Happy New Year! How are those resolutions coming along? I seem to have limped into 2014 weighed down by a surprising amount of chocolate and an unsurprising lack of sleep. The excitement in our house has been somewhat out of control, but ‘tis the season after all.

There’s nothing quite like two girls under six to get you in the festive spirit. Yet now that “middlenight” (as Chloe calls it) has come and gone, it’s time to focus on the year ahead. I have three resolutions and they’re very simple: sleep more, worry less and do not, under any circumstances, get your foot trapped in a Melissa & Doug wooden pony barn. The latter is excruciatingly painful - one rung above stepping on Lego and one rung below giving birth. I don’t plan on doing it again (or either of the others in fact.)

I have always loved New Year. It’s such a great opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start afresh. So many of us leap boldly into January swearing off alcohol, caffeine or sugar. It seems like everyone’s going gluten-free too, but let’s just put the brakes on a second.

Gluten is a hot topic these days. “Gluten free” is appearing on food labels everywhere, making life much easier for people with coeliac disease (who avoid gluten out of medical necessity) but a little more confusing for everyone else. You could be forgiven for thinking that “gluten free” and “healthy” are synonymous. Certainly, books like “Wheat Belly” and “Grain Brain” make a very convincing case for everyone giving up wheat, gluten (wheat, barley, rye and some oats) or grain entirely. There’s no way I can summarise their arguments here, but they are really fascinating and worth the read. And yet the mainstream field takes the opposite view - whole grains are important, the more wholewheat the better! So if you follow both holistic and mainstream channels on social media, you’ve probably got a very confusing newsfeed.

So what’s the deal? Is going gluten free healthy or not? I think it depends. One thing is clear, if you have coeliac disease, avoiding gluten is essential and will make you feel a million times better. But if you replace every gluten-containing item with a processed “gluten free” alternative, that new sense of well-being may be short-lived.

The problem is that although many gluten free products are now fortified with essential vitamins and minerals, many are also extremely processed and full of hydrogenated fats, refined sugars and mystery ingredients - carrageenan, anyone?! So while that gluten free item won’t trigger a coeliac reaction, it may not exactly nourish you either. And just to make things more complicated, many gluten free alternatives rely on corn flour instead of wheat, likely increasing your exposure to GMOs. So this is where anyone following a gluten free diet (for whatever reason) is in danger of falling down - “gluten free”, despite what the food industry would have you think, does not necessarily mean “healthy.”

However, without a doubt, many people do feel better when they eat less gluten, especially wheat. Time and time again, my clients tell me that they feel less bloated, less foggy and less fatigued. And this isn’t because they were Coeliac, or medically allergic, but sometimes because they have food sensitivities. Unfortunately (and just to make this a little more complicated) food sensitivity (or intolerance) is controversial too and the reliability of the tests is debated in the medical field. I actually think tests are useful, but not always necessary as a well-controlled exclusion diet can sometimes do the trick. However, as food sensitivity is a medically grey area it’s often dismissed. That’s a shame, as in my experience getting to the bottom of it really can be a magic bullet for some people.

But let’s not overlook the obvious. If by giving up gluten you give up cookies, cake, white bread and white pasta - you’re going to feel better. Not necessarily because you gave up gluten per se, but because you gave up lots of refined, processed food. So long as you don’t replace it with refined, processed gluten-free items, you’re probably taking your health a step in the right direction and in that sense, yes, going gluten-free can be good for you. Of course, if you do end up avoiding gluten altogether it’s just wise to check in with a dietitian or nutritionist to make sure you still have your nutritional bases covered. Grains, for all their bad press, can be a great source of nutrients and fibre so it’s important to make sure you are getting these from other sources.

On that note, Nutrifit starts up again next week. So if you have questions or concerns about your diet, or if you simply want to optimise your nutrition and kick start your new year in the best possible way, then check out the course details online. Nutrifit is my six-week nutrition and fitness programme and we are getting really great results. We have both lunchtime and evening options available. Among other issues, we take a long hard look at digestion and discuss the gluten-free debate in detail, so go to www.nutrifit.bm for all the details.

The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns BA Hons, Dip ION is the Managing Director of Natural Ltd and a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in the UK. Please note that she is not a Registered Dietitian. For details, please go to www.natural.bm or call 236-7511. Join Catherine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nutrifitandnaturalnutritionbermuda