Living A Happy Healthy Gluten Free Life

Many people are unknowingly affected by gluten. Some have gluten sensitivity, others may have celiac disease, and the question that keeps coming up is, “Should I go gluten free?”

Just very briefly – What is gluten, gluten sensitivity and celiac disease?

Gluten is a combination of proteins found in grains like wheat, rye, and barley. There are two factors in gluten: gliadin and glutenin. These are also the only ones tested.

Gluten sensitivity has very similar symptoms to Celiac disease, except there is no intestinal damage.

In Celiac disease there is damage to the lining in the small intestine, which is called the villi. The villi absorbs nutrients from food, when this is damaged, serious health issues may arise such as osteoporosis, anemia, neurological issues, and more. If celiac disease is undiagnosed it can cause major damage to every part of your body, such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, thyroid, depression and more.

The symptoms of gluten sensitivity and celiac disease are similar, such as constipation, abdominal pain, inflammation, migraines, skin disorders, nerve pain, fatigue, depression and more. The list just keeps growing.

The big question is should I go gluten free? Going gluten free is not easy. Whether you are doing it by choice or necessity, you need to do a lot of research. Be aware that wheat gluten is in most processed foods, baked goods, pasta, salad dressings even spices. Some of the food is gluttened only by cross contamination and not necessarily because it contains gluten.

Eating in restaurants is the hardest. You will notice that many menus now offer gluten free menu, but is it truly gluten free? Do they know not to cross contaminate by using same utensils or cutting boards? Are they using certified gluten free spices? These are the questions you should be asking when eating out.

Shopping for gluten free products is getting much easier, but you still have to read your labels. Just because it is gluten free it does not mean it is healthy. Many products out there add unhealthy fillers, bad fats, and sugars to make them taste good. Please read your labels and educate yourself to help make decisions on the food that will promote good health.

There are many interesting and delicious recipes that are created without gluten for your entire family. Check out our recipes which include gluten free kids, vegetarian and diary free at www.onlyglutenfreerecipes.com

Another problem arises when family and friends don’t realize how detrimental gluten can affect a person’s health that is suffering from gluten sensitivity or celiac disease. We all know they mean well and cook special meals for us, thinking that if it is organic, it is gluten free. Once again education, awareness, patience, and understanding, is very important for the people that love us. Check out our gluten free tips.

So the question is why to live gluten free? It is simple for those that suffer tremendously with many symptoms. It is like giving sugar to diabetic, it will seriously harm us. For those that are eating gluten free by choice, you may have read all the adverse reactions that gluten can impose on human beings, so good for you! For those of you that eat gluten free to lose weight, you probably will because you are avoiding foods like muffins, cakes, donuts, pasta and condiments that not only may have gluten but are full of sugar and bad fats. By replacing these foods with healthy fresh vegetables, fruits, and good fats you will lose weight. Overall you will be much healthier, you will have more energy, and with the two combined you will be a much happier person.

Living gluten free is sometimes challenging, but the results are worth it for all of us!