A gluten free diet is quite simply a diet that excludes the protein gluten. Gluten is contained in grains such as wheat, rye and barley and these are of course common ingredients in many of the foods we eat every day.
Gluten causes inflammation in the small intestines of people with celiac disease and so a gluten free diet is essential for those who suffer from the disease.
Initially many people find sticking to a gluten free diet quite difficult and restrictive, but over time you will find it quite easy to adapt and eat a range of foods and live a normal lifestyle.
Nowadays most food labellings makes it quite easy to ensure you are sticking to a diet free of gluten, but as a rule of thumb the following are to be avoided in food and drinks -
Wheat
Rye
Barley
Durham
Farina
Graham flour
Kamut
Matzo meal
Semolina
Triticale
Foods made with corn, rice, soy are very good replacements and other gluten free grains are available.
An important thing to bear in mind to be sure your diet is free from gluten is to check food labels to make sure the food may not have been contaminated in production. In other words the food should have been processed in a facility that is free of wheat or other gluten products.
The safest way of all to ensure you stick to a gluten free diet is to use a gluten test kit. Up until recently this was a complex and time consuming process but the market has responded to demand and there are now some very good home gluten tests available.
Celiac sufferers will have regular blood tests to monitor compliance with the gluten-free diet, but a year of unknowingly consuming gluten, even trace amounts, can have serious consequences. Thankfully we now have the option to use a home gluten test kit and have the peace of mind that we are protected from any exposure.
Although they are easy to use, the cost of gluten test kits may put some people off using them but we have to invest in our health and well being and using one really is the only 100% safe way to ensure you maintain a gluten free diet.
If you believe you may be a celiac sufferer you should of course seek professional medical advice. It is also possible to carry out a home gluten test to detect celiac disease by means of a blood sample.