Introduction
Gluten is a family of proteins that is present in a few grains and is mainly utilized to provide structural base to many foods. However, for people with gluten disorders such as celiac disease or non-celiac gluten intolerance, consuming gluten leads to troublesome signs and serious health problems. Based on this it becomes important for them to take to the gluten-free diet plans. But before that, let’s take our time to find out what gluten is and in which products it is contained.
What is Gluten?
These are proteins from the family of wheat which include durum, semolina, spelt, and kamut wheat, barley, rye and a limited number of other grains. Other proteins aid its elasticity such as helping dough to stretch and rice to become thicker without being fibrous. Gluten is responsible for elasticity in doughs and provides bread and pastries with chewiness or a cake like structure.
Gluten in Food Products
Whole grains contain gluten but it is also present in processed and packaged food items. There are different forms and amounts of gluten in these products as a result of different ingredients, additives and other surprise sources. Some of the common gluten-containing ingredients include:
- Bradshaw
- Barley malt extract
- Rye
- Triticale
- Oats
In addition to these main ingredients, processed foods often contain gluten in the form of:
- A hydrolyzed protein that is derived from plants or vegetables
- Dried milk powder
- Natural flavorings
- Starch or modified food starch
- Soy sauce or teriyaki sauce
- Baking soda and baking powder if not labeled gluten-free
Hidden Sources of Gluten
Aside from the obvious food sources, gluten can be found in less predictable places, such as:
- Artificial colors and Flavors
- Beer, Ale, and Lager
- Medications including Vitamins and Food Supplements.
- Many clothing accessories which include lipsticks and lip balms.
- An origination that many may not think of when personally associating with toy factories, yet the toy, Play-Doh, feted in this episode of Blueprint.
The Two Strategies for Pinning Down Gluten Containing Foods
The first step toward exercising gluten-free dietary practices is recognizing gluten food products and their alternatives. Here is a list of foods that generally contain gluten and suitable alternatives:
Gluten-Containing Foods: Gluten-Free Alternatives:
- Wheat bread: Rice, almond, coconut or gluten free flour bread
- Pasta: Rice or corn, quinoa, or gluten-free pasta
- Beer: beer that contains gluten or beer that is labeled as gluten-free
- Cereal: It can be in the form of gluten-free cereal (label reading)
- Cookies and cakes: Cookies and cakes for gluten sensitive (please check labels).
- Croutons: The gluten-free croutons or people just don’t put them on salads.
- Puffed rice cakes: Gluten-free rice cakes
- Soy sauce: One specific soy sauce known as Tamari sauce
What to Do When on a Gluten Free Diet
- Read labels: More importantly, conducting a personal cross-check of the labels of pre-packaged food items will reveal whether or not they contain any of the products containing gluten. Manufacturers are compelled to indicate if the foods contain any form of gluten.
- Avoid cross-contamination: Avoid contamination of gluten-free food items by using different cutting boards, spoons, or pots for Gluten-free recipes. Furthermore, packaging gluten-free items in sealable containers helps to prevent cross-contamination with other gluten containing grains.
- Opt for naturally gluten-free foods: Vegetables, fruits, meats, poultry, fish, eggs, milk products, beans, legumes and nuts do not contain gluten. These make up the basis of a healthy and well balanced gluten free diet.
- Cook at home: This is a good opportunity to control what is being prepared at home since gluten-free diet entails avoiding certain ingredients. Not consuming processed or package food also reduce the risk of getting exposed to gluten.
Conclusion
It is very important to get acquainted with gluten-containing products and discover that a gluten-free diet is easy and interesting. It can seen that there are many sources of gluten, gluten-containing foods may be identified, and low-risk gluten-free foods may be used, that is, a healthy and symptom-free life may be achieved with gluten disorders. Finally, it may also have some other benefits to everyone else that does not have any legitimate reason to avoid gluten. It is also important to note that going gluten-free should only be done with the advice of a doctor.