Living Gluten free... (((challenges, tips & advice

I'd really like to share some things that I have learned over the past 5 years about living a gluten free lifestyle. I was diagnosed in November 2005. At first I thought the new diet was a bit of a novelty, I was kind of excited to start living a new lifestyle. Of course after the first month I was pretty over the whole thing, & in the following years my health went up & down, from bad to good & back again. Thankfully though I learned a number of important lessons which I thought I should share, in the hopes that other coeliacs/celiacs (spelling varies >_>) might avoid some of the problems I've experienced.

1. Products... Gluten is in more things than you may realise, not just food & drink, but many shampoos, glues, beauty products, pet foods, etc may contain gluten. This brings me to the first tip, always, always read the label of any products you bring into your home. If you're unsure, contact the company to check, or leave it out until you know for sure, it's not worth the risk! When it comes to pet food, keep it away from areas you prepare & eat food, be careful when handling it, & wash your hands afterwards.

2. Environment... Cross-contamination is a huge issue for people who need to avoid gluten. It is so easy for a small amount of gluten to be transferred from one item to another, & this is probably one of the most common ways people are contaminated.

Tip number 2 is, a 100% gluten free environment is a must! this applies to your home & especially when eating out. You can only be sure that a meal someone else has made will be gluten free if they have prepared it in a gluten free environment, in many cases a small crumb is all it takes. Unfortunately this includes eating at friends houses as well :'(

Speaking from personal experience, I've found the only sure way to avoid becoming sick is to prepare all your meals at home, that way you know for sure that both the environment & the ingredients will be safe. I quit eating out almost a year ago, & my health has been much better.

Yet another thing to consider is the environment you work/study/volunteer in. I have recently had to quit my job because I was exposed to too much dog food, I was accidentally contaminated & I have become sick : (

As mentioned above, many glues contain gluten, so if you work in an office & you lick envelopes you could be contaminated that way (I've been there too)

3. Knowledge... In the past I have deliberately asked shop owners if an item is gluten free (knowing that it wasn't) & too many times I have been falsely reassured that the item is gluten free. I don't mean to say that people do this on purpose, mostly I would put it down to a lack of knowledge. Thankfully I've found this happens less now-a-days largely because gluten allergies have become so common.

So in short, know what you can eat & what you can't, because it's not always a good idea to rely on other peoples knowledge. Joining a group can be a good idea, or speaking to a dietitian. The internet has helped me many times, but don't trust everything you read, always try to cross-reference things to make sure they are correct.

4. Alternatives... I love Orgran, they are probably my most favourite gluten free brand, because of them I can eat amazing spaghetti & make cakes! H o w e v e r, be careful not to rely on gluten free substitutes too heavily. It's important to remember that whilst these products are very helpful, some of them, like chips, biscuits & 'instant meals' aren't the healthiest choices out there, & it's easy to fall into a habit of buying & eating lots of them because they are convenient. Instead, why not use more fresh produce, it's cheaper, healthier, versatile & delicious. I would also recommend buying organic food wherever possible, it may cost more, but it's better for your body, & the environment, is it really worth saving $2 on carrots when harmful pesticides are used to grow them...

5. Advantages... This may all sound a little sad so far, but try to look at the positives, I absolutely believe that I lead a far more healthy lifestyle because I cannot eat gluten, I have become much better at cooking & it's cheaper than eating out as well.

Some ideas which can make things a bit easier are:

- Cook more than you need & pack the leftovers to take with you to work/school or when visiting friends/family.

- Make a large batch of food, separate it into potions & freeze them, that way you have a safe & healthy instant meal ready to heat up whenever you like :D

- Learn some new recipes which are good to take with you, like 'sushi rolls'. I have made my own many times (vegetarian in my case) & they are great to pack as a meal or snack.

- Be creative & learn to substitute, in many cases there are gluten free alternatives available, but if not, try to think of something else that will work instead, it may work out to be better [: )
- Investing in a few helpful appliances can make a world of difference. My personal favourites are, my rice cooker, blender & my small deep fryer. They make life easier & allow me to cook a wider variety of foods, like hot chips! <3
- Discover simple cooking using only a few ingredients, making a meal doesn't have to take hours, in fact after a bit of practice I can now make something pretty tasty in less than 30 minutes : )

I hope in some small way this helps ^___^

(I'll update if I think of more)

All the best!