Is a gluten free diet for you?

A gluten free diet is recommended only for people suffering from or thought to have Celiac disease which is an often debilitating and painful auto-immune disorder.

In people with celiac disease Gluten; which is a protein found in grains, irritates and inflames the small intestine, which can lead to significant discomfort, poor nutrient absorption and a range of serious problematic symptoms.

Avoiding foods containing Gluten is the only treatment for this disease and will alleviate symptoms, prevent further complications and generally enhance the quality of life for sufferers.

We are however seeing a dramatic increase in people avoiding Gluten for a whole range of reasons other than the treatment of Celiac disease.

But what is Gluten and how can we avoid it, what is involved in developing a healthy gluten free diet plan?

Gluten is found in grains such as wheat, rye and barley, and these grains are commonly used in many everyday processed foods.

Avoiding Gluten may seem a daunting task at first, but thankfully more and more products are being produced to substitute traditional gluten containing foods such as bread, pasta and even beer!

Gluten free diet – are they really for you?

Sick, Bloated, Foggy? Is your GUT stuck with Gluten?

A gluten free diet can closely resemble many ‘clean’ ‘raw’ or even ‘Paleo’ diets and eating styles that are currently so popular, as most grains require significant processing prior to consumption.

You will be relieved to know there are a long list of ‘common’ everyday foods that are perfectly safe for those avoiding gluten; all fruits and vegetables, meats including chicken and fish, eggs, seafood, nuts, seeds, beans and most dairy products are all gluten free unless processed or mixed in a way with grains (i.e. crumbed chicken Kiev, or a steak pie thickened with flour and cooked in pastry).

There are however many grains and starches that are naturally gluten free and while not traditionally used are becoming more popular and available in processed foods. For example rice flour, corn flour, corn meal and even banana flour can easily replace wheat barley or rye in certain foods.

Our supermarket shelves are increasingly becoming stocked with more gluten free options.

Most packaging clearly identifies whether or not a product contains gluten or indeed if it possibly may due to cross contamination at the manufacture stage.

Adhering to a gluten free diet plan need not be a tiresome burden as it may sound, by being aware of grain options available (Quinoa, hard to pronounce, but not just a ‘fashion statement!) a healthy enjoyable eating style can easily be incorporated into a busy lifestyle.

The health benefits of a gluten free diet are certainly worth the effort for those with celiac disease, it is however not recommended exclusively to people not suffering from the condition.

However there are a range of non-celiac gluten free sensitivities in which this diet plan is suitable for.

For further information or if you think you may be suffering from undiagnosed celiac disease you should contact your doctor, healthcare professional or local celiac support group here.

Image courtesy of Shutterstock.com

37 Comments

- - ella12 said
  - 25 Jul 2017
    2:40 pm
Thank you for the informative and helpful article.

- - Melissa89 said
  - 27 Jul 2016
    12:58 pm
I feel quite unwell if I eat gluten

- - mom81879 said
  - 15 Nov 2015
    8:40 pm
I have often thought about trying a gluten free diet as someone has said its good for relieving arthritis. I just haven’t got round to it yet, I do enjoy my bread

- - mom109229 said
  - 30 Sep 2015
    9:38 pm
This was an interesting mini article. Thanks for posting!
- mom94125 replied
  
  19 Oct 2015 , 1:40 pm
  yeah very interesting article for sure, thanks emily for writing this
- - christial said
  - 29 Jun 2015
    9:53 pm
I don’t think I need to eat gluten free. I haven’t had any known problems all this time!

- - mom138374 said
  - 23 May 2015
    9:18 am
There’s so many tasty foods with gluten and often gluten free versions of cakes etc just don’t taste nice to me, I have no gluten issues so it seems pointless to do.

- - mom113055 said
  - 09 May 2015
    4:02 pm
great to read

- - jabelle said
  - 27 Apr 2015
    1:33 pm
My whole family is completely grain free, have been for 3 months and we’re loving it!

- - smiles said
  - 26 Apr 2015
    10:17 pm
I think that once you take gluten from your diet for a while your body gets use to not having it so when these people who do not have coeliacs have a little gluten it gives then headaches and other issues which then make then think Gluten is bad for them but in fact they have made there body react that because they took Gluten out.

- - lizzyg said
  - 17 Apr 2015
    2:56 pm
I get so cranky when people who do not suffer from the addition of gluten say, it s only a little bit it won’t hurt you, I feel so tempted to offer them just a little bit of poison and asking them to see if it will hurt them, this is akin to me eating gluten containing products.
- lizzyg replied
  
  17 Apr 2015 , 3:01 pm
  it should have read people who do not suffer from the side effects of gluten or gluten intolerance for whatever reason.
- - youngoldlady said
  - 16 Apr 2015
    3:19 pm
Have tried some of the GF foods some are ok others not. Have a child that needs this type of food so she has her own food and prep area. We are as a family trying to adjust to this so most foods will comply.

- - shelley shelley said
  - 11 Apr 2015
    11:08 am
I think it definitely is I have seen a lot of people lose weight and become very healthy from gluten free diets.

- - mom94378 said
  - 05 Apr 2015
    9:58 pm
Seems to be all the rage at the moment. Is certainly not for me.

- - stepmom107932 said
  - 02 Apr 2015
    6:02 pm
unless you are celiac or allergic to wheat there is NO REASON to avoid gluten and it can actually be unhealthy, just like other fad diets, you shouldnt jump on the band wagon unless your DOCTOR says to.

- - mom113055 said
  - 24 Mar 2015
    1:47 pm
great

- - mom113055 said
  - 19 Mar 2015
    8:41 pm
looks good

- - Lov'n'Life said
  - 14 Mar 2015
    11:03 pm
thank you I had cealics when pregnant with my second daughter and after the pregnancy it just went away

- - mom94125 said
  - 12 Mar 2015
    1:23 pm
i actually think that it’s ok to cut some of these things out or reduce them, even if you don’t have a problem with them. It gives your body a break from trying to process a lot of the extra junk etc

- - rovermum said
  - 11 Mar 2015
    1:09 pm
My dear friend was last year diagnosed with Coeliac Disease so it has been an interesting learning curve for me too, to understand what she can and can’t eat. Luckily, it is now more widely accepted and there is a greater range of gluten-free options available. Tricky when we were at a work event last week though and there was not one option available.

- - mom64736 said
  - 11 Mar 2015
    12:10 pm
I don’t think gluten free is necessary unless you show signs of intolerance or worse. I do think everything in moderation is fine.