Persuasive Letter

Paul Adam, a Pediatric Gastroenterologist, is a specialist in the area of gluten-free diets. He states that people suffering from celiac disease must follow a gluten-free diet because it is the only treatment as of now. Removing gluten from ones diet has made the symptoms of celiac disease fade away in most all cases. While we know that a gluten-free diet helps people with celiac disease, are there any benefits that come to athletes by following this fad diet.  Adam is unsure of the benefits that athletes would receive from following this diet plan. An athlete’s performance will not be affected by following a gluten-free diet. Only athletes with celiac disease will see positive side affects. If athletes saw any change in their performance after adapting to the gluten-free diet it was only because they had celiac disease, or they developed healthier eating habits and consumed less sugar. Athletes without gluten sensitivity should not follow this new fad diet because it can potentially be dangerous if not followed correctly. Athletes can become mal nourished due to the lack of carbohydrates and other important nutrients. As a dedicated athlete, why risk everything you have worked your whole life to obtain to experiment with a diet that could ruin your entire career. Anytime an athlete wants to change their eating habits to benefit health or performance, one should always do it under supervision of a nutritionist or a staff member. Research can be used as evidence to support that a gluten-free diet will not benefit athletes. Nutrition and athlete performance specialist, John Smith has been studying this topic for many years now. His research includes scientific background on gluten, celiac disease, and the diet itself, and observations on athletes who implemented the gluten-free diet into their training routine. Smith also states that there will be no performance enhancement for athletes who partake in this eating style. All research done to support athletes and the gluten-free diet is all speculation and hardly has any concrete evidence. With all signs pointing towards the ineffectiveness of the gluten-free diet on an athlete’s performance, there is no reason to change one’s eating habits. All in all the, this fad diet is not something that everyone should be implementing into their eating habits. People with a sensitivity to gluten are the only people who should remove gluten from their diets because it is the only known treatment of celiac disease.