Sunday 9 December 2012

Can you spot the gluten?



These days, it seems like every other product is labelled “gluten-free” and there is a fast growing trend for restaurants to post separate gluten free menus. While this is great for people who have celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity (http://life.nationalpost.com/2012/12/04/what-grains-mean-or-dont-mean-for-weight-loss/) there are still tons of hidden sources of gluten out there. If you are on a strict GF diet for medical or health purposes, you really need to read your labels and become aware of what does and doesn’t contain gluten.

A lot of people also ask me the question “should I be on a GF diet?” Since I’m not a regulated health professional (four years until I get my N.D.!) This is not something I feel comfortable commenting on. I will say this; should you think you suffer from celiac disease of have gluten sensitivity or other food allergies, this is something you should see your family physician or a licensed naturopathic doctor about. They can run further tests and assess your symptoms to determine the best course of action. As well, cutting gluten and filling your diet with sugary starchy, gluten-free snack foods and bread will certainly not improve your health OR lead to weight loss.

This list is by no means exhaustive but a good place to start



                Barley (flakes, flour, pearl)
                Breading and bread stuffing
                Brewer's yeast (if leftover from making beer)
                Bulgur
                Couscous
                Durum (type of wheat)
                Deep fried anything that is coated in bread crumbs or panko crusted
                Farro/Faro (also known as spelt)
                Graham flour
                Hydrolyzed wheat protein 
                Kamut (a type of wheat)- better tolerated in some individuals
                Malt, malt extract, malt syrup, and malt flavoring
                Malt vinegar
                Malted milk
                Matzoh, matzoh meal
                Modified wheat starch
                Oatmeal, oat bran, oat flour, and whole oats (unless they are from pure, uncontaminated oats) you must be non-contamined certified wheat AND gluten free oats (wheat free doesn’t mean gluten free, they could still be processed on the same manufactoruing equipement as barley, it would be like a kid with a peanut allergy eating a chocolate bar processed on the same equipment at Reese’ pieces)
                Rye bread and flour
                Seitan-A meat-like food derived from wheat gluten used in many vegetarian dishes, and fake meat products such as Tofurky or veggie ground round
                Semolina
                Spelt (A type of wheat also known as farro or faro, dinkel)- certain people can tolerate spelt better other types of gluten containing grains
                Triticale
                Wheat bran
                Wheat flour
                Wheat germ
                Wheat starch
                Atta (chapati flour)
                Dinkel (also known as spelt, a type of wheat)
                Einkorn (type of wheat)
                Emmer (type of wheat)
                Farina
Fu (a dried gluten product made from wheat and used in some Asian dishes)
                Beer, ale, lager- along with this certain hard alcohols such as different vodka gbrands are made from wheat, NOT potatoes, and even though the distillation process should technically remove this, it’s probably better to stick with clear gin or wine instead. There area few brands of GF beer available, but I haven't personally tried any of them
                Broth, soup, soup bases- look for barley malt extract
                Cereals
                Some chocolates, some chocolate bars, and licorice
                Flavored coffees and teas (certain brands)
                Imitation bacon bits and imitation seafoods- California rolls at sushi restaurants are usually NOT GF, because most use imitation Pollock, which contains wheat and not real crab
                Medications (check with your pharmacist) and certain lipsticks and other makeup contain gluten
                Pastas 
                Salad dressings
                Sausages, hot dogs, deli meats- added at toasted wheat crumbs, same with burgers where breadcrumbs are usually added
                Sauces, marinades, gravies (flour is added as a thickener, use cornstarch or xantham gum at home instead)
                Pre-mized Seasonings
                Worcheshire sauce, hoisin sauce and a numerous condiments, your best bet, READ THE LABELS
                Soy sauce- most soy sauce contain wheat, you need to purchase gluten free Tamari or Bragg’s liquid aminos (my personal fav)





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