Gluten-free diet is a diet that excludes any type of food that contains gluten (protein found in wheat, barley, rye, triticale and malts). From the medicine`s perspective gluten-free diet is the only diet accepted fortreating celiac disease, dermatitis herpetiformis and wheat allergy.
At first, following a gluten-free diet may be frustrating, but with patience and creativeness you can find many foods that you can eat and that are gluten-free. Also you can find substitutes for food that contains gluten and in the same time enjoy them.
The main objective of a gluten-free diet is the treatment for celiac disease. In a person`s life, starting a gluten-free diet is a big change, and like all the new things it takes a little time to get used to it. At the beginning,as the diet has some major restrictions you could feel deprived of a lot of things. In the same time you will be surprised how many types of products exist nowadays in stores, that are gluten-free. For example you can easily find gluten-free bread and pasta.
Allowed foods:
- nuts and beans (in their natural form)
- eggs (are prefered fresh eggs)
- mostly all the dairy products
- fruits and vegetables
- freash meat, fish and poultry (it is recommended to avoid breaded, batter-coated or marinated meat)
Allowed grains:
- amaranth, arrowroot
- buckwheat
- corn and cornmeal
- flax
- flours like rice, soy, corn potato, bean that are gluten-free
- millet
- quinoa
- sorghum
- teff, tapicoa
Avoid food and drinks that contain:
- barley (malt or malt flavoring or malt vinegar)
- wheat (all types of wheat flour and wheat products like: bulgur, splet, kamut, semolina, farina or durum flour )
- rye
- triticale
If they are not labeled with “gluten-free” you should avoid:
- beer
- bread
- cakes and pies
- candies
- cereals
- cookies and crackers
- croutons
- pasta
- matzo
- imitation meat or seafood
- french fries
- vegetables in sauce
- self-basting poultry
- seasoned snack foods such as potato and tortilla chips
- sauces and salad dressings
- processed luncheon meats
If you don`t eat an equilibrated meal you could have less nutrients. In this case, you should ask a dietitian to review your diet beacause a lack of nutrients, overt time, can cause serious problems. The main nutrients that you should check are: iron, calcium, folate, niacin, riboflamin, thiamin, fiber.
You should be aware that if by case you eat a product that contains gluten, it will be damaging on your diet even if signs or simptoms appear or not.