The gluten-free diet is something that has gained a lot of attention these past few years. It is a diet prescribed for individuals diagnosed with gluten intolerance and Celiac disease. If you are planning to go on a gluten-free diet and you do not know what to do, you came to the right place. At Wave The Grain, we will be sharing with you an article about the things to consider when following a gluten-free diet. If you want to know more information, we encourage you to continue reading below to find out.
“Is There Anything That I Need To Consider When Following A Gluten-free Diet?”
The first thing you need to do is ask yourself why you want to make that change. Do you have Celiac disease, gluten intolerance, or a wheat allergy? Other individuals who are not diagnosed with these health conditions choose to go on a gluten-free diet because they want to experience the benefits that it comes with, and one of these benefits is weight loss.
A person usually experiences weight loss once they adopt the gluten-free diet as they eliminate gluten from their diet. The gluten-free diet usually involves avoiding processed foods and most carbohydrate-rich foods like bread, crackers, pastries, and pasta. These are replaced with foods like whole grains. Making these substitutions can help decrease calorie consumption and increase the daily fiber intake of an individual.
The gluten-free diet is known to help reduce symptoms related to specific medical problems, like dermatitis herpetiformis, type 1 diabetes, irritable bowel syndrome, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroiditis, etc.
Check out some of the things below that you must consider when following the gluten-free diet.
Consult With a Medical Practitioner
Before you start with the gluten-free diet or any other drastic diet change, you should make sure to consult a doctor. Diagnostic tests will need to be run in order to determine what kind of dietary changes will be needed to be made to address any health issues that you are currently facing. It’s important to be properly diagnosed correctly if you have celiac disease or gluten intolerance as the long-term effects of these can be quite uncomfortable for you. You will need a formal consultation and recommendation from a doctor to make sure that you are doing the right thing.
Seek Advice From a Dietitian
Another professional to consult about your diet change is a dietitian. Consulting a dietician will help you understand how adopting a gluten-free diet can help you control any gluten-related medical disorders. Once you go for a gluten-free diet, you should make sure to monitor yourself and your intake to consume a healthy balanced diet with adequate fiber and all the nutrients that your body needs on the daily.
Check And Rearrange Your Pantry
Making a drastic change to your diet will necessitate a change to your pantry, as well. Because of this, you will have to clean out your pantry of unnecessary items if you want to stick to a gluten-free diet.
Get a cardboard box and a trash bag. Place all the food and ingredients that contain gluten inside the box. You can get rid of the things that are expired and already opened and place them inside the trash bag. Check all the items with gluten and make a list so that you can go grocery shopping and replenish the things with gluten-free substitutes for the things that you have thrown away. Do not throw away the food and ingredients that are still good; you can donate them to a local food bank or homeless shelter.
If you’re going to be sticking to a gluten-free diet for health-related reasons, then you will have to make sure that your ingredients and cooking implements are cleaned completely of any traces of gluten. Clean out all the cabinets and your pantry to get rid of crumbs of wheat and other gluten foods so they will not be mixed in on your gluten-free foods.
Organize all of your gluten-free foods; you can place them in a different section or a cabinet so it will be easy for you to prepare your food. If you are the only person in your household who is adopting a gluten-free diet, you must designate a separate cabinet for gluten-rich foods and ingredients so that you can avoid cross-contamination. Use plastic containers to keep gluten crumbs away from all your gluten-free foods. If everyone in your household will be going gluten-free then it will be much easier for you to organize everything.
Find Gluten-free Substitutes For Gluten-Rich Foods
Foods like bread, pastries, and pasta contain gluten, but this does not mean that you will no longer be able to eat these types of foods. Due to the rising popularity and awareness of gluten-free diets, it is now easier to look for gluten-free substitutes or gluten-free versions of those foods. You may find some in supermarkets and health food stores; you must make sure to check for a label that says gluten-free. If you want healthy and delicious gluten-free foods, check out a shop like Wave The Grain. We offer gluten-free versions of popular treats like gluten-free bread, cakes, and pastries.
Avoid Certain Types of Alcohol
For people who enjoy drinking alcohol, it can be hard to make the change to gluten-free. Some types of alcohol contain gluten, so you should make sure to double-check to see which ones are gluten-free before purchasing and drinking them. Some examples of gluten-free alcohol are cider, liqueurs, port, sherry, and spirits.
Always remember that regular types of beer contain gluten, so these are not recommended for those who are on a gluten-free diet. However, there is a gluten-free beer that can be found in some restaurants and supermarkets, so feel free to look around your local area to see if you can find them. Always keep an eye out for the gluten-free label to make sure.
Get A New Toaster
If you already own a toaster, keep in mind that there is a good chance that it contains a lot of bread crumbs that can be a cross-contamination risk. Toasters can be difficult to clean, so for the sake of maintaining a gluten-free lifestyle for your health, it is for the best if you sell, donate, or give away your old toaster so that you can buy a new one that has not been contaminated by bread crumbs. This way, you can use it for all your gluten-free foods with no worries. Think about attaching a sticker or other indicator as a reminder to other members of the household that eat food with gluten in them.
Enjoy Meals With Your Family And Friends
A gluten-free diet does not mean that you have to avoid social gatherings and meals with your friends and family. It is simple enough to inform your family and friends that you are on a gluten-free diet so together, you can plan and choose places with gluten-free options so that all of you can still have a good time with no worries.
You can also hire catering services; Wave The Grain offers catering services for gluten-free food. You can look into gluten-free recipes so that you can prepare meals yourself and have full control over the food preparation so that you don’t have to worry about gluten contamination. If you will be traveling, do your research in advance so that you can look for places and shops where you can get gluten-free foods.
You can also plan your diet for single-ingredient foods like fruits, vegetables, or lean meats. When cooking gluten-free meals, you must set aside cooking utensils for yourself if you are the only one following a gluten-free diet. This will help you avoid contaminating your foods with gluten from others’ meals. If you are going to a family gathering, you can bring your own gluten-free foods such as bread, pastries, pasta so that you can avoid feeling left out during the meal in case they forget you are on a gluten-free diet.
Avoid Double-Dipping
When using condiments, make sure to use those from squeeze bottles so that you can avoid cross-contamination via double-dipping. Bread crumbs can be left in containers such as peanut butter jars if you allow for double-dipping. You must have a house rule to only use a utensil once when scooping condiments out of jars.
Change Old Pans And Pots That May Contain Gluten
Most individuals who adopt a gluten-free diet will need to purchase new pans and pots. If you have family members who eat gluten-rich foods, you can have dedicated pans, pots, and utensils for the preparation of gluten-free meals.
However, if you do not have the budget for buying a new kitchen set, you can resort to checking your old pans and pots for any worn surfaces, dents, or scratches that can harbor food in between uses. It is probably the right time to get rid of them and buy new ones, especially now that you have adapted to the gluten-free diet.
You can put stickers or duct tape on the handles so it will serve as a reminder to use them for gluten-free meal preparation only. You can also use parchment paper so you can easily clean your pans and baking stones. If you cannot dedicate pans exclusively for gluten-free meals, make sure to thoroughly clean them after cooking so you can get rid of all traces of food.
Avoid Sauces That Contain Gluten
Pasta sauces, gravies, stocks, and condiments may contain wheat as a thickener, which is gluten. Because of this, make sure to check all the labels of ingredients and products that you use when preparing foods and meals. Additionally, you can try creating your gluten-free sauces with arrowroot, cornflour, potato starch, or cornstarch as a thickening agent. You can also use gluten-free flour when making gravies and other sauces.
One of the important things to consider when going gluten-free is that purchasing and preparing meals can take a long time and can be quite expensive as well. While most grocery stores carry gluten-free food and ingredients, some products may only be available in specialty shops.
If you are searching for a shop that offers gluten-free food options, check out Wave The Grain. You can check out our menu of gluten-free options here. We also offer specialty products, such as birthday cakes, grooms cakes, and wedding cakes. If you’re interested in learning more about our products and orders, please fill up this contact form here. If you want to order our products please click this link; you have the option for delivery or pickup.
If you want to book us for a small party or get together, please call our shop. Our phone number is (303) 721-7547. You can also contact us through email; please send an email inquiry at Kristin@wavethegrain. Our address is 8172 S Holly Street, Centennial, CO 80122. Contact us today! We will be happy to provide you with delicious and healthy gluten-free food!
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