The Gluten Free Gal's Blog

Am I Afraid Of Gluten

theglutenfreegal — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 22:31:20 +0000

I have noticed a very strange phenomenon since, well even before I went gluten free. The final thing that brought me to my celiac diagnosis was my anxiety problems. I had a serious social anxiety disorder and no one could figure out why, yes my childhood was weird, yes I had normal stress, but I had an anxiety that could not be cured no matter how much therapy I went through. FINALLY I met my current therapist who referred me to a naturopath. This guy told me to cut the gluten and refined sugar, and miraculously I started feeling better. Stomach and anxiety wise.

So now 2 years later my anxiety is pretty in check, but I have recently started noticing something strange. A few days ago I went to an entirely gluten free bakery. I walked in, got a huge whiff of the baking goods, and I panicked! Just the thought of being in a bakery, picking up a loaf of bread, and I flip out. It must be a deep rooted psychological reaction to the 22 years I was poisoning my body. But my question is, how do I conquer my deep subconscious and convince myself that going to a bakery and getting a loaf of bread is not going to make me sick. That night I made sandwiches for dinner. As I was cooking the bread and making my sandwich, I got the panic feeling again. It took me a lot of convincing myself that the bread really was gluten free to be able to eat my sandwich. Has anyone else encountered this sort of thing or am I just crazy?

Why I Am Happier Living Gluten Free

theglutenfreegal — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:30:14 +0000

I saw a tweet on twitter a few days ago that has inspired this blog post. It was from @glutenfreedude and the tweet was: “GF Discussion Forum: What are your reasons to celebrate being gluten-free? Article Link #gfree #celiac”

Here is why I personally celebrate my gluten free lifestyle:

My health: I feel like I can enjoy so much more now because I don’t feel sick all the time.

My sanity: I don’t feel crazy for feeling so bad all the time, I now know it wasn’t all in my head

Eating on Purpose: I feel blessed to have to think about what I put into my body. I can no longer mindlessly eat fast food and junk food.

The Education: I feel like I have learned so much about health, our bodies, and the true impact the American lifestyle has on our bodies. I love learning about Celiac disease and other peoples experiences with it. I also love being able to pass the things I learn onto other people who may not understand what we go through

Getting Creative with Food: When I first went gluten free EVERYTHING tasted the same. 2 years later I can now cook some great gluten free dishes and I love learning and creating new recipes all the time.

Getting Creative with my Social Life: Because I don’t eat at restaurants anymore I have to put thought into meaningful and fun things I can do with my friends. This may not sound like a good thing, but I feel like I spend more quality time with people now, we don’t default to eating out in order to spend time together.

All and all, even though it hasn’t been all fun I really truly enjoy the gluten free lifestyle. I feel like it is a blessing in my life

Celiac for Beginners

theglutenfreegal — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:28:52 +0000

I have had a lot of clients recently telling me that there child, sister, cousin, friend, etc. have just found out that they are allergic to gluten. I always try to offer them some sort of information. Here is a great video I came across today. It has some awesome basic information on celiac disease.

Scitimes Video: A Profile of Celiac Disease

Enjoy!

The High Cost Of Gluten Free Living

theglutenfreegal — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 21:58:04 +0000

The fall 2008 issue of the Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research recently published the findings of a study designed to assess the differences in the costs of gluten-free foods compared to “regular” foods. Anyone on a gluten-free diet knows that a gluten free diet costs more than a traditional diet. But how much more? You may want to sit down.

The study was conducted by the Dalhousie University Medical School, Division of Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics. University researchers compared the unit cost of 56 gluten-free foods and “comparable gluten-containing foods” from the same food group at two large grocery chains in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Unit costs per 100 grams of food were calculated in dollars.

What the researchers found:

The average unit cost of the gluten-free product – $1.71
The average unit cost of the gluten containing products – $.61
Gluten-free foods, on average, cost a whopping 242% more than regular, gluten containing foods!

What can you do to avoid the exorbitant cost of gluten-free foods?

First of all, avoid gluten-free junk foods. Cookies, chips and other gluten-free snack foods flooding the market are expensive- and most are made with highly refined cheap starches. Read the nutritional labels carefully before parting with your hard-earned money! If they are loaded with refined carbohydrates, sugar and not much else, are they really worth the price?

The High Cost of Gluten Free Living

Hello world!

theglutenfreegal — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:59:31 +0000

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