Is the Celiac Diet for life?

Will you have to stick to a celiac diet forever? What does it involve? How do you get started?

The Celiac diet or gluten free lifestyle is the only treatment for Celiac disease. But you may have chosen to try the gluten free diet even though you have not been diagnosed with Celiac disease. Perhaps you suffer from gluten intolerance or want to try it to see if it helps other symptoms, or you have heard it is good for weight loss.

If you do not have celiac (or coeliac as it is spelled here in the UK) then you have the option of giving up and going back to "normal" foods. But for those of us diagnosed with the disease, it is important to stick with it for the rest of our lives.

For a number of years after Celiac was first discovered many doctors thought that it only affected young children and that they could "grow out of it" and resume their previous way of eating. This was the case with my own doctor in fact, as you can read in my story. It is now accepted that this is not true.

"Just a little won't hurt, will it?"

By changing to a gluten free diet our bodies can recover and our health improve, but this is not a cure. Eating foods containing gluten again, will cause the damage to reoccur.

For many of us the symptoms we would experience after making a mistake are enough to convince us that it was a bad idea! But for some, the damage is internal, with no obvious signs to let them know that an error has been made.

Whether you are aware of the effects or not, it is important not to cheat on the celiac diet.

Even when you understand this yourself, it can be difficult for family and friends to comprehend. They may offer you foods that you cannot eat, saying "Just a little won't hurt will it?" Sadly, yes it will. Over time those "little bits" will build up and cause troubles. For those of us with celiac, gluten containing foods could be referred to as poisons. Imagine telling someone that a little arsenic every day "won't hurt"! One dose might make them unwell, but not kill them, but a build up is sure to have harmful effects.

100% gluten free!

The celiac diet is only effective if it you totally, 100%, avoid products containing gluten, which is found in wheat, barley and rye. I was astonished to read that a friend had discovered some biscuits, that were labelled 95% gluten free! In my view that meant they were not gluten free. It is a bit like being pregnant; you either are...or you are not...there is no third option.

Where to start with a celiac diet

When you are first diagnosed it can be scary and depressing when you are told that you will have to stick to this diet for the rest of your life.

It can seem intimidating and difficult. Temptation is all around you, and you have to learn a whole new way of eating.

You may have never ventured into the kitchen before, apart from to boil a kettle, and suddenly you have to learn to cook from scratch. Ready prepared foods are just too likely to contain forbidden hidden ingredients.

But if you can change your mindset, and look at the situation as a challenge, instead of an obstacle, you are more likely to succeed.

You don't necessarily have to tackle every aspect of your new diet at once. Below are some tips that might help with the transition from a normal diet to a celiac diet, free from gluten.

Read as much about the diet as possible, to gain an understanding of the basics
Cut out the obvious sources of gluten from your diet straight away, such as cakes, bread and cookies (biscuits).
Decide whether the whole family is going to go gluten free, and if so remove all wheat based products from your pantry
Use alternative products to thicken soups and stews such as arrowroot
Learn to read labels and what to watch out for that could indicate hidden gluten
Start to build a collection of safe recipes either from the Internet or by buying Gluten free cookery booksonline, from places such as Amazon.
Try some simple recipes for things like cakes (these do not need a high gluten content in the flour in order to rise successfully)
Be prepared to experiment, gluten free baking does not always go according to plan...discover ways to use up "failures"
Keep a notebook, where you can jot down notes on what works, and what doesn't, when baking
Try out new and exciting gluten free flours
Learn to think outside the box... just because a quiche has always had a pastry base before, don't overlook other options that could be used
Open up your mind to new ingredients and ways of cooking

It may take some time, but eventually the celiac diet will become "normal" to you and it won't feel strange or limiting. You will discover ways to reproduce those gluten laden products, that keep you safe and well for the rest of your life.

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