5.1.1. Kamut wheat and wheat allergy
5.1.2. Kamut wheat and gluten intolerance.
5.1.3. Full report IFAA study
5.1.4. Testimonials
5.1.4.1. "Ancient wheat" brings new hope
5.1.4.2. "Hope for people with an allergy?"
5.1.4.3. "Enjoying a bite of bread"
5.1.4.4. Storeowner and herbalist Kelly Goyen reports
5.1.4.5. The story of Marco Mazzanti
5.1.5. New research
5.1.5.1. Doctor Manfred Schmoll
5.1.5.2. Allergy triggers


5.1.1. Kamut wheat and wheat allergy

Many people allergic to common bread wheat (Triticum vulgare) are not allergic to a variety of wheat (Triticum turgidum spp turanicum) that is an ancient relative of durum wheat (Triticum durum) and is now being marketed under the Kamut trademark. This data is relevant to a growing population segment with restricted culinary choices. According to The National Institute of Health, over 35 million Americans suffer from food allergies and allergic reactions to wheat are one of the most common. The French doctor, Raphaël Nogier of Lyon, reports 10% of the school going youth suffers a food allergy.
Research by the IFAA (International Food Allergy Association) concludes as follows: “For most people who are hypersensitive to wheat, Kamut wheat can be an excellent substitute for common wheat”. Dr. Eileen Yoder, president of the IFAA, along with a team of independent scientists and doctors, arrived at this conclusion after their study with two groups of people, those with an immediate immune reaction and those with a delayed immune reaction. In this last group, 70% showed an increased sensitivity to common wheat than Kamut wheat. In the first group – people with serious allergies – 70% did not react, or did react very slightly, with Kamut wheat. However, serious allergy sufferers should always consult their doctor first.

5.1.2. Kamut wheat and gluten intolerance.

Many people think the terms food allergy and food intolerance mean the same thing; however, they do not. Do not confound wheat allergy and gluten intolerance! The first is a food allergy related to modern wheat, the latter is intolerance to gluten, present in amongst others wheat, rye, barley, spelt and also in Kamut grain. No research has been carried out yet on the reaction to Kamut grain by people who are intolerant to gluten. Therefore, we can make no recommendations for them. However, for many with wheat allergies, Kamut brand grain has become ‘the wheat you can eat’.

5.1.3. Download the full report of the IFAA study “Assessment of allergenic reactivity of Kamut® versus common wheat”

5.1.4. Testimonials
Jan Schröder and Sabine Schipke from Germany, Marco Mazzanti from Italy and many others around the world have rediscovered their appetite for baked goods thanks to the Kamut grain. Do you want to share your personal experiences about wheat allergy and Kamut? Please mail us your story so we can publish it here.

5.1.4.1. Nordwest-Zeitung 5/1/02: “Ancient wheat” brings new hope

See the original publication

Baked goods made of Kamut® grain are an alternative to many people with an allergy – research only at its beginning
The ancestor of durum wheat originally stems from Egypt, and has found its way into modern bakeries.
By Susanne Gloger
Oldenburg. Consumption of wheat, rye or spelt-based products was for many years a taboo for the Oldenburg Baker Jan Schröder. At three years of age, he started suffering neurodermitis. Rice cakes were so to say his daily bread. Until he learned about the “Kamut® grain“ in a professional magazine. He soon started baking bread rolls out of this ancestor of today’s durum wheat – and after he ate them: “no problems”.
Meanwhile, Shröder is – to his knowledge - the only baker in Oldenburg offering Kamut® bakery products. He elaborated recipes for bread, buns, cakes and fruit biscuits. After so many years, it was fabulous for him to be able to bite into baked goods without having to pay the bill afterwards.
…
Dermatologist Dr. Manfred Scholl … reports: “we recently analyzed bloodsamples of 10 people with an allergy, on their reaction to Kamut grain. Five had a positive reaction.” Schmoll rates this result as “a hopeful start”. He handed this information over to the University of Göttingen, for intensive research. The objective is to discover what causes durum wheat to be more allergen…

5.1.4.2. “Hope for people with an allergy?”

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Oldenburg (pu). The consumption of wheat, rye and spelt based products was prohibited for the Oldenburg baker Jan Schröder. He suffered neurodermitis since he was three years of age. Rice cakes were his forced alternative. One day, Schröder discovered the Kamut® grain in a professional magazine. He started baking rolls for himself right away. After eating them, he didn’t experience any inconvenience. …

5.1.4.3. AOK Bremen/Bremerhaven: “Enjoying a bite of bread”

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Colleague Sabine Schipke has advice for all those with a food allergy, based on her personal experience.

About her person: Sabine Schipke, 48 years young, mostly in a good mood, takes fun out of life and works in the financial department of the HGS in Bremen.
Special characteristics: likes to laugh, practices sports (jogging, gymnastics), reads, makes music and dances.
Remarks: Neurodermitis, high-grade food allergy since 2 years.

