What is a Gluten Free Diet?
A gluten-free diet eliminates all foods that contain wheat, oats, barley and rye, including any and derivitives of each. Wheat includes spelt, triticale, and kamut. So, most grains, pastas, cereals, and many processed foods must be eliminated from one's diet.Don't be discouraged! Celiacs can eat a wonderful and well-balanced diet with a variety of foods, including breads and pastas. Alternate flours such as sorghum, coconut, potato, rice, soy, or bean flour, are available and work well in gluten free baking. In the past ten years, many terrific products have come on the market including gluten free doughnuts, pizza crusts, frozen dinners, breads, crackers, and even beer. There is a learning curve to the gluten free diet. But once it is achieved, one will live a much more happy and healthy life!
What Celiacs Can Not Eat:
- Wheat
- Oats
- Barley
- Rye
- Any derivatives of the above
What Celiacs Can Eat:
- Fresh Fruit
- Fresh Meat
- Fresh Vegetables
- Corn
- Potato
- Rice
- Soybeans
- Tapioca
- Arrowroot
- Carob
- Buckwheat
- Millet
- Amaranth
- Quinoa
Wild Cards
Grains are used in the processing of many ingredients, so it will be necessary to seek out hidden gluten. The following terms found in food labels are "wild cards" and may contain gluten.
- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (HVP), unless made from soy or corn
- Flour or Cereal products, unless made with pure rice flour, corn flour, potato flour, or soy flour
- Vegetable Protein unless made from soy or corn
- Malt or Malt Flavoring unless derived from corn
- Modified Starch or Modified Food Starch unless arrowroot, corn, potato, tapioca, waxy maize, or maize is used
- Vegetable Gum unless vegetable gums are carob bean gum, locust bean gum, cellulose gum, guar gum, gum arabic, gum aracia, gum tragacanth, xanthan gum, or vegetable starch
- Soy Sauce or Soy Sauce Solids unless you know they do not contain wheat
It is important for all celiac patients to read food labels and food ingredient lists, to make sure that the food does not contain hidden gluten. Hidden sources of gluten include additives, preservatives, and stabilizers found in processed foods, medicines and even mouthwashes and toothpastes. If ingredients are not listed on the product-label, check with the manufacturer.
If in doubt, go without.