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- Gluten free diet: How to go gluten free
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Gluten free diet: How to go gluten free
How to tell what's OK
Read food labels every time
Read the label before you purchase any food product. Some foods that may appear acceptable, such as rice or corn cereals, may contain gluten. What's more, a manufacturer may change a product's ingredients at any time. A food that was once gluten free no longer may be. Unless you read the label every time you shop, you won't know for sure.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires products containing wheat, milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish or eggs to say so in plain English on the product's label. By August 2008, the FDA is expected to issue a standard definition of "gluten free" to make it easier for shoppers with celiac disease to identify products.
Call the manufacturer
If you can't tell by the label if a food contains gluten, don't eat it until you check with the product's manufacturer. Some support groups produce a gluten free shopper's guide that can save you time at the market, although it may not be as current as that obtained from the manufacturer.
Tips for cooking at home
For thickening, use cornstarch, potato starch, arrowroot or tapioca flour in place of wheat flour. And in baked products, substitute rice, potato, corn, soy or a blend of these or other gluten free flours. Amounts and other ingredients in recipes may need to be adjusted. Gluten free cookbooks are available that can give you a good start at adjusting recipes.
You can still eat out
Though preparing your own meals is the easiest way to monitor your diet, this doesn't mean you can't dine out. For an enjoyable experience, remember the following advice:
- Select places that specialize in the kinds of foods you can eat. You may want to call the restaurant in advance and discuss the menu options and your dietary needs.
- Be a repeat customer. Visit the same restaurants so that you become familiar with their menus and the staff gets to know your needs.
- Seek and share ideas. Ask members of your support group for suggestions on restaurants that serve gluten free food. If there are enough gluten-sensitive people in your community, it's likely that restaurant owners will try to satisfy your needs. Continue to share with the support group the names of restaurants that add gluten free foods to their menus.
- Follow the same practices you do at home. Select simply prepared or fresh foods and avoid all breaded or batter-coated foods, gravies and other foods with obvious or questionable ingredients. Avoid cross-contamination, such as grills that have had buns or bread on them, which can contaminate your meat, or deep fat fryers that have had batter-fried fish in them, which can contaminate your french fries.
What if you eat gluten?
If you accidentally eat a product that contains gluten, you may experience abdominal pain and diarrhea. Some people experience no signs or symptoms after eating gluten, but this doesn't mean it's not damaging their small intestine. Even trace amounts of gluten in your diet may be damaging, whether or not they cause signs or symptoms. Going on and off a gluten free diet could lead to serious complications such as bone loss, anemia, vitamin deficiencies or gastrointestinal cancer, especially lymphoma.
Ask for help
Identifying gluten free foods can be difficult. Because a gluten free diet needs to be strictly followed, you may wish to consult a registered dietitian who teaches the gluten free diet. A dietitian can advise you on how to best maintain the nutritional quality of your diet and help you with gluten free alternatives. Your dietitian can also help you identify your need for vitamin, calcium and mineral supplements. Meeting with the dietitian regularly will help keep you up to date on newer food products as well as answer your questions.
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