Gluten is a mixture of two proteins called gliadin and glutenin that is found in grains such as wheat, barley, rye, and a cross between wheat and rye called triticale. Oats can also be harmful due to cross contamination when farms rotate their oat crop with other crops such as barley. When someone has a sensitivity, intolerance, or allergy to gluten, it can trigger skin, respiratory, or gastrointestinal reactions. For those living with celiac disease, consuming gluten creates an immune response causing damage within the intestines, preventing them from absorbing vital nutrients.
Aside from food, gluten can also be found in a number of other types of products:
Living a gluten-free lifestyle means eliminating all products containing and derived from wheat, barley, and rye from your diet. Transitioning to a gluten-free diet may seem overwhelming at first but gaining the knowledge of how you can replace the ingredients you are used to as opposed to focusing on what you cannot have any more will make it a much easier process.
If gluten is no longer part of your diet, here are a variety of alternative ingredients that you can use:
