.

The immune system’s overreaction to wheat’s gluten causes celiac disease, in which the lining of the small intestine becomes chronically inflamed. Symptoms of celiac disease include chronic diarrhea, cramps, bloating, fatigue and malabsorption of essential nutrients, which could result in secondary symptoms such as psychological and neurological problems.

The gluten sensitivity makes it difficult for the body to absorb vitamins, in particular vitamin D. This could explain the possible involvement of vitamin D in rosacea and autism that I described recently. Many children with autism have seen their symptoms improve after staring a gluten-free diet.

Whether a potential gluten sensitivity is involved in the development of rosacea symptoms, it is possible that the inflammation of the intestines contributes to an overall stronger inflammatory response in the facial skin of rosacea patients. While there are many rosacea trigger factors, pizza (loaded with gluten and histamine) is one food that probably should be limited in your diet if you have rosacea.