Roughly one percent of the population in America has one of several conditions that cause a negative bodily reaction to gluten. Gluten is a protein that is found in several grains - wheat, barley and rye - and is contained in every food item that is made using a flour or other ingredient from these grains. Eating a gluten free diet is not impossible, as you may think if you just found out you or a family member needs to start on one, but it is somewhat complicated - at first at least - and definitely takes some getting used to. The good news is that once you've managed to wrap your head around what all you can and cannot eat, things get much easier to keep track of. Let's take a look at what exactly a gluten free diet is, who needs to eat one, and what you can do to make staying on your diet easy and comfortable. GF Diet: What Is It and Why Do I Have To Eat One? Gluten, as I said above, is a protein that is found in wheat, barley, rye and is also sometimes found in oats. By far, the most common source of gluten in the standard American diet is wheat flour, which is found in a surprisingly large number of foods. All bread and any flour product - such as pastries and doughnuts, flour tortillas, pita bread, etc. - are going to contain wheat, but so do many other food items such as pasta, many soups and gravies, most cereals, and even some candies are dusted with wheat flour to keep them from sticking to the wrapper. There are three physical conditions that could necessitate a person going onto a gluten free diet: a wheat allergy, a gluten allergy and celiac disease. A wheat allergy is the simplest of the three conditions. This is when a person is simply allergic to wheat and needs to avoid it in his or her diet. A gluten free diet would actually be somewhat more restrictive than what someone with just a wheat allergy needs, but it would cover the bases for them. In other words, a person on a wheat free diet could eat rye and barley, but a person on a gluten free diet cannot. A gluten allergy is when a person has developed an allergy to the gluten protein itself and needs to avoid all the various sources of gluten. A person that is allergic to gluten can consume some small amounts of gluten without harming their body, so long as they don't actually suffer any bad reactions. Basically, if you have a gluten allergy, as long as you don't feel bad from eating gluten, you're OK to keep eating that amount of it. Celiac disease is the most serious of the three conditions. Celiac is actually an auto-immune disease that causes the body to harm itself when any amount of gluten is present. This means that someone with celiac cannot safely consume any amount of gluten at all. A true gluten free diet is, by necessity, completely free of any and all gluten. If you've been told by your doctor or a nutritionist that you need to eat a gluten free diet, then you must eliminate all sources of gluten completely. Just eating less bread or trying not to eat doughnuts isn't going to cut it. If you are in this situation, let's take a look at what it will mean to you in a practical sense, and what you can do to make things easier.

1. Gluten Free Diet Guide
Roughly one percent of the population in America has one of several conditions that cause a negative
bodily reaction to gluten. Gluten is a protein that is found in several grains - wheat, barley and rye - and
is contained in every food item that is made using a flour or other ingredient from these grains.
Eating a gluten free diet is not impossible, as you may think if you just found out you or a family
member needs to start on one, but it is somewhat complicated - at first at least - and definitely takes
some getting used to. The good news is that once you've managed to wrap your head around what all
you can and cannot eat, things get much easier to keep track of. Let's take a look at what exactly a
gluten free diet is, who needs to eat one, and what you can do to make staying on your diet easy and
comfortable.
Take a Look at:Gluten free diet
GF Diet: What Is It and Why Do I Have To Eat One?
Gluten, as I said above, is a protein that is found in wheat, barley, rye and is also sometimes found in
oats. By far, the most common source of gluten in the standard American diet is wheat flour, which is
found in a surprisingly large number of foods. All bread and any flour product - such as pastries and
doughnuts, flour tortillas, pita bread, etc. - are going to contain wheat, but so do many other food items
such as pasta, many soups and gravies, most cereals, and even some candies are dusted with wheat
flour to keep them from sticking to the wrapper.
There are three physical conditions that could necessitate a person going onto a gluten free diet: a
wheat allergy, a gluten allergy and celiac disease.
A wheat allergy is the simplest of the three conditions. This is when a person is simply allergic to wheat
and needs to avoid it in his or her diet. A gluten free diet would actually be somewhat more restrictive
than what someone with just a wheat allergy needs, but it would cover the bases for them. In other
words, a person on a wheat free diet could eat rye and barley, but a person on a gluten free diet cannot.
A gluten allergy is when a person has developed an allergy to the gluten protein itself and needs to
avoid all the various sources of gluten. A person that is allergic to gluten can consume some small
amounts of gluten without harming their body, so long as they don't actually suffer any bad reactions.
Basically, if you have a gluten allergy, as long as you don't feel bad from eating gluten, you're OK to
keep eating that amount of it.
Take a Look at:Gluten free diet
Celiac disease is the most serious of the three conditions. Celiac is actually an auto-immune disease
that causes the body to harm itself when any amount of gluten is present. This means that someone
with celiac cannot safely consume any amount of gluten at all.
A true gluten free diet is, by necessity, completely free of any and all gluten. If you've been told by
your doctor or a nutritionist that you need to eat a gluten free diet, then you must eliminate all sources
of gluten completely. Just eating less bread or trying not to eat doughnuts isn't going to cut it. If you are
in this situation, let's take a look at what it will mean to you in a practical sense, and what you can do to
make things easier.