Top » Sorting Through the Gluten-Free Confusion

Published by Red Wiseman on 13.10.2009 in and previewed 26 times


I was recently in a store and overheard that she was trying to figure out what her young son, recently diagnosed as gluten intolerant could and could not eat. Maybe my ears are becoming more sensitive to this topic but it does seem that more people are talking about gluten-free diets and discovering that their long-term ailments may have been being caused by food allergies. Unfortunately, figuring everything out in the beginning can be a bit confusing.

This woman did not know exactly what to get and the store employee, while helpful, simply didn't know that much about the subject. Finally, I stepped in and started to explain a bit about foods and gave her a very helpful card produced by Tina Turbin, the founder of the popular website, http://GlutenFreeHelp.info. The card contains a quick guide of foods and additives to avoid on one side and a guide for help on the other side.

Part of the problem is that wheat and gluten are very pervasive in many kinds of foods, especially where you'd least expect it. For example many decaffeinated coffees contain gluten from the decaffeination process. Surprised? I was! I learned this and much more on the Gluten Free Help blog (http://GlutenFreeHelp.info). In addition, there are products like soy sauce that are made with wheat and tamari sauce not made with wheat -- almost identical products -- but one is has gluten and one doesn't. You have to read the labels and get educated. You will also have to avoid hydrolyzed vegetable protein (in canned tuna fish), imitation bacon and imitation seafood, textured vegetable protein. The list goes on.

It truly is best to arm yourself with information and use resources like the Web site put together by Tina Turbin. The site is founded on the principle to help and guide a person to a successful gluten-free lifestyle from all stages, not to mention a large number of wonderful recipes.

My experience shows me that food allergies are no trivial matter and should not be treated as such. If one ignores the allergy he could be overwhelming his immune system to the point where the possibility of an auto-immune disease may come into play. An undetected or ignored wheat or gluten intolerance can lead to all manner of troubles and some may become quite severe. So, respect your boundaries and if you are shopping for someone else respect their boundaries as well.

For more information on eating and living gluten free, visit http://GlutenFreeHelp.info. For more information on Tina Turbin, visit http://TinaTurbin.com.

About Author

Red Wiseman is an avid and intelligent writer and researcher in the Humanities, Arts and Sciences. Wiseman is always on a quest to expand his horizons and those of others via his written and spoken words.

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