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Gluten-free diets adopted by increasing numbers of health-conscious consumers actually enhance the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, scientists have warned.

A major study by Harvard University suggests that ingesting only small amounts of gluten, or avoiding it altogether, increases the danger of diabetes by as much as 13 per cent.

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Rising numbers of consumers are banishing gluten from their daily diet, encouraged by fashionable “clean eating” gurus such as Jasmine and Melissa Hemsley. Gluten is found in wheat, rye and barley and gives food elasticity during the baking process.

Only around 1 per cent of people are genuinely gluten-intolerant, a condition called celiac disease.

However, some estimates put the proportion of adults adhering to gluten-free diets in the UK alone at more than 12 per cent. The researchers behind the new study have now suggested that people who are not celiacs should reconsider limiting their gluten intake.