What does gluten free mean?
Gluten free is a term that has been circulating throughout the health care, dieting, and healthy-living industries for the past few years. However, for all of its popularity, there have been a fair amount of misconceptions and ill-conceived benefits that have been assigned to the term. In order to help you understand the health benefits, as well as the true definition of the term, we have put together the following blog post on the true definition of gluten free.
Gluten is a substance that can be found in cereal grains, wheat, barley, and rye. It is also responsible for the elastic texture that is common to dough. Gluten is a mixture of two proteins that can cause sickness within people who have celiac disease.
What is Gluten Free?
Gluten free refers to food products that do not have gluten within them. Generally speaking, a gluten free diet will be used in the treatment of celiac disease. For people whom have celiac disease, consuming gluten can cause a painful inflammation within the small intestine. Eating a gluten free diet helps these individuals control their signs, symptoms, and prevent inflammation within the small intestine.
There are a small number of people who don’t have celiac disease, but might experience similar symptoms when they eat gluten. This type of condition is called non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Eating a gluten free diet will help to eliminate the painful symptoms and prevent disease related complications.
If you are thinking about migrating to a gluten free diet for some if the health benefits, then you will be interested to know that your new lifestyle will come equipped with a multitude of interesting cuisines. Below are a list of some of the foods and grains that qualify as gluten free.
- Beans, seeds and nuts in their natural, unprocessed form
- Fresh eggs
- Fresh meats, fish and poultry (not breaded, batter-coated or marinated)
- Fruits and vegetables
- Most dairy products
- Corn and cornmeal
- Gluten-free flours (rice, soy, corn, potato, bean)
- Hominy (corn)
Eating a gluten free diet can help you to enjoy a healthy lifestyle. As with any new eating lifestyle choice, be sure to consult with your physician before starting a gluten free diet.