—Reply posted by DJ on 9/18/2018

Hi Rose.  Technically gluten is a protein.  It has no carbs.  So, depending on your world view, you can definitely go and purchase gluten and add it to recipes.  It can and does help.  Some of my first and older recipes use gluten and other various wheat and grain based isolates.  They help and work and go a great distance towards making breads that look the part.  I’ve found that the flavor isn’t always spot on, but they’re good enough.  However, I found a few things ? 1.  These kinds of things stalled my weight.  I don’t know why, but I suspect it had to do with #2.  2.  Over time, I realized that wheat (and I believe it’s the actual gluten) would trigger me and cause cravings.  As a result, I would eat more (potentially low-carb wheat based treats) ? causing my weight to stall.  It’s also no fun to be stuck in an obsessive mental doughnut loop.  I found that as I removed these ingredients from my diet that my weight started to come off, I felt “cleaner and clearer” and cravings completely dissipated.  Finally, there have been studies that suggest a full 50%o or more of the population has varying degrees of issues related to gluten intolerance, even if it’s not extreme ? something might be going on.  In the long run, I personally decided it wasn’t worth it.  Cake doughnuts are tasty in their own right.  Sure, it’s a shift, but ? one I’m more than happy to live with.  I hope this helps! 😀