Going gluten-free has made Novak Djokovic the world’s number 1 tennis player

Dr Cetojevic guessed that food was the reason why the tennis player couldn’t breathe well, and that it had to do with an “inbalance in his digestive system that was causing a buildup of toxins in his intestines.’ In an exclusive interview with Gulf News Cetojev explained that he connected the straps of a biofeedback device to the Djokovic’s wrists and forehead to measure stress, environmental toxins, brainwaves and food allergies.

Cetojevic said: “I found that he was very sensitive to gluten, a protein present in wheat, one of the most common foods in Novak’s diet.

All he did, on Cetojevic’s advice, was eliminate gluten – the protein found in wheat – from his diet, which meant cutting out bread and pasta, which are staples of the Serbian diet, as well as his beloved pizza.

In his book Djokovic says that he starts his day with a glass of room-temperature water (cold water slows down the digestive system and diverts blood from his muscles) and a couple of spoonfuls of raw honey.

In the foreword to Djokovic’s book, Dr William Davis of wheatbellyblog.com says ingesting gluten-rich foods can trigger inflammation, which is common joint stiffness and pain, autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and unmasks or worsens psychiatric conditions such as paranoia or schizophrenia and it can trigger behavioural outbursts and learning impairment in children with autistic spectrum disorder.

In May 2015 Novak Djokovic launched the DJOKOlife range of nutrition products that reflect Novak’s food philosphy and include seed biscuits, crunchy toasts with rice flour and oats, honey and sesame seed bars, fruit and cereal bars and a vegetable drink.

If someone has a genuine gluten allergy (coeliac disease), gluten will make you really ill and you have to studiously avoid of all foods that contain gluten.

If the person doesn’t have coeliac disease but suffers from symptoms apparently related to gluten, she says, they may have “non-coeliac gluten sensitivity”.

German tennis player Sabine Lisicki, The Garmin cycling team, marathon runner Anna Medaris Miller, Olympic swimming champ Dana Vollmer and American long distance runner Amy Yoder Begley are just a couple of star athletes who have gone gluten-free and seen huge gains in physical wellness as well as performance.