The gluten-free diet has surged in popularity in recent years. Many people are reducing or eliminating their dietary intake of the protein, which is found in wheat, rye, barley, and other grains. But did you know that only those with celiac disease should completely eliminate gluten from their diet? Others with gluten sensitivity may improve their health by simply decreasing their gluten intake. Learn more about the gluten-free diet, including symptoms of celiac disease and what foods to avoid at the Johns Hopkins What Is a Gluten-Free Diet? page.
Do you partake in a gluten-free or reduced gluten diet? If so, tell us what your diet consists of and how it may be helping to improve your health in the comments.
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My hubby was being admitted to the ED and inpatient all the time for nausea &vomiting, belly pain, and a number of other woes. On an off chance, he started eating gluten free during one of his hospitalizations. We continued once home. He is a changed man! It has been 10 months since his last hospitalization.
To make life easier in our home, I go gluten free as well. The recipes are interesting and I am learning all the time about alternatives to wheat products. There is much on line and the product packagings are loaded with recipes. I have found that several local markets have rather large GF areas- Wegman's, Trader Joe's, and most recently Weis. We are avid label readers.
We eat pasta- I find brown rice pasta better than corn pasta- less gummy. I have found a GF stroganoff sauce, cheese sauce, and alfredo sauce. I also use GF turkey, chicken, and brown gravy mixes- all fat free as well. I use a lot more brown rice to compensate for breads. We also use corn tortillas for sandwiches. Pillsbury has a ready made GF chocolate chip cookie dough that is most yummy. Pillsbury also has ready made pizza crust- I do pizza, Stromboli, calzone, and the like. I use a lot of the Red Mill products- pancake mixes, brownie mix, and chocolate cake mix. The GF Bisquick makes great biscuits. He enjoys Chex cereals and varieties of rice cakes. Many chips and pretzels are now GF. A great snack is salsa and a variety of corn chips.
As for bread, we have tried loaves of bread from the store, dinner rolls, and burger/dog rolls. Most are bricks and are not great tasting. I am working on my bread mix recipe and it is progressing. I find that with most mixes, I add a lot more liquid than called for. My first pancakes following the recipe tasted good but were manhole covers-thick hard and dense. I have to thin everything out to make it less concrete. I am also playing with the yeast to make the bread rise a bit more. It's all a learning experience and actually quite fun.
Sadly, the GF products are expensive. $6 for a loaf of brick bread does not work. I am finding the prices are coming down, especially at Weis. I can get 16 oz. of pasta now for about $2.60.
Life is still good and actually better. We have replaced a lot of processed foods with fruits and veggies, frozen and fresh. It is always a work in progress!
My daughter doesn't have celiac disease however, when I eliminated gluten from her diet she stopped having a blotted stomach. I can tell if she has eaten gluten because her stomach will swell. I pack her lunch with gluten free bread and look for the gluten free label on other food I purchase for her.
Then your daughter may well be allergic to gluten. Full-blown celiac disease or no, if her stomach bloats when she has consumed anything with gluten, there are any number of other negative reactions she may be having, too.