Manual for a gluten-free diet: what you need to know

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Starting a gluten-free diet can be difficult if you don't have the information you need on hand. We also know that it can be frustrating to have to be aware of food and its potential consequences instead of just being able to enjoy its taste.

Fortunately there are delicious and healthy foods that are safe and gluten-free.

Here we leave you a small guide on what you should know about a gluten-free diet, as well as lists of foods that you can take into account when shopping or preparing a delicious recipe.

Gluten-free diet. What’s is it?

This diet is based on eliminating from your diet all products that contain or are prepared with wheat, barley, oats, rye, and their derivatives.

Lifesaver details: gluten-free natural foods

According to the Mayo Clinic, these are the gluten-free foods that can be part of your healthy diet:

Eggs
Fruits and vegetables
Beans, seeds, legumes, and nuts in their natural, unprocessed form
Most low-fat dairy products
Lean and unprocessed meats, fish, and poultry

Unbreakable Grains and flours: those that can be part of your diet

Corn (cornmeal, grits, and polenta labeled gluten-free)
Precooked corn (corn)
Amaranth
Quinoa
Gluten-free flours (from rice, soy, corn, potato, and beans)
Rice
Arrowroot
Buckwheat
Flax
Teff
Tapioca
Sorghum
Soy

Triticale and others not allowed:

Avoid foods and drinks that contain the following grains:

Wheat
Barley
Rye
Triticale (a cross between wheat and rye)
Oat flakes (only in some cases).

Important: as the Mayo Clinic explains, although rolled oats "are naturally gluten-free, they can become contaminated with wheat, barley, or rye during production"

Essential information: Gluten-free food labels

It is important that when you buy any type of processed food, read the labels to make sure that they do not contain gluten.

As the Mayo Clinic explains, "For foods containing wheat, barley, rye, or triticale (or any derived ingredient), the name of the grain must appear in the ingredient list on the label."

Nuts and other proteins: almost all plant and animal proteins are gluten-free:

Nuts and seeds
Legumes (beans, lentils, peas, peanuts)
Poultry (fresh chicken).
Red meat (fresh beef, pork, lamb, bison)
Seafood (fresh fish, scallops, shellfish)
Unflavoured soy foods

However, as Healthline explains, "gluten-containing ingredients, such as soy sauce, flour, and malt vinegar are often used as fillers or flavourings in protein that has been processed."

TAG: #glutenfree, #glutenfreerecipes, #glutenfreediet

References:

Elliott, B. (2022, May 24). 54 foods you can eat on a gluten-free diet. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/gluten-free-foods#Proteins

The Good News is that you don’t have to avoid all grains. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/es/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/gluten-free-diet/art-20048530