“This food allergy shook up my whole life. I can easily list what I can (can not) eat. No bread, that has an enormous impact. I could only eat rice cakes that taste like cardboard and don’t satiate. A walk with my husband in Bad Zwischenahn however, changed my life and myself.

My husband saw a sign “KAMUT-BREAD – without wheat – without rye – without spelt – without milk – without egg – without sourdough!” The sales lady in the BIO BACK bakery confirmed these mentions and thus I bought myself a KAMUT-bun to test. After one hour still no reactions occurred (no itching, no breathing difficulties, no – “9 months pregnant” - blown up belly). I bought all of the buns, took them home with me, had another one in the evening – again no reaction. To me it was as if all the stars in the sky started twinkling while the sun rose at the same time. I laughed and felt like embracing the whole world – I almost squashed my husband. The miracle had happened: KAMUT!

KAMUT Grain is an old Egyptian cereal (hard wheat) that used to be sacred and was given along with the Pharaohs, so they had food during their travel to the reign of the dead. Today it is only cultivated on the heights of Montana (USA).

Furthermore: in the Oldenburg eco-center, they also sell bread and cakes apart from the buns. In fact I should thank the chef-baker for also getting this allergy, as also he is again capable of ENJOYING A BITE OF A BREAD. Those who want to know more about KAMUT grain can call me (Ext. 419).

5.1.4.4. Empirical Herbs uses biokinesiology to pre-screen persons with severe food allergies. They have also found that 70 percent of those with wheat allergies can tolerate Kamut brand grain. Kelly has provided KAMUT brand products to over 4500 of his wheat-sensitive customers and has not had a single report of allergic reactions to this remarkable grain. He calls KAMUT brand wheat, “THE WHEAT YOU CAN EAT.” As with any new food, however, anyone who has allergies is advised to consult with his doctor before trying KAMUT brand products. Reported by storeowner and herbalist Kelly Goyen, Empirical Herbs & Foods of Cedar City, UT, (801) 586-6650.

5.1.4.5. The story of Marco Mazzanti

Kamut

This is the story of how I discovered KAMUT flour:

I got married in April 1995, having lived with my partner for four years. I had begun to eat in a very routine way and even though I played soccer at an amateur level twice a week, my weight had risen from 70kg [155lbs] to 90kg [200lbs] in just a few years (between 1992 and 1994). Given my height of 1.69m [5”7’], you could almost have called me obese. The weight showed mainly in my face and my stomach, and in certain tests I was above average.
I would usually eat milk and bread for breakfast; pasta with a meat sauce for lunch and meat with bread for supper. I never ate fruit or vegetables, despite the fact that my parents grew plenty of these themselves.
Having gone to hospital a few times to donate blood, I was told that I could no longer be a donor, due to high transaminase levels in my blood, a sign of possible liver damage.
I asked my doctor how I could treat this, my bloated abdomen and my exhaustion. He told me that I needed to be more careful about what I ate. However, he did not suggest following a particular diet, because I told him that I was tired of eating what I usually ate and had already begun to eat less.
Time went by and things did not improve. Although I ate little, my abdomen was still bloated and I had also started to suffer from diarrhoea. That spring I began to react to allergens in the air. It became harder to play sport and I would wake up in the morning feeling as if I had had no rest at all.
I mentioned all this to a friend at work and he told me to go and see a homeopathic doctor he knew and trusted, who lived in the area. After a few months' hesitation, and since my efforts to lose weight had led to no improvement, I decided to make an appointment for September 1995.
When I saw him he asked me why I had come. I told him that my transaminase levels were very high and asked him whether he could help. He told me that he would check my physical reaction to certain types of food. He took out a large number of small glass tubes and told me to touch each one in turn whilst trying to keep the thumb and index finger of the other hand pressed together. Each time I touched one of the tubes, he would try to pull apart my finger and thumb. I was unable to stop him doing so when touching about ten of the tubes.
He said, "You are suffering from abdominal bloating, diarrhoea, heartburn (this often made my eyes water), joint pain and have difficulty sleeping." Amazed, I replied that this was all true. He explained that these symptoms were all due to my food intolerances which he listed as: red meat, celery, carrot, onion, salsify, artichoke, potatoes, pulses, wheat flour and yeast. He told me to avoid these foods completely for the following three months and to take some homeopathic drops, which I could buy in a pharmacy, for the next three weeks. He also recommended that I drink 2 litres of water a day. Finally he said that if I really wanted to get better I would do exactly as he had instructed. We made a further appointment for a check-up three months later.
And so my treatment using alternative foods began. Instead of red meat, I ate pork, ostrich, chicken, turkey and rabbit. I started to eat lettuce and tomatoes. I began to eat Kamut pasta and bread made from Kamut flour without yeast. Sometimes I would eat foods made from buckwheat and spelt. As I started with this diet of new foods, I stopped putting on weight. Despite eating more than before, I even lost a few kilos.
When I returned to the homeopath, he found that I was no longer intolerant to those foods that had shown up in September. However, I was now intolerant to lower grade foods such as moulds. He said I should continue my new regime, alternating the food I was now eating with the things he had initially forbidden, at five day intervals.
I followed his advice and, as time went on, I continued to lose weight even though I was still eating more. When the homeopath saw me again he found that all my previous intolerances had disappeared, but that I was now allergic to grasses and electromagnetic fields and he also diagnosed a thyroid disorder. He gave me various other homeopathic products to treat these problems.
At my third check-up, I weighed 20kg [45lbs] less and no longer had any intolerances. Since then, I have eaten a diet that alternates between wheat, Kamut wheat and spelt, and includes a variety of different types of meat accompanied by a wide range of vegetables. My weight now varies between 68kg [150lbs] and 73kg [160lbs], depending on the time of year.
As far as the question of having a good night's sleep is concerned, it has been noted that intolerance to electromagnetic fields is due to the Hartmann knots in the earth's crust. There was one of these knots right underneath my bed; and I dealt with this by placing a copper coil there (see "La Casa Bioarmonica" by Gigi Capriolo).
I still play soccer and have the same level of physical and psychological energy as I did when I was eighteen.

