It seems gluten is America's public enemy number one. It's more dangerous than Al-Queda and harder to avoid than the NSA. There are gluten-free beers, restaurants, breads, hippy communes, and cruises. But few people know what gluten really, except that it makes pizza, pasta and beer delicious and it gives people with Celiac's disease, a mere one (1!) percent of the population diarhea, headache and cramps -- I say just stop eating at Pizza Hut.

In recent years, the gluten-free market has bloated to over $10 billion and market research firm Mintel predicts it will skyrocket 48 percent to $15.6 billion in 2016. So either people with Celiac's disease or gluten sensitivies are spending all of their money hand over fist for sub-par waffles, or the hordes of conformivores flooding the grocery stores is getting out of hand.

It's not just a matter of American's following trendy diets. Turns out, gluten is actually great for you and cutting it out of your diet is a bad idea even if you have a gluten sensitivity. A 2005 report from the American Dietetic Association warned that gluten-free products are low in a wide range of important nutrients, including B vitamins, calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium, and fiber. Studies show that whole grain foods, as part of a healthy diet, may help lower risk of heart disease, type-2 diabetes, and some forms of cancer. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that half of all carbohydrates in the diet come from whole grain products.

Any time your body shows an adverse reaction to any healthy, wholesome food it's a strong indicator for an imbalance elsewhere in your body -- in the case of gluten sensitivities it's usually the spleen or the pancreas. When digested, gluten splits back into simple proteins known as gliadin and glutenin. For reasons that still baffle scientists, the immune system of people with celiac disease treats gliadin in particular as though it were a dangerous invader and attack it. In a 2010 study, only 12 of 32 individuals said they felt better on a diet that excluded gluten or other wheat proteins.

The processes in the body are incredibly more complex than we understand yet, and it's incredibly obvious in the way we interact with everything from food to prescription drugs. If you're trying to live a gluten free lifestyle because it truly makes you feel better, go right ahead. If you have Celiac's Disease, bummer dude, but if you don't please stop making your friends prepare you a special plate of gluten free pasta with a side of guild for living a gluten-ous lifestyle just because you want to practice an ill-advised exclusion diet. You're not special. You're a human being. Eat your dinner and quit complaining.