TIPS FOR EATING WITHOUT GLUTEN

You have tested weak for gluten, and yet it is a large part of so many modern diets! How can you survive? Firstly this may not be permanent, but for now here are some tips!

Alternatives

Gluten Free

Try not to revert simply to gluten-free products as these are heavily processed and can be high in sugar and starchy substitutes. These can have a negative impact on your health if eaten regularly. Instead try to look for different ways of eating instead of buying direct substitutes. You may have tested ok with some grains, so use those as an alternative.

Oats

Oats are naturally gluten free (at least the gluten we are intolerant to). However you may notice both gluten free and non gluten free oats. This is because many oats are grown next to gluten containing grains such as wheat and rye, and can become contaminated with gluten. So gluten free oats are guaranteed not to be contaminated. Generally, if you are only temporarily intolerant, all oats should be ok, you only need to be especially careful if you are particularly very weak on gluten meaning the intolerance is severe and could even be an allergy, if you have Coeliac Disease, or have been diagnosed with gluten allergy.

Here are some healthy alternatives:

FLOUR – oat flour, rice flour, almond flour (or ground almond), coconut flour, etc. It is better to use whole food flours and mix these yourselves for consistency rather than buying a gluten free flour with a lot of ingredients. If you do go for gluten free flour, look for the one with least ingredients!

BREAD – oak cakes, rice cakes, sometimes sprouted breads made with spelt, rye, oat, etc will be ok as the sprouting reduces gluten, corn tortillas, lentil chapati

PASTA – gluten free (check for unhealthy/lots of ingredients), organic konjac pasta (Slim Pasta), other grains such as quinoa (pronounced keen-wa), millet, etc

COUSCOUS – brown basmati rice, quinoa

Try having a different approach to snacking. Make a rice / quinoa salad and keep it in the fridge to have a few spoons as part of a healthy salad lunch. Use rice or oat crackers where you would normally have bread for sandwiches, have potato or vegetable patties instead of toast for cooked breakfast, etc.

CEREALS – porridge, Mesa Sunrise, gluten free muesli/granola, anything oats are great for breakfasts!

For a downloadable, print friendly version of this handout please click HERE