Best Wishes,

Marco Mazzanti, Bologna.


5.1.5. New Research

Research is being done to understand more about the nature of food allergies.

5.1.5.1. Doctor Manfred Schmoll
Doctor Manfred Schmoll is an allergy specialist and dermatologist who learned about Kamut grain via his patient-baker Jan Schröder from Oldenburg. Jan Schröder suffered from neurodermitis since he was 3 years of age, but a personal test with Kamut® grain revealed that this was an excellent solution for him. Doctor Manfred Schmoll was enthusiastic about this alternative to wheat, and did 10 blood analyses with Kamut grain on wheat allergy patients: only 5 had (less violent) reactions to Kamut grain.

Summary of an NDR (Nord Deutscher Rundfunk) radio interview with Dr. Schmoll on 6/2/2002:
“… Dr. Manfred Schmoll, allergy specialist and dermatologist in Oldenburg, is very enthusiastic about the Kamut brand grain. The bread comes from the bakery of his patient Jan Schröder. Since the age of three, this baker suffers neurodermitis. He has allergic reactions to wheat, rye and even spelt - almost fatal for a baker. He came to the idea of running a test on his own person with the Kamut grain. For the first time in years, he could bite into something that looked and tasted like real bread. As baker Schröder told doctor Schmoll about his experience with Kamut bread, the allergy specialist became interested immediately. “It suddenly became interesting since we finally had something to recommend to our patients with peace of mind. Then we also tried to lift this experience to a scientific level and for instance ran a first test on 10 blood samples from patients with a wheat allergy. Only 5 showed a reaction to Kamut grain, which also was a weaker reaction. This was an encouraging sign.” The dermatologist wants to continue the research, as it seems that there is no other research going on in Germany about this matter.

Radio Interview: “Radio Beitrag “Moderne Medizin” NDR1, 6/2/2002
Listen to this interview in QuickTime-format.
If you don't have the QuickTime plug-in, you can download it here.

5.1.5.2. What triggers allergic reaction to modern wheat?

Modern wheats were bred for high yield, disease resistance and technological qualities (bread-making aptitude) with little emphasis on taste and nutrition.

The efforts of selection have mostly been concentrated around the technological quality. The value of W: (the main bread-making indicator in flours) has steadily increased over the past 20 years while the level of protein has stayed more or less the same.

Technological quality is closely linked to that of the proteins in the grain (representing between 8 and 20% of the weight of the mature, dry grain). The proteins are grouped into two main families:
a) The soluble proteins: albumin and globulin, representing 15 to 20% of the proteins. They are said to be biologically functional since they have enzymatic activity.
b) The insoluble proteins: gliadin and glutinin, reserve proteins, represent 80 to 85% of the total proteins. They contribute to the gluten.

The quality of gliadines influences the extensibility of the dough; the glutinines give it its elasticity and tenacity (parameters measured by Chopin’s alveograph). The glutenine/ gliadine relationship then has an effect on the transformational properties of the dough.

The gluten is considered to be the best criteria of technological quality; the table below shows the nutritional qualities of these two families.

Classification of wheat proteins

It appears that there are more and more allergic reactions to cereals, especially wheat products. 1% of the population is affected. Research results suggest that the gliadine fraction of the wheat gluten may be responsible for the allergic reactions (Auricchio et al. 1982, 1985). Research at INRA in Clermont-Ferrand is beginning to look into this problem. The first studies will focus on determining the most allergenic varieties and then on finding the responsible constituents.
Ancient grains contain considerably more water-soluble proteins. Is it the quality of their proteins that give ancient wheats their hypoallergenic quality? More detail to follow thanks to clinical and laboratory studies underway on Kamut grain products in the U.S.