I am! And I went on a roller coaster of emotions when finding out and through having to deal with it. At first, I was honestly happy! I was trying to be healthy and be a better cleanse coach but fast food, burgers, fries, onion rings, delicious breads, noodles, pizza, quick fix foods, and other foods kept calling my name and they kept me from reaching my goal and my fitness and health potential. The gluten intolerance seemed to be my answer. But then I was mad. Gluten free foods like bread for sandwiches was gross! I just wanted a pizza! Burgers, I got over. But I wanted a pizza! Thanksgiving was rough. Christmas was easier. And then the most awful news ever!! Soy sauce has gluten in it! I love love love Chinese take-out more than any other food in the world! I did discover that there are brands of soy sauce and top-dog soy sauce companies are now producing and selling gluten free soy sauce, but I am still scared to chance eating Chinese take-out. Soy sauce is in everything! And it is still cheaper for restaurants to buy the regular soy sauces.
But I am fine being gluten intolerant for now. It has helped me make better choices. It requires me to think a lot more about what I eat and what I buy at the store. I'm writing this all now because maybe you are gluten intolerant or maybe you know someone who is and want to share this with them or maybe you just want to try living gluten free for health reasons. I gathered some information together for a friend this week and I want to share it with everyone!
"So you wanted to learn more about gluten and a gluten intolerance. Gluten is found in wheat, it is a binder, and wheat is a type grain like barley and rye. When I eat wheat I get a head ache, sometimes my stomach feels cold, and I feel like my insides are twisting, which is actually what really is happening. Having a gluten intolerance isn't just an annoying thing to have to deal with, or an annoying pain to have to deal with, but it actually hurts your body. Apparently it can damage your intestines. Other symptoms are totally wide range. You should look them up because they are so wide spread. But just because you may have some symptoms doesn't mean you have an intolerance. I knew what was wrong with me because I tested it. I went without gluten for a week, then I at a lot of things with gluten on day 8 and I felt horrible! But if you want to know for sure go to the doctor and they can test you, BUT make sure you have gluten in your system when you get tested or else it won't show up that you are intolerant.
Ok, now, if you are gluten intolerant here are some things to know. Gluten is everywhere. But be grateful that if you do have this intolerance that you have it now in 2012 and not 10 years ago or even 5 years ago. There are so many gluten free options now. They are more expensive because they can't just use cheap flower to make them. They also have to make them and process gluten free products in a gluten free facility which costs companies money.
Soy sauce and Asian type sauces. Like I mentioned earlier, soy sauce has wheat in it. Most stores don't sell gluten free soy sauce, but just look on the label. I drive 45mins to a Good Earth store where they have tons of gluten free foods when I want to get soy sauce! They brand that I know that is gluten free is San-J. I'm sure they will be selling it in most stores eventually. They best gluten free bread in my opinion is Udi's.
Food Labels. On any food label it will tell you of all food allergies. Not the nutrient label, but the full list of ingredients. It will tell you below the ingredient label "Food Allergies." It will say things like, "Contains wheat." "May contain flour." "May contain wheat." "Processed on equipment or in a facility that also handles wheat." I avoid products that say any of these things because I have gotten more sensitive to gluten.
Macey's, a grocery store in Utah where I live, has a pretty wide selection of gluten free foods. One in the back corner near the milk and another in the freezer section that has the Udi's bread and the frozen pizzas and the frozen desserts. Also, since gluten free foods are more expensive, Macey's has a card that you can get by going up to the customer service desk and asking for their gluten free card. This card will get you $5 off your purchase every time you spend $25 on gluten free items. And that is really easy to do. A lot of products now say "gluten free" when they are so people don't have to search the label so hard. And it will most of the time be written in bold.
Soups. Campbells soups have gluten, a lot of Progresso soups are gluten free and they say on the front and on the back of the label.
Italian sauces. Classico is a good brand and I think all of them are gluten free.
Most of you know I use Isagenix products. And Isagenix has really helped me a lot! It's so annoying that I can't just eat something fast anymore. And that I have to buy special things now. But, Isagenix has made it easier for me to not have to worry about making so many meals. I can quickly make a shake or grab a bar and I am good to go. I don't have to think about whether it's gluten free or not. Well, two of the four Isagenix bars are gluten free and it happens to be my two favorite flavors! :) And I know I am getting the nutrients and vitamins and the energy I need everyday. Especially now since you are going to be eliminating a lot of things from your diet since you are living gluten free, Isagenix would be good to look at. It will do so much good for you!
http://isamovie.com/AreYouToxic.html
Call me if you have any other questions about gluten or Isagenix!
Kimberly Cozzens
435-938-8540
